Last week Indiana Lt. Governor Suzanne Crouch and State Department of Agriculture (ISDA) Director Ted McKinney presented Hoosier Homestead Awards to 39 farming families. The award recognizes the commitment by those families to Indiana agriculture, and the commitment of one family dates back to before Indiana was a state. Gary Jacobi and family from Greenville in Floyd County received this round’s only Bicentennial award.
“In 1816 we have a deed signed by James Madison, 4th President of the United States, that we had obtained 160 acres at that time a few months before Indiana became a state in November of that year,” he told HAT. “So, it’s be in the family and passed down from Collins, to Taylor, to now Jacobi, passing down on the female side. The farm is my mom’s home place.”
She lives in the 2-story red brick house built in the mid 1820’s. The 400-acre farm includes 100 acres of timber and 240 acres of crop land.
McKinney with ISDA says the biannual presentations the past 40 years offer a tip of the hat to families and their commitment to the land.
“When you can marry those together, families coming together, families passing along an asset like farmland and then celebrate that with those accomplishments of 100, or 150 or 200 years in the family, it just makes for a great celebration,” McKinney said. “It comes back to that reverence of the land, reverence of farms and reverence of being Hoosier farmers.”
The Hoosier Homestead program is administered by ISDA and has recognized more than 5,000 farms since 1976. To be named a Hoosier Homestead, farms must be owned by the same family for more than 100 consecutive years; and consist of more than 20 acres or produce more than $1000 of agricultural products per year.
“Agriculture contributes $31 billion to our state’s economy, and it’s because of the hard work, dedication and innovation of Indiana’s farming families,” said Lt. Governor Crouch. “I want to congratulate them on earning the Hoosier Homestead Award and for their commitment to continuing Indiana’s legacy as an agricultural leader.”
Farms received the Centennial Award for 100 years of ownership, the Sesquicentennial Award for 150 years of ownership and in the case of the Jacobi family, the Bicentennial Award for 200 years of ownership.
“Generation after generation of Indiana’s farming families have dedicated their lives to feeding their neighbors, the state and the world,” Director McKinney said. “They have contributed so much to our state’s legacy, both economically and socially, and are the engine that drives our industry forward. It was an honor to recognize all of these great families at the Statehouse.”
Below is a list of the Hoosier Homestead Award recipients honored during the spring 2017 ceremony with their farm county, family name(s), homestead date and type of award”
Adams, Daniel Roth, 1866, Sesquicentennial
Bartholomew, Glenn & Nellie Glick, 1846, Sesquicentennial
Bartholomew, Original Speaker Lane Farm, 1908, Centennial
Clark, Clifton Eve/Elizabeth Weidner Family Farm, 1915, Centennial
Clark, Dreyer, 1865, Sesquicentennial
Decatur, Deniston, 1866, Sesquicentennial
Decatur, Evans, 1834, Sesquicentennial
Dubois, Balsmeyer Family Farm, 1853, Centennial
Dubois, Balsmeyer Family Farm, 1853, Sesquicentennial
Dubois, Egler, 1841, Centennial
Dubois, Egler, 1841, Sesquicentennial
Dubois, Leo C. Welp, 1916, Centennial
Floyd, Sperzel, 1915, Centennial
Floyd, Collins – Taylor – Jacobi, 1816, Bicentennial
Fountain, Alford, 1907, Centennial
Franklin, Beneker, 1887, Centennial
Harrison, Hausz, 1903, Centennial
Henry, Lacy Homestead Farm, 1864, Sesquicentennial
Howard, Fleming, 1857, Sesquicentennial
Jackson, Wischmeier/Wehmiller, 1866, Sesquicentennial
Jay, Bricher, 1863, Centennial
Jay, Bricher, 1863, Sesquicentennial
Jay, Journay Homestead, Wanda Lou & Merle Stewart, 1887, Centennial
Jay, Charles Muhlenkamp, 1915, Centennial
Jay, Young, 1863, Sesquicentennial
Jefferson, Owens, 1916, Centennial
Knox, Otten, 1859, Sesquicentennial
Marshall, Mishler, 1860, Sesquicentennial
Monroe, Pafford, 1866, Sesquicentennial
Noble, The Coats Family Farm, 1849, Sesquicentennial
Perry, Casey,1867, Sesquicentennial
Putnam, Hurst, 1886, Centennial
Ripley, Jesse Donald Meinders, 1878, Centennial
Ripley, Schneider, 1898, Centennial
Rush, Cole, 1882, Centennial
Rush, Cole, 1895, Centennial
Spencer, Kirby Baum, 1860, Centennial
Spencer, Kirby Baum, 1860, Sesquicentennial
Spencer, Schaaf/Hay, 1892, Centennial
Starke, Luedtke Dairy Farm, 1896, Centennial
Tipton, Gall, 1916, Centennial
Tipton, Kirkendall Family Farm, 1894, Centennial
Wabash, Orville & Phyllis Brodt, 1879, Centennial
White, Godlove, 1863, Sesquicentennial