Our History: The People Behind Kelly’s Farm
A Family Farm and an Upton Tradition Since 1936
Kelly’s Farm Stand has been built, sustained, and supported by generations of people.
Our story includes the Kelly family members who established, owned, and operated the farm. It also includes spouses, children, extended family members, farmhands, seasonal workers, farm-stand employees, vendors, neighboring farmers, loyal customers, and community partners.
Some people worked in the fields. Others maintained equipment, prepared produce, arranged flowers and plants, operated the stand, helped customers, transported goods, kept business records, attended farmers markets, made seasonal products, or supported the farm behind the scenes.
This is their shared history.
1936: Kelly’s Farm Begins
Published family records state that James E. Kelly and Mary Ellen (Gaffney) Kelly established Kelly Farm Stand in Upton in 1936. Later newspaper coverage described its beginning as a small roadside table where the family sold fruits and vegetables. [pubrecord.org], [digitalcom...wealth.org], [lazada.com.ph]
The business was built through the work of the family. In a 2002 interview, Richard B. Kelly explained that although his grandfather started the business, the farm could not have succeeded without his wife and the other women of the family. His statement helps acknowledge what older business records and newspaper stories did not always document: many people contributed, even when they were not identified individually by name. [uptonmahistory.org], [lazada.com.ph]
The Next Generation: Richard S. and Kathleen Kelly
Richard S. Kelly and Kathleen A. (Gray) Kelly continued operating the farm stand established by Richard’s parents.
Published records identify Richard as a self-employed farmer and longtime Upton businessman. Those records also state that Richard and Kathleen operated the farm stand together, demonstrating that the business was a shared family operation. [pubrecord.org], [digitalcom...wealth.org], [telegram.com]
Their children included:
Kathleen Zamagni
Richard B. Kelly
William J. Kelly
The available online records establish their places in the Kelly family. However, they do not completely document the individual responsibilities of every family member. We are continuing to gather family memories, photographs, advertisements, and historical records to tell a fuller story. [telegram.com], [archive.org], [pubrecord.org]
From a Roadside Table to an Established Farm Stand
Over time, the original roadside produce table became a larger and more established farm stand.
A 2002 Milford Daily News feature reported that the farm’s acreage had expanded and that the small card table had been replaced by a modernized farm stand. The business offered numerous fruits and vegetables, along with flowers, plants, preserves, peanut butter, fudge, and other seasonal products. [uptonmahistory.org], [lazada.com.ph]
The article described Kelly’s Farm as a four-generation family business. It also emphasized the farm’s commitment to quality produce, customer relationships, family traditions, and the preservation of open space in Upton. [uptonmahistory.org], [lazada.com.ph]
Richard B. Kelly and His Family
Richard B. Kelly began working on the farm as a child and helped carry its traditions into another generation.
In the 2002 Milford Daily News feature, Richard spoke about the farm’s history, the importance of providing quality produce, the loyalty of customers, the value of open space, and the contributions of family members whose work had not always been fully documented. [uptonmahistory.org], [lazada.com.ph]
Richard B. Kelly’s children are:
Elizabeth Ann Kelly
Mary Ellen Kelly
Sarah Jane Kelly
Richard “Rick” Kelly
All four children are part of the Kelly family’s history. The fact that a particular newspaper article may have quoted or photographed one family member should not be interpreted to mean that the other children were not part of the farm’s broader family story.
As our research continues, we hope to document each person’s individual memories, experiences, and contributions accurately.
2002: Customer Loyalty, Family Tradition, and Open Space
On June 13, 2002, the Milford Daily News published an extensive feature titled“Customer Loyalty, Love of Land Source of Growth at Kelly’s Farm.”
The feature documented:
The farm’s beginning as a roadside produce table
Its growth into a four-generation family business
The expansion of its farmland
The produce and seasonal products sold at the stand
The importance of loyal customers
The family’s commitment to quality
The connection between the farm and the preservation of open space
The story featured Richard B. Kelly and Richard J. “Rick” Kelly. At the time, Rick had completed his first year at the Stockbridge School of Agriculture at the University of Massachusetts and discussed continuing and improving the family business. [uptonmahistory.org], [lazada.com.ph]
Read the full article:
Customer Loyalty, Love of Land Source of Growth at Kelly’s Farm [lazada.com.ph]
2011: Celebrating 75 Years
In March 2011, the Milford Daily News photographed Rick Kelly preparing the farm stand for spring.
