Des Moines, Iowa – A few hundred Iowans were recognized at the Iowa State Fair this year as the owners of farms that have been in the same family for at least 100 years. Iowa Agriculture Secretary Mike Naig handed out the certificates.
A Heritage Farm has been in the same family for at least 150 years, a Century Farm for 100 years. This year’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.
Iowa Agriculture Secretary Mike Naig (Radio Iowa photo)
