Our History

The farm was originally established in 1719 by Solomon Holman and was later passed down to his son, Colonel Jonathan Holman, following the Revolutionary War. At its peak, the original property spanned 3,000 acres, granted by the King of England.

In 1934, Oscar and Esther Pearson founded the current retail store and processing plant, using milk sourced from a neighboring farm. They began delivering milk to surrounding communities along established routes, building strong local connections. Their son Robert and his wife Barbara later joined the operation, continuing to grow the family business. Today, the farm is run with the help of the next generations—Bob, Cindy, John and his wife Fran, along with their daughter Brittany, her husband Rob, and their son Gabriel. Over time, the farm has expanded its offerings to include 26 flavors of handcrafted ice cream, maple syrup production, and a cut-your-own Christmas tree farm, in addition to its dairy and bottling operations.

In 1987, the Pearson family purchased the current milking facility located just a quarter mile from the bottling plant. Originally built in 1930, the traditional tie-stall barn houses approximately 60 milking cows and operates with a pipeline system and rotational grazing practices. The family raises all of their own replacement heifers, maintaining a herd composed of both Holstein and Milking Shorthorn cows, with an average butterfat of 3.8%. Today, the farm encompasses 300 acres, including 70 acres of hay fields and 35 acres dedicated to corn production, which are planted with winter rye as a cover crop during the colder months. In 1990, 263 acres of the land were permanently preserved through the Agricultural Preservation Restriction (APR) Program.

Sustainability has remained an important focus for the farm. In 2008, the Pearson family was awarded a grant from the Massachusetts Technology Corporation to install solar panels on the barn roof. These photovoltaic panels now generate approximately 7,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, supplying about one-fifth of the farm’s total energy needs.

Elmhurst Dairy Farm has been consistently recognized for producing high-quality milk and maintaining low somatic cell counts, a key indicator of milk quality. In 2010, the farm was named one of the top 1,000 places to visit in Massachusetts—and one of just 136 in Central Massachusetts—and received the Greener Pastures Award from the Eastern States Exposition as the state’s Outstanding Dairy Farm. In 2013, DairyLea honored the farm for achieving 12 consecutive months of low somatic cell counts while maintaining a high butterfat level.