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Attraction: Century Farms
Posted by: Jenifer C Grove
When someone asks you the question: Do you know who your neighbors are?
What do you think of? It seems as though this has become a question that makes you become curious or worried because the person living in your neighborhood could be a person who has been deemed as a “bad” person through the legal system. The media has given us several different sources to find out information regarding our neighbors criminal history. Now that we all have access to search sources that have been publicly announced I think we should look at the question differently.
Do you know who your neighbors are? Next time you ask, are asked or just wonder yourself, think about this. Has the same family lived there for 100 years or more?
You would be surprised the number of us who could answer that with a yes. The Missouri Committee for Agriculture has made it possible for those properties to be recognized. The Missouri Century Farm program's history dates back to 1976 as a result from the Missouri Committee for Agriculture. The committees purpose was to organize the American Revolution Bicentennial celebration in Missouri. One activity that was initiated was the “Centennial Farm” project which awarded certificates to persons owning farms for that had been in the same family for 100 years or more.
In 1976 a total of 2,850 Missouri farm owners in 105 counties of 114 Missouri counties were recognized. Since 1987, an additional 3,306 farms have been recognized. This program has been sustained as a yearly event with over 100 farms recognized every year. Since Missouri began the program in 1976, more than 7,000 Century Farms have been recognized.
To qualify, farms must meet the following guidelines. The same family must have owned the farm for 100 consecutive years or more. The line of ownership from the original settler or buyer may be through children, grandchildren, siblings, and nephews or nieces, including through marriage or adoption. The farm must be at least 40 acres of the original land acquisition and make a financial contribution to the overall farm income.
Webster county alone has fifty one Missouri Century Farms, with Greene County having ninety four, as listed on the University of Missouri Extension website. According to www.city-data.com the average size of a farm in Webster County 163 acres and the average value of agriculture products sold per farm is $31,471. The average age of a principal farm operator is stated as being 54 years old. The site mentioned above has recorded that in all combined farm acreage in Webster County 454 acres are harvested in corn, 1135 acres all wheat for grain, 30 acres in soybeans, 51 acres in vegetables and 56 acres in orchards.
As you are traveling your many miles up and down the roads working it would be interesting to know how many of the Century Farms you pass and either didn't notice they were there or saw them but didn't know the meaning of the sign in front of the property. It is also fun to see if you can guess where the listed crops are grown without driving by. Just make a list of a few of the farms you have either driven by or driven on and I would bet you will be able to add up all the acreages in Webster County, what is grown there and possibly who owns the land. I think everyone will be surprised at how many people we know and how familiar we really are with every city street and every gravel road in our own county.
By the number of families that have been able to maintain ownership of the same land for over 100 years this shows us that families and communities can stay strong. Through the media we are often t old of business failures, government challenges, domestic violence and homeowners losing there home to bankruptcy and foreclosure. The Century Farm program is one way to show that Missouri has had and continues to maintain a strong foundation.
According to the US Census Bureau, Webster County has a total of 594 square miles. If each farm had to have a minimum of 40 acres of the original land and you multiply that by the fifty one farms that have received certificates as a Century Farm in Webster County that would mean that at least 2,040 acres of Webster County is farm land that has not changed ownership in over 100 years.
During uncertain times we should reflect on the things in our lives that have proven to be certain. They may not be close by and you may not go there often , but they are still there. They may not be related to you by blood or marriage but related simply by life experiences. They are there. Family and Community.
For more information about Missouri Century Farms contact:
Andy Emerson, Missouri Century Farm Coordinator
emersona@mis souri.edu
Filed under: [FYI] |
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