Fifty-nine years ago, Joe Elliott left home at age 15 and told his father he wouldn’t give him a dime for his land. Joe wanted his own farm, but he wanted to earn it.
After working numerous jobs, Joe finally purchased his first plot in Philpot, Ky., in 1965. Today, Joe owns 400 of the 2,100 acres on which he grows tobacco, corn and soybeans with his two sons, Rob and Scott, and Scott’s son, Michael.
The operation, known as Elliott’s Farms, faces an uncertain future. Joe turned 73 in October, and soon thereafter underwent a medical procedure for a heart condition. That leaves Rob and Scott to shoulder most of the responsibilities at Elliott’s Farms, and the family business might end with them.
“I love our family, hate our job,” Michael tells his grandfather. Michael is the only one of Joe’s descendants who could continue the family farm once his father and uncle are too old to work. But Michael’s interests lie elsewhere – he’s seeking a degree in computer information systems.
“Me and my brother chose to be in farming, but it might end with us,” Scott says.
Recent years have been a struggle for the farm, which produced 80 acres of tobacco at its peak. Elliott’s Farms has since downsized to 15 acres. Joe previously worked with the U.S. Department of Labor to acquire workers through the H-2A visa program, which allows foreign nationals to enter the United States for up to eight months of agricultural work.
However, after disagreements about new visa regulations, Joe decreased the tobacco operation and increased soybeans and corn because of the lack of help. The farm has only one employee from outside the family – Thomas Johnson, a retired neighbor who enjoys the work.
“The future is really unknown,” Scott says. “We could have someone come along to farm, but we really don’t know.”
