Nelson Farm

Nelson Farm

NELSON FARM HISTORY

From a utility bill insert - 2/2/2002...

John Nelson immigrated, with his wife, in 1871 from Ayrshire, Scotland to the Fort Collins area. He purchased 240 acres just 3 1/2 miles southeast of town and set about to build a house and to plant wheat and oats. There was only prairie stretching in all directions. It is believed that the grasshopper plague of 1874-1876 probably persuaded Nelson to switch to dairying and he bought the first herd of registered Jersey cows into the county. This was Larimer County's first dairy business and some historians say it was the first in the state. Around 1880, he built the sandstone milk house which is all that remains of the farm that once covered the entire area of the Foothills Fashion Mall. This building is located on the southwest corner of Lemay and Swallow Streets.

The City of Fort Collins received the building in 1978 as part of our historic preservation efforts. By 2000 the milk house needed a lot of attention. The City was awarded a $10,000 State Historical Fund grant which the Parks and Advance Planning Departments matched with $3,400. With this grant, the milk house was restored and developed into a dairy museum with family mannequins and dairy equipment like butter workers, churns, molds and pails. Limited tours are available to groups of 10-20 and can be scheduled by calling the Fort Collins Museum at 221-6738.

There is some history, about the Nelson Farm, to be found in the local library.

About our association

Visit Our Official Website

NELSON FARM OFFICIAL WEBSITE