Farmers from the East found the broad and fertile prairies of McHenry County offered the perfect soil and climate for growing corn, wheat, oats, barley, and rye. This led the way for a flourishing dairy industry that eventually supplied milk to the city of Chicago. The first settlements appeared in 1835 in towns such as Crystal Lake, Woodstock, Harvard, and Cary. Families such as the Walkups, the Crandalls, the Beardsleys, the Stickneys, and the Terwilligers travelled by oxcart and rode on horseback from distant states. As word of the lush countryside spread, other farmers came from England, Ireland, and Germany to plow the fertile fields of the nation's heartland.
Glynnis Walker and Arabella Anderson, mother and daughter, live in Woodstock. They discovered their passion for the old farms of McHenry County after moving there several years ago and wanted to immortalize the efforts of the original farm families before they are lost forever. Glynnis is a radio talk show host and author of eight other books. Arabella is a student at McHenry County College who is pursuing her career in filmmaking and photography.