Farming in Frederick County Pioneer Life and Workload
The German and English settlement of Frederick County began in the 1740s. Early farmers cleared forests for small plots, built log cabins, and relied on subsistence crops with stumps and rocks left to rot for later removal. Tobacco and grains shaped the economy, with slavery and indentured servitude supporting large plantations, while soil fatigue and limited fertilizers limited yields before modern farming emerged.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Frederick County
Pennsylvania
Chesapeake Bay
manly
Frederick
Thurmont
United States
Good conservation practices key to successful farming
The Layman family dairy farm near Ladiesburg Frederick County earned the 1974 Outstanding Cooperator award from the Frederick Soil Conservation District. The 100 acre operation includes 125 cows with 75 milkers, a family labor force, and extensive drainage, ponds, and winter cover crops praised by Paul Edwards.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Richard H. Layman
Good Intent Road
Ladiesburg
Frederick County
Laymans
Frederick Soil Conservation District
Layman
Lillian Orndorff Layman
Rick Layman
Lori Layman
Ron Layman
G. Blair Simpson
Union Bridge
Paul Edwards
Changes Since 1917 By ALLEN BRYANT Extension Agent
A compact history of Frederick County dairy farming from 1917 to the present, detailing shifts from a labor intensive, heterogeneous mix to modern, tech driven dairy operations. It notes farm closures, electrification, tractor and combine adoption, extension services, seed and fertilizer use, alfalfa and corn trends, dairy breed activity, and production figures.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Frederick County
Holstein Association
Farm Bureau
U.S
B&O Dairy Products
B&O
Dairy Herd Improvement Association
D.H.I.A
D.H.LA
Also Mentioned on This Page
NICK WOOD
U.S. Soil Conservation Service
the
Grange
Washington
Baltimore
ALLEN BRYANT
Dairy Science
Cooperative Extension Service
Sue White
Khewaea
papwef ADHAyr
This is just the beginning! Our collection holds over 300 years of history, including rare newspapers, obituaries, marriage records, birth records, and so much more—most of which you won’t find anywhere else!