Harford Legacy Farm Commemorative Book

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sisters went through so much hardship and miracles small and large to keep Old Bay Farm. Then in the mid-1950s my father and mother were married, and they carried on with the same financial burdens and uncertainties for another decade. Reluctantly, in the late 1960s, my father sold the back half of the farm to a local businessman with the requirement that the land should be used to create jobs for the local community, which is why there are about a half dozen manufacturing plants next to Old Bay Farm. Although my father never said so, I believe the hurt and perhaps even shame that he felt not being able to keep all of Old Bay Farm led him to donate it, without any compensation or tax breaks, the first land to the Maryland Environmental Trust (which he created) so that it would have protections from significant development, regardless of ownership, in perpetuity. Ultimately James' ownership of Old Bay Farm is a story of triumph over adversity, a tale of a family through all of the ups and downs for the better part of the 20th century, and most of all it is an account of people fiercely dedicated to one another and the bonds of land and family.

Heaps Family LLC est. 1920 - Street, MD

Current Owners: Heaps Family LLC Original Purchaser: Marshall T. Heaps, Sr. Current Acreage: 300 of cropland 262 of woodland Current Agricultural Products or Services: split between corn and soybeans Preserved

Originally purchased as a working dairy farm from 1920 until 2000. To be able to have this farm in our family for over 100 years is amazing. It's a total of 4 different parcels that make up our farm. Currently, 5 family members have houses on the farm and enjoy the beauty of crops growing and changing of seasons. We have an awesome 2-acre pond and have had 2 weddings on the farm and are hoping for more. When we put the farm in land preservation ALL 15 members of the family voted yes. We wanted to preserve the ownership of our grandfather, which started over 100 years ago. We enjoy hunting deer, geese, and turkeys on the farm. Riding gators through farm paths and woods is very enjoyable. My wife and I live in one of the original houses on the farm dating back 180 years.