A new exhibit will open October 23, 2016 from 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. at the Litchfield Park Historical Society and Museum, 13912 W. Camelback Road in Litchfield Park. There is no charge for admission; plenty of parking. Phone 623-535-4414 for more information.
People of the Land: Southwest Valley Farming Families:
Without farms America would not survive as a nation – and the southwest valley is all about farming. This farming exhibit researches information from the 30s, 40s and 50s and looks at those families that are still a part of today’s farming community. We interviewed 12 farming families who have been farming in the valley for at least three generations to share their families’ histories. We asked how farming has changed in the past six to seven decades, as well as their view of the future of farming. We also wanted to explore the issues of water, the evolution of farm machinery and labor issues along with shifts in markets and demographics.
The Apprentice Farmers:
For this exhibit we tell and show how many of our local farmers got their beginning. In 1936, while Paul Litchfield was judging a Future Farmers of America event, he asked what happened to the young men who studied farming. He was told many of them would have to find jobs wherever they could, as it was in the middle of The Great Depression. This struggle of young boys dreaming of becoming farmers and owning their own farm led to – The Apprentice Farmer Program created by Mr. Litchfield to give these young men an opportunity to have their own farm. It was one of the first training programs in the United States to combine business practices with actual farming. Goodyear Farms provided land, training and capital – the apprentice farmer furnished the labor. These young men would be educated thoroughly in the management and operation of a farm by company employees and work hard to develop a farm of their own. After finishing the apprenticeship, the men could purchase the farms they had been developing at fair market value and achieve their American dream. The first class began in 1937.