High Breeze Farm | |
 Main House | |
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| Nearest city | Highland Lakes, New Jersey |
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| Coordinates | 41°13′6″N74°25′3″W / 41.21833°N 74.41750°W |
| Area | 162 acres (66 ha) |
| Architectural style | Late 19th And 20th Century Revivals, Federal, English barn |
| NRHP reference No. | 89000993 [1] |
| Added to NRHP | July 27, 1989 |
High Breeze Farm, also known as Barrett Farm, is located in the Highland Lakes section of Vernon Township, in Sussex County, New Jersey, United States.
The 160-acre (65 ha) farm, now known as High Breeze Farm, was owned by the Demarest family from approximately 1818 to 1860, when it was purchased by the Barrett family. The main farmhouse was built in 1828 and the barns and outbuildings were built between 1860 and 1935. The Barretts operated it continuously from 1860 to 1986 with very few changes to the original farming methods. [2] The farm was used mainly for subsistence farming. [3] Four generations of Barretts operated it. They raised horses, cows, and chickens and produced hay, corn, turnips, rutabagas, apples, peaches, pears, plums, honey, and maple syrup. [4] Luther J. Barrett was the last family member to work the farm, operating it “almost as a time capsule of 19th century farming,” using a draft horse for most farm work. At the time of Luther J. Barrett's death in 1986, the farm had not installed plumbing, central heating, or telephones. [2]
The Barretts did, however, install minimal electricity in 1948. [3] The State of New Jersey purchased the property in 1981 and made it part of Wawayanda State Park. In 1989, the State of New Jersey planned the demolition of the farm, but the Vernon Historical Society, specifically through the work of Ron Dupont Jr. struggled to preserve it. Dupont rallied school children and compiled numerous slideshows to show the historic significance of the farm. [4] His efforts were successful, and High Breeze Farm was listed on the State and National Registers of Historic Places. High Breeze Farm is now the only remaining farm on Wawayanda Mountain. The main house, barn, and outbuildings remain, and are displayed as part of the “living history museum,” as it was restored in 1992. [2] The farm also displays historic farm equipment including mowers, sickle bars, and wrought iron wheels that were used by the Barretts. [4]
Bill Becker now operates High Breeze Farm as a working farm devoted to preserving traditional farming methods. The farm offers Certified Naturally Grown produce, maple syrup, eggs, pork, and beef. [5] By practicing “Naturally Grown” techniques, which are based on the USDA National Organic Program standards, High Breeze maintains many traditional historical practices, rather than choosing to utilize “modern” pesticides and fertilizers or more mechanized agricultural techniques. [6]
High Breeze Farm served as the grounds for the Black Powder Association's annual encampment in 2009 and 2010. At this encampment, members of the Black Powder Association reenact pre-1840s American culture through dress, props, crafts, and activities. Different groups choose different time periods between American colonization and the 1840s. Members representing different periods camps separately, in an attempt to preserve the historical integrity of the reenactment. Some camp out in teepees or tents, while others construct lean-tos. The encampment also features a competition known as the “Seneca Run,” where competitors must start a fire with a tinderbox, flint, and steel, use bows and arrows, and fire black powder muskets. [7]
With fifty sugar maple trees on the property, people also use the boiling of sap into maple syrup as an opportunity to celebrate the historic background of High Breeze Farm. People, including members of the Black Powder Association, dress for the syrup-boiling event in period clothing from anywhere between 1720 and 1840. They discuss the historic methods of syrup boiling, and use the weekend for festivities such as crafts, cooking, and shooting in the style of the historic period they choose to represent. [8]
As part of Wawayanda State Park, High Breeze Farm is also a destination for hikers. Wawayanda has 40 miles of bicycle and hiking trails, including an 11-mile section of the Appalachian Trail. [3] The farm also serves as a lookout point of an extensive view over Orange County, New York. [9]
Maple syrup is a syrup made from the sap of maple trees. In cold climates, these trees store starch in their trunks and roots before winter; the starch is then converted to sugar that rises in the sap in late winter and early spring. Maple trees are tapped by drilling holes into their trunks and collecting the sap, which is processed by heating to evaporate much of the water, leaving the concentrated syrup.
