Brodie Farm was originally purchased in 1918 by E.T. (Ned) Hilldrup. He borrowed 100% of the purchase price from the Federal Land Bank in Baltimore, Maryland. The Federal Land Bank was lending money to farmers to help get their farms started after WWI. He purchased 101 acres, an old house, a small barn, and woodshed for a total of $100! Brodie Farm began as a dairy farm and was even one of the largest dairies in Spotsylvania during its peak! It was also the first dairy to go from a stanchion milking system to an automated milking parlor.
Ned Hilldrup’s son, E. Gordon Hilldrup, was born in the house and lived his entire life there. Once E. Gordon retired, his son, James (Jimmy) Hilldrup, began running the farm, and is still running the farm to this day. Jimmy grew up doing work on the farm with his father and always planned to continue running the farm. By the age of 6 Jimmy’s job was to raise the replacement calves and he would feed them milk, grain, and hay daily, and change their bedding when needed. By the age of 9, Jimmy had purchased his first cow with his own money, and by the age of 20 he owned around half the cattle on the farm. Because he grew up on the farm, he learned that what we have is a result of our hard work, and that we should be proud of our work. In 1984 Jimmy decided to transition the farm from a dairy farm and beef farm to an all-beef farm.
Today, Brodie Farm has over 200 head of Angus cattle, up to 60 hives of honeybees, and 100 brown hens! The house that is on the farm has been newly renovated by the Hilldrup family and will be opening January 2022 as a bed and breakfast in Spotsylvania, VA. The original portion of the house was built in the 1800’s.
Brodie Farm 