Local farms receive Hoosier Homestead Award

INDIANAPOLIS - At the Indiana State Fair on Wednesday, August 19, the Indiana Department of Agriculture presented several Bartholomew and Johnson County farm families with a Hoosier Homestead Award in recognition of their commitment to Indiana agriculture.   

To be named a Hoosier Homestead, farms must be owned by the same family for more than 100 consecutive years and have 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 6,400 families have received the Hoosier Homestead Award.  

During the ceremonies, five Indiana farms received the Bicentennial Award for 200 years of continuous ownership, including the Stewart family from Johnson County. 

Below is a list of the Hoosier Homestead Award recipients from Bartholomew and Johnson Counties:

• Andrew Whiteside family farm in Bartholomew County-Centennial Award
• Jim Whiteside family farm in Bartholomew County-Centennial and Sesquicentennial Awards
• Finkel family farm (established in 1922) in Bartholomew County-Centennial Award
• Finkel family farm (established in 1880) in Bartholomew County-Centennial Award
• Beaman family farm in Johnson County-Centennial Award
• Johnson family farm in Johnson County-Centennial Award
• Griffith family farm in Johnson County-Centennial Award
• Russell family farm in Johnson County-Centennial Award
• Stewart family farm in Johnson County-Centennial, Sesquicentennial, and Bicentennial Awards