The Heyser Family came to the Americas in the person of William Heyser I in 1740 from Amsterdam who became a merchant and coppersmith in Hagerstown, Maryland. The first of his four children, William Heyser II, known as the “banker” of the family, bought tracts of land on which the family began to farm, along with attending many other enterprises. (As a note, his third child, Judith, married Capt. Thomas Quantrell, and was grandmother to Wm. Clarke Quantrell, the Civil War Guerrilla.) William Heyser III took over the estate and eventually divided it between two sons, John Henry Heyser (b. 1813) 170 acres, and Captain George Frederick Heyser (born 1815), receiving 206 acres.

John Henry Heyser built the Heyser Mansion which still stands today in Hagarstown's City Park. Captain Heyser (called Captain because he formed and lead the musical “Heyser Band,” whereas his grandfather William was a Captain in the Continental Army) continued the operation of the farm and became a winemaker of note, winning in 1869 a prize for the “Best one-half dozen bottles of grape wine”. The Captain and his wife, Katherine Artz Heyser, had seven daughters, but only one son, William, became an orchardist at Jack's Mountain in Adams County, Pennsylvania.

William had ten children, five girls and five boys. One of his sons, David Artz Heyser, moved to Washington, DC and married Ernestine Marie Krause. In addition to working for the federal government, David farmed to support his family which grew to include three children, Margaret, Carlton and Norma. While growing strawberries, sweet corn, beans, squash and other assorted vegetables, and raising chickens, he realized that the best way to market his produce was directly to the consumer.

By the 1940's David was renting ground and operating a roadside market in the White Oak, Maryland, area. Carlton, while growing up, had helped not only his father's farm, but also had spent summers on the Heyser farms in Pennsylvania and the Krause farms in Western Maryland. Carlton attended the University of Maryland studying agriculture during the depression but soon could no longer afford the education. While working full time and getting married to Ruth Nash he began attending school at night and received a law degree. When his father, David, retired from the government and began to farm full time, Carlton helped too. Carlton was drafted into WWII and served to the end of the war.

In 1946, David rented property in Colesville, Maryland where there had been a farm market operated since 1912 and that year he also bought the farm's first cider press. In 1948 the land's owner, Helen O. Vierling, decided to sell the property and David convinced Carlton to buy the six and a half acre property, which became home to Heyser Farms. Our first fruit trees were planted here – apples, sweet and sour cherries, pears and small fruits, grapes, blueberries, and raspberries (There were already some old apple trees on the property).

It was during these years that Heyser Farms became well known for the quality fruits, vegetables and our sweet cider sold at the roadside stand. It was also at this time that most of our tree-ripened fruit was coming from growers in Thurmont, Maryland and Adams County, Pennsylvania -- as much of it sill comes presently.

In 1957, while Carlton was building his home on the Colesville property, David again convinced him to buy eighteen acres in nearby Highland, Howard County, Maryland. It was there that they planted ten acres of peaches and eight acres of apples, cherries, plums pears and apricots.

With the passing of David Artz Heyser in 1964, Carlton Ellsworth Heyser Sr. continued to run the farm, while still working for the Veterans Administration in Washington, DC. In 1970, Carlton Sr. retired from his government position and turned to farming full time. In the years after 1970 Carlton Sr. modernized the farm, replacing and purchasing new equipment, enlarging the roadside market (for a second time) and installing the farm's first walk-in cold storage. The farm also switched from planting standard apple trees to the “new” more compact “semi-dwarf” trees.

Mike Heyser in front of the Heyser market on one of his many "antique" tractors

In 1972 he built the farm's first greenhouse. Growing up and helping on the farm, Carlton Jr. (aka Mike) followed his farming roots and attended the University of Maryland for Agribusiness and began working on the farm full time in 1978. Around 1980 the first dwarf apple trees were planted on the farm. In 1985 a new apple orchard was planted on the Colesville property and in 1987 the old apple orchard on the Howard County property was pushed out.

The farm's biggest change came in 1988, however, when Montgomery County re-aligned Bonifant and Good Hope roads. With that re-alignment and the widening of New Hampshire Avenue soon afterwards, the state and county took an acre of ground from the farm and demolished the roadside market. The county had not given Carlton Sr. any advance notice of the impending doom for the market so, during the summer of 1988, the market was operated from under a canopy by the side of the road while our present market was under construction. (Only once that summer did the canopy fly into the middle of New Hampshire Ave. during a fierce thunderstorm.)

For the 1988 fall season the new market was ready and opened. The new market now also housed the cider press (a newer but still the same size 22” rack and cloth press until it was replaced in 1990 with a new 28” press).
In 1995, Carlton Jr. purchased the Howard County property from his parents while still growing peaches and vegetables on that property. In 2005, part of that property was sold for development so that Carlton Jr., his wife Andrea and their three children could purchase the home farm from Carlton Sr. and his wife, Ruth. That purchase was completed in 2008.

In the fall of 2007, the farm began to rent the orchard of William and Margaret Burcham in Orrtanna, Pennsylvania. Margaret was a cousin of Carlton Sr. and while William served in the U.S. Navy and was stationed in Washington, DC after WWII, he would help David at the market in Colesville. Later, William and Margaret settled in Orrtanna, PA and began fruit farming part time while working and raising a family. When the new market was built in 1988, Margaret's home madepies were sold there and we began to market some of William's apples as well. By 2007 most of the apples were sold through the market, so, when William was ready to semi-retire, then 83 years old, the opportunity was taken to rent the farm.

In 2008 Carlton Sr. passed away at age 93 in February, and Ruth passed away in July at age 90.

In 2009, as in 1809, Heyser Farms is still a small family farm. Carlton E. Heyser, Jr. (Mike) is the principle operator of the farm and is helped by his wife, Andrea,  and three children, Daniel, Carla and Garrett. Also helping are non family employees that are very special to the farm.

The Heyser family knows we are very blessed to continue the tradition of farming made possible by the continued support of our loyal customers. We look forward to the future. While it will be up to our children to decide their own future, we that are running the farm now are striving to give them a realistic chance of continuing to farm and operate the market in Colesville for many years to come.