VIRGINIA CENTURY FARM PROGRAM HITS 1,200 MILESTONE
The number of Virginia Century Farms has passed the 1,200 mark. As of March 31, 2012, the program had recognized a total of 1,201 farms since the Virginia General Assembly established it in 1997. The Century Farm program honors the commitment and contributions of farm families who have owned and worked their farms for 100 years or more. It is administered by the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS).
“The Century Farm program recognizes and pays tribute to those farmers whose continuing efforts have formed the backbone of the Commonwealth for more than 400 years,” said VDACS Commissioner Matthew J. Lohr. “These are the people who have made agriculture Virginia’s leading industry with an annual economic impact of $55 billion. I am a fifth generation farmer and my family’s farm is a Century Farm. We take great pride in that heritage.”
Century Farms are located across the state in 95 counties and cities. A current list of farms is available at www.vdacs.virginia.gov/century.
To qualify as a Virginia Century Farm, applicants must meet these criteria: the farm must have been owned by the same family for at least one hundred consecutive years; the farm must be lived on, or actually farmed by, a descendant of the original owner; and the farm must gross more than $2,500 annually from the sale of agricultural products. If the farm does not gross over $2,500 in the sale of farm products, it still may qualify if it is used for a bona fide silvicultural purpose. This includes growing, tending or protecting trees for the purpose of eventually producing income or financial benefit.
Century Farm families receive a certificate of recognition and an 11x17- inch aluminum sign for exterior display. Application forms are available from VDACS by calling 804.786.1346; by mailing a request to Century Farm, VDACS, P.O. Box 1163, Richmond, VA 23218; accessing the website listed above; or e- mailing kevin.schmidt@vdacs.virginia.gov. There is no fee to apply and no charge for the first sign; additional signs are $25 each..
(NOTE TO EDITORS: Below are the names of the latest additions to the Virginia Century Farm program.)
Virginia Century Farms Added August 2010 to March 2012
See a complete list of all Century Farms at www.vdacs.virginia.gov/century.
| New Century Farms from August 2010 to March 2012 | |||
| County | Farm Name | Current Owner(s) | |
| Alleghany | Pleasant Valley Farm | Mrs. Pauline E. Nicely, Mr. Mark R. Nicely, Mr. Sidney M. | |
| Nicely, and Mrs. Nancy N. Lee | |||
| Appomattox | Blue Jay Haven Farm | Mr. and Mrs. Warren G. Crews |
| Augusta | Big Rock Dairy | Mrs. Kathleen L. Simmons |
| Augusta | Flowing Springs Farm | Mr. William L. Bowman |
| Augusta | Pine Top Farm | Mrs. Mary Stout |
| Augusta | R. L. Moore Homestead | Ms. Margie Moore, Mr. Larry Moore and Mr. Sam Arey |
| Augusta | Rollerdale Farm | Mr. and Mrs. O.B. Roller |
| Augusta | The Bashaw Farm | Mr. William Lorenza Bashaw, III |
| Bedford | Woodlawn | Dr. John Thomas Wyatt Reed, II; and Mr. Michael Wyatt |
| Read | ||
| Botetourt | Highland Grove | Mr. Collins D. Craft, and Mrs. Jean R. Craft |
| Botetourt | Jeter Farm | Mr. Ned Jeter |
| Brunswick | Jones Farm | Mrs. Beatrice Brown |
| Campbell | Melrose Bison Farm | Mr. Thomas W. Morris |
| Campbell | The Jones Farm | Mr. and Mrs. Charles F. Jones |
| Carroll | Utt Farm | Mr. Robert (Bobby) Jefferson Utt |
| Charlotte | Cub Creek Farm | Mr. and Mrs. Troy A. and Wendy B. Elder |
| Charlotte | Elm Shade | Mrs. Juanita Giles |
