Ranch Succession

[per]

My wife and I were just talking about a third generation ranch next door that is struggling for various reasons. We were wondering how many generations in the business are you. We are fourth generation and the fifth are out helping. In this part of the country we would have to be native to have been here much longer. Sometimes we wonder if we will be the last in our family. Our hope is the kids get a good education and career first. :?:

 

[burnt]

per, you hit on a very sore topic around here with your last comment about the kids taking it over. Your hope is exactly what I told our kids too. If you want to farm, you better have a good paying job first. It's just not right what is happening in agriculture and very few see the implications of the demise of the independent operator.

As far as how long we were here, well only 2 generations where we now live (third one helping when they are home and not too tired :roll: ), but the place we moved away from 44 years ago was taken up from the crown by our ancestors.

 

[Yanuck]

My brothers and 1st cousins are 4th generation, our family was also one of the first settlers in our area. Every generation other than the 1st has had a least one person in the marriage have a job off of the place to supplement farming and cows thru the tough times. My Grandfather supplied every restaurant and grocery store in the area with eggs and cream, plus my Grandma raised turkeys to sell. My Dad drove school bus for years and my Mom is a nurse, all the brothers and their wives have worked at different times, either trucking in the winter, trimming feet, or in the oil patch...so far its worked for over 100 years

 

[rustynail]

dad bought our place in 1962 and raised corn, tobbacco, hay and cattle. i always put out veggies and truck farmed them to the city. he had a very good job as a construction engineer in oak ridge, tn.

i have the farm now and raise cattle and hay and own my own business as a fire sprinkler contractor.

my kids will help out when they are willing, have four girls, all teenagers. keep telling them to stay in school, get a good education, and then they can buy a chunk of land.

dad was the first deeded owner of the land, originally from a land grant signed by andrew johnson when he was still the govenor of tennessee, later to become the president. i have the original land grant, pretty neat i think.

i still run cattle on part of the original land granted farm, the lady that owns it was 100 in july and was my first grade teacher also.

G3

 

[mrj]

We are third generation and have fourth and fifth coming up, with one of them here now.

Ironically, our first gen had part-time off ranch jobs during twenties and thirties while the second and third did not. We are in late '60s-early 70's in age. Our 4th gen has not had real paid jobs other than some contract work off ranch, bu their wives do.

Also a little different than many, our second gen got college degrees and the MIL held jobs before marriage. They also raised and dressed and sold turkeys and ran pigs to build their cattle and land holdings.

My spouse had only one year of college, and I graduated highschool....50 long years ago! And in our youthful 'wisdom', turned down the offer to get college degrees after we married. Our kids all had some college or trade school. A mechanic is a good thing to have in a ranch family! So is a good cowman. A carpenter is good, too, even if not involved in the ranch. The advice comes in handy!

Has anyone thought about the idea that maybe if more of the past two generations had gotten educations, college or trade school, maybe the farm or ranch would be stronger financially now? That most likely would have caused different reactions to situations encountered in their agriculture careers. Rather than doing so many things "like dad did it", or worse, because "they" won't let us be prosperous", possibly making a stronger, more successful business of their farm/ranch.

Our biggest fear, and one too many ranchers refuse to believe will affect them, is the Death Tax. That is designed to keep farmer/ranchers and other businessmen from building businesses capable of sustaining multiple generations of the family, IMO. If Democrats take total control of Washington, DC with this election, that tax will return in 2011 to the old rules, including far lower monetary values of exemptions that todays' land prices will make many ranches far more vulnerable to excessively high death taxes than many ag people can imagine, mark my words!

mrj

 

[leanin' H]

5th generation Ekker here! Family still has the ranch that Great, Great grandpa Ekker homesteaded. But it's tougher to keep it in the family with each generation. Most everyone in our country out here works full time too. But it's ranching that flows through our veins and tempers where and how we live. Without this lifestyle, without the tradition, without the experiences and without all that makes our vocation special i'd die. Not just feel poorly and recover. I would seriously roll over and die! And if the Lord doesnt raise cows and horses i'll be ridin' where it's much warmer!