Circa 1890 – Circa 1930
Bernard (“Ben”) Michael Smith was born in San Francisco on the family farm near the Old Mission in 1864. Later, around 1890, he purchased our farm in Champoeg, Oregon.
Pictured here is Ben Smith, circa 1900, with his draft horses, standing near the old farm house.
Raising beef and lamb on this farm, and purchasing cattle, hogs, and sheep from neighboring farmers, Ben and his brothers James and Joseph formed the Smith Brothers Meat Company and shipped their products by sternwheeler down the Willamette River from Champoeg to Portland.
They would be met at the dock by their brother Frank who, at the peak of his business, owned 29 meat markets around Portland Oregon.
Advertisements for the Frank L. Smith meat markets could be read in the daily papers in Portland in 1910.
Circa 1930 – Circa 1960
Walter Smith, son of Ben, and a meticulous keeper of records, developed the highest producing flock of sheep in the State of Oregon on this farm. Additionally, he partnered with his brother Cecil and raised fiber flax as well as forage and turf grass seed.
Circa 1960 – present
Mark Smith, Walter’s only son, continued farming turf seed and other crops including hazelnuts (or filberts as they’re known around Oregon).
2008 – present
Bernard Smith, born almost exactly 100 years to the day after ‘Ben’ Smith, brought back the animals and began selling wholesome, naturally raised beef, pork, and lamb direct to consumers in the Portland, San Francisco, and Los Angeles areas.
The current generation of “Smith kids” are the 5th generation of the Smith family to live, work and play on this farm.