Rooted in the Soil
Farming's handprints are all over our working landscape,
from loamy flood plains to rocky hill farms. For two-and-a-half centuries, farmhouses,
barns, pastures, and cultivated fields have marked determined efforts to build
a life upon the soils of the Northern Valley.
Those efforts were first devoted to subsistence farming by settlers in the late
1700s. Nearly everyone farmed, and ate food grown close to home. People flocked
to farmers' markets in the larger towns. The introduction of Spanish Merino
sheep in the early 1800s transformed the landscape. Forests were cleared to
create pastures, and sheep outnumbered people. Local industries sprang up to
process wool and one community – Claremont – took shape around enormous
brick textile mills. Other towns grew up near factories that made farm equipment,
tools, and wood products. Railroads enabled farmers to find markets in Boston
and New York for commercial crops of butter, cheese, wool, and milk.
Agriculture is still an important part of our regional economy. It shapes the
look and feel of our communities, and flavors everyday life. Our regional culture
grew from the roots settlers put down in the soil. Shorten your personal food
chain and pick up your produce directly from the producers – of sharp cheeses,
tangy apples, sweet maple syrup, and much more.
Each summer, agricultural fairs along the Byway draw spectators and participants
to competition for the best matched and strongest teams of oxen to the most
delicate quilt stitchery. Here's a chance to enjoy the sounds and sights of
farm days past - and present. Farm fairs along the Byway include the Lancaster
Fair, the North
Haverhill Fair, the Cornish
Fair, and the Cheshire
Fair.
To learn where to find our local products, go to the
Waypoint Community pages and browse our lists of farm stands, pick-your-owns,
and farmers' markets. You can also check Valley
Food and Farm's searchable list of valley producers, including farms that
host overnight visitors. For farm-related special events and what's in season,
check this area calendar.
Both are hosted by Vital Communities of the Upper
Valley.
The Billings
Farm Museum in Woodstock, VT, dates back to
1871. It's a living museum and working dairy farm operated in partnership with
the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park. Stonewall
Farm in Keene, NH is a working farm offering an array of educational experiences
for the non-farmer.
The Poore
Family Homestead in Stewartstown, NH displays the 1826 homestead, barns,
furnishings, and tools of this early hill farm, reflecting the traditional spirit,
values, and way of life of settlers of the Connecticut River Valley headwaters.
The large barn, with its impressive high drive, shelters displays of original
farm machinery and household necessaries used by generations of the Poore family:
a full loom, spinning wheels, the original hay wagon carriages, and sleighs,
farm tools, games, clothing, medicines, journals, and Civil War-era letters.
The Vermont
birthplace of U.S. President Calvin Coolidge in Plymouth Notch features
an agricultural exhibit in a barn that once was owned by the President's in-laws.
The exhibit is part of a state historic site that includes the family homestead
and a remarkably preserved rural village that has been called "Vermont's
Brigadoon."
The Vermont Apple marketing board can tell you everything you've ever wanted
to know, and more, about apples.
Click on the nearest waypoint community, below, to discover local farmer's markets, farm stands, and farms along the Byway where you can harvest-your-own, whether it's apples, berries, or flowers.
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