The Jones farm began in 1848. Philip James Jones, a Welsh-Irish immigrant, purchased the land from the Jeremiah Shelton family and engaged in general farming. He sold beef, lamb, eggs, and apples from his horse-drawn cart to the city folks of Derby.
His son, William Henderson Jones, joined him in farming and he eventually established a dairy farm. Philip James and William built the oldest extant farm buildings in what is now the Christmas yard area, including the family homestead, the dairy barn, the carriage house, and the ice house. They were constructed in the late 1800s. Many of the stone walls were also built at that time.
Photo: Jones Homestead view west. (Tod Bryant)
William's son, Philip Hubbell Jones, continued to develop the dairy operation, then called Broad Acres Farm, and was known as a wise and progressive farmer. His son, Philip Hubbell Jones, Jr. didn't like milking cows, but ran the dairy farm with his father while growing trees in the back pastures as a hobby. In 1944, Philip sold a dozen Christmas trees to friends. Philip, Jr. and his wife, Elisabeth, became pioneers in developing and promoting cut-your-own Christmas trees at the farm. The dairy herd was sold in the mid-1960s. In 1994, Philip and Elisabeth celebrated 50 years of operating the Christmas Tree Farm.
In his semi-retirement, their son, Terry Hubbell Jones, began growing strawberries as a pick- your-own crop during college. After graduation from the University of New Hampshire in 1969, Terry started the blueberries. The farm has continued to grow and prosper as Philip and Terry have worked together. In 1985, Terry and his wife, Jean Crum Jones, expanded the farm by purchasing nearby farm acreage, bringing the total amount of land now farmed to over 400 acres. They started the harvest-your-own pumpkin patch at Pumpkinseed Hill in 1985. In 2009, Jean, as a professional registered dietician and community nutritionist, returned to her passionate interest in food by opening the Harvest Kitchen to teach the joy of cooking using fresh, local ingredients.
In 1995, the farm's name was updated to Jones Family Farms to reflect the diversity of crops being sold. And now a sixth generation of Jones' has joined the tradition. Philip Jamison (Jamie) Jones, a 1998 graduate of Cornell University, started the Jones Winery and continues to oversee many of the farm's other operations. Gwyn Jones, a 2002 graduate from Rochester Institute of Technology in graphic design, is responsible for creating the farm and winery logos, all the wine labels, farm publications and packaging for special farm products.
Photo: Wine tasting building and cooking school building view southeast. (Tod Bryant)
Photo: Cooking school building view southeast. (Tod Bryant)
"Jones Family Farms."
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This is a 400-acre working farm with three locations. The homestead is a complex of ten buildings surrounded by active fields. This complex includes the original farmhouse, several barns and equipment sheds, a wine tasting room and a cooking school. The other locations are used for strawberries, blueberries, vinifera grapes, pumpkins, Christmas trees and other crops.
Date(s): ca. 1848 Historic Use: Farm Present Use: Farm, Winery, Cooking School
Accessibility:
Exterior visible from public road.
Interior accessible (during business hours).
CT Irish-American
Heritage Trail
640 Arrowhead Drive
Orange, CT 06477
The Irish experience has had a profound impact on Connecticut's past, and its narrative spans all periods of the state's history and touches every one of its eight counties and 169 towns.
