7 Generations Strong: A Porter Family’s Farming Legacy

The Hogan family first stepped foot on the land that is now their family farm in Porter more than 100 years ago.

Three of those seven generations work alongside one another in the family's longtime tradition of farming.

Three generations of Hogans walk side by side, following in the footsteps of their ancestors

The oldest living member of their family started working with this soil 85 years ago when James was just five.

"That's been a long time to me. It's most of my life, but we've had a wonderful life here," he said.

The Hogan family has farmed on the same land since the 1920s, when James' great-great grandfather rented it. James' father later purchased it in 1939.

James has watched things evolve over time, from their crops to their tools.

"The equipment is so much nicer," he said. "The tractors have enclosed tabs and air conditioning."

But the lessons--even ones he learned as a child--are the same.

"We were privileged to have a nice farm like this, and we try to take care of it for its future for as best we could," James said.

The future is Cale Hogan.

"Not many people can say they worked next to their great grandpa every day and ride in a tractor with him," he said.

He learned everything he needed to know from the men who came before him.

"Hard work and don't complain and just get it done because the sooner you get it done, you can move along to something else," said Cale.

While he's only seventeen, Cale understands the importance of this place his family worked so hard to call home.

"It's definitely very special and different from anyone else’s story," he said. "I just hope that it gets passed down to my dad, then to me, and then I can pass it down to my kids, and it just keeps going down the line."

Just as seeds are planted and take on a new form, the people who look after the plants grow too.