Farming, Love, and the Ellison Farm

May 9, 2014 | Roxy

Judy and Warren Ellison celebrated their 70th anniversary last year. Click play to listen to the radio story, or download the story for later.

89-year-old Warren Ellison has been farming in Monroe County since he returned home from World War II. Over lunch at the Ellison farm, Traveling 219’s Roxy Todd recorded Warren talking about his life’s passion for farming and about meeting his wife Judy. Jeffrey Kanode, a Methodist pastor who once preached in Warren’s community, was with them during the interview, and he helped tell this story.

Jeffrey: Warren Ellison has lived his life within the soil of Monroe County. Warren has worked that soil. He has toiled within that soil. Warren has always loved that soil.

Warren: We’re old timers round here. Been here forever. I was born in that house in 1924. I surely was. I love agriculture and I love outdoors. And I like the spring of the year better than any other time mostly because life is appearing. Greenery, the life is coming out. You’re planting the seeds, and life is coming to life. We’re located on Hans Creek Road in Monroe County, West Virginia.

Jeffrey Kanode listens as Warren Ellison talks about raising chickens and dairy cows (Warren’s dog also made it into the photo)

I first had chickens here. You’ll notice these buildings out here. But that’s where I had my milk cows for thirty years or so. Had chickens maybe 10 years. Found out I was going broke and changed to milk. Well at least you got a check on milk and you didn’t on nothing else.

As fast as this high tech stuff’s come along, everything is obsolete in just no time. Probably put $40,000 into it. You won’t get 40 cents out of it now. That’s where a lot of farmers’ money goes. Everything changes, and you’re just out of luck.

Judy: bout ready to eat?

Warren: Yeah, we’re coming. My wife and I have been married for 70 years. And aint quit yet!

The Ellison farm is located along Hans Creek in Greenville, West Virginia in Monroe County.

Jeffrey: In 1941 Warren first met Judy. She was visiting a neighbor for dinner, so he picked her up in his father’s horse-drawn buggy and invited her to go swimming at Indian Creek nearby. He was 17 years old.

Warren: When we first met, Margaret Larew was our neighbor, known her all her life. And she set this thing up. But we had four or five people on that buggy. That’s the first time I’d met her or anything. But we went down in the buggy and that created a lot of excitement. Taking that hat back created some excitement. She always accused me of taking it for an excuse to come back.

Jeffrey: And you switched her swimming hat?

Warren: I reckon I did. I did take it back, I do know that. We did travel horseback a good bit. She had a horse and I had a horse. I rode down to that farm and up to this farm every day for one year. Best way to travel.

Jeffrey: Warren and Judy decided to elope to Hinton, where Mr. Hinton himself was the witness to their wedding.

Warren: Well, I took her down to Hinton one day. And this was all figured out because we already had the license and everything. We’d already schemed that. And I had on a pair of coveralls, and I don’t know what she had on. Anyway, we shucked those clothes, and I had a suit on underneath that thing. Then when we went up to the church and found Dr. Clark. And he knew we were lying all the time, but he did it anyway. And he says, “you know, I’ve got to have some witnesses.” So he hits the street. And who does he get? He gets Mr. Hinton. And that happened about 10 minutes after 12. That’s the way we sneaked off.

Jeffrey: 70 years later, Warren and Judy are still married. They’ve raised five children here, on the same land that the Ellison family first settled in 1774. That’s one thing Warren doesn’t want to change. In 2006 he entered his 503 acres in Monroe County’s farmland protection program. He still owns his land, and he can sell it or leave it to his heirs, who can sell it, but no matter who ends up with it, the farm cannot be developed.

Warren Ellison says he knew he wanted to be a farmer since he was in the second grade. Now he’s 89 years old.

Warren: This picture you see out in front is the Ellison farm. And the write up about putting this farm into the farm preservation program. So that it will be farmed from now till eternity. I don’t want the farm to be destroyed at any cost.

Jeffrey: Warren Ellison has lived his life within the soil of Monroe County. From the crops and the livestock he has helped nurture that soil, from the hard toil of his hands, to the loving family he helped raise and bring to life. Warren Ellison’s life, Warren Ellison’s soul are nearly one with the soil of Monroe County off of US 219.

Tags: featured, Food, love