Farm News

JULY 2021



MAY 2021

I hope you all are getting excited about our virtual conference that will be here before we know it. The schedules for Thursday and Saturday include environment and agriculture topics.

In preparation for the upcoming virtual conferences check out the link below to see what “agriculture” topics are being delivered during ALHFAM 2021. Some will have pre-recorded presentations that you can listen to as your time allows. This includes contributions by Barb Corson and Cozette Griffin-Kremer, and then you can be prepared for getting the most out of the Q&A opportunity with them on Saturday, June 12. Full details are available here. If anyone has any sessions they want to draw to the attention of the FARM PIG, please shout them out.

You can watch our conference trailer here.

We will soon host our annual FARM PIG meeting.  I’ll be sending out the meeting agenda to all FARM members, the meeting date.  If you have anything that you would like to have on the agenda, please let me know.  One item of note, I will be stepping down as Chair of the FARM PIG this year, so we’ll need to elect a new leader.  More to come on this later.

The deadline for submissions to the virtual plowing match was May 10. The judges have been collecting these submissions and will work to select the winners by the conference. For more information.

Update from Colonial Williamsburg Historic Farming: Ed Schultz has increased the variety of crops grown in the demonstration plot in town called Prentis Field (the Historic Farming trade moved to this location from Great Hopes Plantation in 2017). The crops include Scot Bere barley, Red May wheat, Gourdseed corn, Venezuelan tobacco (which is a close look-a-like of the 18th century Orinoco), and flax. If anyone would like seed from these varieties please let Ed know. A new variety of cotton is being developed that is a black smooth seed type. It is called “Wayne Randolph cotton” after the longtime Historic Farmer at CW who began the project. Seed selection is in its seventh year and the hope is for a consistently smooth black seed with prolific boll production. This will take a while!

Speed the Plow! Jim Lauderdale

MARCH 2021

Historic Wagner Farm, Glenview Illinois; honored with state award by Illinois Parks and Recreation Association (IPRA): Outstanding Program or Special Event Award: Historic Wagner Farm-Feeding Glenview initiative

This award honors public agencies for outstanding and unique achievements in program development and implementation and special event planning. 

Historic Wagner Farm has long connected Glenview residents to their agricultural past and served as a community fixture. Last summer, in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, Historic Wagner Farm returned to its roots as a full-time working farm. This new initiative, called Feeding Glenview, shifted the farm’s mission from providing public programming to food production.  By the end of the program the farmers market saw close to 20,000 people without incident. Historic Wagner Farm donated more than 600 dozen eggs and 1,600 lbs of fruits and vegetables to the Northfield Township Food Pantry. It produced enough fruits and vegetables to fill 30 CSA baskets a week for 16 weeks and more than 5,300 lbs. of beef, pork, lamb, chicken and turkey sold through local markets. Through “Feeding Glenview”, Historic Wagner Farm connected the community with food and kindness. This is what made this program a success.


FEBRUARY 2021

Contact:  Bob Powell – Head Judge                                                         

               Jim Lauderdale – FARM Chair

       

ALHFAM’s First Virtual Plowing Match

ALHFAM will hold their first Virtual Plowing Match for the 2021 Conference, hosted by the FARM Professional Interest Group. This event is meant to be fun and is designed for any ALHFAM member, however experienced.  Acknowledging that entrants will come from different sites with different resources, the judges will endeavor to take into account entrants’ ground, ability and equipment; including the type of plow used and the plowing for which it was intended. 

Each entrant should plow an ideally level plot of no less than 50 feet but, if possible, should aim for a minimum of 100 feet or 30 meters in length. There is no maximum length of plot but the same rules will apply.

The judges will award a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Place winner in each category: Oxen Beginner; Oxen Experienced; Equine-assisted Beginner; Equine-assisted Experienced; Equine-Unassisted; and Tractor. The winners will be announced and edited clips from the 1st Place winners’ submissions will be presented during the virtual conference.  Ribbons, purchased by the FARM PIG, will be distributed at a later date.

The FARM PIG would like to encourage participation in this match by as many members as possible.  If you are an Institutional Member interested in hosting members who are not attached to a site with draft animals, tractor, plow, land, or the necessary equipment, please email Jim Lauderdale. Likewise, members without said animals and equipment may contact the former, who will attempt to match interested members with host sites. Individual Members must comply with all operating policies of the Institutional Member site.

All entries should be submitted by May 10, 2021 and should be sent HERE.

The judges have developed a document to provide members with guidance about match submissions for draft animal and tractor entrants.

Questions about plowing entries may be directed to Bob Powell.


JANUARY 2021

Happy New Year to all of us FARMers!  Here are some updates that we have for you in January.

 

Christine Heinrichs sent an article on historic poultry breeds as documented in art. Thanks to print-on-demand technology, prints are now available at reasonable prices

 

A presentation about Draft Animals in the 21st Century will be delivered by Claus Kropp during a virtual conference May 8-9, 2021. For more information: view the poster, virtual archive document, and YouTube video

 

Finally, the Virtual Plowing Match for this year’s ALHFAM Conference is really taking shape.  This virtual plowing match is being organized by the FARM PIG.  Judges for the match will be Bob Powell, Head Judge, Rob Flory, Ed Schultz, Randy Kvill, and Cliff Jones.    Rob Flory will also be shooting an instructional video that will highlight what entrants to the match should submit, (Coming Soon).  I’ll also be working with our Webmaster, Deb Arenz, to setup a portal where the video submissions may be sent on the website. 

As always, if you have news to share with other FARMers, you can send an email to FARM Co-Chair Jim Lauderdale

DECEMBER 2020

Howdy FARMers,

I was saddened to read the email from President, Susan Reckseidler regarding the conference, but not surprised.  I support the board and conference committee’s decision to plan a virtual conference.  Making the announcement now gives the participants ample opportunity to plan. 

I’ve said all that to make the following announcement.  The FARM Professional Interest Group plans to host a virtual plowing match in 2021.  I’m working with FARM hall-of-famers Ed Schultz and Pete Watson, as well as, our fabulous colleague Claus Kropp to develop the parameters for this experience (many thanks to Claus for making the suggestion). 

This is tentatively how the match will work: Participants record a plowing session following a set of rules (perspective of the video, how many furrows, etc.) and submit to a link on the website, by a deadline well in advance of the conference. The videos will be reviewed and judges will determine if the submission can be accepted.  Once a decision has been reached by the judges, the videos can be edited for content. During the conference, we will broadcast the prerecorded plowing sessions and have live discussions with the judges and publicly declare a winner.

Always remember, though folks take the match seriously when they put their hands on the plow, it was created and sustained to bring attention to Historic Farming in ALHFAM and it is meant to be fun! I hope you will take the opportunity to record and submit your own plowing session and look forward to developing this opportunity more fully in the coming months. 

Speed the plow,

Jim Lauderdale

ALHFAM FARM PIG Co-Chair / STP Committee Liaison


NOVEMBER 2020

Hello all! Thank you for visiting the FARM PIG page of the website.  We have a couple of reports from FARM members. 

 

Corinne Gordon, Carter Historic Farm, writes to us, “we donated 1,300 pounds of produce to a local food pantry over the summer. We’re planning to expand the gardens next year, as well, to be able to donate more.  I haven’t discussed canning/otherwise cooking things before we donate them, but as of now I don’t really feel like our staff size would allow.  We’re considering donating some of our grains once they’re milled, but we’re still in the process of harvesting our first year’s crop and   don’t have a good grasp on what will be coming back from the mill. (The mill is the Ludwig Mill, an old water powered mill in the Toledo Metropark system, which is nifty!)”

 

Ben Baumgartner from Barrington Plantation SHS, writes to say, “Used oxen to plow and harrow winter wheat field last week, sowed 1/8 acre hard red winter wheat.  Hosted about 50 people for a socially-distanced special meal event, Plough to Plate, with historically inspired dishes and a 1850’s period string/banjo/guitar band.”

 

Ed Schultz, a member of ALHFAM’s Skills Training and Preservation (STP) Committee, is interested in hearing from you on topics that you would like to see for workshops. Contact him with your ideas.

