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As
Described by June Kenedy, May
17, 2004
For
more than two and a half centuries, The English Family Farm has been in continuing use. It was settled in 1740, witnessed
the revolutionary War, hosted the French Encampment of 1781, served as the first manse of the Liberty Corner Presbyterian
Church for 36 years, thrived in its dairy business with the arrival of the railroad in 1872 and its almost 70 acres of gently
rolling cultivated fields have remained intact while Bernards township developed around it.
This is a bucolic
and refreshing scene to view in today’s high-tech and fast-paced world – grazing cattle in the meadow, a community
of chickens, well-kept accessory buildings, woods that supplied lumber for an addition to the pristine farmhouse in the 1860s.
This respected agricultural holding has contributed to the life of Bernards through involvement in daily activity.
English family members and their extended relatives have participated in events in the Township, County and State governments.
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Residents have a true affection and respect for this property.
It gives them a sense of history, stability and continuity. Eight generations have worked this land. It is one
of the few remaining farms in Bernards.
Structures include a 19th Century frame barn complex to the
rear of the farmhouse, with a carriage shed and carriage barn, privy, two large two-story barns, a corn crib, two chicken
coops, a pig pen, and an ice house. The ice house is one of very few in the country and was an integral part of the
dairy business. There are 150 chickens, 10 cows, an herb and vegetable garden, produce stand and resident farmer.
The farm produces beef cattle, pork, hay, eggs and vegetables. Its location is on Valley Road, Liberty Corner, with
an 11 acre grazing meadow across the road, through which runs the Harrison Brook. On Allen Road is the woods, used as
a summer pasture.
Jacob Castner settled in Annin’s Corner, now called Liberty Corner and built
the first home on the farm. The Rev. James T. English married into the family and became first pastor of the Liberty
Corner Presbyterian Church in 1837. Today the adult children of Woodruff J. English, great-grandson of Rev. English,
own the farm. Last December Bernards recognized the importance of this site by placing an historic marker on the property
which reads “French Encampment 1781”. It is located within the Liberty Corner Historic District, entered
into the NJ State and
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| 88 Acrce Preserved English Farm |
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UPDATE
The Bernards Township Committee has given its final approval to funding and paperwork necessary for the preservation of
the centuries-old English farm at the edge of the village of Liberty Corner — making it the first preserved farm in
the township's history. The final vote to approve a $9.8 million bond ordinance
to buy the development rights to the 85-acre property was taken on June 12, 2008. Township officials began discussing a plan to permanently
preserve the property as farmland in 1999, said township administrator Bruce McArthur.
Since then, preservation of the farm has been a priority
of the township's open space program, McArthur said. The farm on the edge of the historic village of Liberty Corner has been in the
hands of the English family since before the American Revolution, McArthur said. The sale of agricultural products from the farm at 3625
Valley Road has been a longstanding tradition, selling eggs and produce to the public, as well as raising livestock. The family would continue
to own the property under the terms of the farmland preservation program and can continue to live in the historic farmhouse,
McArthur said. The farm can be sold, but only with a deed restriction to keep the land as agricultural under the terms of a preservation
deal that involves township, county and state funding, McArthur said. "Whoever owns it will have to farm there," McArthur said. The purchase price of the
development rights is set at $9.78 million, McArthur said. The township has a contract with the English family, and a final
closing could occur later this year, he said. The township has filed for preservation funding through the state, which has set aside $1.5 million
for the deal, McArthur said. Bernards also anticipates that the county will eventually fund 20 percent of the cost, he said.
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