The History of the Head Dairy
The Head Dairy began on Crowley’s Ridge in April of 1952 when our father and mother, R. M. and Dorothy Head, purchased a farm near Brookland, Arkansas which ultimately totaled 270 acres. On April 18, 1952 the “Jonesboro Sun” ran a lengthy article, “Prize Texas Dairy Herd Moved To Craighead County.” The Jersey herd was moved from Abilene, TX to Northeast Arkansas by train in five box cars. At that time the herd was ranked as one of the highest quality Jersey cattle herds in the nation.
The herd was initially located on a farm West of Goobertown before improvements were made to the Brookland farm to accommodate feeding and milking. In 1953 part of the Jersey Herd was sold to the dairy department at Arkansas State University, then Arkansas State College, for $45,000 which was a substantial sum of money for that time. In an article in the “Jonesboro Sun,” Dr. Carl Reng, Arkansas State’s president, pointed with pride to the blue ribbon herd, stating that “we are really fortunate to get such a herd for our dairy department.” This was the beginning of a long relationship between the Arkansas State Dairy Department and the Head Dairy. Over the years, there were numerous news articles about the Head Dairy in the “Jonesboro Sun,” the “Memphis Press-Scimitar”, the Paragould Daily Press, the “Jersey Journal” and the “Progressive Farmer” magazine.
Our father was very instrumental in working with farmers on Crowely’s Ridge to establish Grade A dairy farms. At the peak of the dairy industry in Northeast Arkansas there were over a 100 dairy farms on Crowely’s Ridge. You can still see many of the abandoned block building dairy barns today. He also was a supporter of the Brookland School, serving as a board member and science teacher at different times. The Head Dairy was a strong supporter of the Brookland FFA Chapter and the Antioch 4-H club where our Mother served as the club leader for many years.
In the 1950s and 1960s, the dairy farm was under continuous improvement. One of the first orders of business was to build a Grade A dairy barn, additional barns to store hay and machinery, and grain storage facilities. Land was cleared, pastures were established and fenced, and a brick home was built for the Head family. A significant addition to the farm was the construction of an upright silo to store corn and grass feed for the cattle to consume during the winter period. The dairy barn, other barns, silo and grain storage structures are still standing on the farm.
In addition to producing and selling milk, an important source of revenue was prize money from showing our Jersey cattle at local, state and regional fairs.
The exposure also generated demand for our cattle. The Head Dairy won many blue ribbons and grand champions at fairs including the Craighead County Fair; SE Missouri, SW Arkansas, SE Arkansas, and NE Arkansas regional fairs; Arkansas State Fair and the Mid-South fair in Memphis.
In the 1950s and early 1960s, milk from the Head Dairy along with all of the other Grade A dairies was sold to a processor in Paragould, Arkansas. Starting in 1962, milk was bottled at the Head Dairy Farm and sold at the Head Dairy Farm and through milk routes in the Brookland, Goobertown and Jonesboro area.
On October 15, 1994 the last cow was milked on the Head Dairy by our mother, Dorothy.
Today the Head Dairy is primarily a pasture and hay farm along with some managed timber.
R. M. and Dorothy Head are buried in nearby Pine Log Cemetery which overlooks the old Head Dairy.
