The rooted structure of The Old Homestead, now Homestead 1787, dates back 239 years when Reverend Clark Rogers established the farm in upstate New York. The property was said to be bought from a Revolutionary War soldier who was paid in land for his efforts in the war. The story goes that rather than keep the 558 acres that were granted to him, he sold it to Clark Rogers and his three sons. Since then, the land has seen many hands as the property and the farm have always been passed down generation after generation to the sons in the Rogers family—until now.

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Clifford Rogers saw the farm through to its last working days as a dairy farm in the 1970s. After Cliff’s passing, the farm was handed down to his son, Thomas, who maintained the Homestead as a private residence.

The farm remained inactive for 48 years, but in 2018, Thomas’ daughter, Iris, saw an opportunity to revive the Homestead and give it purpose. Iris was among one of the first licensed hemp cultivators in the state under the NYS Hemp Pilot Research Program, and, in 2022, she was also one of the first licensees to transition from hemp to cannabis cultivation.

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The farm was renamed Homestead 1787 and experienced its first female manager in eight generations of family farming.

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Founder,

Iris Rogers