Tennessee Pride Sausage Grave

Odom’s Tennessee Pride Country Sausage has been a Southern breakfast staple since its founding in 1943. Company founder Douglas Odom Sr., a butcher by trade, began crafting sausage in his backyard using a simple recipe of select pork cuts, sage, and pepper. His flavorful, old-fashioned country sausage quickly gained popularity, leading to the creation of Odom’s Tennessee Pride, a brand recognized nationwide for its signature taste and nostalgic packaging featuring a young boy in overalls and a wide-brimmed hat.

While the sausage is widely available today, the legacy of Mr. Odom is forever tied to his Tennessee roots. He and his family are laid to rest in Spring Hill Cemetery in Nashville, not far from the company’s original site in Madison, Tennessee. The Odom family graves are flanked by a statue of the Tennessee Pride mascot—the boy in overalls. The statue serves as a charming reminder of the company’s origins and pays fitting tribute to a man who transformed a small, local endeavor into a beloved brand now synonymous with hearty breakfasts and Southern hospitality.

Though the company changed hands in the 2000s, Odom’s original recipe remains central to every package of Tennessee Pride sausage. For fans of the brand, a visit offers a tangible connection to the humble beginnings and enduring legacy of Douglas Odom Sr. and the family business that continues to thrive today.