Sussex County is the northernmost county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Its county seat is Newton. It is part of the New York metropolitan area and is part of New Jersey's Skylands Region. As of the 2020 census, the county was the state's 17th-most-populous county, with a population of 144,221, a decrease of 5,044 (−3.4%) from the 2010 census count of 149,265, which in turn reflected an increase of 5,099 (+3.5%) over the 144,166 persons at the 2000 census. Based on 2020 census data, Vernon Township was the county's largest in both population and area, with a population of 22,358 and covering an area of 70.59 square miles (182.8 km2). The county is part of the North Jersey region of the state.
Morris County is a county located in the U.S. state of New Jersey, about 30 mi (48 km) west of New York City. According to the 2020 census, the county was the state's tenth-most populous county, with a population of 509,285, its highest decennial count ever and an increase of 17,009 (+3.5%) from the 2010 census count of 492,276, which in turn reflected an increase of 22,064 (+11.6%) from the 470,212 counted in the 2000 census, Morris County is part of the New York metropolitan area and is divided into 39 municipalities, with many commuter towns but no large cities. Its county seat is Morristown, in the southeast. The most populous place was Parsippany-Troy Hills Township, with 56,162 residents at the time of the 2020 census, while Rockaway Township covered 45.55 square miles (118.0 km2), the largest total area of any municipality. The county is part of the North Jersey region of the state.
Bergen County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Located in the northeastern corner of New Jersey, Bergen County and its many inner suburbs constitute a highly developed part of the New York City metropolitan area, bordering the Hudson River; the George Washington Bridge, which crosses the Hudson, connects Bergen County with Manhattan. The county is part of the North Jersey region of the state.
West Amwell Township is a township in Hunterdon County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 3,005, a decrease of 835 (−21.7%) from the 2010 census count of 3,840, which in turn reflected an increase of 1,457 (+61.1%) from the 2,383 counted in the 2000 census.
Harding Township is a township in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is located in the Passaic Valley region within the New York Metropolitan area. The township was formed as a township by an act of the New Jersey Legislature on September 1, 1922, from portions of Passaic Township, based on the results of a referendum passed on May 9, 1922. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 3,871, an increase of 33 (+0.9%) from the 2010 census count of 3,838, which in turn reflected an increase of 658 (+20.7%) from the 3,180 counted in the 2000 census.
Vernon Township is a township in Sussex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. It is located about a one hour drive from New York City and is part of the New York metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 22,358, a decrease of 1,585 (−6.6%) from the 2010 census count of 23,943, which in turn reflected a decline of 743 (−3.0%) from the 24,686 counted in the 2000 census. It is both the most populous municipality and the largest in area in the county.
Maple sugar is a traditional sweetener in Canada and the northeastern United States, prepared from the sap of the maple tree.
In cooking, syrup is a condiment that is a thick, viscous liquid consisting primarily of a solution of sugar in water, containing a large amount of dissolved sugars but showing little tendency to deposit crystals. In its concentrated form, its consistency is similar to that of molasses. The viscosity arises from the multiple hydrogen bonds between the dissolved sugar, which has many hydroxyl (OH) groups.
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Towaco is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in the township of Montville, Morris County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 5,624.
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Byne Blueberry Farms is an organic blueberry farm in Waynesboro, Georgia. It is one of the earliest and most famous organic farms in the United States. Byne Blueberry Farms was started in 1980, before there was a National Organic Program, when owner Dick Byne became the first commercial blueberry grower in the Central Savannah River Area. Whole Foods and Earth Fare are some of the farm's biggest consumers. Privately owned by Dick Byne and his wife Linda Byne, the family runs the farm themselves with the help of their four daughters Diane, Janie, AnnNell, and Marian. The blueberries are grown on 20 of the 400 acres that have been in the Byne family for generations. The remaining 380 acres have been preserved as forest. The specific species of blueberry grown on the farm is the Rabbiteye blueberry, which is reputed for its sweetness and high level of fructose. This kind of blueberry is the most popular type of blueberry grown in the south. The farm was certified as organic in 1997, following a three-year certification process.
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Helena Ely Fairchild was an American amateur gardener, founding member of the Garden Club of America, and writer, whose three books influenced American and British gardeners to avoid Victorian formal gardens in favor of plantings that embodied an "informal and sensual style." She focused on planning her gardens around planting "hardy perennial plants found in the agricultural landscape."
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