John Adams was President of the United States when the first Fraleighs cleared land in Red Hook for their subsistence farm. More than 200 years later, Fraleighs still farm this beautiful patch of rolling land.
Dave and Karen Fraleigh and their children are the sixth and seventh generations to work the land here. The farm, which acquired its name because earlier Fraleighs planted roses, now produces peaches, cherries and more than two-dozen varieties of apples.
Their retail operation sells pick-your-own fruit during fall. The Fraleighs' autumn visitors come not only for fresh produce, but also to experience agriculture firsthand. "One of our strengths is this gorgeous place," Dave Fraleigh says. "You can't sell that at a farmers' market."
In 1998, Rose Hill Farm was involved in a three-way transaction that allowed them to expand their base of agricultural land. The Fraleighs sold the development rights on their orchard to Scenic Hudson, while a neighboring grower did the same with his own 100-acre orchard. The Fraleighs then purchased the neighboring land.
"That was the only way I could have bought it," Dave Fraleigh says about the deal that reduced the cost of his neighbor's farm to its agricultural value. "Apples don't have that kind of return. We're in an area where there's not a lot of farmland. To find an adjacent piece is even more rare. It was a golden opportunity."
 |
|
 |
 |
|
| Dave and Karen Fraleigh and their children continue a long tradition of farming fruit in the town of Red Hook. |
|
