A Hundred Years of Farming

As told by Michelle Euken

"My great-great-grandparents purchased the 320-acre farm, where the barn sits, in 1912. The barn was built in the late 1920s. Originally it was used for hay storage, animal shelter, milking cows, and housing horses. Since then the farm has been passed on down the family all the way to my parents who purchased the farm in 1987.

Barns are a symbol of rural heritage and are landmarks in Iowa. The barn on our farm also is part of our family heritage; the barn will be designated a 'Century Farm' (Iowa recognizes farms that have been owned by one family for 100 years) in 2012, so this is an ideal time to revive the barn.

The project will benefit my family to help preserve it for use for many more years. It will bring together current FFA members and Alumni to work on a project that has significance and symbolism for the agricultural heritage of the community. It will re-confirm the family farm heritage in Iowa and the role of the barn on family farms. The publicity about the barn revival will help educate the public about food production and the hands that produce it."

The Euken Farm is affiliated with
Atlantic FFA and the alumni.