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The West Virginia Encyclopedia
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The West Virginia Encyclopedia
The Reymann Memorial Farm, located near Wardensville in the Cacapon Valley in Hardy County, is the largest of several experimental farms operated by West Virginia University. The property was donated as two separate farms in 1917 by members of the Reymann family, prominent Wheeling brewers and businessmen. It remains today as two separate tracts under joint management. The farm is operated by the Division of Animal and Veterinary Sciences at WVU’s Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design. Collectively, the 990-acre tract is known as the Reymann Memorial Research, Education and Outreach Center.
The memorial farm established an excellent cattle herd early in its history, and continues the tradition of animal husbandry today. In a typical year, the center maintains 75 sheep, 160 cattle, 1,600 turkeys, 2,100 chickens, and 150 bulls. Staff and students at the center study temporal changes in ovarian functions in domestic ruminants, increasing farm income by shifting the breeding time for ewe flocks, field crop variety testing, fertility and production of broiler feeders, comparisons on genetic lines of turkeys, and production issues related to vectors of salmonella introduction into turkey flocks.
West Virginia University has eight other farm properties, located in Monongalia, Preston, Jefferson, and Monroe counties. WVU also maintains the University Forest in Monongalia and Preston counties and has had a long affiliation with the Fernow Experimental Forest.