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By Bobbie Whitehead
Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Co. of Mansfield, Mo,, has purchased the oldest, continuously-run U.S. seed company now in its third century of operation.
Nested in the Wethersfield, Conn., historic district, Comstock, Ferre & Co., ripe with a museum exhibit featuring antique seed packing machines and other old tools, will offer its own line of heirloom seeds, 200 varieties, as well as the Baker Creek Heirloom Co. varieties, said Jerry Orton, company consultant.
“Owner Jere Gettle is a nostalgia buff and has always liked things old,” Orton said. “Comstock, Ferre & Co. was founded in 1820, and some of the original, historical buildings are there. One of our goals is to turn it into a tourist destination.”
In preserving the seed company’s past, employees for Comstock, Ferre & Co. will dress in 19th century clothing.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Co. of Mansfield, Mo,, has purchased the oldest, continuously-run U.S. seed company now in its third century of operation.
Nested in the Wethersfield, Conn., historic district, Comstock, Ferre & Co., ripe with a museum exhibit featuring antique seed packing machines and other old tools, will offer its own line of heirloom seeds, 200 varieties, as well as the Baker Creek Heirloom Co. varieties, said Jerry Orton, company consultant.
“Owner Jere Gettle is a nostalgia buff and has always liked things old,” Orton said. “Comstock, Ferre & Co. was founded in 1820, and some of the original, historical buildings are there. One of our goals is to turn it into a tourist destination.”
In preserving the seed company’s past, employees for Comstock, Ferre & Co. will dress in 19th century clothing.
Comstock, Ferre & Co. seed store, above, the oldest continuously-operated seed company in the United States, is now owned by Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Co. Left, George Washington visited a church at the current site of the First Church of Christ across the street from Comstock in Wethersfield (Photos courtesy of Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Co.).
Oldest continuously-operated seed store has new owner
“We also plan to have seminars and demonstrations such as old-time blacksmithing, spinning and weaving – anything that fits in that era,” Orton said. “There will be music played on occasion.”
Baker Creek announced its purchase in June, and the Comstock, Ferre & Co. is now open for business, will have a seed catalogue available in the fall and also will offer online ordering. All of its seed products, just like those from Baker Creek, are natural, open-pollinated and non-genetically modified organisms.
The company also wants to “re-establish the Wethersfield Red Onion as a major variety” and sell other items such as plants, handmade arts and crafts, natural products and food from local suppliers.
“The store is in a historic district, and the homes in Wethersfield are pre-American Revolution structures,” Orton said. “George Washington attended the church across the street from the store.”
Wethersfield, dating to 1634, has more than 150 structures built before 1850. Washington attended church, now the First Church of Christ, in Wethersfield in 1781, and “less than a block away, General Washington and Jean-Baptiste Rochambeau planned the final victory over the British to end the American Revolution in triumph,” according to Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds.
Gettle assured the town and former owner that he would “revive this near-museum of heirloom seeds and historic agriculture.”
“We hope to develop this into an East Coast garden and farm educational center,” said Gettle in a company blog post. “With nearly two acres, we have plenty of room for such events. We also believe this will grow into a green- and agro- tourism destination, thus benefitting the surrounding community and its economic and environmental vitality.”
For more information or to order seeds, visit http://www.comstockferre.com or http://www.rareseeds.com.
Baker Creek announced its purchase in June, and the Comstock, Ferre & Co. is now open for business, will have a seed catalogue available in the fall and also will offer online ordering. All of its seed products, just like those from Baker Creek, are natural, open-pollinated and non-genetically modified organisms.
The company also wants to “re-establish the Wethersfield Red Onion as a major variety” and sell other items such as plants, handmade arts and crafts, natural products and food from local suppliers.
“The store is in a historic district, and the homes in Wethersfield are pre-American Revolution structures,” Orton said. “George Washington attended the church across the street from the store.”
Wethersfield, dating to 1634, has more than 150 structures built before 1850. Washington attended church, now the First Church of Christ, in Wethersfield in 1781, and “less than a block away, General Washington and Jean-Baptiste Rochambeau planned the final victory over the British to end the American Revolution in triumph,” according to Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds.
Gettle assured the town and former owner that he would “revive this near-museum of heirloom seeds and historic agriculture.”
“We hope to develop this into an East Coast garden and farm educational center,” said Gettle in a company blog post. “With nearly two acres, we have plenty of room for such events. We also believe this will grow into a green- and agro- tourism destination, thus benefitting the surrounding community and its economic and environmental vitality.”
For more information or to order seeds, visit http://www.comstockferre.com or http://www.rareseeds.com.
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