 

Cozette Griffin, AIMA, writes, “We invite you to join AIMA on Nov 14th 2020 for our first virtual symposium. As many of our members and we as an organization had to adapt and adjust to the ongoing crisis and its challenges, we would like to share our experiences with a wider public.

Register now for the conference as there is a only a limited number of participants possible. The conference will feature presentations from all around the globe including a keynote by Susan Reckseidler (the current President of ALHFAM) with the title “One Step at a Time: Re-Imagining Re-Opening During Covid-19”. A more detailed schedule will be published in the upcoming days.

 

Finally, I hope you have taken some time to view some of the short films produced for ALHFAM by Look Around You Ventures.  If not, visit this link to see them. If you or an historic site, historic house museum, or living history museum you’ve visited have good historic stories that deserve a wider audience, please contact the ALHFAM liasion to LAYV, Jim Lauderdale for more details on how to get involved in this partnership with LAYV.

 

As always, if you have news to share with other FARMers, you can send an email to FARM Co-Chair Jim Lauderdale

 

Have a great November.


SEPTEMBER 2020


A couple of notes that might interest FARM members:
 
Here  is one item of interest from the International Agricultural Museums Association (AIMA) 
 
Follow-up on the video on logging with oxen, our friends in the German oxdrivers’ working group has gone one better and put all the series up on their own website , in case you want to see the rest.

As always, if you have information to share, send me an email. Jim Lauderdale. 


AUGUST 2020

It is hard to believe August is here already.  Many have been unable to do a lot of historic farming this year, while others have shifted from farming for public demonstration to farming to feed their community.  Here are a couple of updates for you from FARM members. 
 
Ben Baumgartner from Barrington Plantation in Washington, Texas writes, “COVID-19 : Barrington open for visitors with limited capacity, and we are following Governor’s orders on mask wearing.  Crops: 1/4 acre of Corn (White Virginia Gourdseed, 18th century) finished in early July, then pulled corn blade fodder. Drying ears left on stalk and will be pulled in mid-August, looks to be a good crop! It will be shelled and taken to a mill to be ground. ¼ acre of Cotton (Lonestar, 1906) doing very well (over 5’ tall in some places), bolls began opening mid-July, will continue picking through the first freeze, looks to be a good crop as well!
 
Cozette with AIMA sends us a special report you can see here. The report includes:

    • Curatorial Work during Covid-19 at The Henry Ford
    • Rural Women’s Studies Association Congress 2021 goes digital
    • AIMA blog posts – come BEE with us (and seeds are coming)
    • What are the bees doing while the Alsace Ecomuseum is closed? The EMA goes on with public education
    • Making hay while the sun shines at Lauresham Open-air Laboratory, Kloster Lorsch (DE)
    • owell Living History Farm is MAKING history, not re-enacting it
    • Museums Galleries Scotland provides emergency funding to over 30 sites
    • ALHFAM 2020 Virtual Annual Meeting & 2021 Conference
    • Guild of Model Wheelwrights (a modeler in lockdown)
    • Lauresham Digital Conference Report: “Experiencing Experimental Archaeology”
    • AIMA Virtual Information Booth
    •  EXARC in action
  • If you missed last month’s eUpdate, the FARM PIG Information Sheets page now includes a link to a google document, created by Erin Bentley, to provide seed resources to members of PIG. The intention of this document is so members can add seeds that they may be growing at their sites in order to share them with others. It is organized with tabs to include:

  •     
    • Grains
    • Vegetables/Greens
    • Fruits
    • Herbs
    • Cash Crops
    • Flowers 

    Finally, many of us have been working to reach our audience virtually since we have not always been able to do so in person.  ALHFAM has created a Members Video Page (MVP) where you can link the home page for any video platform you may use.  Consider submitting your video page/channel for inclusion! Fill out the form at this link.

     

    As always, if you have information to share, send me an email. Jim Lauderdale. 

    JULY 2020

    The FARM PIG Information Sheets page now includes a link to a google document, created by Erin Bentley, to provide seed resources to members of PIG. The intention of this document is so members can add seeds that they may be growing at their sites in order to share them with others. It is organized with tabs to include:

    • Grains
    • Vegetables/Greens
    • Fruits
    • Herbs
    • Cash Crops
    • Flowers  

    JUNE 2020

    Debra Reid shared details for the Michigan Historic Preservation Network Webinar:

    June 11, 1-2:30 pm eastern  time - workshop focuses on Agricultural resources, National Trust for Historic Preservation resources to support the cause and a focus on Michigan agricultural resources (but it could apply to other states).  For more info on the MHPN, see: https://www.mhpn.org/workshops/

    Workshops – Michigan Historic Preservation Network. These workshops are designed to educate historic home owners and commercial building owners on the benefits of historic preservation. The participants will gain a profound understanding of restoration techniques and methods, at the same time, discovering invaluable ways to save money.  www.mhpn.org

    Ed Schultz shared the Historic Farming Trade at Colonial Williamsburg has kicked into gear to provide food for families in the community during this pandemic. The plot in town called “Prentis Field” will still grow corn, cotton and tobacco, but also sweet potatoes and lots of pumpkins. The gardens (not fields) at Great Hopes Plantation are in full production for the effort. The goal is provide close to a ton of food to the community through this effort.

    Claus Kropp and his work site did a digital conference two weeks ago and he presented their work with draft oxen twice, once in German with English sub-titles, once in English with German sub-titles (and quoted Ed and Pete).  Here are the links he shared: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzwaITArGzo&list=PLUzvtLm28tFz14WqS2IRVGgeGupGcMK_Y&index=31  Here is another short clip we did on the training of our draft cattle (in this case in german with english subs)

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75Mgs-r_VK8&list=PLUzvtLm28tFz14WqS2IRVGgeGupGcMK_Y&index=11.

    Rob Flory shared, “Since we have been closed to the public and aren't busy with programming, we have made an extra farming effort to grow food for the community.  In addition, we have been bartering surplus feed grain crops for processed edible commodities like rolled oats, corn meal, and flour.  Thus far 1.5 tons of those commodities have been donated, in addition to 100 dozen eggs.  10 fleeces have been processed into yarn for knitting into hats, scarves, and mittens for donation.  We have planted our usual plot of potatoes for donation, a project we have done for over 30 years.  We have also planted an equal area of 3/8 acre in vegetable crops for donation. The kitchen garden was planted in 130 cabbages and an additional plot of potatoes.   Reflecting our lack of some modern infrastructure like a walk-in cooler, fairly rugged crops were selected.  Planting in the market garden was completed the last week of May and included paste tomatoes, collards, snap beans, sweet potatoes, onions, cucumbers, okra, cabbage(2nd crop), bell peppers, and jalapeño peppers. Farming continues as usual to produce the crops needed for the sustenance of our livestock, and for the programs that we hope we will be running in some form as the year moves on.  Some more details and photos on howellfarm.com.”

    Finally, the FARM PIG will have a Zoom meeting to replace our annual meeting, but the date and time for this has not been announced.  I’ll send emails and post on the ALHFAM Historic Farming Facebook page when the details have been determined. 

    As always, if you have FARM news to share please email FARM Co-Chair, Jim Lauderdale at  Jim Lauderdale.

    MAY 2020

    As many states are beginning to re-open, historical FARMers are looking ahead to the remainder of this year and many have plans they want to share with you. 

    Ben Baumgartner, Barrington Plantation State Historic Site shared:

    Plowing/field prep was March 14-15th.  Corn and cotton planting done the week following, closed due to COVID on the 25th.  Winter wheat- growing Russian Beardless(hard red, late 1800's), was plowed, harrowed, broadcast and harrowed in by all ox power, no modern equipment in November, beginning to mature, likely will be ready for reaping in a couple of weeks. Corn- Virginia Gourdseed (white dent, 18th century).  Plowed, harrowed, and marked check-rows with combo of ox and horse power. (Done the weekend before we closed) Hand planted with period planting device. Now that we've been closed, we only have had one staff member at a time, animal cultivation not feasible. Been using a modern gas tiller to clean across and down the check-rows. Also experimenting with a pre-emergent for invasive grasses (chemical applied by maintenance team). Will pick up with single ox cultivation when we reopen (next week likely).  Cotton- Lone Star (1906, earliest white cotton available, grows like the older varieties) Plowed, harrowed, and ridged same weekend as corn field with oxen and draft horses (horses from a volunteer group). Planted by hand by staff the week before we closed (early for cotton, but for multiple reasons, including potential COVID shutdown, I wanted to have it done.) As cotton has come up, cultivation has been with the tiller during the shutdown, will be ox work only after reopening. In addition to tilling, hand hoe work still required around plants, this has been done by staff one by one, will continue when we reopen.  Gardens have been maintained with hand hoes, one staff member at a time.

