The Wilson Dairy Farm joins the MD Brown Swiss Association
MD Brown Swiss Junior Champion: CIE Haley Carter Shiloh in 2017
Haley breeds and raises high quality genetics in her Brown Swiss herd. The farm won the MD Brown Swiss Junior Show with CIE Haley Carter Shiloh in 2017 as well as 1st Place March calf at the North American International Livestock Exposition. In 2021, CIE Haley Carter Shania won best bred and owned of the All-American Brown Swiss Futurity, an honor to be recognized as a high quality breeder.
Holsteins with the Lindmabe Prefix
While the farm is the "Wilson Dairy Farm" the prefix for the Holsteins stands as "Lindmabe". This was a combination of grandparents Lindsay's and Mabel's names to uniquely identify the animals. The farm has always paid to register each animal to ensure accurate records are kept on each cow's genetics and breeding.
A cow's name is similar to horse's show name and has several components. For example: "Lindmabe Doc Dekka 1417" is the name of a Holstein heifer shown at the 2023 MD State Fair who placed 6th out of 13 Summer Yearlings. The "Lindmabe" stands for the farm prefix, the "Doc" name is her sire (Father), "Dekka" is the cow's barn name and "1417" is her ear tag number.
4-H, Fairs and FFA
Haley actively participated in 4-H and FFA bringing friends and neighborhood kids over to help on the farm and unload wagons of hay and straw in the heat of the summer. After graduating from Hereford High School in 2014, she traveled to Morehead State University in Eastern Kentucky on a Division 1 Rifle Scholarship. For 3.5 years, she competed for the top position in the NCAA setting numerous school records holding a 595/600 in air rifle and a 587/600 in 3P smallbore. A semester early, she earned a Bachelors in Animal Science where she actively uses her degree every day on the farm.
The 4-H Marksmanship program began Haley's journey on the Athletic scholarship path and even years after graduation, she has maintained close relationships with several team members. 4-H is a great program that offers endless opportunities for those who seek them out!
https://extension.umd.edu/locations/baltimore-county/baltimore-county-4-h/
Lindsay's wishes for his farm land
This hand written note was given to Steve mere months before Lindsay took his own life. A revocable trust was created in secret by wife Mable, daughter Sharon, and son Scott, with inveigled intentions. According to the trust, the totality of the farm, would be left to Steve's sisters and brother, with no portion of the farm given to him or his family.
July 26 1991 Mabel's written Agreement
Left side of '91 Purchase Agreement
Right side of '91 Purchase Agreement
Right side of '91 Purchase Agreement
Left side of Page:
"$140,000.00 Cattle @(average) 700 a head 200 head (168)
$80,000.00 - Machinery
$350,000.00 Acres 175 @2,000.00
$20,000.00 Up Front - Is this possible?
$2,500 - a month/$30,000.00 per year
$64,923.91 Farm Debt as of 1/92
All notes will be paid off
You're welcome - milk
Pay all farm debt
1.5 acre each for Sharon Clabaugh + Sandy Evans
no money value to sell - can only be used if builds
a house and living in it."
Right side of '91 Purchase Agreement
Right side of '91 Purchase Agreement
Right side of '91 Purchase Agreement
Right side of Page:
"160x700 - 112,000 + 80,000 + 350,00 = $542,000
Writing under the note:
The house will be deeded off plus 1.5 acre ground
we get for our use - milk - meat - firewood - garden
Use of tools and machinery if needed - If Steve wants ____ to work, he should ___ him and he will ___ for his time.
2 calves for Mark @ 2 years of age, Mark at $500
If any of ground is sold with profit over the next ___ years - profit divided. 0-5 year 80/20 5-10 yrs 65/35 10-15 yrs 50/50"
Kiser Farm
Status Quo Ante Kiser?
The Kaiser property of roughly 100 acres was purchased in 1980, from Mary Edith Kiser, Ruth Anne Fogle, and Calvin Tomas Kiser to F. Lindsay Wilson and Mabel E. Wilson, his wife and son, Steve Wilson. On April 4th 1998, at F. Lindsay Wilson's death, half was vested entirely in Mabel E. Wilson and the other one half being conveyed to Steven L Wilson, with whom a joint tenancy was created.
In 1985, the Kiser farm released 15 acres, selling to Morris Hunt for $79,750. The entire sum of money was kept by one half of the Kiser owners, Lindsay and Mabel. (Tax record proof) Steve continued to farm the remaining 85 acres with the understanding that the land was in a rights to survivorship, when his mother passed away, he would become the owner in it's entirety.
A small farm stand was created in 2016 and began expanding with outbuildings, pastures, a health department approved snowball stand, a water proof retail shed and garden plots. Improvements made by the business to grow into a large scale agritourism business for surround residents to enjoy.
