North Oaks Farm facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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James J. Hill's North Oaks Farm, Dairy Building
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The Dairy Building from the west
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 Location in Minnesota
Location in the United States
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| Location | Red Barn Road and Hill Farm Circle North Oaks, Minnesota |
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| Built | 1884 |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 97000441 |
| Added to NRHP | May 16, 1997 |
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James J. Hill's North Oaks Farm Dairy Building, Granary Root Cellar and Auxiliary Buildings, Boundary Increase
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The blacksmith building from the southeast
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| Nearest city | North Oaks, Minnesota |
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| Built | 1883 |
| MPS | James J. Hill's North Oaks Farm Buildings MPS |
| NRHP reference No. | 98000311 |
| Added to NRHP | September 9, 1999 |
North Oaks Farm, also called Hill Farm, is a special place in North Oaks, Minnesota. It's like an open-air museum today. This farm keeps alive the history of a huge farm started by a famous railroad builder, James J. Hill, in 1883.
The farm was once 3,300 acres big. That's about 2,000 football fields! Some of its old buildings are so important that they are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Dairy Building was a very modern place. Here, James J. Hill used special machines to make butter. One machine was called a DeLaval separator. It used spinning power, like a washing machine, to separate cream from milk. This helped make butter much faster. It was an early step for how butter is made in big factories today.
At the Blacksmith and Machine Shop, workers fixed things for the farm. They made new parts for wagons and even put new shoes on horses.
Contents
The Farm's Early Days
How James J. Hill Started the Farm
In 1883, James J. Hill bought a lot of land in Minnesota. He paid $50,000 for 3,500 acres. This land became North Oaks Farm. Later, he bought even more land, making the farm almost 5,500 acres in total.
For the first ten years, North Oaks Farm was a place for raising animals. Hill wanted to create a special kind of cow. He hoped to breed cows that could produce both good milk and good meat. This idea was very popular back then.
Breeding Special Cows
James J. Hill spent a lot of money trying to create these "dual-purpose" cows. He wanted cows that were excellent at both making milk and providing beef. However, it was very hard to do. His cows were great for meat, but not as good for milk.
Even though it was tough, Hill and his workers learned a lot. This experience helped them become very good at raising beef cattle. North Oaks Farm became famous for its amazing beef cows.
Award-Winning Cattle
Every year, Hill's special cows traveled by train to a big animal show in Chicago. His Aberdeen Angus and Shorthorn cows won many awards over the years. For example, in 1889, his Aberdeen Angus cows won $700 in prizes!
Life at the Hill Farm
A Country Home for the Family
North Oaks Farm was also James J. Hill's country home. The Hill family spent their summers there. They lived in a large brick house that looked out over Pleasant Lake.
The family loved to have guests at the farm, especially around the Fourth of July. They enjoyed fishing and swimming in the lake. They also rode horses and went for drives around the countryside.
Showing Off the Farm
James J. Hill loved his farm very much. He was always excited to show it to visitors. He would spend hours giving tours of the buildings and fields. He wanted everyone to see how special North Oaks Farm was.
Hill also took care of the farm's beautiful gardens. He spent a lot of money to make them look nice. His wife, Mary Hill, decided which vegetables and flowers to grow. She needed them for the family's meals at their big house in St. Paul.
What Happened Next
The Farm After James J. Hill
James J. Hill passed away in 1916. After him, his son, Louis Hill Sr., took over the farm. Louis loved farming just as much as his father did.
Later, in the 1950s, Louis Hill Jr. decided to change the farm. He divided the land into smaller pieces to build homes. The big family house by the lake was taken down. Many other farm buildings, like the greenhouses and barns, were also removed.
Today, only three of the original forty buildings are left. These are the creamery (Dairy Building), the granary, and the blacksmith shop.
A Final Resting Place
Both James J. Hill and Mary Hill were first buried at North Oaks Farm. Their remains were later moved to a cemetery in St. Paul.