    Jay Templin, Supervisor, James Fort shared:

    At Jamestown Settlement and the American Revolution Museum at Yorktown, we've had staff going in to care for the poultry daily. One person at a time, so social distancing isn't a problem, but we've still lost almost half of our flock of Red Dorkings at Jamestown. Mostly it's predation - we closed just as the annual hawk migration was getting started- but one was natural causes.  When we initially thought we'd be closed to the public but still allowed to work on site, we started a bunch of seeds. When we were shut down, one of my staff took the seedlings home and took care of them. We  fought for permission to maintain the agricultural programs so that when we do reopen, there will be something for our visitors to see, so I have been able to assign a couple of folks to plant and tend the gardens and crops. There are some challenges - the deer are getting as bold as Barbary apes, and we've had wild turkeys in the fields at Jamestown, which has never happened in living memory. Our tobacco for both museums has traditionally come as seedlings from Virginia Tech, but this year we have started a bunch from seed in case that falls through. So all in all, it could be a whole lot worse for us. Hope everyone else is doing as well as can be expected.

    Philip Andras, Historic Longstreet Farm shared:

    Longstreet Farm has been closed to the public since mid-March.  We are bringing in just enough staff to take care of the livestock and that has made it difficult to keep up with our agricultural work.  To make up the lost manpower, we have been using tractors to till and prep the soil on our larger fields.  To keep our draft teams exercised, we are still using them to prepare our smaller plots and will use them to cultivate our row crops.  Our goal is to keep our livestock healthy and grow our crops as we would any other year; all other projects are being rescheduled or the completion goal is being pushed later into the year.  When we open to the public, we still want our visitors to see a wheat field and a threshing demo, 12' tall dent corn, inquire about what is growing in our kitchen garden, and to be able to participate in our potato harvest in August.  One of the silver linings to this situation is that, during the day, we have been allowing our sheep to graze the main farm yard areas around the barns and farmhouse.  It has been fun to see the spring lambs run and play through the yard while we are working.

    Cozette Kremer, International Association of Agricultural Museums (AIMA) shared:

    This is not pertinent for all of you, but I just read a long article in The Guardian (a UK newspaper that is now entirely online, as well) that the US livestock industry is obligated to “depopulate” millions of animals, especially chickens, because the slaughterhouse employes are ill and that is a total bottleneck in the flow chart. Tyson, the big guy of chicken, has called it a total breakdown and I wonder if there is not a partial famine on the horizon for many people in poor households in the US.  I always look at what comes through from the ALHFAM and hope to have more time later on to participate more. Will send you the AIMA report on how people are “coping with crisis” a bit later on. Hope to bring it out early next week. Thanks for all you do.

    Jonathan Kuester, Historic Wagner Farm shared:

    I have big plans coming out of my site in the near future.  We are shut down until at least the end of May and have been told to cancel all programming for the rest of the year but in the meantime we are growing food for our community and plan to produce enough food to feed 50+ families for the next 5 months.  It will take me a while to get the specifics out so it may miss this go around but I will try to have details for you by the middle of next week.

    Pete Watson, Howell Living History Farm shared:

    It's been 37 years since we've plowed, planted and harvested our fields without school children, families and other visitors at our side, watching, helping and learning. This year we're in those fields with only our horses, our tools, and our thoughts. The latter tell us to do everything we can to keep our plows in the ground.  With our Park Commission's blessing, we've committed to using our experience, skills and resources to producing as much food and fiber as we can, to give to local food banks, food pantries and soup kitchens helping those in need.  Today we were able to send 150 bags of cornmeal, 200 bags of oatmeal, 20 dozen eggs and a dozen skeins of yarn to one of our community's 90 food pantries. Many of the recipients are elderly people who, after using their social security checks to pay for housing, have less than $120 a month for food, clothing and other essentials. Two weeks ago, one of them sent us back a thank you, along with a recipe from their family's cookbook. We will treasure it forever.

    Jim Lauderdale, Fort Nisqually Living History Museum shared:

    The museum has been closed to the public since March 14.  Over the next two weeks, staff were able to continue caring for the garden and livestock.  On April 1, eleven museum staff (3/4 of our staff) were laid off due to the financial impacts of COVID-19.  Two weeks later, three of our four remaining staff were furloughed.  Since April 19, there has been one staff person going about “essential” duties which includes animal care and customer service seven days a week.  The gardens and fruit trees are getting watered, but no real weeding or planting has occurred.  We remain optimistic we’ll be able to begin bringing staff back in June. 

    Also, One of ALHFAM’s international members, Claus Kropp, is conducting a draft animal survey and has asked for our help.  I am forwarding the email he sent, as a web inquiry, to all FARM PIG members in hopes that some will take the time to reply to his email. Please take a moment to review and respond to his email.  I have asked him to provide us with the final results so we might post it to the FARM PIG resource page for future reference. 

    I am working on an overview on the topic of draft cattle in (Archaeological) Open-Air Museums and Living History Farms worldwide. I recently gave a lecture about this topic and as a result, I want to conduct a survey. I want to evaluate the following questions: 

    1. How many draft cattle do you keep (male,female, breed)? 

    2. For what purposes do you use your animals (just showing the breed; agriculture; in the forest etc.; community service, skill training)? 

    3. How do you house the animals (on site in historic context or in modern alternatives)? 

    4. What kind of harness do you use (yoke, 3pad-harness ...) and why? 

    5. How important are the draft cattle within your overall didactic concept and for the visitor experience?

    I would be happy if you would be willing to answer these questions and send the results to meIf doing so, I would also appreciate some pictures and a general info of the museum/farm you are using the draft cattle on.

    As always, you can follow what other ALHFAM FARMers are doing by following our ALHFAM Historic Farming Facebook page.  If you have news you would like to share, you may email it to FARM Co-Chair, Jim Lauderdale

    APRIL 2020

    I hope all of you are well and handling the changes to your daily routine as productively as possible during this pandemic.  Living history, farms and agricultural museums have all taken a hit, along with the rest of the country, during this health crisis.  The one thing I know for sure is we are a strong community and now is a great time to reach out to your ALHFAMily if you need help.  We exist to promote living history and historic farming, but along with that, we have established a culture supporting one another.  During this time, I would ask each of you to really consider sharing content on our ALHFAM Historic Farming Facebook page.  If you have something you are working on, remotely or otherwise, take photos or better yet video and share that to our Facebook page.  The use of social media has gone through the roof.  People are looking for distractions, which is one way to deal with the stress of the impact this is taking on us all.  Our good friend Ed Schultz also suggested we ask the questions, “How do you farm when you can't farm? What are the ways folks on Living History farms are adapting?”  If you have thoughts you want to share about those two questions, please do so.  While many of us are working remotely and practicing good social distancing, it’s important to remember we aren’t alone.  Take care, remember to get outside and put your hands in the dirt if you can.  It’s a great time to start some seeds indoors or transplant those that have already started them.  I look forward to seeing you all once this situation has been resolved.  Until then, be well!  As always, you can share your FARM related news with me at  Jim Lauderdale.

    MARCH 2020

    Spring is around the corner and I’m certainly excited for the changes I’m seeing all around.  Trees are beginning to leaf out, flowers are blooming and gardens are being prepared for planting.  Below are a few updates from FARM folks that we wanted to share.

    Phil Andras, Historic Longstreet Farm, says, “Longstreet Farm will be celebrating Ag Week on March 28.  We are offering a mix of educational and hands on programming including helping to plow a field and plant our kitchen garden, learn about keeping backyard chickens and livestock, and a meet and greet with a couple of local farmers who have been working the land in Monmouth County for over 40 years.”

