The Simpson Family Farm: A Rich History - Manning Live

by Ziad Shihab/ June 18th, 2023

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Century Farm

The Simpson Family Farm: A Rich History

Posted Friday, January 15, 2021 12:30 pm

by Dana McCoy

The Simpsons Farm originated in1904 in the Homebranch community by William Robert Simpson. They built their house in 1904; then started to pursue their lives in farming when William Robert purchased 89 acres of farmland. After the passing of William Robert Simpson, the farm was passed down to his son.

There are many hardships that come with being a farmer. During The Depression, the Simpson family lost 50 acres of the farmland, resulting in being left with 39 acres in total. Being a farmer was very different in that time period compared to the times we’re living in today. Most of the income being brought into their home was twenty-five dollars a week.

As time went on Billy Simpson,Sr put the farmland in the saw bank, rented the farm out and moraged it. A man from the Farmers Home Administration told the Simpson family they had a certain amount of days to pay between $2,800-$2,900, or they’d have to be out of the farm within thirty days. They knew they would not be able to meet the $2,800-$2,900 fee and were going to lose the farm. Then, the unexpected happened: two farmers, Scott jackson & Ralph Jackson, showed up and wanted to rent the farm from Billy Simpon Sr. They paid ten years in advance and paid $2800, which in that time period was a lot. With the money Billy Simpson,Sr got from the two men, he was able to pay the farm off. If it was not for that situation, they would have lost the farm forever.

Before the devastating passing of Billy Simpson, Sr’s father 1971, he told his son when he passed that he would be the one to take over the farm and to never mortgage the farm. At that age, Billy Sr wasn’t familiar with what a mortgage even was. After the death of his father, he came to terms with what a will and mortgage were while the lawyer was going over everything. As life went on, he stopped working at the gas station, kept the wishes of his father, upheld the family farm, and knew his heart was always at that farm.

He began to wonder how he would do this all by himself. In 1971, he started to fully do everything by himself. Farmers faced many challenges daily. In 1986, there was a major drought in South Carolina. Billy began to feel hopeless, especially with all their crops now dead. He went to the bank and told Mr Bill Bikes he had to return all of his equipment because he knew when everything was due in November he would not have the money to pay them off. The next morning when he woke up, two men from the bank got out of their car and said they’d loan him the money and carry it over to next year. He was hesitant not knowing a lot about legal stuff, he then got a lawyer to help read over everything and proceed from there.

As time went on, he paid off all the debt the following year like the bank men had said and began to become good friends with them.They got Billy Simpson to become an advisor on the board. He then bought all his grandad’s land back in the early 80’s and proceeded to buy more land.

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As of now. Billy Simpson and his son Bill Simpson, Jr together own 18 to 19 hundred acres of farmland and have farmed 17 farms. When asked what the biggest focus and goal for the farm is, Mr Billy responded with, "Keep the family farm vibrant and able to maintain and make a living."

Cody Simpson, son of Bill Simpson, Jr shares this as well, " Most people don’t realize that South Carolina is the number one industry for the economy is Agribusiness, and according to the Department of Agriculture, we had last year 46.2 billion dollar economic impact of agribusiness and there’s over 200 - 47,000 jobs and also over 24,000 farms in South Carolina and we’re one of them. So I think that’s important for the economy that we have. Most people may not even realize how much farming plays a huge role in what we do. We traced the history back to when we got here from overseas to America, and we actually have been farming ever since, and my grandad is actually the 6th generation farmer. We originated from overseas and started in North Carolina. We farmed there, and the family moved over time in parts of North Carolina. Then, we ended up in Mayesville, South Carolina, and we farmed there as well."

With COVID 19 making a huge appearance all around the world, work has been hard. When asked how COVID 19 impacted the farm, the Simpson family replied, "It has been very difficult to get parts for equipment and having service teams come to the farm to fix the equipment. As far as the farm work itself, that is still the same but behind the scenes and as far as the people who keep us going out here have been affected as well so it ultimately affects us. we’re truly blessed to be out in the country and not around as many people."

After a history this rich, the farm has been named a "Century Farm" by the South Carolina Century Farms Program. This is the first farm in Clarendon County to be given this delegation. A full press release from the SCCFP can be read below:

The South Carolina Century Farms Program is pleased to announce that W.R. Simpson Farms, LLC, has been designated a South Carolina Century Farm, the first designation for Clarendon County. The farm was purchased by William R. Simpson in 1904 and has been continuously owned by the family since then. The historic Simpson family home and tobacco barn are both included on the family farm property. W.R. Simpson Farms, LLC, is currently owned by W. R. "Billy" Simpson, Sr., 2001 South Carolina Farmer of the Year and 6th generation farmer, and W.R. "Bill" Simpson, Jr., 7th generation farmer, of Manning, South Carolina.

The Century Farms Program was created to honor families who have owned and farmed the same land for at least one hundred years. The program was created in the 1974 for Anderson, Oconee and Pickens counties. In 1976, the South Carolina Legislature expanded it into a state-wide program. Since 1974, over 400 properties have been designated as Century Farms

The Century Farms Program is administered by Lake Hartwell Country (formerly Pendleton District Commission), in Pendleton SC. This designation places no restrictions on the farm, nor does it offer legal protection. There is no cost to apply. For more information please contact Executive Director Les McCall at 864-646-3782 or centuryfarm@crownofthecarolinas.org.