IT ALL STARTED WITH TWO GOATS
TO GIVE THE CLEAREST POINT OF VIEW ONTO HOW BERGEYS BARNYARD CAME ABOUT WE HAVE TO GO WAY BACK. THE PIECE OF LAND THAT OUR PETTING ZOO IS ON HAS BEEN IN THE BERGEY FAMILY FOR A LONG TIME. IN 1933 TITUS BERGEY BOUGHT THE FARM THAT WAS HERE FROM HIS FATHER IN LAW. HE ALSO ADDED COWS TO THE FARM AND STARTED BERGEYS DAIRY. THE DAIRY GREW AND WAS PASSED ONTO THE NEXT GENERATIONS. IN 2005 THE DAIRY WENT OUT OF BUSINESS. IN 2006 TITUS'S GRANDSON HAROLD BERGEY, ALONG WITH OTHER FAMILY MEMBERS, OPENED BERGEYS BREADBASKET, THE BAKERY/DELI/ICE CREAM SHOP THAT IS STILL HERE! IN 2011 TITUS'S GREAT GRANDSON , JOEL BERGEY MOVED TO CHESAPEAKE TO WORK AT THE BREADBASKET. THE FARM AT THE TIME HAD NO ANIMALS. THE BARNS WERE BASICALLY BEING USED AS LARGE STORAGE SHEDS, FULL OF ALL KINDS OF STUFF! ONE DAY JOEL'S SISTER, LAURA, SAID "JOEL, WE SHOULD GET SOME GOATS!" JOEL THOUGHT IT WAS GOOD IDEA AND AGREED. A COUPLE OF WEEKS LATER LAURA SHOWED UP WITH A COUPLE OF BABY NIGERIAN DWARF GOATS IN A CARDBOARD BOX IN THE BACK OF HER BEAT UP HONDA CIVIC. STOCKTON AND MALONE. AFTER A FEW WEEKS OF WATERING AND FEEDING STOCKTON AND MALONE JOEL REALIZED THEY WEREN'T "THEIR" GOATS, THEY WERE "HIS" GOATS. HE ALSO NOTICED THAT BREADBASKET CUSTOMERS ENJOYED VISITING WITH THE GOATS. IT WASN'T LONG AFTER HE DECIDED TO GET TWO PIGS "PIGGY AND CHARLOTTE" AND A DONKEY "BUDDY". DUCKS AND MORE GOATS FOLLOWED. THE CUSTOMER REACTION WAS GOOD BUT THE EXPENSES WERE STARTING TO PILE UP! JOEL CONSIDERED EITHER DOWNSIZING OR CREATING A SELF SUSTAINABLE PETTING ZOO. ULTIMATELY HE CHOSE THE LATTER AND ADDED MANY MORE ANIMALS AND PENS AND THATS HOW BERGEY'S BARNYARD WAS BORN!
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OUR PETTING ZOO IS STILL YOUNG! WE ARE EXCITED TO CONTINUE TO GROW AND TO SERVE AS A PLACE THAT FAMILIES CAN COME AND KICK BACK AND ENJOY THE FARM LIFE.