| Chesapeake | J.R. Lehman and Sons | Mr. and Mrs. J.R. Lehman, Jr. |
| (City) | ||
| Fauquier | Redwood Farm | Mrs. Mildred Gulick Riddell |
| Franklin | Bow-knott Dairy Farm | Mr. and Mrs. Basil G. Boitnott, C. Dale Boitnott |
| Frederick | Lineburg Minebank Farm | Mr. and Mrs. Wayne Z. and Sharon K. Lineburg, Mrs. |
| Kimberly Black, Mrs. Kristi Rowsell and Mrs. Kathy | ||
| Ritenour | ||
| Grayson | Phipps Hollow Farm | Ms. Mary Lou P. Phipps |
| Halifax | Alpine Place | Mrs. Gayle Priest Conner |
| Halifax | Emanual Freeman Jr. and | co-owners great grandchildren |
| William Freeman Estate | ||
| Halifax | Emanuel Freeman Sr. | great, great grandchildren |
| Estate | ||
| Henrico | Colonial Acres Farm LLC | Mr. Reginald H. Nelson, IV; and Mrs. Phyllis G. Nelson |
| Highland | Pleasant Brook Farms | Mr. Clarence J. Brock, and Mrs. Phyllis H. Brock |
| Isle of Wight | The J. B. Harris Farm | Mr. T.G. Nelson, Jr. |
| Isle of Wight | The J.J. Crocker Homeplace | Mr. Thomas G. Nelson, Jr. |
| Lee | Elkins Sandy Spring Farm | Mr. Roger Elkins, and Mrs. Marta Elkins |
| Loudoun | Montcalm Farm | Mr. John Duncan Marsh |
| Louisa | Ceresco | Mr. W.C. Taylor |
| Lunenburg | Lunenburg Landscapes | Mr. John G. Hurt |
| Lunenburg | Rock Haven Farm | Ms. Virginia H. Wilson |
| Madison | Lohr-Mallory Farm | A. Colin Mallory |
| Montgomery | Morris Farm | Mr. Clyde R. Morris, and Mrs. Dean R. Morris |
| Northampton | Smiling Hill Farm | Mr. Floyd L. Smith, Jr. |
| Page | Longs Bend Farm | Mr. & Mrs. Kenneth E. and Alice B. Fisher |
| Patrick | B. H. Cooper Farm | Dr. Sally T. Rodgers, Ms. Ruth T Dickerson and Ms. Mary |
| Sue Terry | ||
| Prince George | Burrow Farm | Mrs. Lillian H. Burrow |
| Rockbridge | Rapp Farm | Dr. and Mrs. James S. Parsons |
| Rockingham | Granview | Mr. and Mrs. Edward L. Strickler, and Mrs. Rebecca |
| Strickler Tate |
| Rockingham | Holsinger Homeplace Farms | Mr. and Mrs. James J. Holsinger |
| Russell | 3C Livestock | Mr. Robert D. Crabtree |
| Russell | Lyttle Farm of Copper Ridge | Mr. Jim Lyttle, Ms. Sherry Lyttle and Ms. Shiloh Lyttle |
| Russell | Skeen Farm | Mr. George Skeen, Mr. John Skeen and Mr. Larry Skeen |
| Russell | Smith Farm | Mr. Christopher P. McDonald |
| Scott | Fugate Farms | Mr. Charles William Fugate |
| Scott | Fugate Farms | Dr. and Mrs. J.E. and Donna Fugate |
| Shenandoah | Swover Creek Farms | Mrs. Jessica F. Rush |
| Smyth | Anderson Farm | Mr. Carson Anderson |
| Smyth | Cluster Springs Farm | Mr. Thomas J. Cox, Mr. David W. Cox, Mr. Kenneth R. |
| Cox, and Mr. Michael S. Cox | ||
| Southampton | Burgess Farm | J.H. Lee and Sons, Inc. |
| Southampton | Gillette Farm | Mr. Larry W. Whitley and W. Group LLC |
| Southampton | James R. Holloman Farm | Mrs. Jane Holloman Vick, and Mr. Terry L Holloman |
| Southampton | Turner Farm | Mrs. Marie Beale Turner |
| Suffolk | The Morgan Farm | Mr. Clifton M. Carr |
| Suffolk (City) | Grady Gardner Farm | Mrs. Mary H. Gardner, and Mrs. Myrtle G. Eason |
| Suffolk (City) | Seth Howell Farm | Mr. Burke H. Howell, and Mrs. Myrtle G. Eason |
| Surry | Appel Farm | Mrs. Frances L. Appel |
| Surry | Pecan Knoll | Mr. Thomas L. Judkins |
| Sussex | Silver Hill | Mr. and Mrs. Curtis Wayne Owen |
| Westmoreland | Cedar Hill Farm | Mr. and Mrs. Richard E. Wilkins |
| Westmoreland | Monrovia Farm | Mr. and Mrs. H. Shirley and Joan S. Powell |
Elaine Lidholm
Director of Communications
Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
102 Governor Street
Richmond VA 23227
804.786.7686