Kirby’s Farm Market goes into NYS Historic Business Preservation Registry

Business run by Albion family honored for more than 50 years on Ridge Road in Brockport

Photos by Tom Rivers: Linda and Tim Kirby, front, have been part of Kirby’s Farm Market for more than 50 years. The business was started in 1970 by Tim’s dad George and George’s brother Bob. In back are their daughter, Stacey Kirby Steward; daughter-in-law, Mandy Kirby; and son, Chad Kirby. They are shown in front of the market with some of their pumpkins.

BROCKPORT – A business run by an Albion family has been welcomed into the NYS Historic Business Preservation Registry, which honors businesses that have endured for more than 50 years and also are an important part of their community’s fabric.

Kirby’s Farm Market is located just outside Orleans County on Ridge Road in the town of Clarkson. The market was built in 1970 by George and Bob Kirby, brothers from Albion. Since 1989, it has been run by George’s son, Tim and his wife Linda.

The site today offers fruit and vegetables, including 320 customers on a weekly subscription in a Community Supported Agriculture membership that goes for 23 weeks. Kirby’s remains a farm-driven operation that has expanded into a gift shop and greenhouse market.

Most of the fruits and vegetables are grown in Albion. Kirby’s is a “regenerative farm” with a strong focus on healthy soils and plants.

“We’re growing the most nutrient dense food possible,” said Chad Kirby, who has worked full-time at the farm the past 12 years. “Healthy food is medicine.”

This photos from the 1950s shows Dennis Kirby on the tractor with his sons, from left: Francis, Bob, George and John.

Chad, 34, earned a bachelor’s degree in exercise science and was planning to be a physical therapist. But he switched to farming with his family, believing he good make a bigger impact on the health of the community by offering fruits, vegetables and nutritional knowledge.

He has added some fruits and vegetables to the market, including tatsoi, a leafy Asian green. Chad also is the Orleans County Farm Bureau president.

Chad’s wife, Mandy, is a key part of the market. She switched from being a school teacher to working with the public at Kirby’s.

Chad’s sister, Stacey Kirby Steward, also helps run the market, and keeps up Kirby’s social media presence, website and newsletter. She also works on the events at Kirby’s with open houses and greenhouse tours.

“The focus is connecting with the community,” she said.

Assemblyman Steve Hawley will present the honor of being in the New York State Historic Business Preservation Registry to the Kirby’s on Tuesday at 1 p.m.

The Historic Business Preservation Registry was established by the State Legislature in 2020. The program is administered by the Division for Historic Preservation at the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. No business in Orleans County is currently listed in the registry.

Some nearby businesses in the registry include Lift Bridge Book Shop in Brockport, Max Pies and Chapin Manufacturing in Batavia, Liberty Pumps and Viking Valhalla Restaurant at Rose Garden Bowl in Bergen, and Lapp Insulators LLC in LeRoy.

The Kirby family is shown inside the market at 9739 West Ridge Rd., Brockport. Linda, Tim, Mandy, Chad and Stacey have turned the site into a farm market with a gift shop. On Tuesday at 1 p.m., Assemblyman Steve Hawley will present them with the honor of being in the NYS Historic Business Preservation Registry. The sign notes Kirby’s is a “regenerative farm” with a focus on healthy soil and plants.

Linda Kirby said she became aware of the registry when Lift Bridge Book Shop was honored. Kirby’s was encouraged to apply for the distinction by Town of Clarkson officials. Linda completed the application, which also needed testimonials from the community.

The Kirby family for many years grew tomatoes for large processors, including Hunt-Wesson which closed in Albion in 1970. Other large canning factories in the county also closed around that time. Duffy-Mott shut down in Holley in 1971 and H.V. Heinz closed its Medina site in 1963. The area also lost the Morton Canning Company, Wallace Dale Canning Factory in Barre Center and the Birdseye Plant in Medina.

The Kirby brothers needed a market for their product, a market that wouldn’t suddenly shut down and leave them in the lurch.

When the brothers were considering their future, they stopped by Zehr’s Market in Burt, Niagara County. That farm had a market, and the customers came right to the site to buy directly from the farm.

“My dad was impressed by what they were doing,” said Tim Kirby, George’s son.

George also was a people-person who enjoyed interacting with the public. The farm market was a great fit for him.

The brothers considered locations for their market and what they could afford. They wanted to get close to the larger population base in Monroe County. The site for their market used to be a melon farm.

Tim and Linda Kirby have run Kirby’s Farm Market together since 1989.

Tim Kirby has been part of the operation since the beginning. His wife, Linda, started working there in 1972. Tim and Linda became owners of the site in 1989.

The Kirby family grows most of the produce in Albion for the market. The site in Clarkson also has 30 acres of good sandy soil for growing crops.

Kirby’s Farm Market looks a lot different from its early from a one-room garage-style building to a cozy market with a gift shop. Kirby’s has five greenhouses and they start their own seedlings in March that they then can transport into the fields.

The market also has thousands of annuals in the spring. The perennial area has expanded to hundreds of varieties. Kirby’s has extended its season into December, offering Christmas trees, wreaths and Poinsettias.

“We’ve changed with the times,” Tim said. “But we remain farm-driven with a focus on consistency.”