In 1920, benefiting from a 1919 bequest by Samuel M. Bowman, Bridgewater College established a department of agriculture with a working farm north and east of campus. A barn was built on the farmland in 1921. The farm consisted of about 100 acres at that time. The agricultural courses did not prove popular among students however, and in 1925, the College separated the farm from its academic program, managing it instead as a business investment. There were a number of farm supervisors and operators over the years. Although the College sold farm land for residential building sites, a land purchase in 1949 again grew the farm to about 100 acres. Farm products included grain, corn, hay, poultry and dairy. A farmhouse and other structures were visible along Dinkel Avenue. In later years, the barn at the farm was used to stable students’ horses. The farmhouse served as student housing until around 1989 and was rented to faculty for a few years. The land was eventually cleared for the building of the McKinney Center for Science and Mathematics, with the barn being removed in October 1993.

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