Barnyard

Barnyard. . , In the 1860s and 1870s, Church transformed a poor, one-family farm into a 19th-century gentleman's farm. He did not plan to make a living from the farm, but expected it to run efficiently. He and Isabel took great pride in the farm operation. Special gifts of produce preserves flowed from their country home, known as "the farm” until the late 1870s, when the name Olana was applied to all 250 acres. Farm life remained central to the Churches' lifestyle and to the property's sense of place into the 20th century., The farm buildings provided shelter for the farm animals, which included cows, horses, a pair of oxen, donkeys, chickens, turkeys, pigeons, geese, and a few beef cattle. The Olana orchards produced plums, apples, pears, apricots, cherries, and peaches. Berry beds and arbors produced raspberries, strawberries, and grapes. Hay, rye, and corn were planted in selected fields., The harvest produced a cash crop to support the farm as well as fruits and vegetables for the family's table. Church used a salaried farm manager to run the farm with full- and part-time help. Thomas Cole's son Theodore is known to have served in this capacity for over 10 years. Farming was abandoned here in the late 1940s; many of the farm buildings were removed in the early 1950s., Photos:, This 1906 photograph by John Eberle, shows Mike, one of Olana's farmhands, husking corn. Planting and harvesting were part of the cycle of the farmer's life throughout the Hudson Valley., This 1906 photograph by John Eberle shows farmhands Haver (left) and Mike (right) threshing the seed from the harvested rye. Mike is holding a flail used to beat the rye from the straw.