American Portraits: Family Farm

Generations of American men and women have been born into the family business of farming. They have married, raised children, and often died on the same patch of ground. In 1900, half of the population lived and worked on farms. That number now rests at two percent, and more than one-third of American farmers are over the age of 65. Faced with economic hardship, long hours, and corporate competition, each week hundreds of farmers leave their land for good, forever altering communities, family traditions, and the patchwork of small towns across the country.