Legacy of Lewis Farms

Our family’s farm has a rich history dating back to 1836 when it was first Homesteaded by Nicholas Benson Newnam. Our family still holds the original parchment signed by President Martin Van Buren. Newnam was the father of fifteen children, including Sarah (Newnam) Lewis, born in 1844. Dwight Lewis, born in Chenango County, New York, in 1843, was one of Sarah’s two sons. Harvey and Elizabeth Lewis of Connecticut were married on August 12, 1833, in Coventry, New York, and soon headed west where they settled in Salem Township, along what is now SR 327 and 250 S. They had eight children, but two died as infants, which highlights the hardships of the early pioneers.

Dwight Lewis continued to farm at the original location and eventually married Sarah Newnam of Wolcotville. They had two sons, Harvey Burdette Lewis and Benson Lewis. Harvey was the first president of Farmers State Bank, which Harvey’s father, Harvey Lewis, helped found in 1915. Harvey Lewis continued to farm at the original location but also married into the farm of Olive Dunham. The Dunham’s quit farming, and the Lewis family continued to farm at both locations. Eventually, the Dunham farm became the main operational hub. The Dunham property was homesteaded in 1834. In the 1990s, the remaining buildings at the original farm on 327 were demolished, but the farm is still owned and operated by the Lewis family.

During this era, a common practice that they used to harvest corn was by using sheep. They would buy a couple of thousand sheep from out west, and the sheep would arrive at the Railroad in Stroh. Upon arrival, they would herd the sheep up the road with horses and sheep dogs. The sheep would stay in the big wooden barn that is still present at the south of the farm. They would shake the doors on one end of the barn, and the sheep would push against it, then someone could open the doors on the other end. The sheep would go out into the cornfield and eat the corn. By spring, the corn would be eaten, and the sheep sold before they could be counted on property taxes, all while getting the corn harvested without having to do it by hand.

Harvey and Olive had two children, Burton Lewis and Geneva Lewis. Burton married Kathryne Perkins from Stroh. Burton was well known for his interest in animals with superior genetics. He bought and sold high-dollar Cordale, Suffix, and Rambouillet sheep as well as Hampshire Hogs. Burton also found an affinity for Brown Swiss cows. He sourced the original Brown Swiss cows from a farm in Illinois. Over two-thirds of the current herd can be traced back to a few original cows that he purchased. Burton and Kathryne Lewis had two kids, Craig and Diane. Burton was an original board member of the Prairie Heights School Corporation and served for twelve years. Kathryne was an extremely well-known nurse in LaGrange County.

After returning from Purdue, Craig married Marilyn Brouwer of Massachusetts in 1958 after meeting at Purdue University. Marilyn originally traveled to Purdue to swim competitively. Marilyn was a teacher at Prairie Heights Community Schools, became a homemaker while her kids were young, and served on the Prairie Heights school board for sixteen years, taking Burton’s place on the Board. Later, Marilyn left the school board and went back to teaching full time at Prairie Heights Elementary School. They had four kids, Kevin, Karen, Brian, and Darren.

When Craig was farming, artificial insemination was on the cutting edge. At the time, the semen couldn’t be frozen and was delivered fresh. They would call in an order, and an airplane would fly over the farm and drop the semen to be used that day. They milked about sixty cows then. During this time, the farm changed its focus to solely milking Brown Swiss cows and sold the sheep and hogs. Brian married Debbie Howdyshell in 1983 and had three children, Ryan, Riley, and Rene. Brian has been farming since he graduated from Purdue University in 1988. He has helped the farm make significant capital improvements since he started at the farm, including the addition of a single twelve parallel parlor in 1999 and a four-row drive-through freestall barn for ninety-six cows, as well as the renovation of numerous buildings and lots to accommodate herd growth and improve efficiency.

 Today

Riley came back to the farm full-time in 2018 after graduating from Purdue with a Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Economics and Commodity Marketing. Since returning home, Riley has taken over farm management and ownership. In 2023, Riley married Abby Hantz from Orland. Abby has taken over registration, genomics, and assists in cow and calf care. She graduated from Purdue with a degree in Elementary Education and introduced Jersey cattle to the farm, which is now known as Lewis Family Farms. Rene has also come back to the farm after graduating from Purdue in the fall of 2019 with a degree in Agricultural Economics. She has taken over calf care and management, as well as involving herself in ownership roles. Under the guidance of Riley and Rene, the herd has grown to 160 milking cows, and herd production has increased. In the 1980s, the average herd production was around 12 to 13 thousand pounds per head per year, or about 40 lbs per day. Today, it has more than doubled, averaging around 90 pounds per head per day. The farm covers about 700 acres, 60% of which is irrigated, and double cropping is done to maximize the acreage. The farm prides itself on DIY projects and doing more with less, maximizing the production of their cows and crops. The family is proud to have continuously operated their farm for almost 200 years.

Future

We can never predict the future, but we trust that God will guide us to where we should be. Today, we are planning to expand our dairy operation to accommodate 360-480 Brown Swiss cows, depending on efficiency and costs. We aim to use robots to milk the cows. At the same time, we plan to expand our cropping operation to 1500+ acres, using a combination of land purchases and new cash rented ground. By expanding both operations, we aim to diversify our business and spread the risk of a bad year across several enterprises. However, we’ll be large enough in both areas to warrant capital expenditures that can be used to drive down our costs of production. Our plan is also to improve our soil health by using more cover crops and increasing irrigation to improve yields on our sandy soils. Currently, we are working on opening our own small creamery with the goal of making homemade and preservative-free dairy products. We are also focusing on genetic advancement to improve our herd by retrieving embryos, transplanting them, and carrying out genomic testing. Through continuous improvements in management, we hope to become more profitable and better stewards of the land.