    Lauren Muney, ALHFAM Skills Training and Preservation, reminds us that hands  on Skillclips instructions sessions will be held at both upcoming MAALHFAM and ALHFAM conferences.  Also, she wishes us to know how important it is to pass down historic farming knowledge, via video into our ALHFAM SkillClips Library.  You can gain more information about this and also how to make your own site-specific video library during these upcoming sessions.

    Deb Reid, The Henry Ford, shared there is one item deaccessioned from The Henry Ford  and looking for a good non-profit home: A Minneapolis Moline tractor, 1932. If interested, contact Debra Reid for additional information.

    Jim Slining, Tillers International, shares the following: I recently learned of a great resource from Fred van de Geer at the Museum of English Rural Life, Reading; “Guidlines for the Care of Larger and Working Objects”. It was published by the Association of British Transport and Engineering Museums (ABTEM), and is available as a pdf download hereIt is also available from ABTEM in print.

    Each month, I send out notices to FARM folks requesting information or sharing FARM related information.  If you would be interested in being added to this email list, please send your email address and any FARM related information for the monthly eUpdate to FARM Chair, Jim Lauderdale.

    FEBRUARY 2020

    Happy post Groundhog Day!  As you are probably aware, Punxsutawney Phil did not see his shadow on February 2, thus predicting an early spring.  I’ve always been interested in learning more about this weird tradition.  This year, I did what everyone else does when they have a question about something and Googled it.  I found a pretty interesting article from Time Magazine, https://time.com/4650202/groundhog-day-history-2/, that explained the origin of the tradition has roots in an early Christian celebration known as Candlemas Day.  Candlemas Day, on February 2, marks the midpoint between the winter solstice and spring equinox.  It’s on this day that priests would bless candles that would be utilized for the remainder of winter and distribute them to the people.  The article goes on to explain the superstition of an early spring or longer winter and how a groundhog got involved, so check out the article for yourself. 

    Dave Fowler reports, Hunter's Home received an Oklahoma Heritage Grant to purchase our starter flock of sheep.  The staff will be raising Merino, the same as the Murrell's did in the 1850s.  They have a year from May to complete the project and are very excited.  Dave complimented co-worker Jennifer Frazee saying, “she did a great job securing the funds for the project.”  Expanding public programming to include livestock is quite an undertaking, but can produce wonderful results with community audience.

    Lauren Muney, STP Committee Co-Chair, encourages the FARM folks to take advantage of listing skills workshops on the ALHFAM website, as the eUpdate and other publications are mentioning.  This opportunity will be forever hereafter, and available for all ALHFAM members of all levels, from individual to large institution, and all levels in-between. If there is a workshop of any type, please list it. Information on: https://alhfam.org/Skills-workshops

    Ed Schultz shares that a two-day Draft Horse workshop will occur at the Southeast Regional ALHFAM conference on February 21-22 in Dothan, Alabama. This is shaping up to be a fantastic immersive workshop that can extend one or two days. Full hands-on participation is encouraged. Everything will be covered from the horse to the harness to driving to plowing and more. Ed is working with the Horseman on this workshop. Contact him for more information

    Have a great month, be sure to vote for the ALHFAM Board positions, and as always you may contact your FARM co-chairs Jim Lauderdale and Phil Andras  if you want to include news or items of interest in the monthly eUpdate.

    JANUARY 2020

    Happy New Year!  The FARM PIG is happy to report that the final details of the Farmer’s Boot Camp at this year’s annual conference are almost complete.  The conference committee has decided to have a one day boot camp, (Sunday), focus on Cattle in three tracks (Dairy, Oxen and Haying) with a tentative cap of 18 participants (6 per track). This is for a couple of factors: transportation, overlap (foodways), and a lot of interest in staying in the city. We are going to look  to incorporate the themes of the other tracks in the site visit day (Horticulture, Land Management & Trade). More to come on this soon.

    Check out the flyer on Beautiful Bovines - Farmers' Boot Camp (1).pdf

    DECEMBER 2019

    Happy Holidays to each and every one of you!  In keeping with the season, I hope all of your FARM related activities are fun and festive.  We have a few updates for you all to enjoy.

     

    From Ed Schultz at Colonial Williamsburg: Work continues on the planning of a 2-day Farmers Boot Camp at Old Sturbridge Village during the 2020 annual conference. Remember that this workshop is meant for all ALHFAMers- curators, administrators, programmers, exhibit specialists, etc… and even farmers! The concept is to create a immersive program that develops intellectual understanding and real hand skills in farm life of multiple time periods.

     

    From Lauren Muney with Skill Training and Preservation: ALHFAM’s Skills Training and Preservation (“STP”) has been been going strong to teach and learn skills of the past as well as skills of living history presentation. Read more in the STP report - and also check out some of the excellent historic farming SkillClips in ALHFAM’s SkillClips Library! To see the videos, simply log into ALHFAM’s website with your password at www.ALHFAM.org , navigate towards the STP section, and visit the SkillClips Library. Are you inspired by our current library to share [your] skills with your ALHFAMily? Visit the SkillClips pages to learn how to make your own SkillClips… and be watchful for the new “how to make SkillClips” advanced concepts (made simple!) which will be coming out presently. ALHFAM’s energetic and inspiring Digital Assets Intern, William Schultz, will be releasing new videos very soon. Also watch for additional sessions on making SkillClips - coming soon! (But don’t wait for an in-person workshop - start making your SkillClips today - and tomorrow, and tomorrow, and the next day!)

     

    Best wishes for a safe and joyous holiday season, as well as, a Happy New Year!

     

    Co-Chairs Jim Lauderdale & Phil Andras

    OCTOBER 2019

    Philip Andras, Recreation Supervisor at Historic Longstreet Farm in Lincroft, NJ writes:  At Longstreet Farm, our efforts to diversify the crops we grow continues.  Traditionally, we have grown corn, wheat, potatoes and a small plot of hay.  These past two years, on smaller plots, we have tried growing pumpkins, sunflowers, mangle beets and sweet potatoes.  Our sunflowers are a hit.  The pumpkins look beautiful but hot, humid weather has made storing them an issue.  As for the mangle beets and sweet potatoes, the deer thanked us profusely for the bountiful feast that we have provided.

    Deb Reid at The Henry Ford Museum, let us know Interpreting the Environment at Museums and Historic Sites is available – https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781538115497/Interpreting-the-Environment-at-Museums-and-Historic-Sites.

    Barbara Corson, Dauphin, PA shared: the “Farm Based Education Network” conference is coming up in Baltimore on November 8 – 13th.  https://www.farmbasededucation.org/conference19 Several sessions are offered that might be of interest to ALHFAMers. 

    The ALHFAM Historic Farming Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/groups/1662787883956432/ continues to be busy with new articles and links to upcoming agricultural festivals.  Be sure to check out the post about the first "Skills Training and Preservation" (STP) workshop, which happened to be about plowing.  In a partnership with the leader in sustainable skills, Tillers International, ALHFAM held its 2-day Plowing Workshop at Tillers own facility. Thanks to Tillers for its expertise, patience, lodging, and food.  Tillers educates people around the world in farming techniques, and runs classes and workshops -in a number of topics- in its own facility in Michigan.  The STP is training and educating our ALHFAMily in skills of history and in presenting living history. This first workshop went into more detail than any conference workshop; thanks to Tillers, the experts in the country, the workshop participants were in the best hands of the world.  More STP workshops to come.

    Please keep in mind the Skills Training and Preservation committee want you to share your knowledge with others in the form of skill clips.  The SkillClip Library contains short videos of any regularly-used skill, practice, process or method used at a living history site or museum. These videos can be used for reference, comprehension or brief information before discussing or trying at your site.  Longer videos will added to the library's collection as the STP Resource Center grows.  Members can sign-in and visit this link to learn more https://alhfam.org/SkillClips-Library.

    The Call for Papers at ALHFAM 2020 in Boston, Massachusetts is out.  The conference needs FARM session and workshop proposals.  Please remember to submit yours by the deadline, December 15, 2019.  https://alhfam.org/resources/Documents/ALHFAM%202020%20PROPOSAL_CALL%20FOR%20PAPERS%20FORM%207-17-19.pdf

    As always, if you have news or FARM items of interest to share, send them to your co-chairs Jim Lauderdale.  and Phil Andras to be included in the eUpdate.  Also, if you know of folks that would be interested in being on the FARM email list, send their email addresses to the co-chairs as well. 

