Chickens lay eggs almost daily if well cared for, making them a popular livestock choice among farmers.
Courtesy/Bath Township Historical Society
More than farmers' wives, women in the Cuyahoga Valley have been integral to the functioning of family farms. Many have plowed fields alongside husbands and sons, or made cheese for the dairy operations.
More surprising, research has revealed that a few women ran (and run!) farms in their own right. Elizabeth Hynton, John Hynton's surviving spouse, lived in the Frazee House after 1861 and is listed as the farm's owner. Comparing her farm to others in the area, we find that her farm has more land in improved acreage than the average farm and produced 480 eggs and over 600 pounds of butter in a year!
Even today, the valley is home to farming women, including Laura DeYoung of The Spicy Lamb Farm. Visit Heritage Farms and you may find Carol Haramis hard at work on a tractor or among the growing Christmas trees.
