Brookside Farm Much More Than A Picture Perfect Setting

Brookside Farm is a half mile north of Kimball and sits on the banks of Lodgepole Creek. It's much more than a picture perfect setting.

The farm, also known as the Gridley-Howe-Faden-Atkins Farmstead, was listed in 1997 on the National Register of Historic Places.

The description on its registration form for that distinction states that "the property illustrates an historically typical farmstead evolution in Nebraska. The farmstead is a rare and well-preserved collection of buildings and structures which reflect change in agriculture from timber claim to 20th century technology and small scale farm diversification."

The familiar Kimball landmark began as a timber claim by James Gridley in 1881. By 1891, he had received his certification of proof for the 80 acres and was responsible for the Chinese elm and cedar trees on the north property line next to the Lodgepole Creek. Gridley made few other improvements and left the area to work on the railroad in Utah.

By 1895, the irrigated area, known as Brookside Farm, was purchased by Henry H. Howe, a Vermont native who came to the Kimball area and became a large sheep rancher, Howe added a sheep barn in 1895.

Howe's wife and children spent most of their time on the acreage so the children could attend school in Kimball. The native limestone for the house was hauled to town from an area southwest of Kimball in the summer and fall of 1899. The Howes moved into the striking limestone house in 1900.

The Howes owned the farmstead for about 10 years and then sold it to a bachelor from the Banner County area, Elmer Faden. According to a 1905 report in the Western Nebraska Observer, "E. L. Faden and his mother have moved on the place former purchased of H.H. Howe adjoining town."

From 1905-06, Faden improved the farmstead by building the massive barn. Elmer Faden was part of a large family that came to the southern panhandle from Wisconsin.

Although a sheep rancher, Faden was transitioning to cattle and built the barn for his cattle and horses.

The barn boasts of a gambrel roof, which required fewer materials to build and was easier to build than other types of barns. This type of roof is considered roomy and more comfortable than others.

The roof is a symmetrical, two-sided sloped roof. Typical gambrel, the barn has an upper slope which has a shallow angle then drops to the lower slope, which is steeper. The barn has a haymow door and a hay lift, as well as stalls and a milking area.

The property changed hands again in 1917 when Dallas and Minnie Atkins purchased it for their sheep operation and to ample feed for their cattle. The house, barn and added buildings would stay in the Atkins hands for the next 103 years. In the first five years that the Atkins owned the place, they would add a tank house, hog shed, chicken coop and garage.

The plans for the these out buildings were obtained by Vernon Atkins from the Extension offices, while he studied at the University of Nebraska.

The last building added to Brookside Farms was in 1947 – a half quonset shed,

The National Register of Historic Places states that the shed "reflected available technology and the need for a shelter for tractors and other machinery. Quonset buildings were increasingly available after World War II; their popularity reflected pre-fabricated technology available to area farmers and ranchers."

Vernon's son, Kendall, and his wife, Beverly, currently own the Brookside Farm.

The Faden Barn, as it is known today, has been the location for a fair share of work in the past century. Now it is the site of some special events.

For 13 years, AgFest was sponsored here by the Farm Bureau and the Atkins family. It hosted 1,200 to 1,500 fifth-grade students from Kimball and Banner counties in the barn and courtyard. Christmas also has been celebrated in the barn. Many Sunday School events, political visits, events for local and state groups and weddings have been held on the farm, too.

This landmark is a pleasant reminder of the history and development of agriculture and livestock on the high plains of the Nebraska Panhandle from the 19th century to the late 1940s.