    AUGUST 2019

    ALHFAM has partnered with Tillers International to host a MEMBERS ONLY Plowing Workshop on September 7-8, 2019. This is going to be a top-notch experience that is plowing top to bottom. It is limited to ten participants and registration is first come-first serve and ends August 24, 2019.  Members interested in registering, visit this link https://alhfam.org/Skills-workshops.  Any non-members interested in the workshop are encouraged to join in order to take advantage of this and many other membership benefits.

    News that might very much interest you from Pit Schlechter, long involved in the FECTU (working horses’ federation in EU) and now bringing out the DAN (Draft Animal News, see latest AIMA Newsletter N°14 on that) again. Check out the website at http://www.equidpower.org/ for EQUID POWER, now up and running.
     
    The FARM PIG also received an email with the following message from a man named Chips Johnson:
    “I have three or four steamer trunks of farm and farmhouse tools and implements. In addition I have large circus-type mallets, wagon wheels and other such larger items. I am wondering if there is such a thing as a non-profit resource center in the Virginia/Maryland area that collects items for other non-profits to outfit their museums, etc. I'm interested in giving my collection a good home. Do you know of such a place or have any suggestions?  You may contact me at cpekjohnson@msn.com or 703-532-5831.”  I received his permission to post this inquiry, with contact information, in the eUpdate and would encourage those in the Virginia/Maryland area to reach out to him directly. 

    If you have any FARM related news you can always contact FARM Chair, Jim Lauderdale.  or FARM Co-Chair Phil Andras .

    July 2019

    The Crops Survey, conducted by the FARM PIG this Spring, has been consolidated and made accessible to ALHFAM membership on the FARM page.  The intent is to update this with a new survey every 3-5 years to stay current with historic farming within the association.  The FARM PIG met during the annual meeting and conference in Midland, Ontario.  Minutes from this meeting may also be found on the FARM page of the website. 

    Here’s the link to the most recent edition of the AIMA newsletter, https://www.agriculturalmuseums.org/news-2/aima-newsletters/. Highlights of this edition include: AIMA 2020 at The MERL – Museum of English Rural Life; Vice-President’s Message – Agriculture  and the environment; AIMA Members’ and Friends’ Events and Reports; Special Bonus – CARTS AND WAGONS from around the world; News about Food and Agriculture; and Resources.

    Cody Jolliff at Nash Farm reports black eyed peas and some bicolored sweet corn just picked.  Corn was blown over in a bad storm late in its production but most of it stood up and finished out to some really nice sweet corn. A large amount of the corn was stored away for the annual Nash Farm Supper, our fundraiser meal in the Spring. The shucks were strung on a line and being saved and dried for other projects such as mattress filler. The black eyed peas are coming on nice with their first picking and continue to produce. Many of these will be saved away for meals at the farm throughout the year.  A few pics are included.

    Ed Schultz at Colonial Williamsburg reported his tobacco has suckers almost a foot long, but other than that all is well.

    Joel Johnson at Fort Nisqually reported that vegetable harvesting continues into the summer and the wheat, while a little small, appears to be shaping up for a good harvest. 

    Matt Schofield at Genesee Country Village & Museum reported this spring as been a damp one for Western NY.  It has rained more than it hasn’t and haying has proven difficult, but slowly and surely we are putting some up.  Corn went in late, just like all of the modern farmers in our area, and it is doing well.  Our wheat crop has been growing wonderfully.  It was planted on our most gravely side slope plot, so the extra rain has been helping it along quite well.  The livestock are doing well and are always eager to rotate through their pastures.  We are at our maximum carrying capacity for livestock, or maybe just beyond it, so very soon our lambs, extra ewes, and extra rams, will need to go to sale.  Fence mending is a continuous thorn in our sides, but we are nevertheless striving forward.

    Finally, Phil Andrus has answered the call and volunteered to serve as co-chair for the FARM PIG.  Thanks to Phil for stepping up to help this PIG be as active as it can be! 

    As always, if you have news to share, you can email FARM Chairs Jim Lauderdale.  and Phil Andrus.


    FARM PIG MINUTES 6-9-19.docx.pdf

    Crops Survey (Responses) 2019.pdf

    May 2019

    A new Plowing Match Standard Operating Procedure document has been written by FARM Chair, Jim Lauderdale. This document has been added to the FARM website here. This may serve as a resource for members looking to plan future plowing matches. Additionally, there are judging sheets, how to judge the plowing match, and the description of the ALHFAM ribbon archived on the FARM page as well. Candice Moreau, conference committee member for this year’s annual conference, reports “We are very excited that we have a line on a Suffolk Punch horse team and an Oxen team for this year’s plowing match. In addition to the field we have lined up, it looks as if the plowing match may be coming together in great fashion.” The FARM PIG looks forward to a great plowing match this year!

    Joel Johnson, Fort Nisqually Living History Museum, reports the fields around Fort Nisqually were sown with Sonora White Wheat around April 13 and are coming up well. Most of the fruit orchard has now bloomed and the garden has been planted with various garden vegetables. 

    Cody Joliff, Nash Farm, reports the farm received mail order Kentucky Red Bourbon Turkeys last week. Staff there plan to roast a few over the holidays to share with their big sponsors. The winter wheat is standing tall and the fall hatched chickens are laying nice eggs now.

    Cozette Kremer shared, “For any ALHFAMers who happen to be in the Alsace region of France, there is an annual oxdrivers meeting at the museum with demonstrations of ox-driving, as well as horse-drawn equipment and vehicles, milking and cheese-making that runs over the long Ascension weekend from Thursday 30 May through Sunday 2 June this year. This is set in the museum’s general program “Theatre of Agriculture” involving fields specially planted in traditional local crops, a highly interesting explanation in-the-field of soils, water control, working techniques, historical plants, etc. See the museum website athttps://www.ecomusee.alsace/en/.”

    One final note, the agenda for the annual FARM PIG meeting is in development now.  If you have an agenda item that you would like to add to the agenda for discussion, please email Jim Lauderdale by Monday, May 6. A draft of the agenda will be emailed out to the FARM PIG members list after that date. If you do not currently receive emails regarding the FARM PIG, but would like to be added to the list, please email Jim with the email address you would like to use to receive these communications. 

    As always, thanks to those that submitted material for the eUpdate.  If you have news or information to share, please email FARM PIG Chair, Jim Lauderdale.

    April 2019

    Deb Reid shared that later this year, 3-4 October 2019, an international scientific conference, “Livestock and Traditional Crops in the Cultural Heritage of Rural Areas,” will be held in the Szreniawa Palace at the National Museum of Agriculture and Agro-Food Industry in Szreniawa, Poland. The Call for Proposals outlines five themes: 1) Humans as part of the ecosystem in the process of domestication of plants and animals over the centuries; 2) The influence of animal husbandry development and crop cultivation on shaping the tangible and intangible human needs. 3) The use of farm animals and arable crops in education, therapy, tourism, rehabilitation, recreation, and sports; 4) Human ecological awareness fostered by traditional animal breeding and plant cultivation; and 5) Educational farms as a promoter of biodiversity and cultural heritage. To participate, Complete this Application Form and submit no later than 19 July 2019. For more information, https://www.agriculturalmuseums.org/news-events/coloquia-aima-partners/

    Barb King shared that Barrington Living History Farm in Washington, Texas has finished their curing process for the pork, tested it in the kitchen, and found it to be very tasty!  They’ve also started a new Myth Busting Monday series for Facebook, beginning with “Kitchens were placed separately to prevent houses from burning down”.  They anticipate it will be fun to explore those myths with visitors.

    Ed Schultz shared the Historic Farming program at Colonial Williamsburg is undertaking a short training program for the some of the site’s “Nation Builders” through a series of hands-on experiences. Interpreters portraying important people of 18th century Williamsburg like James Madison, Aggie of Turkey Creek, Thomas Jefferson, and George Washington engage in real work activities to develop a better cognitive and visceral understanding of the work underpinning the 18th century lifeway. Activities include plowing, hilling, planting, weeding, and picking worms off tobacco.

