The following is a brief introduction to Carter Historic Farm written by Michael Kopchu, a freshman in the History major who just visited the place as part of his freshman seminar, BGSU 1910, “Are We What We Eat?” The farm is a recent endeavor in the region and is managed by Wood County Parks. Nicole Farley, History senior contributed with editing the piece. 

Carter Historic Farm is a farm dedicated to the farming practices of the 1930’s. It focuses on the average farm during the Great Depression and farming techniques of that era. When you first pull up it does not seem like much, but with a closer inspection it is a lively place full of history. It has buildings from the 1930’s that are in original condition, and the house exhibits many donated artifacts. Interestingly, the house itself is not original to the farm. The Carter Family moved it from a different location after the first one burnt down. This farm has many small details that make it worth visiting.

Tim Gaddie, the site coordinator, is trying to recreate the old ways of making food at Carter Farm and plan on letting people taste test the food people made in that period. When I visited the farm with my freshman seminar, the site coordinator already had a few jars of food including pickled watermelon rinds. They have programs on preparing maple syrup, and other forms of family food production characteristics of the food traditions of northwest Ohio farmers. In the next few years they plan on reintroducing some farm animals including chickens, goats, and sheep. In the next ten years they want to also bring cows, pigs, and work horses back. They want to use the horses to help them farm the land in the ways used in the 1930’s.

Carter Historic Farm is a great historic farm to go visit with a rich history and many ambitious plans for the future that will make it even more amazing. This farm is worth going to and learning the history of it and in the future many people will be able to learn how people in the Great Depression era lived and worked. I would recommend it to any fan of American History.

(From the advisor’s desk: Carter Historic Farm welcomes interns and volunteers. If you are interested, please contact Dr. Mancuso, coordinator of internships, at rmancus@bgsu.edu)