HONORS
To contact us with questions or comments: mailbox@blackhomesteadfarm.com
1973 - Illinois Centennial Farm
To qualify as a Centennial Farm, an agricultural property must have been owned by a straight or collateral line of descendants of the original owner for at least 100 years. Applicants must complete application and verification forms. These forms request information regarding the present owner and location of the farm, a listing of ancestral owners and third-party verification of records proving lineal or collateral descent.
A recognized title searcher, such as an abstractor, an attorney or a recorder of deeds, can verify lineal descent. Applicants meeting all requirements of the program are notified by mail. The owner receives an official Centennial Farm sign suitable for outdoor display and a certificate bearing signatures of the Governor of Illinois and the Director of the Illinois Department of Agriculture. All application materials and other papers of historical significance are placed on file at the Illinois Department of Agriculture.
2001 - Illinois Sesquicentennial Farm
The Illinois Department of Agriculture also administers the Sesquicentennial Farms Program. The application and verification processes are the same as the Centennial Farm Program except that the property must have been owned by a straight or collateral line of descendants of the original owner for at least 150 years.
The Centennial Farm Program was established to honor the generations of farmers who have worked to maintain family farms in Illinois. Each Centennial Farm designee is a link to America's heritage and a reminder that the family farm remains a viable entity in today's agriculture. The Illinois Department of Agriculture administers the Centennial Farms Program.

The Black Homestead Farm was designated as a Sesquicentennial Farm by Illinois Department of Agriculture and Governor George Ryan on January 23, 2001. The farm has become an enduring testimonial to Illinois' rich agricultural heritage. The Sesquicentennial Farm Program recognizes the pride and determination of the generations who have labored to maintain this farm as an integral part of Illinois agriculture.
2005 - National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the Nation's official list of cultural resources worthy of preservation. Authorized under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Register is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect our historic and archeological resources.

Properties listed in the Register include districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects that are significant in American history, architecture, archeology, engineering, and culture. The National Register is administered by the National Park Service, which is part of the U.S. Department of the Interior.
Properties are nominated to the National Register by the State Historic Preservation Officer of the State in which the property is located, by the Federal Preservation Officer for properties under Federal ownership or control or by the Tribal Preservation Officer if the property is on tribal lands.
The review board makes a recommendation to the State Historic Preservation Officer either to approve the nomination if, in the board's opinion, it meets the National Register criteria or to disapprove the nomination if it does not.
Black Homestead Farm displays the National Register of Historic Places plaque in the SW corner of the front yard near the road. The monument for the plaque was constructed by Kent M. Black and Stephen F. Black.
Ordinarily, State nomination forms are prepared by private individuals or the staff of the State Historic Preservation Officer. These nomination forms are then submitted to a State review board, composed of professionals in the fields of American history, architectural history, architecture, prehistoric and historic archeology and other related disciplines.
The owner receives an official Sesquicentennial Farm sign suitable for outdoor display and a certificate bearing signatures of the Governor of Illinois and the Director of the Illinois Department of Agriculture.
The Legacy of
Margaret Hobson Black
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Honors
2021 - Illinois Bicentennial Farm
The Illinois Department of Agriculture administers the Bicentennial Farms Program. This program's inception in 2016 through the 99th Illinois General Assembly.
Black Homestead Farm proudly displays the Illinois Bicentennial Farm sign on the west side of the carriage house/woodshed.
The Illinois Bicentennial Farms program has recognized 9 farms in Illinois since its inception. Owners receive an outdoor display sign and a certificate signed by the Governor and Director Agriculture. They are also recognized at "Agriculture Day" at the Illinois State Fair.
The Illinois Department of Agriculture has designated the Black Homestead Farm in Carrollton as a Bicentennial Farm. To qualify as a Bicentennial Farm, a straight or collateral line of descendants must own the agricultural property for at least 200 years. The family received this historical distinction to their farm after their application for designation as a Bicentennial Farm was approved. A recognized title searcher, such as an abstractor, an attorney or a recorder of deeds, verifies lineal descent.
This designation not only honors the family's farm operation today, but also the ancestors who labored through adversity to maintain the family farm. The Bicentennial Farm program helps to reinforce that family farming remains a viable entity in Illinois agriculture.
Black Homestead Farm received
this Centennial Farm sign. After 1973, the sign was updated
as shown below.