Fairburn Farm was homestead in the mid 1880s by John Jackson from Ireland and his wife, Mary Jackson, from Scotland. Mary called the farm "Fairburn" meaning beautiful stream in the Scottish idiom. After the death of John Jackson, Mary continued to raise prize Jersey cows. In 1912 she met and married Charles Doering, a millionaire who owned a brewery in New Westminster and on Kingsway in Vancouver. Doering increased the size of his property to 1200 acres by buying out the neighbouring homesteads close by. Fairburn was his hunting lodge in addition to other homes in warmer climes. Today, the head of a huge elk and a caribou oversee the household activities and provide a unique connection with the past. The original cow barn with lean-to dairy and the stables built for percheron horses (to pull the brewery draysstill stand) as well as several smaller buildings were built. Charles died in 1936 and after Mary passed away in the late 1940s son Edwin Jackson sold most of the acreage to MacMillan Bloedel, a major forest company.

In 1955 after years of neglect, Jack and Mollie Archer moved with their three children from Victoria and purchased Fairburn, now 130 acres and began the Vancouver Island Organic Vegetable Cooperative. With the help of the children, Chris and Lynne both teenagers and Darrel a 6 year old, they learned about farming the hard way. Using hand tools and horse drawn machinery made farming backbreaking work but the family managed to bring the land to its present fertile condition. Jack was also an electrician at the Crofton Pulp Mill while Mollie taught grade five for many years.

Fairburn Farm became a summer camp during the 1960s and gave children the opportunity to learn crafts including pottery, art, horse riding, and farm chores under Mollie's organization. This was the beginning of agri-tourism at Fairburn. A brief encounter with Fritz Perls and Gestalt therapy which lasted six months provides an interesting chapter. It was obvious that mixed, organic farming would not provide adequate income and in the early1970's Mollie organized Farm Vacations based on Farm Holidays in Britain, also known as Farmstays. At that time the Provincial Government of British Columbia instituted the Agricultural Land Reserve designed to protect farmers and food producing land. This included the original 1200 acres of forest land around Fairburn Farm. Mollie and Jack retired in 1978 and in their 80s they still enjoy an active, though slower paced, lifestyle.

Presently, Mollie and Jack's son, Darrel and his wife Anthea run the farm and bed and breakfast. Anthea's father, originally from London moved to Lancashire, married, then settled in Preston during the Second World War. Anthea arrived in Vancouver in 1967 and destiny was fulfilled when she joined Darrel in 1981. Both Darrel and Anthea continue to maintain a way of life that includes conservation and natural renewal. Integrity in food production is essential for good health and general well-being for people, animals and the environment in which we live.

Visit the Fairburn Farm Website