Boughton Farm History – as told by Richard Boughton
John Boughton came from Victor, New York in the early 1800’s. He and many of his relatives farmed in Copley and Bath. He is buried in the Montrose Cemetery
John’s son, Truman Boughton, owned the farm on the north-east corner of Jacoby Road and Copley Road. He was a good farmer and also served as the Superintendent of Copley Schools in the 1860’s. (Did you know that teachers only made $27.00 per month then?) Truman was killed in a buggy accident in Akron after a celebration of McKinley for Governor of Ohio.
Truman’s son, Earl, married Maria Hull. The Hull family owned the farm, just off Schocalog Road, that we own today. Boughton Farm was purchased in 1853 by Ed and Mary Hull, parents of Maria Hull Boughton. The land was originally owned by Simon Perkins, a founder of Akron, Ohio.
After Earl and Maria married, they moved to Florida and opened a bakery. However, in the late 1890’s Earl’s brother, Sylvester, got into a dispute with a neighbor about an easement from the farm to Schocalog Road. Sylvester was killed with an ax handle resulting in the neighbor and neighbor’s son going to prison.
Earl and Maria returned to Ohio, with two sons, Ernest and Ford, and purchased the farm. Earl and Maria died soon after their return. Not eating so well anym
ore, Ernest went back to Florida to marry his girlfriend, Sarah (Sadie) and brought her back to the farm.
There were nine children in the Hull Family. There were nine children in Ernest and Sadie’s family. And my grandparents had nine children, as well as my parents, Edward and Rosemary. Nine must be our family’s lucky number.
Pat and I have four children. Needless to say, the floors of our farmhouse have been well worn. Half the house was built in 1859 and the other half in 1864. The farm has remained about the same size over the years, 94 acres down to 90 acres now.
In the early 1920’s a machine shop out of Cleveland with the backing of Frank A. Seiberling, bought up options on the farm and the surrounding farms to build a tractor factory. They were going to name the tractor, The Akron. They would employee 10,000 workers. All the farmers that optioned their farms, moved to Florida in a caravan. About that time, Frank A. Seiberling was fired from his own company. He took his money and started Seiberling Tire in Barberton. That stopped the funding for the tractor factory, the options ran out resulting in all the farmers returning from Florida to take over their farms.
Up to 1960, we had livestock and chickens, sold milk and eggs, and did our own butchering. We also grew a variety of vegetables that were wholesaled to stores like A&P, Acme, Sparkle Market, and Co-ops, as well as the Akron open market. After 1960, the farm went completely vegetables. By the mid 1960’s, markets were down and expenses were up, so the farm changed to all potatoes – again, mostly wholesale. Of course, they had good and bad years.
When I returned home from the military (1965-1969), Pat and I married and I went back to work for Firestone. In 1980, Firestone closed my plant and everyone was laid-off. At the time my dad’s health was declining and I came back to the farm, which gave him a chance to retire. I farmed with my uncle until 1986 when he retired.
The potato markets were slowing, so after the hot summer of 1988, we lost rented ground. It was the time to move on to more vegetables and strawberries, with wholesale farm market and pick your own. It’s always been a fa
rmers’ life; good years and bad years. We raised and educated our children to have a good and better life. We enjoy them and our grandchildren. They all still love the farm.
I’m now 73 years old and still enjoy farming on a smaller scale. We still run a pick your own operation and a farm market. Many people enjoy coming to the farm because it is “out in the country” but still close to the city. How much longer it will last is anyone’s guess. It’s lasted 165 years and who knows what tomorrow will bring?