    Plans for the annual plowing match at the International Conference in Ontario are coming along.  A site has been selected and the conference committee are working with the FARM PIG and local farmers to solidify all the details.

    Join us for a moderated discussion on the hopes and future of historic agriculture during the annual conference sessions. Farmers Schools, Institutes, Boot Camps and the FARM PIG provide resources and training for people that preserve the skills of the past for the future. Find out how you can be part of this critical initiative.  The title for this discussion will be, “Steadying the Plow: Skills, Training and Preservation in Historic Agriculture.”  It will be moderated by Ed Schultz, Colonial Williamsburg Historic Farmer and ALHFAM Skills, Training and Preservation Development Manager and presented by Cody Jollif, Site Manager of Nash Farm and developer of the Farmers Institute; Dave Fowler, Site Manager of Hunters Home of the Oklahoma Historical Society; and Jim Lauderdale, Museum Supervisor of Fort Nisqually Living History Museum and ALHFAM FARM Professional Interest Group Chair.

    Finally, there have been sixteen responses to the FARM PIG’s Crops Survey.  Thanks to all those that have taken the time to submit their information in this quick and easy to complete survey.  Sites that have participated include Colonial Williamsburg, Hunter’s Home, Fort Nisqually Living History Museum, Exchange Place Living History Museum, Mahaffie Historic Site, Montgomery Parks Agricultural History Farm Park, President James K Polk State Historic Site, Homestead Prairie Farm, Long Mountain Living History Center, Panhandle Pioneer Settlement, Barrington Living History Farm, Wolf Gap Education Outreach, The American Revolution Museum at Yorktown, Ross Farm Museum and Texas A&M University.  The link to the survey is still open and the FARM PIG asks that anyone growing heirloom or heritage crops submit the survey. 

    As always, if you have news or announcements to share with the FARM PIG, please send your information to FARM PIG Chair Jim Lauderdale.

    March 2019

    The main piece of news this month is in regards to the Crops Survey that is currently being conducted by the FARM PIG.  We are conducting a Crops Survey to learn what heritage crops are being grown by ALHFAM members and non-member living historical farms. Please complete the survey to help us be successful and share with all those who might also be able to contribute.

    You'll find the survey here: http://tinyurl.com/yxs2sgep

    Thank you for participating in this survey and promoting the growth of heritage crops!

    February 2019

    The FARM PIG is conducting a survey on crops. Please follow this link to complete the survey.

    December 2018

    The Texas Living History Association and Mountain Plains Region have teamed up to host a two-day (Thursday & Friday) Farmers Institute at Nash Farm in Grapevine, Texas this January.

    All are welcome, and registration will open next week. The Farmers Institute at Nash will be led by David Fowler of the Oklahoma Historical Society along with some other great historic farmers. Focus will be on winter work on the farm including trimming hooves on sheep, poultry care, tool care, plowing with draft horses and more.


    Gulf coast ram for sale at Nash Farm, Grapevine, Texas.  Contact Farm Manager Cody Joliff at 817-410-3558 for more information.

    Ed Schultz, Dave Fowler and Jim Lauderdale will be contacting FARM members to conduct an heirloom grain survey this winter.  This will only be successful if we can get good support from our membership.  If you are interested in participating and letting us know what heirloom grains you are growing, please contact Jim Lauderdale.

    Plans are underway to present some excellent hands-on workshops at the ALHFAM 50th Anniversary Conference at Old Sturbridge Village.  Currently, there are talks about three days of hands-on farming workshops that cover many different disciplines and specialties.  Stay tuned for more details. 

    AIMA Board members along with the staff of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH). Director of INTACH’s Intangible Cultural Heritage Division, Nerupama Y. Modwel, explained that the mural (installed at the INTACH headquarters on Lodi Road in New Delhi, India), is a Gond painting by an artist from the Gond tribal community, predominantly from the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. Photograph by Piret Emily Hion (attendee to the AIMA meeting from Estonia) taken November 26, 2018.


    Photograph by Piret Emily Hion, Estonia, November 26, 2017, taken at the headquarters of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH). Director of INTACH’s Intangible Cultural Heritage Division Nerupama Y. Modwel explained that the mural behind is a Gond painting by an artist from the Gond tribal community, predominantly from the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.

    November 2018

    Nash Farm will host a Farmers’ Institute for the upcoming Mountain Plains Regional Conference in January. The two day program will be led by David Fowler of Hunters’ Home in Cherokee Nation, Oklahoma, along with others in the field. Activities will include poultry care, sheep care, draft horse harnessing and driving, and winter preparation on the farm. The conference is January 24-27, 2019 in Grapevine, Texas. The two day Farmers’ Institute will be on Thursday 24th and Friday 25th. Other sessions at the conference will also focus on farming. Dallas – Fort Worth International airport is in Grapevine and just a 5min drive from hotels and Nash Farm. We hope you’ll consider attending!

    As always, if you have any FARM news, send it to FARM Chair Jim Lauderdale.

    October 2018

    Cody Joliff reports, “Nash Farm has an opening for a part time Living History Interpreter / Maintenance Tech to help with both living history tours and programs along with general farm chores. Email CJolliff@GrapevineTexasUSA.com for more information. Apply online at www.GrapevineTexas.gov."

    Lauren Muney reports, “The Mid Atlantic ALHFAM meeting is featuring skills workshops and sessions for the first time, including many farm-related sessions, such as “Assessing Livestock Health and Wellbeing”, “Udder to Butter”, “Corn Maze Experience”, "Scrapple, Sausage, and Bacon", and “Round Pen [Horse] Training”. These workshops and sessions are three hours each session, so the attendees will gain a good overview of the subject matter, encouraging deeper learning down the road. Registration is open until Oct 5.

    Jim Lauderdale reports, “The final draft of the 2018 Western ALHFAM Regional Conference Packet with updated session and registration information has been posted. If you have not yet registered, and plan to attend, please submit your registration by October 18. Please also note that the deadline to book a room at the hotel is October 10. On behalf of the conference committee, we thank you for considering the conference and look forward to seeing you all in less than a month.”

    As always, if you have anything you would like to share with the FARM PIG, please email FARM Chair Jim Lauderdale.

    September 2018

    September is showing no signs of slowing down for us in the FARM world.  Here are some updates and things of interest that FARM members have asked me to share.

    Joel Johnson at Fort Nisqually Living History Museum reports that there will be a Harvest Home event on Saturday, September 8 from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.  Celebrate the end of summer with a traditional 19th century Harvest Home, a daylong event on Saturday, Sept. 8, at Fort Nisqually Living History Museum in Point Defiance Park. As the weather begins to change, the historical interpreters at Fort Nisqually turn their attention to the harvest and winter preparations. This year’s Harvest Home celebration will feature apple pressing, tours of the heritage garden and the opportunity to sample seasonal treats made in the period kitchen and bake oven. Visitors can learn to make corn husk dolls, weave wheat straw, play popular Victorian games, and help decorate the hock cart that will carry the last sheaf of wheat through the fort to the granary. The Puget Sound Revels will sing and dance to harvest songs and a harvest king and queen will be crowned from among the fort’s teen volunteers. The public is also invited to enter the fort’s jam and jelly competition. A panel of judges will sample all entries and award a special prize for the tastiest preserve. Event admission is $8 to $10, and children 3 and younger are free. For more information visit www.fortnisqually.org or call (253) 404-3970.

    Debra Senese at the Historic Longstreet Farm in Lincroft, NJ reports there will be a Harvest Home Festival on Sunday, September 30 from 11 a.m.-5 p.m.   

    This old-fashioned country fair takes visitors back to the 1890s, when neighbors gathered to work, harvest, and enjoy each other’s company.  Explore your past and join us for a day of fun, featuring wagon rides, games, corn husking and pie eating contests, craft demonstrations, and live music. Submit your needlework, baked goods and homegrown vegetables for judging and you may take home a ribbon!  Admission and parking are free. For more information, please call 732-946-3758.

