The Forgotten Farm at Airlie

05/03/2024

It’s been a total blessing watching the property being transformed back into the farm it was 100 years ago! 🥰❤️

01/14/2024

Who’s ready for flowers? 🙋‍♀️ It may be cold outside but the tulip bulbs love it! Over 400 planted for spring bouquets! 🌷💐

12/14/2023

What a whirlwind of a weekend! Lake Gaston Gazette-Observer had a great recap! Thanks to everyone who came out! 🎅🏼🎄🤶🏻🎁

AIRLIE, NC — Sheri Spain initially expected 100 people to show up for Saturday’s Christmas at the Forgotten Farm event on her and her husband Billy Spain’s land in Airlie.

12/13/2023

There is still time to vote for our Christmas tree at the Littleton Library! 🎄🎁 Don’t forget to type “vote” or “yes” in the comments! 🎄🎁

12/10/2023

🎄✨ Thank you, everyone, for making the Magic of Christmas at Airlie so incredible! 🎅🏼🌲🤶🏻❤️ We hope you enjoyed some yummy food, shopped with local vendors, got a chance to see Santa and play some Reindeer games!

Your patience with parking was truly appreciated as hundreds of you joined us for this magical celebration. 🎉Seeing the joy on the children's faces while visiting Santa, playing in the snow, and crafting reindeer food warmed our hearts! 🦌❄️ Your support means the world to us and we look forward to hosting more events in the future!

We couldn’t have pulled it off without the help and support of so many amazing people who volunteered their time and talents and we are grateful! ❤️🥰

Many of you asked and several of you gave donations when you saw us running from one end of
the farm to the other or when you stopped by our booth with the donation box which we greatly appreciate! 🥰 If you'd like to help keep the magic alive and support the farm's future events, donations are welcomed and greatly appreciated. 🎅🏼🌲🤶🏻❤️ The farms cash app is $NR2G and Venmo is or reach out to us personally if another way is better for you.

Our next big adventure is adding a huge legacy brick patio with fire pit and we will be selling engraved bricks to create yet another area we can gather with the community and also leave a legacy in such an amazing and lasting way! 🧱💃

If you have any photos from the festivities you’d like to share, we would love to see them as we were blessed to be busy and didn’t get many of our own. 😢 Please also tag us in any you see online. 🙏Thankful for all of you who joined us and for being a part of this wonderful community!

Check out ForgottenFarm's video.

12/01/2023

People ask all the time “what is there to do out there?”. Check out all these great local events! There’s even a concert in town at Lakeland Cultural Arts Center the night of our Christmas event. After you visit with Santa wander around and explore other great places in Halifax Co and close by downtown Littleton! 🎅🏼🌲

🎉✨ Ho, ho, ho-liday excitement is in the air as December unfolds in Halifax County, NC! 🎄📆 Unwrap the joy of the season with a calendar packed full of festive happenings – from twinkling light displays to Santa sightings! 🎅✨

Dec 1 - Christmas on the Avenue
Dec 1 - Christmas in the Square
Dec 1 - Yuletide by Lanternlight at Historic Halifax
Dec 1-2 - The Best Christmas Pageant Ever at Lakeland Cultural Arts Center
Dec 2 - Frank's Fine Arts 2nd Anniversary Celebration
Dec 3 - Roanoke Rapids Christmas Parade
Dec 9 - Magic of Christmas at The Forgotten Farm at Airlie
Dec 9 - Christmastime Memories with The Embers at Weldon Mills Theatre
Dec 9 - 3 Redneck Tenors: Christmas SPEC-TAC-YULE-AR at Lakeland Cultural Arts Center
Dec 9 - Christmas Caroling through Littleton
Dec 15 - John Brown Big Band Christmas at Lakeland Cultural Arts Center
Dec 16 - Christmas with Elvis at Weldon Mills Theatre
Dec 21 - Community Christmas Cantata at Lakeland Cultural Arts Center

Dive into the details for a sneak peek of what's in store: https://www.visithalifax.com/upcoming-events

Let the celebrations begin! 🎉

11/28/2023

It’s time to vote in the 2023 Littleton Library FESTIVAL OF TREES!!!!

Voting is easy. Simply type the word "yes" or "vote" underneath our red and silver cardinal tree! Be sure to comment and not just like! Or you can go to the Littleton Library during the hours of 8:30am - 5:00pm Monday thru Friday to cast you vote in person. Voting ends Wednesday Dec 20

11/28/2023

Want to play in our reindeer games? 🦌🎅🏼 Seriously, we’d love some help with decorating 10 trees and the gardens 🎄😳managing the free games and crafts for kids ❄️☃️ setting up and taking down of the tents for Santa 🎅🏼🎄🤶🏻 and the Littleton Library so they can pass out free books 📚 to children and more! Have a talent or decorations you’re tossing and want to share with the community? 🎄❄️ Did you miss signing up as a vendor? Reach out 🙋‍♀️ we’d love to have as many local community members involved as we can!

11/25/2023

Coming to visit the farm this weekend for family photos with Sweet Tea Photography? Be sure to stop by the shops in Littleton and support local small businesses!

