After looking at several farms for sale, Garrison and Dirck Coon decided on the 325 acres located on a hillside in Smithfield Valley of Amenia, NY. That decision, made during the fall of 1953, marked the birth of Coon Brothers Farm.

The two brothers started with $11,000 dollars, 47 cows, determination, and a serious work ethic. They often had to work nineteen hours a day to make their dream a reality. They must have done something right because fifty five years later Coon Brothers Farm is bigger and better than ever!

When Dirck and Garrison began putting a herd together they went to many sales looking for those 47 cows. They tried to maintain a limit of $300.00 per head. There was one however, that Garry felt was worth $310.00 (he was the big spender that time). All the cows purchased were Guernseys. They began with 17 milk cans being loaded on a pick-up and driven to a tractor trailer five miles away. That first year the herd average was 7,800 lbs. with 318 lbs. of fat. Today, Coon Brothers milk a total of 315 cows producing a herd average of 20,000 lbs. Our Guernsey’s currently average 17,500 lbs. with 830 lbs. of fat and 567 lbs. of protein. The Holsteins average 22,700 lbs. with 914 lbs. fat, 693 lbs. protein.

The Holstein herd began in 1971 when the first 15 were purchased. This was the same year that a double six herringbone parlor was built along with a new freestall barn. The number of Holsteins has since grown to 180. The remainder of our herd is Guernseys.

Change has always been a part of life here at Coon Brothers. Garry and Dirck were constantly looking for new ways to become more efficient. These changes varied from using a manure spreader to shake up bedding as a time saver, or something on a larger scale, such as purchasing a four wheel drive tractor in 1968 so they did not have to pile manure in the winter. After some serious research and planning, they were not afraid to take a chance on something new. Coon Brothers was the first farm in the area to purchase a self propelled haybine, install a milking parlor, and build freestalls as well as many other things.

The farm has definitely benefitted from the many changes. The use of TMR began in the early 1980’s. Six bunk silos have been installed and a corn dryer was set up to dry around 600 acres of corn, all of which is sold. Small bales were soon replaced with large square ones and in 1999 a liquid manure system was implemented. Soon after, a new heifer barn was built. In 2004, we revamped the milking parlor and it is currently a double ten. Our most recent project has been the installation of a generator which will automatically start when the power goes out, which tends to happen fairly often. It was installed just in time. About two weeks after completing it, the power did indeed go out...for thirty two hours... you've never seen such excitement!

One of the most memorable things in the history of Coon Brothers was the privilege of being one of the tour stops of the 2004 National Guernsey Convention. Being able to have so many Guernsey breeders here, many of whom we have admired over the years, to show off the farm to was one of the highlights of our lives.

Over the years both the farm and the families have grown. Dirck and his wife Pat raised their family of five children: Sheila, Peter, Tim, David and Chris. Garry also began a family. After marrying Peggy, two girls were born to them: Joyce and Sarah.

After four years of service in the Navy, Peter married Alice and returned to the farm in 1976. He and Alice have five children: Lisa, Teri, Isaac, Laura and Amos. After working in various places for a few years, David also returned to the farm in 1984 and has since married Kim and they have two children: Caitlyn and Andrew.

The name "Coon Brothers" has been passed onto Peter and David. A sad day came in November 2000 when Garry passed away. He is missed, but his spirit continues to live with us and the farm. The Coon family suffered again in 2006 when Garry's oldest daughter Joyce died from a sudden illness.

Dirck has pretty much retired although he is always around to do odds and ends. He and his wife Carol now enjoy their black and tan coonhounds. They both have hunted for years, but now they are training and showing their dogs. They have won many awards at local, and some not so local, events. Their awards have been not only in the hunt trials but also at the bench shows. In 2005, at the National Black and Tan Days in Illinois, they won the King of the Show with their dog Danny!

Dogs are not the only show animals around here. We also show our Guernseys at the Dutchess County Fair and at the Eastern States Exposition. We love the social part of showing much more than being in the ring itself. It's wonderful to see the other exhibitors and as we all know, it's a great way to teach our kids many of life's lessons.

A very large part of this farm operation is the crop production. Being located about two hours straight north of New York City, we live in an area where many old farms are often bought by wealthy families from Manhattan who use them for weekend residences. This is land that we are able to rent for very little money since there are so few farms left here to compete with. We currently use 2,000 acres for crops. About 1,000 of these acres is corn, of which 600 acres are dried. We also use 150 acres for silage, and 250 for HMC. We plant 150 acres in soybeans and 100 of wheat. As for hay, we grow about 400 acres of alfalfa which is chopped and used here. The remaining 350 acres is baled, some used here, and the rest sold.

What's in the future for Coon Brothers? No one knows. Lisa, the oldest of Peter’s children, is an architect, lives nearby and comes and feeds calves on Sundays. She also loves to show cows. Teri is a large animal vet in Lancaster County Pennsylvania. Isaac is currently working here full time after completing four years in the Marine Corps. . Laura is finishing her sophomore year of college in Atlanta, Georgia, and is still uncertain as to what her future holds for her. Amos, Peter’s youngest, is a senior in high school this year and after graduation is planning to study agronomy and eventually return to the farm. David's children, Caitlyn and Andrew, are 14 and 11 respectfully, so we'll give them some time to think about it.

Last but not least, we want to extend a warm welcome to everyone to come and visit. We are not hard to find, and we're almost always opened! We would be more than happy to show you around.

The Coon Family

Coon Brothers Farm
Smithfield Guernseys
407 Separated Rd
Amenia, N.Y. 12501
845-373-8930

Dirck and Carol
845-373-8328

David and Kim
845-373-9059
farmgirl93@optonline.net

Peter and Alice
845-373-8170
coolcooncows@yahoo.com