Over 55 farming families honored with the Hoosier Homestead Award

Monday, March 27, 2023 at 8:12 AM

Several farms from the area have this distinctive honor

ISDA

INDIANAPOLIS (March 24, 2023) — At the Indiana Statehouse, Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch and Indiana State Department of Agriculture (ISDA) Director Don Lamb presented 56 farming families with a Hoosier Homestead Award in recognition of their commitment to Indiana agriculture.

“It is a true honor to be in the historic Statehouse today celebrating your incredible family farming history,” said Lt. Gov. Crouch, Indiana’s Secretary of Agriculture and Rural Development. “Your commitment to Indiana and our agriculture history and future is renowned. It was awe-inspiring to celebrate this family achievement with you all today.”

To be named a Hoosier Homestead, farms must be owned by the same family for more than 100 consecutive years, and consist of more than 20 acres. If less than 20 acres, the farm must produce more than $1,000 of agricultural products per year. Indiana farms may qualify for three honors: Centennial Award for 100 years of ownership, Sesquicentennial Award for 150 years of ownership and the Bicentennial Award for 200 years of ownership.

Since the program's inception in 1976, over 6,000 families have received the Hoosier Homestead Award. Many past awardees can be identified by the sign proudly displayed in front of the family farm or field.

“Being a farmer myself I know how challenging it is to farm today in general, and to keep the same property in the family for decades on end, no less,” said Lamb. “This award being presented today to your farming families is proof of your dedication to agriculture, to our State and to feeding our world, so I thank you.”

Below is a list of the Hoosier Homestead Award recipients honored during the spring 2023 ceremony:

County	Award Name	Award Year	Award Type
Adams	Maller	1889	Centennial
Adams	Peter D. & Barbara Moser	1838	Sesquicentennial
Allen	Koenenman	1899	Centennial
Allen	Ronald J. & Linda K. Schlatter	1835	Sesquicentennial
Allen	Ronald J. & Neil C. Schlatter	1835	Sesquicentennial
Allen	Schuhler/Connor/Loesch	1866	Sesquicentennial
Bartholomew	Tooley-Calvin	1907	Centennial
Benton	Atkinson	1852	Sesquicentennial
Benton	Brandt	1886	Centennial
Benton	Ferguson/Creek	1871	Sesquicentennial

Cass	Berlet	1918	Centennial
Clay	Dierdorf	1889	Centennial
Clay	Keith & Paula Jones	1870	Sesquicentennial
Clay	Wayne R. & Mary A. Jones	1905	Centennial
Clay	Zurcher	1868	Sesquicentennial
Dearborn	Decker	1919	Centennial
Dearborn	Hoog	1919	Centennial
Delaware	Smith	1892	Centennial
Fountain	Gray	1869	Sesquicentennial
Franklin	Meyer	1920	Centennial

Grant	Harner	1850	Sesquicentennial
Grant	Philip W. Corey	1866	Sesquicentennial
Greene	Hays	1855	Sesquicentennial
Hamilton	Sowers-Pickett	1918	Centennial
Harrison	Crosier	1917	Centennial
Harrison	Pate/Gettelfinger	1906	Centennial
Howard	McQuiston-Howell	1880	Centennial
Huntington	Thorne	1910	Centennial
Johnson	Becker	1919	Centennial
Kosciusko	McSherry Farms, Inc.	1838	Sesquicentennial

Lagrange	Strayer	1916	Centennial
Madison	Williams	1920	Centennial
Martin	Brown	1922	Centennial
Newton	Constable	1869	Sesquicentennial
Newton	Frank Douglas Best & John Berry Best	1860	Sesquicentennial
Noble	Hooley	1920	Centennial
Orange	Dennis F. & Patricia F. Cleveland	1842	Sesquicentennial
Owen	Watson	1907	Centennial
Pike	Charles Wayne & Barbara J. Satkamp	1922	Centennial
Putnam	Carter	1862	Sesquicentennial

Putnam	Risk	1870	Sesquicentennial
Randolph	Bowen, Taylor, Cowen	1882	Centennial
Ripley	Boggess/Bauman	1922	Centennial
Rush	Harcourt	1873	Sesquicentennial
Shelby	Marvin Covalt	1922	Centennial
Tippecanoe	Meisenhelder-Jones	1859	Sesquicentennial
Tipton	Phenias A. Salsberry	1896	Centennial
Wabash	Albright	1847	Sesquicentennial
Warren	Adams	1896	Centennial
Warren	Akers	1868	Sesquicentennial

Warren	Fleming	1918	Centennial
Warrick	Titzer	1913	Centennial
Wayne	Druley-Pierce	1866	Sesquicentennial
Wells	DeVoe	1841	Sesquicentennial
Wells	Fred & Emma (Meyer) Nuerge	1913	Centennial
Whitley	Milton Rupley	1923	Centennial

To view photos from the Spring 2023 Hoosier Homestead Award Ceremony at the Indiana Statehouse, click here. All family photos will be available online by March 31, 2023.

The 2023 Summer Hoosier Homestead Award Ceremony will take place on Aug. 16, 2023 at the Indiana State Fairgrounds.

Hoosier Homestead Signs