Fishkill Farms is a farm located in
East Fishkill in
Dutchess County,
New York.
It is of historic significance primarily because its founder
Henry Morgenthau, Jr. and his wife,
Elinor Morgenthau were close and enduring family friends of
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...
and
Eleanor Roosevelt
Anna Eleanor Roosevelt ( ; October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the longest-serving First Lady of the United States, first lady of the United States, during her husband Franklin D ...
. Eleanor Roosevelt wrote, "They were our neighbors in the country and we enjoyed them as neighbors and friends before politics and work for different social aims came into our relationship. It is interesting to know that my husband never held a political office from the time of his governorship of New York state without having Henry Morgenthau, Jr., in some way in his official family. My husband no doubt often treated Henry as a younger brother..." The Morgenthau's country home at
Hopewell Junction was located in Dutchess County only ten miles southeast of Hyde Park, where the Roosevelts lived. The Morgenthaus and the Roosevelts had much in common: sharing a similar upper-class background, a similar political outlook and a common interest in farming. FDR and Morgenthau were said to have engaged in a neighborly rivalry over the cultivation of squash.
Fishkill Farms is currently an
apple
An apple is a round, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus'' spp.). Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple (''Malus domestica''), the most widely grown in the genus, are agriculture, cultivated worldwide. The tree originated ...
orchard
An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit tree, fruit- or nut (fruit), nut-producing trees that are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also so ...
and small-scale business, one of the
Hudson Valley
The Hudson Valley or Hudson River Valley comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The region stretches from the Capital District (New York), Capital District includi ...
's oldest apple orchards. In a May 6, 1914 letter to his father,
Henry Morgenthau, Sr., who was serving as Ambassador to Turkey in the Wilson administration, Morgenthau wrote, "I have undertaken to set out 1,400 fruit trees (apple trees) which cover some 47-48 acres."
Organic Authority LLC named Fishkill Farms its 2010 "top pick" apple farm in the
New York City
New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
area.
History
Fishkill Farms was acquired by Henry Morgenthau, Jr in the fall of 1913 at the age of twenty-two. Historian
John Morton Blum said that the farm was several hundred acres (many of them orchard) that became Morgenthau's home and vocation. FDR and Morgenthau first met at a Dutchess County political luncheon held at Hyde Park in 1915. Roosevelt immediately took to Henry saying, He is an awfully nice fellow, and one who will be a tremendous asset to us in the county." Although FDR was then serving as
Assistant Secretary of the Navy in the Wilson administration, "he kept a firm grip on the most minute functions of the Dutchess County Democratic organization." Roosevelt tried to persuade Morgenthau to run for Sheriff but Morgenthau declined indicating that he intended to devote most of his time to running his farm. Even so, FDR remained in touch with Henry, Jr. and Eleanor Roosevelt and Elinor Morgenthau also became close friends. Roosevelt drew on Morgenthau's farming knowledge and agricultural connections when running for Governor of New York in 1928, which enabled FDR to pick-up an extraordinary number of votes in normally Republican areas. As Governor elect of New York, Roosevelt named Morgenthau Chairman of an Agricultural Advisory Commission, and most of the commission's recommendations were enacted into law.
On his 50th birthday in 1932, FDR also celebrated his fond but teasing friendship with Morganthau with the following poem that was long displayed on a plaque in the farm
store:
Morgenthau joined the incoming Roosevelt administration when Roosevelt asked him to head Farm Credit Administration, which FDR had created by sending Congress an Executive order on March 27, 1933. Morgenthau became
Secretary of the Treasury
The United States secretary of the treasury is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, and is the chief financial officer of the federal government of the United States. The secretary of the treasury serves as the principal a ...
in January 1934 after William H. Woodin resigned for health reasons. Morgenthau served as Treasury Secretary from January 1934-July 1945.
There can be little doubt that Fishkill Farms had a special place in FDR's heart: With his second term drawing to a close and the world situation deteriorating FDR longed to retire to Dutchess County. While having dinner with the Morgenthau's at Mrs. Morgenthau's D.C. residence on the evening of April 17, 1940 FDR proposed a toast saying, "Next year's wedding anniversary will be at Fish Kill Farms," and Morgenthau noted that he repeated it two or three times. Morgenthau wrote that he thought FDR was sincere when he said it, but he suspected events would not permit it because that same evening Roosevelt also had described his plans to form a National Cabinet, which implied he was making preparations for a third term. Still, in less stressful times FDR was able to find relaxation at the Morgenthau farm. On August 9, 1936, the New York Times reported that the annual clambake at the Morgenthau farm "has become one of the high points of the Summers President Roosevelt has spent here since becoming President." On August 8, 1936, FDR sought relaxation at the informal annual clambake given in his honor by the Morgenthau's, after having been engaged in political conferences all week at his Hyde Park house. FDR arrived at the Morgenthau's farm in his new touring car. He joined some sixty guests, including many Dutchess county residents, that were seated "at tables on a rolling lawn beneath a great oak tree." Each guest received a large steaming canvass bag containing clams, chicken, and fish, that had been all cooked together. Corn on the cobb, salad, and coleslaw completed the meal. The clambake at the Morgenthau's farm was said to be carrying-out a century old Dutchess county tradition. The farm has been handed down through family members, including former Manhattan District Attorney
Robert M. Morgenthau.
The farm is now run by his son, Joshua Morgenthau.
The farm originally produced apples, chickens, potatoes, corn, dairy and likely more. After being held up by a wet spring, in a May 24, 1914 letter Morgenthau predicted "we are going to have a very good season." He reported that ten days without rain had enabled him to have practically all his potatoes in and about half his corn. Dairy farming ceased during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
when hired help was hard to find.
In 1980, a hailstorm damaged the apples and rendered them unsellable to wholesale distributors so the orchard was opened up to the local public for
U-pick
A You-Pick ("U-Pick") or Pick-Your-Own (PYO) farm operation is a type of farm gate direct marketing ( farm-to-table) strategy where the emphasis is on customers doing the harvesting themselves and agritourism. A PYO farm might be preferred by peo ...
harvesting. The farm has been doing U-pick ever since.
Services
Fishkill Farms's 130-acre
property offers U-pick services for produce including blueberries, blackberries, cherries, peaches, nectarines, pears and vegetables. Pasture-raised hens also produce eggs for the farm.
It also sells produce in Brooklyn farmers' markets and an order-fulfillment service called Good Eggs.
The farm offers
community-supported agriculture shares for Hudson Valley residents. Numerous events such as weddings and private affairs are hosted on site, including a recent Autumn Orchard Dinner which was reported upon by the gourmet aficionado
Williams Sonoma.
Sustainability

Farming practices at Fishkill operate with the goal of sustainability and
carbon neutrality
Global net-zero emissions is reached when greenhouse gas emissions and removals due to human activities are in balance. It is often called simply net zero. ''Emissions'' can refer to all greenhouse gases or only carbon dioxide (). Reaching net ze ...
in mind, with an effort to grow as many foods as possible organically. The farm intends to consciously select crop varieties which are most suited to the effects of
climate change
Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...
over the next twenty years.
References
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Further reading
* {{cite web , title=Fishkill Farms , website=Westchester New York , date=31 August 2015 , url=http://www.westchestermagazine.com/Westchester-Magazine/The-Best-Places-To-Go-Apple-Picking/Fishkill-Farms/ , ref={{sfnref , Westchester New York , accessdate=October 8, 2015
Farms in New York (state)
Companies based in Dutchess County, New York
Sustainable agriculture