Our Story

In 1895, William Arthur Beggs, my great grandfather planted his first watermelons on the very ground we still farm, and as they grew, Beggs Melon Company was born.

The timing couldn’t be better for William, around the 1900’s Blodgett would become known as the “Watermelon Capital of the World.” That wasn’t just local talk either, the World’s Fair of 1904 attested to it.

My grandfather, W.A. “Dubb” Beggs, although I just called him Pop, would carry on the tradition. He joined in the family business, and hauled watermelons all the way to St. Louis, 135 miles all by freight train!

Times changed around Pop. He went from loading melons into trains to loading them into trucks, driving his produce up to St. Louis sometimes making two trips in one day.

Time passed and things changed. Pop retired and eventually all the brothers and cousins parted the original watermelon businesses. Leaving dad and me as the only two still running Beggs Melon Company. On April 25, 1992, I married Sheila Lynn and over the next decade had three children, Taylor, Shelby, and Bryce. All of whom are active in the family business today.

In December of 1996 we lost Donald R. Beggs, the best son, father, father-in-law, husband, and friend. We miss him dearly. During this time Sheila began helping with the farm more, leaving her job at the hospital to help on the farm full time.

In 1999, a local teacher asked if she could bring her class out to see the pumpkin field. At the time it seemed like a strange ask, but we welcomed her class out to the farm regardless. We didn’t know it yet, but this would change our farm forever. This small ask sparked a crazy idea.

It was only one year later in 2000, Sheila and I, opened Beggs Family Farm to the public and schools for the first time. We had a little red barn, a few animals, a small pumpkin patch, and high hopes. In our first year 3,500 school children visited our farm.