The Anderson family of Clinton County have been chosen to receive the 2025 John Arnold Award for Rural Preservation from Indiana Landmarks and Indiana Farm Bureau, honoring the family’s stewardship of their historic farm southwest of Frankfort.
Stan and Lois Anderson live in a historic house at the heart of the farmstead, which serves as the home base for their 800-acre grain farm and recently added pick-your-own flower business. Stan’s brother, Don, helps manage the day-to-day farm operation while another brother, Phil, and an aunt are also part landowners.
Stan’s maternal grandparents, George and Delia Stine, purchased the farmhouse and surrounding acreage in 1944. Roughhewn timber in the room that serves as the farm office dates to the house’s construction in the late 1800s, while leaded and art glass windows and the fireplace’s green tile surround offer clues to a Craftsman-style makeover in the early twentieth century. During a major upgrade to the home’s interior in 2005, the family took care in maintaining the house’s original character, retaining pocket doors, Douglas fir and oak woodwork, and a grand staircase.
Making use of materials at hand is a practical approach the Andersons have extended to other historic buildings on the property. They adapted a historic smokehouse to serve as additional office space, incorporating vintage wood siding. A back patio includes brick pavers salvaged from a former nearby school once attended by family members.
A century-old three-bay timber frame barn stands at the heart of farming operations. The family raised the ceiling of the barn’s east hayloft—once used for hay storage and feeding beef cattle—to use the area as a farm shop to maintain modern farm equipment. The barn’s other bays and three granaries are repurposed to serve as storage for parts, supplies, and other vehicles. The landmark was selected in 2016 as one of 200 Bicentennial Barns to celebrate the state’s birthday and agrarian values.
In 2019, after retiring from teaching, Lois Anderson collaborated with brother-in-law Don, a landscaper, to create flower beds in former pastureland north of the barn. Their personal passion gave rise to the Anderson U-Pick Flower Farm in 2020. The Andersons repurposed the farm’s historic scale building for the flower business, with the vintage Moline scale box on display as a nod to the structure’s original use.
“A certain degree of creativity goes into maintaining and redoing these farm buildings,” says Phil Anderson. “It’s about repurposing them to be used in a different way while maintaining the farm’s heritage and viability.”
“The Anderson family’s intentional preservation of buildings on the Stine-Anderson Family Farm through adaption and continued use reflects the spirit of the Arnold Award,” says Tommy Kleckner, director of Indiana Landmarks’ Western Regional Office and Arnold Award coordinator.
The annual award is named in memory of John Arnold (1955-1991), a Rush County farmer committed to preserving Indiana’s rural heritage.
WHAT: Presentation of the John Arnold Award for Rural Preservation
WHEN: Aug. 7 at 11 a.m. during the Indiana Department of Agriculture’s Celebration of Agriculture at the Indiana State Fair
WHERE: The historic Normandy Barn on the north side of the Indiana State Fairgrounds & Event Center.
WHO: The Anderson family will accept the award from Indiana Landmarks’ President Brad Ward and Indiana Farm Bureau President Randy Kron.
For information about nominations for the 2026 John Arnold Award for Rural Preservation, contact Tommy Kleckner at Indiana Landmarks, 812-232-4534, tkleckner@indianalandmarks.org.
Source: Indiana Landmarks
