Hannah Miles Farm | King Ranch

Farming in Early Chester County

Many people in Chester County believe that farming is the oldest tradition in the area; and in many ways they are right. Farming has been around since before the Revolutionary War and has changed accordingly to the time period. Along with this, there have been hardships and conflicts with the prices of crops that were in demand at the time.

In the early 1800's, farming became more efficient and profitable as inventions improved. Jeramia Bailey patented his mechanical mowing machine in 1822.It did the work of twelve men, But only a few improved versions were made. It was a forerunner for McCormics reaper.

Cyrus Bernard patented such things as the ditch or channel digger and the horse comb for currying heads off seed clover. He also patented a highway-roller and imported Merino sheep from Spain as a protest against British wool in the time of the war of 1812.

In 1841, Moses Pennok and Samuel Martin patented the Grain drill, used for separating the grain from the stalk. Later, with the help of his neighbor Samuel Peirce, Moses Pennok improved upon his invention. He added teeth and a way to empty the homemade machine-bin, which held the grain.

Life in East Marlboro Township was mostly centered around farming at the time because it was the main source of income for the area. The most important crops were Tabacco, Flax, and Barley while Corn and soybeans were also popular. Tabacco was a valuable crop at the time, or a cash crop, and was plentiful in the south, but considerably harder to get in northern states, and that's why many farmers grew it. Farmers grew Flax because it could be used to make cheap linen instead of buying overpriced British goods because of the protective tariffs. Barley was used to make beer, but since their were few Breweries and many Malt Shops. It proved necessary to haul the Barley to Wilmington where shallops, or large bins took the Barley to Philadelphia to be sold for an unreasonable price. A number of farmers thought that the shallop owners and Barley Brokers were getting the 'lions share' of the profit, so the farmers established a Grange Union. They bought a shallop of their own and appointed an agent, but no one took action, so nothing happened.

They met again in anvil tavern, a famous tavern in the area, and in a short time, with the help of John 'Barleycorn', they found themselves able to buy two or three more shallops. Again, nothing happened until a couple of years later when the 'Farmers Brewery' was established. The Brewery was the farmer's last chance to get better pay for their crops. Many farmers took stock in the company, but it soon failed due to inexperienced workers.

Even after these setbacks, farmers continued living off of the land by selling their entire harvest to large companies in Philadelphia. The farms were small at that time, averaging twenty-five acres of crop land per farm and not many farms were raising livestock yet. Barley was still a large crop, Cyrus Bernard was selling his barley to a company in Philadelphia for $1.25 a bushel and was making good profit for the time.

These times of development and hardships are things that changed the process of the way things are thought of by outsiders as well as people who live in the area think about our history. It seems that this kind of lifestyle would never last, but farming is still going strong in Chester County.