550 Agbiculturax aIanual 



Indians under the lead of Butler and Brant. Thus Otsego 

 County, which had nearly a dozen white settlements at the 

 beginning of the Revolution, was an uninhabited wilderness at 

 its close. After that period the settlements quickly revived and 

 the population increased rapidly, due no doubt to the fact that 

 during Sullivan's raid central New York became better known to 

 the whites than ever before. 



DEVELOPMENT OF INDUSTRY 



From the first settlement of the Unadilla valley its main articles 

 of production for export have been butter and cheese. The natural 

 depletion of dairy herds was supplied mainly by heifers raised 

 by the farmers themselves, who, as a means of improving their 

 herd, resorted to pure-bred cattle of various breeds. The Unadilla 

 valley was the original home of Holstein cattle, and some of the 

 best herds in the state are to be found in Otsego County. 



This county is especially noted for its pure-bred cattle. The 

 total membership of the county clubs, representing Jerseys, 

 Guernseys, and Holsteins, is 128. The Ayrshire herds on the 

 Iroquois Farm and that of Mr. Kent Barney, are among the 

 best. Advanced registry work was developed in this county 

 under the direction of Solomon Hoxie. 



Otsego County was the first into which Cheviot sheep were 

 imported. The largest flock in America is at present owned by 

 Glimmerglen Farms at Cooperstown. Two of the best flocks of 

 Shropshire sheep are also located in this county — one at Iroquois 

 Farm, Cooperstown, and another at Pinehurst Farm, Springfield 

 Center. Great interest in the sheep industry has been shown 

 during the last five years, the number of sheep in the county 

 increasing 18 per cent. This is largely due no doubt to the 

 cooperative selling of wool and the increased prices received. 



Thirty years ago Otsego produced more hops than any other 

 county in the state. According to the 1917 census only GOO 

 acres were cultivated in the entire county, mostly in the northern 

 part. 



The northern end of the county is the section best adapted to 

 hay. From 800 to 1,000 care are shipped annually from Rich- 

 field Springs and Cherry Valley to other sections. Clover and 



