Georgia recognized fourteen family farms as the state’s newest Centennial Farms during a ceremony at the Georgia National Fair on October 8, 2025. The event honored farm owners and their historic properties from the 2023 application year. The ceremony was hosted by the Historic Preservation Division of the Georgia Department of Community Affairs and cohosted by the Georgia Farm Bureau, Georgia Department of Agriculture, Georgia EMC, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension, and Georgia National Fairgrounds and Agricenter.
Centennial Farms are those that have operated continuously for at least 100 years. Since the program began in 1993, more than 630 farms have been recognized across Georgia. The awards are given in three categories: the Centennial Heritage Farm Award for farms owned by the same family for a century or more and listed in the National Register of Historic Places; the Centennial Farm Award for farms at least 100 years old and listed in the National Register; and the Centennial Family Farm Award for family-owned farms not listed in the National Register.
This year’s Centennial Heritage Farm Award went to Ash Farms in Effingham County. The Centennial Family Farm Awards were presented to Stanford Farm at the Martin Homeplace (Coweta County), Lil’ Slice o’ Paradise (Dade and Walker Counties), HD Bailey Family Partnership (Dawson County), Striplin Lands LLC (Gordon County), Pendergast Hay Farm (Grady County), Home Place Farms (Hancock County), Hays Farm (Jackson County), P.K. Moore Farm (Lowndes County), Beck Farm (Madison County), Jenkins Family Historic Farm (Talbot County), Fielding Tall Pines (Thomas County), Carl J. Ray Farm (Tift County), and Jordan Farm (Washington County).
“Centennial Farms hold a central role in the heritage of our state, having formed the economic, cultural, and family foundation for generations of Georgians. All farms earning this recognition have continuously operated for 100 years or more.”
The Historic Preservation Division of the Georgia Department of Community Affairs serves as the state’s historic preservation office. Its mission is “to promote the preservation and use of historic places for a better Georgia.” Programs include archaeology protection and education, environmental review, grants, historic resource surveys, tax incentives, and technical assistance.
The Department of Community Affairs partners with communities to build strong neighborhoods and promote economic development and affordable housing across Georgia. More information about the department is available at https://dca.georgia.gov.
Anyone interested in nominating a farm for future recognition can find application details at https://dca.georgia.gov/community-assistance/historic-preservation/cent… or by contacting the department by email. The deadline for applications is May 1 each year.
