At the annual awards ceremony at the Oregon State Fair, families from across the state will receive recognition for operating as Century or Sesquicentennial (150-year) Farm or Ranch. The 2017 ceremony will be held on Saturday, August 26, 2017, at 11:00 am at the Oregon State Fair. The public recognition ceremony and awards celebration will be held in the Picnic Grove Area. Please join us for this special event that celebrates Oregon’s agricultural heritage.
Nineteen farms and ranches from 10 different counties will be honored this year as Century Farms or Ranches, and one farm from Clackamas County reached Sesquicentennial status, bringing the total number of Oregon Century Farms and Ranches to 1,200 and Sesquicentennial to 39.
The Century Farm and Ranch families being honored in 2017 are:
Iwasaki Bros. Inc.-Jim Iwasaki
Haskin Heritage Farm -David McCready
Kranberry Acres -David Cranick & Marci Murray
Sievers Farm -Diana Arvieux, Rosemary Wood, Trudy Stenger
Haselbacher Farms -Raymond & Mary Haselbacher
Four Ridge Orchards -David & Bonnie Brown
Cattrall Brothers Vineyard -William & Thomas Cattrall
Shady Brook Farm -Tom & Lona Bunn
Stubblefield Ranch -Lucian & Margot Turner
Belshe Ranch -James Belshe
Oak Creek Farm -Alton Coyle
Misner Family Farm -Michael & Therese Misner
Bar M Ranch -Gary & Ingrid Margason
Kee/Crofoot Ranch -Dell & Nikki Squire
Basil & Mary Stupfel -Mark Stupfel
Herring Farm -Lea Herring
Charles M. Colton & Sons -Robert, Lorene & Michael Colton
Nicholson Investments LLC -Larry Nicholson
C & S Waterman Ranch LLC -Charlie & Sharon Waterman
The Sesquicentennial Award program began in 2008 in honor of Oregon’s 150th birthday celebration. Sesquicentennial awards recognize Oregon families who have continuously farmed
portions of their original family acreage for 150 years or more. Thirty-nine families have now received this prestigious sesquicentennial award.
This year’s family being honored is: Voss Farms -Jeannette Voss & Julie Edy
Every Oregon farm and ranch has a unique history and special family story. The Oregon Century Farm & Ranch program encourages agriculture families to share, with a broader audience, these stories. By promoting family stories, rich cultural heritage is passed down to future generations while educating Oregonians about the social and economic impact of Oregon agriculture.
The Oregon Century Farm & Ranch Program began in 1958 to honor farm and ranch families with century-long connections to the land. To qualify for a century or sesquicentennial award, interested families must follow a formal application process. Members of the Application Review Committee review each application against the qualifications, which include continuous family operation of the farm or ranch; a gross income from farm use of not less than $1,000 per year for at least three years out of five prior to application; and family members must live on or actively manage the farm or ranch activities. Application documentation may include photos, original deeds, personal stories, or other historic records. These records help support Oregon’s agricultural history by providing valuable information about settlement patterns or statistics on livestock and crop cycles. All documents are archived for public access.
Award winners receive a certificate signed by the Governor and Director of the Oregon Department of Agriculture. Historic roadside signs are imprinted with the founder’s name and the year the ranch or farm was established.
The Oregon Century Farm & Ranch Program is administered by the Oregon Farm Bureau Foundation for Education. It is supported by a partnership among the Oregon Farm Bureau, the State Historic Preservation Office, OSU University Archives, and by generous donations of Oregonians.
The application deadline for 2018 is May 1.