Patterson Farm is owned by Lower Makefield Township, but before that acquisition the farm was owned by Thomas and Alice Patterson. The Patterson’s lived and farmed there for nearly 50 years. Their crops needed no advertisement. Word of mouth and their reputation for excellent produce drew customers near and far. Patterson Farm’s prime farmland produced, and still produces, exceptional crops. The Pattersons, excellent stewards of the land, enrolled their farm in the local Agricultural Security Area, an area designated decades ago by forward-thinking agriculturists and government leaders to keep farms free from undue pressures that would hinder agriculture.
Duane Doan Jr. grew up on Patterson/Doan Farm and farmed with the Pattersons. He served the township as President of its Farmland Preservation Board and helped found Patterson Farm Preservation, Inc. in 2015, a nonprofit dedicated to the preservation and appropriate stewardship of Patterson Farm. Members of Patterson Farm Preservation successfully advocated for a conservation easement that protects 106 acres of Patterson Farm. Today 38 acres of Patterson Farm remain unprotected by a conservation easement.
Patterson Farm Preservation advocates preservation of Patterson Farms’ remaining acreage and restoration of historic Satterthwaite House. The group has provided Lower Makefield Township with a plan to restore Satterthwaite farmstead and open it to the public for a variety of educational programs to promote Patterson Farms best resources. Public support is essential to save a place for agriculture, heritage and nature.
PHOTO CAP: Produce grown on Patterson Farm graces local dinner tables and charities that address food insecurity. Its pumpkins are the stars of Yardley’s Canal-O-Ween.