I was born in 1943 and grew up in Robards, KY with my grandparents. My grandfather was a retired physician and actively worked 2 family farms, one 86 acres at Robards and the other 127 acres on the Green River. We raised corn, soybeans and tobacco.
I planted a crop of corn with a 1953 Allis Chalmers tractor and a 2-row drill in 1961, the same year that I enrolled in the University of Kentucky as a Mechanical Engineering student. In 1968 I bought 80 acres of timberland that I have subsequently given to my sons. In 1973 I bought 128 acres in Webster County, mostly timberland.
In 1975, after the passing of my grandparents, I inherited the 86 acres at Robards from my grandfather, Fred Eakins. It has been in my family for 212 years. It is part of the original 5,000 acres my Great, Great, Great Grandfather, George Eakins, bought in 1811. I’m the sixth generation to own it and my grandchildren will be the 8th.
I also inherited the 127 acres on Green River. I sold it in 1981 to capitalize the start-up of my injection molding company that I operated for 30 years.
In 1998 I bought a 209-acre farm on the Green River with a little over a mile of river frontage and 85 acres of mature timber primarily in wetlands. Also, in 1998 I bought 190 acres in Webster County adjacent to my 128-acre timberland. About 100 acres was in timber giving me about 220 acres of timber in Webster County and 85 acres in Henderson County, with total acreage of all 3 farms at 613.
I have considerable habitat variation with river bottom wetlands and hill ground with creek bottoms resulting in much biodiversity. As an example, I have 14 species of oak trees between all three farms. The Webster County farm has certified Tree Farm status. I am preparing to do a selective timber harvest on the Webster County property with a forester marking and inventorying trees to be harvested and a Master Logger involved in the harvest.
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