West Farms

By M.J. Maccardini

Men transporting logs by horse and carriage. Transporting Logs, Sylvester Road, West Farms.
Transporting Logs, Sylvester Road, West Farms. Photograph by the Howes Brothers, Ashfield, MA, c. 1886-1902. Historic Northampton (ID no. 1975.40.47).

West Farms is a section in the western area of Northampton, centered around West Farms and Sylvester Roads. It is home to one of the oldest Methodist churches in the Valley.

A black and white photograph captures a group of ten children standing and sitting on a grassy lawn in front of a small, one-story brick schoolhouse. The children are dressed in historic attire from the late 19th or early 20th century. Six older girls stand in a line across the center, wearing long dresses or skirts paired with white blouses. Four younger children are positioned in the foreground; two girls stand on the outer flanks, while two younger boys sit cross-legged on the grass in the center.The rectangular schoolhouse features a gabled shingle roof with an ornamental brick dental molding along the roofline, a chimney at the rear left, and dark wooden shutters on its multi-paned windows. A very tall, slender wooden flagpole stands prominently in the yard to the left of the building's front facade. The surrounding background consists of a clear sky, a line of leafless trees on a distant ridge, a small wooden outbuilding on the left, and a partial view of another rustic wooden building on the far right.
Photograph of old west farms school house. Red brick building.

Left: School portrait outside schoolhouse, West Farms Road, Northampton. Photograph by the Howes Brothers of Ashfield, MA, c. 1886-1902. Right: West Farms School House, now a private home, 2026.

A black-and-white photograph captures four people posing outside their rustic two-story wooden home, set against a natural, lightly wooded landscape. The house is constructed from dark, weathered horizontal wood siding and features a steeply pitched roof with a prominent brick chimney rising from the center. Visible on the front façade are multiple multi-paned glass windows and a simple, unadorned wooden front door. To the left of the house, a dirt pathway curves past a primitive, open-sided wooden barn or lean-to structure. In the foreground, two women stand side-by-side wearing long, Victorian-era dresses that reach the ground. The woman on the left wears a lighter-colored gown with long sleeves and a high collar, while the woman on the right wears a dark, patterned dress with a high neckline. Next to them, a young girl in a bright white dress stands beside an ornate, dark wicker baby carriage with large wheels, inside of which sits a small infant. The ground is a mix of dirt and patchy grass, and bare, leafless trees frame the background, suggesting a late autumn or early spring setting.
Two women and young children in front of house in West Farms, Northampton, MA. Photograph by the Howes Brothers of Ashfield, MA, c. 1886-1902.

First called Lonetown, Northampton residents changed the name to “West Farms” as the original name was thought pessimistic. Religion, Methodism in particular, played an important role in the growth of the tiny village. The center of the settlement consisted of a 19th-century schoolhouse and meetinghouse along with several residences.

West Farms School (173 West Farms Road) was an elementary school from 1875 to 1960. The oldest portion of this brick schoolhouse dates from shortly after December 1856, when Calvin Stockwell conveyed to the West Farms School District a parcel “a little northerly from the meetinghouse.”

The tract of land measured 11 rods by 6 rods and was purchased for $37.50. At the time of its closure in 1960, there were 15 students in grades one to three in the one-room schoolhouse. After the school closed, the building was used for community functions and extension-service classes. 

An exterior shot of a historic white wooden church building. The structure features a gabled roof and a prominent, square white bell tower or cupola rising from the front roofline, accented by black slatted louvers. The front facade includes a large, arched black double-door entrance flanked by tall, narrow arched windows. The long side wall displays a row of evenly spaced rectangular double-hung windows. Mature green trees stand prominently behind the church, and a grassy lawn surrounds the property.
West Farms Chapel in 2026, now a private home.

West Farms Chapel (185 West Farms Road) is one of the oldest Methodist churches in the Connecticut River Valley. Methodist missionaries arrived in the area around 1800, originally holding worship services in homes and a barn.

In 1814, on land given or loaned by Calvin Stockwell, a group of local people built a place of worship called the “sheep shed.” In 1832–35, this temporary structure was repaired and enlarged in the Greek Revival style.

A deed registered in the Hampshire County Registry of Deeds indicates that in 1832 the Methodist Society bought the property—5 rods by 8 rods—for church services. The chapel was later abandoned by the Methodists, though services were held by preachers and in 1868 a West Farms Union Society was organized.

A wooden sign with a dark green or black painted frame stands in the foreground, displaying the text "WEST FARMS CEMETERY" in dark green capital letters on a light cream background. In the background are trees and old gravestones.
West Farm Cemetery, 2026.

In 1914, they bought the chapel from the Methodists; a deed is in Hampshire County Registry.

In 1980, the City of Northampton granted a five-year lease on the buildings to the West Farms Chapel Association, which hoped to turn the school into a daycare and community center and to preserve the chapel. At that time, the schoolhouse had fallen into disrepair and would need a new roof, windows, insulation, and a heating system to be used. Both buildings are now private residences. 

West Farms Cemetery (200 West Farms Road) was established in 1778. The oldest grave is that of Freelove Johnson, who died in 1788. The cemetery is now inactive and the last burial was in 2012. 

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Bishop, Ruth F., “Lonetown or West Farms Cemetery.”

“West Farms Cemetery Memorials,” Find a Grave.

“Map of West Farms Cemetery, Northampton, Mass.” Veterans Graves Restoration Project, 1940.