A few hundred Iowans, including a handful from Kossuth County, were recognized at the Iowa State Fair Thursday as the owners of farms that have been in the same family for at least 100 years. Iowa Agriculture Secretary Mike Naig was there to hand out the certificates.
A Heritage Farm has been in the same family for at least 150 years, a Century Farm for 100 years. Thursday’s ceremony was held in the first building on the fairgrounds that was made of brick. It opened 122 years ago for cattle and horse shows — and Naig imagines some of the founders of Iowa’s Century farms have been in that building.
More than two-thousand Iowa farms have been owned by the same family for at least 150 years. There are more than 21-thousand Century Farms on the state’s registry — including the farm near Cylinder where Naig grew up.
Five farms in Kossuth County were added to the Century Farm list this year. They include:
–Goeke Farm near Buffalo Center (founded in 1920)
–Knecht Family Farm near Whittemore (founded in 1920)
–Ostwald Family Farm near Whittemore (founded in 1915)
–Thilges Brothers Land near Ledyard (founded in 1920)
–Van Steenberge Farm near Burt (founded in 1918)
You can find out more about the Century and Heritage Farm programs at www.iowaagriculture.gov.
