Historic African American farm preserved in Vermont

A version of this story originally appeared in the Summer 2024 issue of Saving Land magazine.

Clemmons Family Farm, Inc., an African American-led 501(c)(3) organization, recently completed a successful campaign to secure the future of the historic Clemmons farm in Charlotte, Vermont, and permanently preserve the land with a conservation easement.

The farm is a landmark on the Vermont African American Heritage Trail and serves as a national model for the preservation of African American land assets and cultural heritage. In Vermont, only 17 farms and fewer than 4,000 acres of the state’s 1.2 million acres of farmland are owned or operated by African Americans, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture statistics.

Dr. Jackson and Lydia Clemmons were an African American couple born in 1923 and moved to Vermont from Ohio. The doctor and nurse purchased the farm in 1962 and maintained it as a working farm with space to share African American history, culture and art for 61 years.

Their daughter, also named Lydia, helped found the nonprofit Clemmons Family Farm, Inc., in 2019 and serves as its president and executive director.

“Growing up, my parents really put a big emphasis on community,” Clemmons said. “They loved sharing the farm with their community. They’re very proud of their cultural heritage and loved people to love it — and share African American history and culture.”

The nonprofit bought the 138-acre property at a fair market value of $2.5 million last year after an 18-month fundraising campaign. Vermont Land Trust and the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board protected the land with a conservation easement while American Farmland Trust provided additional funding. The Vermont Community Foundation, Trust for Public Land, Foodshed Capital and Jane’s Trust Foundation also contributed funding toward the purchase of the farm.