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| In the early 1920's, Dwight Heard (benefactor of the Heard Museum) acquired a large parcel of land from 7th Avenue to 48th Street, and from the Salt River bed to the foothills of South Mountain. He subdivided the property in two-acre parcels and sold them for the whopping sum of $1,150 to $1, 500, with the distinct purpose of promoting self-sufficiency. Heard offered a cow and fifty chickens with each purchase.In keeping with the early philosophy, the ten acres just south of Southern and 32nd Street was planted with 100 pecan trees, and for over 40 years was nurtured by a retired cattleman by the name of Skeeter Covendale. Ultimately Skeeter determined it was too much work to care for the trees and harvest the 5,000 pounds of nuts each year. He wanted to move to Punkin Center where he could buy a trailer, "drink beer, swat flies, and tell lies" - so he did!A Wayne Smith, a well-known Phoenix landscape architect, purchased the property from Skeeter in 1983. The great trees give a wondrous sense of rural tranquility, and it is Mr. Smith's vision that has guided The Farm over the years into what you see today and what you will see in the future.
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