    Gail Richardson reports that Sauder Village will host a Fowl Butchering 101 Workshop on Saturday, October 13, 2018.  The workshop will occur from 8:00am to 12:00pm.  The cost per person is $50.  To register for the workshop, call 1-800-590-9755 ext. 3034.  There is a maximum participant cap at 10 people.  Here’s the description of the class: This hands-on class will teach students historic techniques in fowl butchering. Each participant will be able to have a hand in the process of preparing fowl for the table, learning how to humanely dispatch fowl, pluck feathers using a scalding kettle, neatly eviscerate a fowl carcass, and prepare the meat for the freezer.  For more information, visit www.saudervillage.org. 

    Kim Breed at Barrington Living History Farm reports that they recently had an Ossabaw Island Hog sow give birth to eleven piglets.  Barrington has been involved in the preservation of historic breeds for several years and has always produced good breeding stock.  Here’s a photo of the piglets, (see attached). 

    As always, if you have information that you want to share with other ALHFAM and FARM members please email the FARM Chair at  Jim Lauderdale.

    August 2018

    Hopefully the summer event season has been a successful one for you. August typically marks the last month of those summer events and many places/living historians begin to look forward to the autumn events that are right around the corner. 

    On August 11 and 12, Fort Nisqually Living History Museum will host the annual Brigade Encampment. While the main focus of this event is on the fur trade as it relates to the historic Fort Nisqually, there will be an agricultural focus on saving seeds from the summer harvest. 

    On September 1, Howell Farm in Lambertville, New Jersey, will host their annual plow match during Labor Day weekend. 

    A fun note that was shared by Barbara Corson included the fact that Landis Valley Museum in Lititz, Pennsylvania, has a new ox, four year old cross-breed named Sable. Sable joins the museum’s ox in residence, Patrick, a seven year old Randall Lineback.


    Finally, Lauren Muney reported the following: “ALHFAM has started on a new initiative, Skills Training and Preservation (“STP”), designed to help our ALHFAMily document and preserve important skills, details, and training needed for working your sites and passing down vital interpretation, trades information and/or even activities needed to make your site work well. These skills are especially important on historic-farm sites as well as village- and trades- sites. The initial ideas are being formed now, and will be ready for presentation to ALHFAM as a whole in early 2019. Look for this exciting and vital new addition to ALHFAM’s mission to bring history to life.”  Hopefully, members of the FARM PIG will support this new initiative in any way possible.

    Those are all of the updates that were shared by the time the eUpdate was published. As a reminder, if you have news about things happening in your area, please send those details to FARM Chair, Jim Lauderdale by emailing  Jim Lauderdale.

    July 2018

    July is here and hopefully you enjoyed an Independence Day celebration of your own. 

    The old saying, “Knee high by the fourth of July,” doesn’t apply to our friends at Hunter’s Home – our host for the national conference.  Their corn was over head high within two weeks of the conference.  Thanks again for hosting a great conference.  

    A big thank you to the staff at Pawnee Bill’s Ranch for allowing us to host our plowing competition.  We appreciate the boulders you planted for us too! ;)  Below is a list of our plowing competition winners by class: 

    Novice Plowing Competition –
    6th Henry Crawford
    5th Kelsey Patton
    4th Victoria Haynes
    3rd Heather Gilreath
    2nd Sonrisa Crespin
    1st Debra Reid

    Apprentice Plowing Competition –
    6th Lauren Muney
    5th Cody Joliff
    4th Matt Koch
    3rd Ellen Gasser
    2nd Betsy McCabe
    1st Nick Frazee

    Expert Plowing Competition –
    2nd Kevin Lynch
    1st Dave Hruska

    Congratulations to all of our winners and thanks to all competitors for keeping this ALHFAM tradition alive and well!

    The Farm PIG supported Farmer’s Boot Camp: Poultry 101 was also a great success during the conference workshops.  A big THANK YOU to Barb Corson, Victoria Haynes and Dave Hruska for leading the workshop and to the staff of OHS and Hunter’s Home that led the building of the chicken coop. 

    Thanks to the FARM PIG members that attended the annual PIG meeting. I have attached those meeting minutes here for all to view

    Stepping away from the conference now, Cody Joliff at Nash Farm in Grapevine, Texas commented that he is looking for a list of Wagon Makers. Nash Farm is interested in buying a hotel taxi, wagonette style perhaps for hauling a small group, which would be horse drawn.

    They are also looking for chuck wagon box plans & hardware. Contact Cody Jolliff if you have information to share.

    As always, if you have news, updates, questions or concerns, you may contact the FARM Chair, Jim Lauderdale.

    June 2018

    Barbara Corson reports the workshop "Keeping a Home Dairy” at Landis Valley Museum is scheduled for June 14 and 15. Landis Valley Museum will be the host and the instructor will be Barbara Corson. Both the host site and the instructor are ALHFAM members. Here is a link to the event: http://www.landisvalleymuseum.org/index.php/visit/calendar-events/summer-institute/.

    Ben Baumgartner, Barrington Living History Farm, reports that Barrington has a new team of Durham (Milking Shorthorn) oxen. Three total, the pair are Marco and Polo, and as a single we have William. Having just arrived to our park from Kentucky in the middle of May, they have already settled in well and have been put to work cultivating the fields of cotton and corn. We hope to rejuvenate our historic farming by exclusively using draft animal power (no behind the curtain cheating with the tractor.) We’re starting with cultivation for now, but are hoping to incorporate plowing by the fall.

    May 2018

    By now, I’m sure many of you are well on your way to having your crops planted or at least having your fields prepared. 

    Joel Johnson, Fort Nisqually, reports that garden peas, lettuce, potatoes, leeks, beets, carrots, and a few other vegetables have all been planted and are coming up quite nicely.  Additionally, barley and peas have been planted as field crops. This will be followed up with turnips and Coleseed soon. The poultry yard is being worked and refreshed now using historic farming practices. 

    Matt Schofield, Genesee Country Village, reports “We are hard at work spreading compost and gearing up for spring tillage. It is hard to believe we had snow and ice two weeks ago, but we’re hitting the ground running. Animal “Run Ins” are getting resided after 40 years and our Hog Island Sheep are due to lamb any day now. I think the ewes will wait for the cold rain later this week.”

    Debra Reid coordinated a working group on Agriculture and Public History for the National Council on Public History with agricultural historian, David Vail, and other NCPH members committed to engaging the public with agriculture and the environment. For case studies submitted and comments they generated, see http://ncph.org/phc/agriculture-and-public-history-2018-working-group/

    Reid also blogged about the group work at: http://ncph.org/history-at-work/agriculture-and-public-history-working-group/

    Take a look at these resources before ALHFAM 2018, where the conversation will continue during sessions on “Agriculture and Public History,” and “Interpreting the Environment.”

    Happy Historic Farming Everyone!

    A quick reminder to register for the Annual Conference in Tahlequah, OK, if you have not already. The Farm & Livestock PIG is looking forward to the annual plowing match and hope you are too! We will also host the annual meeting of the Farm & Livestock PIG during the conference. If you have items to add to that meeting agenda, please send to Co-Chair Jim Lauderdale.

    April 2018

    April is here, spring is in the air, and many ALHFAMers are busy planting or making preparations to plant this year’s crop. Here’s a few words from FARMers around the country.

    Cody Joliff, Nash Farm, reports two ram lambs (Gulf Coast Native) were born recently. Nash Farm is interested to know what GCN breeders are in their region (Mountain-Plains) as they are looking to buy, sell, or trade for a new ram. For those that do not already use this site, The Livestock Conservancy posts heritage breed information including breeders on their website.   Nash Farm will also host their annual Spring into Nash event on April 21. For more information, visit https://www.grapevinetexasusa.com/nash-farm/events/spring-into-nash/.

    Joel Johnson, Fort Nisqually, reports that the spring garden is well underway with potatoes, peas, and greens all being planted. Coleseed, turnips, and barley are also slated to be planted at Fort Nisqually’s annual Sewing to Sowing event on April 14. For more information, please visit https://www.metroparkstacoma.org/fort-events.

    Ed Schultz, Colonial Williamsburg, would like to remind everyone that the ALHFAM Seeds and Plants Committee was absorbed by the FARM PIG during the annual meeting last year. Anyone interested in heritage seeds/plants are encouraged to reach out to the FARM PIG by email or on the Historic Farming Facebook page

    As always, if you have news you want to share or a question to ask the group, please email co-chair, Jim Lauderdale.


