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Funk Farmstead

Attention

The object that is described in this article is located on private property. Trespassing is punishable by up to six months of prison time. Permission should be granted before passing on private property.

About

The Funk Farmstead, also known as the Funk Dairy, is a historic dairy farm located in south Richmond with a home and a burned-down barn. The house and barn were constructed between 1911 and 1914, and the barn was destroyed by a bushfire in 2022.

History

Clarence Lorenzo Funk was born April 22, 1872 in Richmond to Christopher Madsen and Anna Elsina Kofoed Funk. After the death of his father at the age of eight, Clarence was primarily raised by his mother. During this time, he worked for Marriner Wood Merrill, and Clarence fell in love and married his daughter, Laura Vilate Merrill. The couple married in 1894, moved to one of Marriner's mills, and worked for the family until 1901, after the death of their son, Dee, who drowned in the creek that powered the mill.

After the death, Clarence and Laura purchased this parcel of land in the early 1900's. The Funk farmstead has had multiple constructions throughout its lifetime, beginning in 1903 and continuing until the mid to late 1900s. The home, built in 1911, and the main barn, built in 1914, were constructed by Clarence and Laura Merrill Funk. Clarence continued to build on the property, including the two large chicken coops on the north end. Clarence used the farm as a dairy, and on this farm, Clarence had the idea to start Black & White Days.

In the 1930s, Clarence and Laura lost their home to the bank due to the Great Depression and their cattle developing Brucellosis. Their son, LeRoy Conrad Funk, and wife, Grace Viola Williams, purchased the farm and proceeded to use it as a dairy. Clarence and Laura later built a smaller home on State Street inside the city limits.

In the 1960s, after LeRoy became too old to work, he sold most of his land and the farm to his son, Calvin Williams Funk, and wife, H. Carol Nobel. Calvin continued to use the farm as a dairy and also began purchasing more land around the north end of Cache Valley and southern Idaho to produce hay, barley, corn, and other grains for cattle and livestock.

After Calvin's death in Nov 2002 and Carol's in Jan 2003, the Funk Farm was inherited by their youngest son, who continues to own it, but the dairy ended after Calvin and Carol's deaths. Currently, the pasture and other buildings around the home and barn are rented out.

In April 2022, the main barn was destroyed in a bushfire that got out of control.

Clarence L. Funk

Laura V. Merrill

LeRoy C. Funk

Grace V. Williams

Calvin W. Funk

(Colorized)

H. Carol Nobel

(Colorized)

Gallary

Gayla Funk, Laura Merrill, and Clarence Funk outside the Funk Home, 1920s.

Family playing on the Funk Farm, 1989.

Jade Holt, great-granddaughter of Calvin and Carol, standing in front of the old barn after winning Miss Richmond during the 99th Annual Black & White Days, 2014.

"A sound described as a cross between a buzz, a hum, and a ‘beeping’ was heard by residents living across the street around midnight the night before the formation was discovered. The formation was close to 300' long. E-M effects reported." Calvin & Carol Funk field, south of Lower Foods, July 7, 1997

Photo captured by unknown. Source