With the business growing, Mabel was asked to sign over her half of the farm, at present, to move forward with a building construction the alternative timeline of waiting years for Mabel's passing. Days after this request, Mabel changed the deed to the Kiser farm. (See Doc Below) September 26th 2018, Mabel signed her half to her trustees and terminated the joint tenancy with Steven L Wilson and created a tenancy in common between herself and her son. Her attorney, signed and notarized the documents that fall which would lead to the forced sale of the remaining 85 acres.
"Just take it all"
The change of tenancy of the Kiser Farm which consists of approximately 81 acres, a house, several barns and outbuildings and a cell tower could not be equitably physically divided and the parties did not agree upon a physical division of the said property, were transferred to an Independent Trustee to oversee and administer the valuation and sale of the Kiser Farm..." . (Exhibit D)
During the February 2025 hearing, nearly a dozen community members listened to testimony from both sides. Scott made demands for items to be returned to the home farm such as: gates, waterers, a microwave, a condensing unit, a refrigerator and more. Were they fixtures or not?
At the start of the hearing, the improvements made from 2016-2020 such as the playground, the snowball stand, the new barn, the shelters and all fencing and gates were not be removed from the property per the Trustees, but by the end of the day, the realization settled in that none of these items were originally on the property when it was purchased - "Just take it all" Sharon whispered to attorney Schumm. The April deadline came and went with the pasture left intact which has since become overgrown, unutilized and damaged without repair by a fallen tree.
Kiser Farm Loss
Property lines
Property lines got blurred during litigation, this photo shows the three properties discussed during the hearings and throughout the documents.
- Yellow (21159 Old York Rd) is the NEW Farm location
- Red (21133 Old York Rd) is the Kiser Farm
- Blue (21128 Lentz Rd) the home farm
- Green 21138 Lentz and 21319 Lentz are Mabel and Scott's homes respectively.
The mobile homes that Steve purchased and maintained, were located on both the Home farm and the Kiser farm. The Kiser farm sale included the 85 acres in red.
Zoom Auction
On December 8th 2021, court appointed trustee, Ralph Sapia conducted a private auction between Steven Wilson and Scott Wilson on behalf of Mabel Wilson. Scott bid 2 million dollars, taking the Kiser farm as well as the home farm. Within 24 hours of the sale conclusion, Scott reached out attempting to sell a portion of the grounds. They agreed to revisit the discussion after the Holiday.
The second meeting began with Scott stating "I thought we agreed not to lie to each other." He had learned that an LLC had purchased the property adjacent to the home and Kiser farms. The ag-tourism business would be moving mere feet from it's originating home - no agreement was made to purchase a portion of the Kiser farm after the second meeting.
Kiser Settlement
"I'm prepared to fall on my sword..." Sapia stated in an email when he was asked why settlement of the Kiser farm took place without all parties present. Settlement was set for April 4th, the anniversary of F. Lindsay Wilson's suicide in 1998. No notice was given to Steven Wilson nor his attorney, therefore nobody was present during settlement.
Synopsis
Lentz Road in 1900
In the early 1900's Franklin Lindsay Wilson bought a dairy farm in Parkton, Maryland on Lentz Road. He and wife, Mary, raised eight daughters and one son on the farm, along with animals: chickens, hogs, and cattle. The family attended local schools: the Maryland Line preschool, Sparks elementary school, and Hereford High School over the last century.
As years passed, the farm grew and was given to the only son, Frank Lindsay Wilson. He and sister, Hazel, continued to milk the cows and complete the egg route into Baltimore every Friday. Lindsay and wife, Mabel, raised four children on the farm: Sharon, Sandy, Steve and Scott. Steven Lindsay Wilson, was asked to run the farm along side his father where they successfully milked over 150 high production, registered dairy cattle.
Disaster Struck
Steve and his wife, Kelly, met through the Baltimore County 4-H program in the 1980's. They married and had two daughters, Renee and Haley, who they raised on the expanded 200-acre dairy farm. Upon their marriage, a bill of sale was written for Steve to purchase the farm from his parents for $850,000. In 1998, Lindsay took his own life after months of health issues and farm ownership disputes. 2018 brought the final payment of the farm from Steve to his mother, Mabel. When approached, Mabel claimed the money paid was only rent, the written agreements were null and Steve didn't own anything. Steve's family, animals, equipment, hay and 100 years of farming history were no longer welcome on the family farm and were evicted.
Move
The past, present and future was irrelevant to Mabel Wilson. Haley had goals of expanding the farm for the education of Baltimore county youth and beyond. The farm now sits idle, structures falling to ruin and pastures empty. Where life, love and hope grew wild, now sits a grainy black and white image of dilapidation and loss.
Through the support of neighbors, family, friends, the Hereford Community and beyond, The Wilson Dairy Farm is rebuilding and relocating to 21643 Keeney Mill Road Freeland MD 21053.
The family continues nurturing their love and passion of farming.
December 31, 2021