Hollister Hill Farm B&B

 

Address : , Marshfield , VT

We left a suburban lifestyle in 1972 to become back-to-the-landers. This was an era of change for many young Americans like ourselves. We had been reading the “Mother Earth News,” learning about healthy food, clean air, alternative energy and a peaceful existence. Today you hear many of the same issues being discussed among young people. We needed the change, sold our house, packed up the kids who were 5 and 6 at the time and moved to Plainfield, VT.

We bought a small homestead, old house and 25 acres. That first summer, we pretty much just gardened, but were planning our future. The second year we built a barn, bought a dozen chickens and a rooster, two pigs and our first family milk cow, Stephanie. Thus began our love affair with Jersey cows. We were also pioneers in the cultivation of organic pick-your-own strawberries. That farm was historically known as Little Wood Farm. In 1977 our desire to milk more cows got the best of us and we built a bigger stable and milked 30 Jerseys and were licensed to sell raw milk which we eventually gave up and started shipping our milk to Cabot Creamery. Little Wood Farm was a wonderful place and very manageable for the two of us but in 1983 our son was graduating from high school and expressed a strong desire to farm with us. Little Wood was too small to support him and an eventual family. We had learned a lot and felt we were ready to move on to a bigger farm.

That year the very beautiful Hollister Hill Farm, in Marshfield, came on the market. We were able to purchase the farm through the Vermont Land Trust. Its 205 acres cannot be sub-divided or developed, which reduced its market value to a price that was affordable to farm. The farmhouse was built in 1825 by Josiah H. Hollister, who had been a wealthy businessman from Hartford, CT. It is a Federal style brick house and is almost as solid as the day it was built. The house has four working fireplaces and a big wood furnace in the basement. We keep plenty warm in winter and the bricks keep the house cool in summer.

 Posted by at 2:21 pm