Not everyone can say that their family history is interwoven with the history of their hometown. And rarer still to come down to the exact same year. But the Perkins family have a special story, deeply rooted in Wainwright, Alberta. It started more than a century ago — and continues to be written today.

Not only was 1908 the year that Bryan Perkins’ grandparents settled on a homestead in east-central Alberta, it was also the year the Village of Wainwright was officially established. “Incidentally, that’s when the railway came through here and the town started as well. It was pretty wide open country at that point,” says Bryan. 

And his grandparents made the most of that wide open space, growing crops and raising livestock. At first, it was just the farm with two horses and three cows. By 1910, his grandparents started raising pigs, growing their operation and setting the stage for future generations. The Perkins family still raise pigs on that land today, and those open fields have been cultivated to grow 115 crops — with Bryan currently farming 54.

The Perkins Farm has experienced many important junctures over the years. In 2008, they received a Century Farm Award, an honour reserved for farming families who’ve owned and operated the same land for 100 years or more. And with how things are going today, they just might be on track for another century. 

“Generation five is just starting,” says Bryan. “People ask when I'm going to retire and I keep saying at the end of October, after harvest. But I just really enjoy working with my family and seeing the next generations come along. It makes it fun.” 

As a farmer, Bryan has a special kind of wisdom. When you tend the land and raise livestock, you’re tuned into the ebbs and flows of life — from weather patterns to farrowing pigs. These are the types of insights Bryan eagerly shares with young farmers in the community.