3 operations honored for exceptional longevity

By ANNA WILLARD

Capital Press

Matthew Chambers Jr. was a new Knox College graduate in Illinois when he decided to move west in 1847.

Upon his arrival in Linn County, Ore., Chambers received a 640-acre homestead after he married Margaret Knox. Prior to their marriage, he would have received only 320 acres.

The Chambers' farm is one of three operations to be inducted as Sesquicentennial Farms -- marking at least 150 years of continuous operation by the same family -- at the Oregon State Fair this year.

Chambers put in an orchard and raised livestock and grain, according to information the family provided in its sesquicentennial farm application.

Over the years the farm increased its wheat and oat acreage, and from 1930 to 1980 the family had a herd of Jersey and Guernsey dairy cattle.

When Matthew Chambers died, the farm was passed on to his son Jacob, then to the next generation, Bert Chambers.

Kenneth Chrisman, Bert's nephew and Matthew's great-grandson, purchased the farm in 1993. Chrisman produces annual ryegrass on 70 acres, and the remaining 28 acres is used to support feeder steers.

"The family was very progressive because when Ken's great-grandfather died, everything was divided equally between the boys and girls -- that was not heard of then," Pam Chrisman, Ken's wife, explained.

The barn was restored to its original state from the time it was built in the 1860s, and is now in the National Registry of Historic places. The structure is used today for hay storage and shelter for the steers.

A trust fund has also been started to help future generations keep the farm going, preserve their family history and keep the operation in the family, Ken Chrisman said.

Byron Scott Farms Inc.

Commodore Perry Knighton and his wife Rosanna left their home in Missouri in 1850 to move to Oregon. The couple established the Knighton Farm on 640 acres near Tangent, Ore., in 1853.

The farm has stayed in the family for six generations and has endured a fair amount of change over the years. The family grew wheat, oats and cheat, and raised horses and cows in the early days, according to the family's narrative.

Horses were a necessity on the farm then, so the Knighton Farm worked closely with a family horse operation in eastern Oregon to keep a steady supply on the farm. The need for work horses was eliminated when tractors and other machinery were introduced to the farm.

Byron Scott, great-grandson of the Knightons, attended Oregon State University to become a chemical engineer, a move that almost put an end to the family farm. But Scott decided to return, run the farm and raise his family there. Prior to his death in 2007, he renamed the operation Byron Scott Farms Inc.

Today, the farm is 690 acres. The fifth and sixth generations run the farm and produce ryegrass and raise, sheep, pigs, cows and feeder cattle.

The Mitchell Family

Jack Settle's 1846 wagon train trek from Indiana to Oregon had taken a toll on his livestock and family. After 2,200 miles, they needed to rest and regroup.

When the train came to the Whitman Mission, outside Walla Walla, Wash., Settle decided to spend the winter there to let everyone recover and decide on a plan of action. In the spring of 1847, Settle packed up and moved to Lebanon, Ore., where he homesteaded on 640 acres.

On the original donation land claim, the family raised sheep and other livestock, grain and row crops.

Aside from establishing his family's farm, Settle also participated in building wagon roads across the Santiam Pass for approximately 10 years, built a flour mill in Lebanon, Ore., and was a silent partner in the operation of the Red Crown Mill in Albany, Ore., according to a family narrative.

Since then, the livestock has disappeared from the farm, but Ralph Mitchell -- Jack Settle's great-grandson -- still harvests squash, beans, corn, wheat, dry peas, grass seed and sugar beet seed.