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Records show that Timothy Stearns bought a large tract of land here in 1723. The cellar hole from his house is where our sheds are now located. Stearns’ daughter married Col. Nixon and their son, Capt. Thomas Nixon, Jr. built the house, c. 1787, across the road, that still stands. The land remained in the Nixon family until Margaret Welch assumed ownership in the early 1900’s.
Margaret Welch
Penelope Turton, an English friend of Mrs. Welch, founded Stearns Organic Farm in 1954, and farmed it until 1990. The ten acres of farmland and an additional 70 acres that adjoin Callahan State Park were given to Sudbury Valley Trustees (SVT) in 1975 by Mrs. Welch.
In 1990, Penelope started a CSA as part of Stearns Farm in addition to the regular farmstand. There were ten shares that year. 
Amy Wales was the first farm manager for the new CSA and it was the first time Penelope had ever delegated that task to anyone. Clicking on the two images to the left will show larger, readable versions of a Boston Globe article about that time.
Since Penelope Turton retired from farming in 1990, Stearns Farm has had 10 farm managers. Kathy Huckins, who farmed at Stearns from 1999 to 2011, transformed it into the modern farm we know today. When Kathy took over, Stearns had only 10-30 sharers, no greenhouses or tractors, and its farmers were underpaid and had no benefits. With a great force of will, creativity, and inspiration Kathy succeeded in manifesting what Stearns Farm needed and inspired many others to be part of her team. She took the word “community” in Community Supported Agriculture very seriously, and she created a large community of over 150 sharers.
Kathy also valued and appreciated the importance of cultivating relationships with neighbors and the wider community, and she connected with other farmers in the region to create mutually beneficial relationships and to educate other farmers. During her tenure, Kathy added the blueberries, the flower garden, greenhouses, high tunnels, and tractors, and she made countless other investments and improvements necessary to turn Stearns Farm into a thriving, highly productive farm.
In 1994 “Stearns Organic Farm CSA” incorporated as a non-profit organization, which is governed by a sharer-elected Board of Directors. After the USDA Organic Standards went into effect in October 2002, we no longer use the word “organic” to describe Stearns Farm produce. The certification process that would allows us to use the “organic” label is prohibitively expensive for us, but our farming practices remain organic, entirely natural, and sustainable. We use no chemical fertilizers or pesticides.
To read Margaret Welch’s letter donating the land that Stearns Farm sits to the Sudbury Valley Trustees click here. MargaretWelchLetterDec19_1975
Stearns Farm CSA Farm Managers
| 1990 | Amy Wales |
| 1991 | Amy Wales |
| 1992 | Tim Cook |
| 1993 | Tim Cook |
| 1994 | John Blanchard/Tom Fair |
| 1995 | Tom Fair |
| 1996 | Tim Cook |
| 1997 | Susan Perry |
| 1998 | Susan Perry |
| 1999 | Kathy Huckins |
| 2000 | Kathy Huckins |
| 2001 | Kathy Huckins |
| 2002 | Kathy Huckins |
| 2003 | Kathy Huckins |
| 2004 | Kathy Huckins |
| 2005 | Kathy Huckins |
| 2006 | Kathy Huckins |
| 2007 | Kathy Huckins |
| 2008 | Kathy Huckins |
| 2009 | Kathy Huckins |
| 2010 | Kathy Huckins |
| 2011 | Kathy Huckins |
| 2012 | Trish Stefanko |
| 2013 | Trish Stefanko |
| 2014 | Susan Peters |
| 2015 | Susan Peters |
| 2016 | Melanie Hardy |
| 2017 | Melanie Hardy |
| 2018 | Melanie Hardy |
| 2019 | Ember Fleming |
| 2020 | Ember Fleming |
| 2021 | Ember Fleming |
| 2022 | Ember Fleming |
| 2023 | Ember Fleming |
| 2024 | Ember Fleming |
