Forest Preserve District Hosts Dairy Day at St. James Farm

Experience life on a dairy farm in the early 1900s at the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County’s “Dairy Day at St. James Farm,” a free, all-ages event that runs from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 12.

Visitors can help make butter the old-fashioned way, try milking Maggie the Milking Cow and see a hay elevator at work. Guided covered wagon rides along part of the “milk and newspaper run” of the former CA&E Railroad will highlight the history of dairy farming in the region.

A costumed interpreter portraying Marion McCormick, who purchased the property with her husband, Chauncey, in 1920, will share stories from the farm’s early days and explain how St. James Farm set the benchmark for dairy farms throughout the Midwest.

“The whole family will delight in the country retreat of St. James Farm,” said Forest Preserve District Commissioner Al Murphy, District 6. “‘Dairy Day’ is a great hands-on opportunity for people of all ages.”

“Steeped in history, St. James Farm has one of the last gabled-roof-and-wing farmhouses in DuPage County,” said Forest Preserve District of DuPage County President Joe Cantore. “It also features a massive wood-planked German-style barn with cantilevered floors.”

The main entrance to St. James Farm is on Winfield Road 0.25 mile north of Butterfield Road.

Source: Forest Preserve District of DuPage County press release