Dinner planned for Nov. 30
By Betty Jane Hunt, Contributor
The Mt. Airy 4-H Dairy Club will celebrate its 90th anniversary on Nov. 30 at the Lambertville-New Hope Rescue Squad Banquet Hall, 70 Alexander Ave., Lambertville.
The event will begin at 6:30 p.m. There will be a roast beef dinner, live music, a video, thanks to the Hunterdon County Historical Society and Sarah Hunt Callaway, and lots and lots of shared memories.
Those planning to attend are urged to bring pictures, scrapbooks and memories to share.
Tickets are $20 each and can be purchased from Betty Jane Hunt, David Bond, Roger Everitt at Everitt’s Equipment, or the 4-H Extension Office.
For further information, contact Ms. Hunt at 609-397-1333.
THE CLUB was organized as the Mt. Airy Calf Club around a well curb at the Cronce Farm outside the Village of Mt. Airy. The first meeting was held at the home of Grover Williamson on Nov. 30, 1923. Son John was one of 10 members at that original meeting. John later became mayor of West Amwell Township and owner of Williamson’s Dairy.
Also at that meeting was E.J. Perry, the dairy specialist from Rutgers and Mr. Oliver, the county club agent. From 1935 until his retirement in 1962, B.F. Ramsburg, county 4-H agent, frequently attended the club meetings.
The 10 original members were all from dairy farms in West Amwell. After a few years they expanded to include members from East Amwell and eventually from throughout the county. However, during the 1950s, there were five other dairy clubs in Hunterdon County. They were Milford, Cushetunk, Fair Valley, Bethlehem and Lebanon. Some years later, Central Valley came into being and Bethlehem/Milford combined. These clubs all disbanded several years ago now. A few years ago, some members of Mt. Airy formed the Dilts Corner Club.
THE MEMBERSHIP of the Mt. Airy Club has fluctuated throughout the years from as low as five to the current 35 members. The members were all from farms and all owned their own animals until 1980s when the 4-H Animal Lease Program started. This program was a result of fewer and fewer dairy farms and yet there were young people interested in being part of the 4-H Dairy Program. In the lease program, members can lease animals from farmers. The members are responsible to help care for the animals, keep records on them, train and show them. With only a half dozen dairy farms left in Hunterdon County and the lease program being so popular, Mt Airy has been able to remain a strong and active club.
The club met in members’ homes until recent years when it began meeting in county buildings.
ON AUG. 13, 1924, the first club fair was held in Holcombe’s Grove, the current site of the West Amwell Firehouse in Mt. Airy. Members exhibited their animals in the afternoon and the mothers of club members served a chicken supper in the evening. This was followed by carnival games and dancing. Over 600 people attended and the club netted $261.
In later years, the members showed their animals at the Ringoes Grange Fair. After that, the county show was sponsored at the Flemington Fairgrounds by the Pomona Grange during the first week of August.
Today, the county show is held on Thursday during the Hunterdon County 4-H & Agricultural Fair at the South County Park site of the new fairgrounds in East Amwell.
In 1925, there were 27 members with 14 Guernseys, eight Holsteins and six Jerseys. Today the majority of the members own or lease Holsteins with some Brown Swiss and a few Guernseys and Jerseys.
In 1926, the club voted to open its meetings by singing “America the Beautiful.” This continued until the 4-H pledge came into being in 1931. Today meetings are opened with the pledge and salute to the American flag. Throughout most of the club’s history, it has had club presentations and taken part in the county and state Presentation Contests to develop public speaking skills.
Record-keeping is another skill deemed important to the club. The members always have enjoyed showing and in the early years it was a big deal to go to the State Show at the Trenton Fairgrounds. Now the state shows move around between Sussex, Salem and Hunterdon.
MT. AIRY ALWAYS has taken part in Dairy Judging. In 1963, three members of the state team were members from Mt. Airy. They traveled to Waterloo, Iowa, and finished second in the National Contest. This year, the club has a member on the state team, which will be competing in Wisconsin. In 1966 and 1967, the club had soil judging teams that won in the state and competed nationally in Oklahoma. In the 2000s, it had Dairy Bowl teams that won in the state and competed nationally in Wisconsin, California, Kentucky and Indiana.
In 1962, the Dairy Princess program began and Mt. Airy has had numerous county and state princesses representing the Dairy industry. Since moving to the new fairgrounds, the club has had three members club named Hunterdon County Fair ambassador.
Other club highlights included having several state winners attend Club Congress. In 1927, Austin Runkle was selected as a delegate to the first National 4-H Camp Conference in Washington, D.C. In 1938, Abe VanDoren had the first 4-H cow in the nation to freshen that was artificially bred. Millie Saums was winner of the better milking contest at the 1939 New York World’s Fair.
The first official charter to be received by a NJ 4-H Club was presented to Mt. Airy in August 1940.
On July 4, 1942, Wilette Case took part in a National 4-H Radio Broadcast on how 4-H club members were helping with the “Food for Freedom Program.” At the New York World’s Fair in 1965, Linda Harrison was presented a calf from the Isle of Jersey for her outstanding club work with Jersey cattle. Also in 1965, Betty Jane Coleman was selected through her 4-H club work to represent the USA in Sweden for six months as part of the International Farm Youth Exchange.
Throughout the years, Mt. Airy has taken part and won numerous window displays (that are now library displays), and fair booth displays. They have had floats in various parades, have sponsored many awards such as the Mt. Airy Cup (given to the outstanding County Dairy Club member since 1957), put on plays and skits, attended 4-H camp, taken part in milking contests, etc. The Coleman, Elbert, Drake, and Emmons awards all have been given through club member families.
Fundraising projects have included: movies, plays, suppers, bake sales, hoagie sales, collecting donations at the Lambertville Fireworks, and selling Joe Corbi pizza and desserts.
The club has many friends who make donations annually.
The club also has taken part in numerous community service projects for the Hunterdon Medical Center, the County Fair, Heifer International and tornado and flood victims.
Several generations of local families have been members of the Mt. Airy Club over the years. They include: the Hunt, Coleman, VanDoren, Phillips, Case, Everitt, Everitt/Elbert, Lambert, VanLieu/Wengryn, Totten, Williamson, Hamp, Fulper, Farlee/Holcombe, Hockenbury, Bond and Emmons families.
The club also has seen six club-member marriages, two of which took place this year.
”Finally,” said Betty Jane Hunt — author of this account — “we have been blessed with supportive parents, leaders, 4-H staff, alumni, and friends.”