The story identified Rick as a fourth-generation farmer and showed him repainting farm-stand tables that had reportedly been used for approximately 40 years. Kelly’s Farm was preparing for an early April opening and the celebration of its 75th anniversary. [uptonma.gov], [newspaperarchive.com], [cottlestra...ryfarm.com]
Read the article:
Dick Kelly’s Farm Stand Gets Ready for Spring in Upton [cottlestra...ryfarm.com]
2011: Sharing Agricultural Knowledge
In August 2011, the Worcester Telegram & Gazette included Dick Kelly’s Farm in a regional article about seeded and seedless watermelons.
Richard Kelly discussed growing thousands of watermelons and explained how seeded watermelon plants help pollinate seedless varieties. The article showed how knowledge gained through generations of farming made Kelly’s Farm a source of agricultural expertise. [anytowntest.net]
The article also identified Courtney Wolfgang as someone weighing produce and serving customers at the farm. Her inclusion reminds us that Kelly’s Farm history includes employees and workers as well as members of the Kelly family. Many other employees’ and workers’ names remain to be documented. [anytowntest.net]
Read the article:
Summer Delight: Seedless Watermelons on the Rise [anytowntest.net]
2012: “76 Years Old and On the Grow”
An archived page from the June 15, 2012, edition of the Upton & Mendon Town Crier carried a Kelly’s Farm advertisement with the headline:
“Kelly’s Farm—76 Years Old and ‘On the Grow.’”
The advertisement promoted fruits, vegetables, flowers, plants, peanut butter, local eggs, coffee, and other products available at the farm. [digitalcom...wealth.org]
This was a promotional advertisement rather than an independently written news article, but it provides a valuable dated record of the farm’s public identity and products.
View the archived newspaper page:
Kelly’s Farm—76 Years Old and “On the Grow” [digitalcom...wealth.org]
2013: Supporting Community Traditions
A community notice reprinted from the September 20, 2013, Upton & Mendon Town Crier identified Kelly’s Farm as a sponsor of the pumpkin-launching event at the Mendon Lions Country Fair.
Although this was a small community notice, it helps document the farm’s participation in traditions and events beyond the farm stand. [mapquest.com]
View the preserved notice:
Pumpkin Launching at the Mendon Lions Country Fair [mapquest.com]
2013: Remembering Richard S. Kelly
Richard S. Kelly died on October 4, 2013, at the age of 98.
Published remembrances described him as a longtime Upton businessman, self-employed farmer, and former Registrar of Voters. They also documented that Richard and Kathleen operated the farm stand established by his parents in 1936. [telegram.com], [archive.org], [pubrecord.org]
These records provide important information about the farm’s early generations and Richard’s place in the broader Upton community.
Historical records:
2024: Supporting Local Farms
In June 2024, The Frame/Access Framingham spotlighted Kelly’s Farm as a returning vendor at the Framingham Farmers Market.
The feature discussed the importance of supporting local farmers following a difficult 2023 growing season affected by flooding, frost, and a deep freeze. It demonstrated that Kelly’s Farm remained part of the region’s active agricultural community nearly nine decades after its founding. [metrowestd...lynews.com]
Read the feature:
Spotlighting Local Farmers Ahead of the 2024 Farmers Market Season [metrowestd...lynews.com]
Preserving the Complete Story
Kelly’s Farm history is still being assembled.
Online newspapers document several important moments, but the historical record before 2002 remains incomplete. Many family members, employees, farmhands, seasonal workers, vendors, neighboring farmers, and community partners have not yet been identified in the material available online.
We are continuing to research:
Family members from every generation
Farmhands and seasonal workers
Farm-stand employees
Vendors, suppliers, and neighboring farmers
People who worked with flowers, plants, wreaths, produce, and seasonal products
Farmers-market workers and partners
Community organizations and events
Longtime customers with stories or photographs
People shown in historical photographs who have not yet been identified
The history of the farm’s fields, orchards, buildings, wetlands, and open space
Share Your Kelly’s Farm Memories
Did you work at Kelly’s Farm? Did your family shop here? Do you have an old photograph, newspaper clipping, advertisement, receipt, sign, or story connected with the farm?
We would love to hear from you and preserve your memories as part of the history of Kelly’s Farm.
Email: [INSERT FARM EMAIL ADDRESS]
Subject line: Kelly’s Farm History
Telephone: [INSERT FARM PHONE NUMBER]
Please include:
Your name
Your connection to Kelly’s Farm
The approximate year
The names of anyone shown in photographs
Any story or detail you remember
Whether we may contact you for additional information
Our goal is to recognize everyone who helped make Kelly’s Farm part of the Upton community.