This past weekend, our family proceeded to make our annual visit to the corn maze at the Northern Neck Farm Museum near Horsehead in Northumberland County. The newest generation of B.E.s looks forward to the trip all year long. This year’s visit was especially poignant in that the design of the maze is in the form of the number 250, in honor of our nation’s semiquincentennial.
The museum is the legacy of the late Luther Welch, a local farmer who wanted it to be an ongoing resource for keeping the agricultural heritage of the Northern Neck alive in the public eye, and for preserving a large collection of farm equipment and artifacts for visitors to be able to learn about how farming has been done over the course of our history.
The building houses a large array of tractors, plows, tools, printed memorabilia and models, offering a fascinating glimpse into the role agriculture has played across the years. Luther wanted the community and visiting tourists to understand that working the land has been a staple of life in the Northern Neck for centuries, from the times of the Native American tribes, through the Colonial Period and to the present day.
The site also offers an example of modern gardening in a large plot maintained by the Northern Neck Master Gardeners. The highly productive harvests of that garden are distributed to individuals through the food bank. The garden is an important asset in the museum’s efforts to educate people, especially school-age children, in the ways farming has evolved in our community.
The assortment of tractors and other equipment, many of which have been brought back to their original condition after authentic restorations, shows the progress farming has made, particularly over the past century. Farming pieces from the pre-industrial period illustrate the progress that mechanization has brought to the world of agriculture.
After our extensive tour of the museum, we came to the moment for which the Next Generation had been awaiting, quite patiently I might add, namely, the entry into the corn maze. As I have noted, this year the maze, which covers well over an acre, is laid out to celebrate and commemorate our nation’s 250th anniversary.
The agricultural puzzle is more complex than in previous years. Personally, I immediately was confounded as to which way to go, but then again, that is what a maze is supposed to do to its visitors. Whereas last year, on his second birthday, one of the younger B.E.s took me by the hand to lead me along the well-trodden path, this year he tore off, mastering all of the twists and turns with alacrity, almost as if he had a map of the paths as his guideline.
I was far slower, and more deliberate in making my way through the complex. My sloth-like progress I attribute to timidity on my part to decide which of the circular routes was the “0” in 250 and which was the lower part of the “5.” I still do not know which route I took, but I followed the joyous sounds ahead of me, ultimately back to the beginning.
The Northern Neck Farm Museum is Luther Welch’s legacy to the land he worked and enjoyed throughout his lifetime. It offers a variety of activities that remind visitors that working the land goes hand in hand with working the water. We are fortunate that both of these industries remain vibrant parts of our local economy as well as our local way of life.
Lastly, to wax in alliteration, the museum deserves a trip to see this “amazin’ maize maze.”
