A Growing Operation for 8 Generations

MIDDLEFIELD, Conn. —  There is a spot on Lyman Farm where John Lyman III goes to take in a view of the place his family has owned for 258 years.

It is here that with just one look, he sees fields of orange pumpkins, lush green fairways, blossoming apple orchards and sugar maple trees that explode with colors of red and yellow in the fall. And it is here that he is sure all the hard times and all the hailstorms have been worth it.

“You look down and see that, and it’s just beautiful,” he says. “The feeling you get is you’re carrying something on; you’re leaving this to future generations.”

Lyman’s ancestors felt the same way. The business has been in the family since 1741, when John Lyman bought 36 acres of land in central Connecticut as a small, self-sustaining farm for his family. Eight generations later, the Lymans are still running the farm, making it the oldest family business in Connecticut.

Although John Lyman III is the only family member who still works full time in the business, it is owned exclusively by Lymans and their relatives: 166 to be exact. Thirteen family members live on the farm.

Over the years, the farm expanded and went through numerous changes. Today, it is a 1,100-acre agricultural attraction that draws half a million visitors each year.

The Lyman Farm Inc., or “Lymans,” as it is popularly called, has three main businesses: orchards, golf courses and a farm market.

Lyman Orchards has more than 400 acres of apples, peaches, strawberries, blueberries, pears and pumpkins, where visitors can pick their own or go on a tour to watch the harvesting.

The Robert Trent Jones golf course, built in 1969, is considered one of the most challenging in New England. The Gary Player course, which opened in 1994, is known for its scenery; players are so close to the apple orchards they can pick their own between shots.

The Apple Barrel Farm Store sells everything from fresh fruits and vegetables grown in Lyman fields to apple cider doughnuts and sunflower bread made in the Lyman bakery.

Although the family will not discuss profits, the business is prosperous enough to keep it in the family. John Lyman III, the 42-year-old vice president of farming, said the family has never come close to selling the business.

He acknowledges, however, that it wasn’t always easy to keep the farm going. There were many hard times.

A severe frost during the winter of 1917-18 wiped out the farm’s entire crop of peaches, which was then its main source of income. In 1956, a fire burned down the farm’s cow barn.

And just two years ago, a hailstorm damaged 70,000 bushels of apples.

But the family has always adapted.

After that terrible winter in 1917, the Lymans switched from peaches to apples, which are heartier and easier to grow. The orchards now produce about 6.5 million apples a year, covering more than 30 varieties.

One of the reasons the family decided to open the first golf course 30 years ago was to have a business that would be busy in the spring and summer, to supplement the farm’s already bustling fall harvest season. They had to fight state regulators to open the second course, but today, golf is the most successful of the farm’s three core businesses.

In recent years, the family has added raspberries and jostaberries (a cross between a gooseberry and a black currant) to round out its fruit offerings. They have also promoted their pick-your-own business to the point that the farm now sells 10% of its fruit that way.

Family members say that for the most part, they have been able to reach consensus on what direction the business should take. What has been difficult, they say, is keeping the land for agriculture in an urban-oriented state with strong development pressures.

The business employs about 75 people year-round; that number swells to 200 in the harvest season. Two years ago, after John Lyman Jr. retired, the family hired an outsider as president for the first time in its history.

But John Lyman III said that with 166 family members as shareholders, the family is not afraid of losing control of the business they have cherished for so long. And there is no thought of selling.

“The land is a generations-old treasure,” he said. “It’s not about making the most money you can. It’s about using the open space in a productive and positive way.”