Spike Tooth Cultivator at GCVM


In January we were able to concentrate on building some tools for our field work.  The spike tooth cultivator was a project that had great importance, being able to do more than just cultivate, it was a common tool turned to when soil needed to be stirred, weeded, loosened, aerated or otherwise torn up.

The cultivator is the crotch of a larger tree with even branches. The tree section is then hewn to have even faces top and bottom, this will aid in the drilling and mortising of the holes for the harrow teeth. One long bolt should be placed through the cultivator to secure the bottom of the V from eventual wear and possible splitting. The Bottom of the V should also have a bracket from which it is pulled.

Harrow teeth made from 3/4 inch square stock should be tapered to a point and have a blunt head. Depending on the aggressive nature of the device the number of teeth can very. We choose 11 teeth. To lay out the teeth it is best to hang the device on a block and tackle. Next use string weighted with common 1/2 inch nuts. Take each string and stick a thumb tack to it where the tooth should be located. See the picture attached for the overall look. This is a step of the design that will benefit from more careful placement. Examine any early cut of a harrow and you will find the cut shows the tooth pattern with lines traced to the rear of the harrow; as if it were creating those marks as it moved forward. Once the tooth pattern is identified drill and mortise each tooth in. The last step is to make the handles. They should be mounted with extra space to walk between the device. As many harrows do, this device might require cleaning from clogged material. Be mindful of this when placing the handles.

As noted in “Sowing Modernity” the design of the cultivator of this style will face the same issue as the V or A framed harrows. The tooth or teeth which cut the center mark should not be located in the front, instead shift it to the rear of the device. This will ensure the device’s over all shape it allowing the ground to be torn into instead of creating a furrow as wide as the device is. 

Matthew Sanbury, Coordinator of Historic Trades & Agriculture, Genesee Country Village & Museum


December at Barrington Living History Farm, Washington Texas


December brings the cool Blue Northers; those cold fronts that blow in from the North that, behind the howling winds, rests a clear blue sky, crisp cold mornings and dry weather.  The farmers at Barrington relish those weather fronts.  At last we can say goodbye to the triple digit days of scorching heat and relentless humidity if only for a few short months.

The corn as already been harvested, hauled to the mill and brought back to the farm in the form of meal.  Cotton has been harvested, the bare stalks burned off the fields and the ashes plowed under.  With major field work behind us, the farmer at Barrington have spent December focusing on rail splitting, fence repair and building.  We have created a new livestock paddock that gives us additional space to hold oxen, cows and calves or visiting livestock. 

The new paddock was made with farm-split cedar rails stacked five high in the traditional “snake”, “worm” or “Virginia fence” pattern.  Instead of stabilizing the corners with the commonly used “stake and rider” we chose to try what was detailed in Mr. S. Edward Todd’s The Young Farmers’ Manual (1859), as the “stake and cap”.  Stakes, which are basically sharpened saplings are driven into the ground opposite each other at each joint in the rail fence.  They are then bound together with the cap; a piece of wood containing two holes that slide down the stakes and rest under the top rail.  Mr. Todd recognized that labor required in riving and boring caps for every pair of stakes and suggested the following:

In lieu of caps many farmers use wire for holding the stakes together, which, by many, is considered preferable to caps. 

We took his advice and used wire.  This was our first endeavor making a “stake and cap” style rail fence and the end result we are quite pleased with.  While it may lack the height provided by a “stake and rider”, it rivals and may even surpass it in stability and strength.  It was also economical as it reduced the total number of rails required for the project by nearly 300.  The winter months provide a brief reprieve from field work and allow us to take time to mend and make new.  March will be here soon, which means corn planting time!

Jonathan Failor, Barrington Living History Farm


October Means Planting at Volkening Heritage Farm


October, more than any month in the calendar, evokes images of harvest time. Corn shocks and pumpkins have been interwoven into our common psyche as signs of fall and harvest. For most corn loving American farmers this is true, but for the grain loving Germans of Schaumburg Illinois October means planting time.

Schaumburg Township, located just west of Chicago, was a haven for German Lutherans in the last half of the 19th century. Starting around 1850, German immigrants developed a conservative closed society based around their Missouri Synod Church. These new settlers from the old world new little to nothing about corn and chose instead to focus their attention on small grain production. In 1880 Schaumburg farmers produced more than nine times as many bushels of oats than the national average for farms across the country. They also produced more than three times as many bushels of wheat and twice as many bushels of flax, rye and buckwheat. With all of these crops coming ready for harvest between July and August, the fall was left open for that peculiar practice of planting winter wheat.

Today at Volkening Heritage Farm we follow the patterns and seasons of Schaumburg’s German Forefathers. As such, every October we plow down the oat stubble and plant hard red winter wheat. As Schaumburg farmers were not to apt to adopt new technology either, we forgo the drill and plant broadcast style with the help of several hundred school kids. Children are wonderful little soil tampers and with a quick harrowing, to even out the large piles of spilled grain, we have a finished wheat field ready for the snow.

Jonathan Kuester, Volkening Heritage Farm


Making a Large Harrow at Colonial Williamsburg

Washington's Harrow Drawing

CW Replica Harrow

CW Replica Harrow Working

Our larger replica harrow of 1963 finally wore out, necessitating research to determine an appropriate replacement.  Traditional European precedents suggested square frame over triangular.  George Washington drew a picture of one, copied from Kames’ The Gentleman Farmer, Edinburgh, 1776.  Kames identified it as “common”, and provided detailed specs.  It conformed nicely to other square spike toothed coarse harrows.  So we built one this spring.

The available white oak timber for the “bulls” (main timbers through which the spikes are set) was one inch thinner than Kames’ prescribed 3 ½” thickness, but otherwise all dimensions were the same.  Since the wood had been salvaged from hurricane Irene (2011), it had twisted so that modern mechanical planning was necessary to keep the four 5 foot long bulls in plane to receive the smaller cross pieces making the frame.  Those mortises were also mechanically cut because they needed to be perfect, and I didn’t possess the time, patience, or skill to cut sixteen perfectly by hand!  Our blacksmiths made the hardware which consisted primarily of twenty rather long iron spikes.  All components were joined in time for late spring plowing.

Shortly after delivery we experienced severe checking of the bulls, indicating that the wood, though sealed, had not cured sufficiently.  Teeth loosened.  The remedy will require an undocumented (though period appropriate) reinforcement consisting of additional iron end brackets.  So far the new harrow draws well from a hemp rope connector, and breaks down newly plowed ground well.  Its coarse tooth pattern and high riding frame keep clogging to a minimum.  Additional weight keeps its tail down so all twenty teeth can work. 

Wayne Randolph, Historic Farmer at Colonial Williamsburg


Some Notes on Making Hams & Bacon at Genesee Country Museum


The Genesee Country Village and Museum is currently smoking our yield from hog butchering. Last year we did this process with mixed results, but new changes to our brine recipe, and smoking method should produce better results this year.

This years yield was butchered on Saturday 11-24-12. After which we dry cured with salt and saltpeter. Once the pork was sweated enough we mixed up our brine, which came on recommendation by Chris and Susan Gordy. The meat was submerged in the brine for several weeks, while being turned once a week.

Upon completion of the brining process the meat was hung in the smokehouse. We plan on smoking the meat continuously for five to six weeks. Currently we are burning cherry and apple wood to produce the smoke needed. The trees that were harvested for the smoking were cut down live about 4 months ago. Some was split, but most was kept in a larger size to smolder rather than burn.

Unlike most accounts of the fires position in the smokehouse, we have settled on our previous method of burning the wood inside an old cast iron kettle. The constriction of air movement plays itself to our cause of creating a bed of embers with little flame. Though we have a stone smoke house and could use the dirt floor we have settled on this method with good results.

We are still in the stage of experimenting with this process and are excited to see the results of this years hard work. We hope to experiment with burning corn cobs instead of fruit wood, as well as possibly advancing our brine.

Matthew Sanbury
Coordinator of Historic Trades and Agriculture at Genesee Country Village & Museum


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