Family recognized for operating same small farm for 127 years

GRANITE FALLS — There are a lot of memories on the Chew family farm.

It’s a slice of the scenic land Francis Henry Small and his wife, Elvira, homesteaded in 1888. It’s where Wesley “Uncle Wes” Chew milked 13 cows by hand and left the jugs alongside the rural road for the Darigold truck to pick up. There once was a large vegetable garden the Chew children weeded for 5 cents per bucket. The family rescued their old barn from clinging blackberry bushes and decorated their yard with the antique tractors Ron Chew collects.

This year, the Chews were recognized by Snohomish County as the Centennial Farm Family, an award given out since 2000 during the Evergreen State Fair in Monroe. The award recognizes farms that have been in continuous operation and owned by the same family for 100 years or more.

Ron, 69, and his wife, Gayle, Chew, 68, live on the farm now. They raise 15 beef cattle and host their growing family — three adult children and six grandchildren — at a long dining table in their bright kitchen. The Chews have been married for 45 years. They moved to the farm on 159th Avenue NE in Granite Falls in 1975 after Ron served in the Navy.

“It’s a good life,” Gayle said. “It’s a good valley. Everybody works together.”

There used to be a number of family farms in the area. There are fewer now, but they still share the road with a couple of others. When their kids were younger, the Chews raised extra pigs for the next door neighbors and the neighbors raised chickens for them. They shared in the labor and the rewards. The Chews also had horses, and Ron did custom hay cutting and baling for other farms when he wasn’t working the night shift for Everett Transit or keeping up with his own land. Their kids learned to drive by steering tractors around the driveway with their dad.

The farm has changed over the years. The original homestead was parceled out when Francis Small, Ron Chew’s great-grandfather, moved back to Minnesota. The family kept 40 acres. That land has been used as a dairy farm, to raise pigs, to grow crops for Biringer Farm and now to raise beef cattle.

Most importantly, though, it’s been a place for family.

“All eight of the Chew kids were born on this property,” Ron Chew said.

It’s unclear what the future of the farm might be, but the Chews’ daughter is interested in sustainable farming and their seventh-grade grandson recently informed them that “the farm will stay a farm.”

“There’s more excitement about fresh vegetables and the market for farm-to-table kinds of things,” Ron Chew said.

Neighbors are starting to sell out of produce at farmers markets as people focus more on organic food and buying local, he said. More young people are growing vegetables at home and they’re picking up other skills like beekeeping to gather their own fresh honey.

Someone always seems to be worked up over the death of family farms, but there’s more to the story, Gayle Chew said. People are willing to pay more for better quality food that supports their community.

“The mindset is changing,” she said. “The naysayers aren’t in the majority, I don’t think.”

The Chews received the Centennial Farm Family award during the Evergreen State Fair’s Opening Day Ceremony last week. Their children and grandchildren joined them for the celebration. They took a family picture there, marking another milestone in the 127-year history of the small farm and the family who makes it unique.

“That was very, very special,” Gayle Chew said. “That’s a forever picture.”

Kari Bray: 425-339-3439; kbray@heraldnet.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

Everett mall renderings from Brixton Capital. (Photo provided by the City of Everett)
Topgolf at the Everett Mall? Mayor’s hint still unconfirmed

After Cassie Franklin’s annual address, rumors circled about what “top” entertainment tenant could be landing at Everett Mall.

Everett
Everett man sentenced to 3 years of probation for mutilating animals

In 2022, neighbors reported Blayne Perez, 35, was shooting and torturing wildlife in north Everett.

Dorothy Crossman rides up on her bike to turn in her ballot  on Tuesday, Aug. 1, 2023 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett leaders plan to ask voters for property tax increase

City officials will spend weeks hammering out details of a ballot measure, as Everett faces a $12.6 million deficit.

Starbucks employee Zach Gabelein outside of the Mill Creek location where he works on Friday, Feb. 23, 2024 in Mill Creek, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mill Creek Starbucks votes 21-1 to form union

“We obviously are kind of on the high of that win,” store bargaining delegate Zach Gabelein said.

Lynnwood police respond to a collision on highway 99 at 176 street SW. (Photo provided by Lynnwood Police)
Police: Teen in stolen car flees cops, causes crash in Lynnwood

The crash blocked traffic for over an hour at 176th Street SW. The boy, 16, was arrested on felony warrants.

The view of Mountain Loop Mine out the window of a second floor classroom at Fairmount Elementary on Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
County: Everett mining yard violated order to halt work next to school

At least 10 reports accused OMA Construction of violating a stop-work order next to Fairmount Elementary. A judge will hear the case.

Imagine Children's Museum's incoming CEO, Elizabeth "Elee" Wood. (Photo provided by Imagine Children's Museum)
Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett to welcome new CEO

Nancy Johnson, who has led Imagine Children’s Museum in Everett for 25 years, will retire in June.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.