Jeannette J. Hackett, Co- Founder of The Farm
June 20, 1917 – June 16, 2011
Jeannette J. Hackett, died in June but has left a legacy that will be long remembered.
My mother led many lives. Born in Alameda, California, she was an active part of the Sacramento community. She edited her high school year book and newspaper; with a student body of 3000 that was no small task. She played golf, rode horses, belonged to a sorority and qualified as a small plane pilot. She helped manage her family’s fishing resort in the Sierra Nevadas, and worked as Secretary to the Speaker of the House of the state of California.
During her later life she did occasional stints as a journalist, a master Goren bridge teacher and a legal secretary.
In 1945 she married Captain Thomas L. Hackett, (U.S. Army Air Corps). Following World War II, they moved to Bell City, Louisiana to start a life of ranching and rice farming. She also opened up a small school to teach children of color who had no other formal educational opportunities.
When the Korean War intervened, they returned to California and she began the life of Air Force wife and mother of three children. Tom Hackett was transferred all over the country and he and Jeannette used those opportunities to search for property where they would settle upon his retirement. In 1960 they found Maine and The Farm. By this time they had discovered the joys of collecting and studying antiques. They purchased The Farm, which was a falling down, defunct dairy farm and began restoring the buildings and grounds. By 1967, when Tom retired from the Air Force, they had a livable home and a lifetime of work and joy ahead of them.
Jeannette nurtured the dream of having an elegant antique shop set up as her own home with oriental rugs, fine porcelain, period furniture and superb accessories and paintings. Never being short of energy, Jeannette and Tom began the realization of that vision from the first day they opened The Farm in 1967. Their labor of love blossomed into a wonderful business. Their reputation for honesty, integrity, fine design, high quality and fair prices brought dealers and collectors from far and wide. They encouraged me to work my way through college with antiques and I thought it a wonderful diversion from the study of science. In 1976 Jeannette and Tom invited my husband and me to become partners in the business. Their small business had grown far beyond their initial imaginings and they clearly needed help to fulfill their now expanded vision.
For decades The Farm has thrived, defying all the clichés about the perils of family businesses. We all participated in every part of the business, but my Mom was usually the “front” person; the one who sat at the partner’s desk and greeted customers year after year. She loved to share her enthusiasm for antiques, history and design with our clientele, never hesitating to offer advice about building a collection or decorating a home or office. She believed that educating others and sharing knowledge was one of the great joys of the antiques business.
In the last eight years, as her health and hearing deteriorated, she spent less time in the shop, but still maintained her enthusiasm for antiques and a clientele built up over a half her lifetime. Whenever any of her “regulars “would come to the shop she would always want to know what they had chosen to acquire and how they were faring because it was the people as much as the antiques which brought her endless pleasure.
She was beloved and will be missed.
June 20, 1917 – June 16, 2011
Jeannette J. Hackett, died in June but has left a legacy that will be long remembered.
My mother led many lives. Born in Alameda, California, she was an active part of the Sacramento community. She edited her high school year book and newspaper; with a student body of 3000 that was no small task. She played golf, rode horses, belonged to a sorority and qualified as a small plane pilot. She helped manage her family’s fishing resort in the Sierra Nevadas, and worked as Secretary to the Speaker of the House of the state of California.
During her later life she did occasional stints as a journalist, a master Goren bridge teacher and a legal secretary. In 1945 she married Captain Thomas L. Hackett, (U.S. Army Air Corps). Following World War II, they moved to Bell City, Louisiana to start a life of ranching and rice farming. She also opened up a small school to teach children of color who had no other formal educational opportunities.
When the Korean War intervened, they returned to California and she began the life of Air Force wife and mother of three children. Tom Hackett was transferred all over the country and he and Jeannette used those opportunities to search for property where they would settle upon his retirement. In 1960 they found Maine and The Farm. By this time they had discovered the joys of collecting and studying antiques. They purchased The Farm, which was a falling down, defunct dairy farm and began restoring the buildings and grounds. By 1967, when Tom retired from the Air Force, they had a livable home and a lifetime of work and joy ahead of them.
Jeannette nurtured the dream of having an elegant antique shop set up as her own home with oriental rugs, fine porcelain, period furniture and superb accessories and paintings. Never being short of energy, Jeannette and Tom began the realization of that vision from the first day they opened The Farm in 1967. Their labor of love blossomed into a wonderful business. Their reputation for honesty, integrity, fine design, high quality and fair prices brought dealers and collectors from far and wide. They encouraged me to work my way through college with antiques and I thought it a wonderful diversion from the study of science. In 1976 Jeannette and Tom invited my husband and me to become partners in the business. Their small business had grown far beyond their initial imaginings and they clearly needed help to fulfill their now expanded vision.
For decades The Farm has thrived, defying all the clichés about the perils of family businesses. We all participated in every part of the business, but my Mom was usually the “front” person; the one who sat at the partner’s desk and greeted customers year after year. She loved to share her enthusiasm for antiques, history and design with our clientele, never hesitating to offer advice about building a collection or decorating a home or office. She believed that educating others and sharing knowledge was one of the great joys of the antiques business.
In the last eight years, as her health and hearing deteriorated, she spent less time in the shop, but still maintained her enthusiasm for antiques and a clientele built up over a half her lifetime. Whenever any of her “regulars “would come to the shop she would always want to know what they had chosen to acquire and how they were faring because it was the people as much as the antiques which brought her endless pleasure.
She was beloved and will be missed.