There’s are tons of places around Littleton to support during Small Business Saturday!
B&M Parts and More
L A Metal Art and Decor
MAIN Street BOOKS in Littleton, NC
Main Street Wines
Littleton Hardware
Serendipity on E. North Main
The Village Market
The Shoppe at LKG, A Boutique Shop at Lake Gaston
Once Upon a County Line - Emporium
Best Kept Secret Boutique
Wildwood Nursery at Lake Gaston
Lake Life Clothing Company
AF Wake
GypsyWood Leathers
Frank's Fine Arts
The Fix Salon
Lake Gaston Outfitters
Ace Hardware of Lake Gaston
NAPA/ LAKE Gaston
The Salon & Gift Shop at Lake Gaston

11/19/2023

Santa and Mrs Clause stopped by the farm today for some photos with Vinson Photography and gave a sneak peek into the bag of treats they are bringing to the Christmas Magic at Airlie Dec 9th. Be sure to make plans to join us and see what goodies they bring with them! https://m.facebook.com/events/s/-experience-the-magic-of-chris/891672425828413/

11/13/2023

Santa is stopping by one last time this weekend for photos with Vinson Photography before the Christmas festival on December 9th. 🎅🏼🎄🤶🏻❤️ Don’t miss this opportunity to have photos with Santa inside the house! 🎅🏼🎄🤶🏻❤️

I have ONE spot left for Santa next Saturday, November 18th.🥰

11/12/2023

I seriously couldn’t love this setup on the porch anymore! 😍🎄😍🎄😍🎄 Sweet Tea Photography did an amazing job and I can’t wait to see all the pictures with smiling faces in this setting! 😍

11/11/2023

Y’all!! 😍😍 How amazing are these senior pictures that Vinson Photography took at the farm?! 😍😍

01/28/2021

Sounds like it’s going to snow in Littleton and I’ll be in Raleigh 😔 If it snows and anyone is in the area of The Forgotten Farm please snap a few pics for me! I’d love to see the property covered in snow and I’m sure it will melt before I get there Saturday! ☃️❄️⛄️❄️

01/22/2021

So much history in Littleton, NC. We have heard stories about this amazing school and love learning more!

Today in Halifax County History:
Littleton College is destroyed by fire.

On January 22, 1919, fire consumed a majority of the buildings on the campus of Littleton College in Halifax County. No lives were lost, but the devastation was so complete–damages exceeding $50,000–that the owner could not raise the money to rebuild and the school closed.

Originally opened in January 1882 as the for-profit Central Institute, the school received a legislative charter that same year. It was conceived as a place for “the intellectual, moral, and religious development and training of young ladies.” The all-female institute was affiliated with the Methodist Church.

The first principal of the institute was Reverend James Manley Rhodes, himself a graduate of Trinity College. In 1887, Rhodes left the institute for another female college but he returned in 1889. Upon his return, Rhodes purchased the college property from the original stockholders. In the intervening year, 1888, the charter had been amended to change the name of the school to Littleton Female College.

Rhodes created a two-year program including such courses as chemistry, physics, stenography, languages and history. In 1912, the word “Female” was dropped from the name.

Tragically, the fire occurred at the height of the school’s popularity.

Source: https://www.ncdcr.gov/blog/2016/01/22/littleton-college-victim-to-1919-fire

11/26/2020

Come out and join us Friday and Saturday with over 20 local vendors!

11/08/2020

We walked the back line of the property today and came across the cars we heard rumored were left on the property. The are from the late 40s.

10/29/2020

Thanks to the help of Steven Lassiter Green-Hockaday of Hockaday General Store and Museum we were able to gather information on the small house on the dirt road located on our farm in Airlie. According to The Historic Architecture of Halifax County, North Carolina this is the William H. Thorne House, #1.

According to text from the book; "Featuring a conical-roof porch pavilion, this modest Queen Anne-style house exhibits a single story gabled-hip form embellished with attractive Victorian ornamentation. It was built in 1907 for farmer William H. Thorne II (1867-1953) within sight of the Thorne of the Thorne home place, Oakland, just after he married Elizabeth T. Alston. The family lived there until 1922............"

10/05/2020

What an absolutely perfect day at Airlie! The Forgotten Farm is rejoicing today after sharing so many laughs and seeing so many smiling faces enjoying its beauty this weekend! Our vendors were all amazing and I was grateful to see them all have a successful event thanks to those of you who shopped the market! Again, thanks to everyone who came out and those who shared this great pictures! If you have any others, please post them or send them to me, I’d love to see them! We hope to do another event in the future to meet more of you and hear your stories! Sign up on our website for email updates SavingAirlie.com

09/16/2020

09/12/2020

Hope to see many of you there on October 3rd from 11-5! Check out our event tab for more information and details. I complete list of vendors will be added this week! If you are a vendor and have not received the sign up message and still want to participate please sign up at http://airliemarket.com/vendor-sign-up-fall-farm-market-at-airlie/

09/04/2020

Who do you know that is a vendor and would like the opportunity to be included?

08/25/2020

Another goal met by getting the first addition that had collapsed removed! 🎉💪💚

08/25/2020

Amazing sunsets can be seen from so many different locations on the farm!

08/25/2020

Word from the locals is that Big Foot might hang out on the property while he's going from town to the state park. 🤷‍♀️😂