A part of O. C. Barber’s 5,000 acre Anna Dean Farms – the Duck Department.

Located on one of the outlying farms, the Duck Farm’s location was selected because its conditions could not be duplicated on the estate. Hand selected by Mr. Barber, the location included a combination of rolling woodland, open-fields, a winding stream and a broad, tree-fringed lagoon.

The Duck Farm facilities included a two-story concrete building in which the cellar, measuring nearly 100 ft square, was designed as an incubation center capable of hatching thousands of eggs. The main floor included a rat-tight, moisture proof storage room.

There were two brooder houses. The pens were equipped with hot water heated hovers, and connected to individual outdoor runs. Additional quarters for breeding stock were positioned near the lagoon. Adjacent fields were farmed for oat and rye to be used as feed for the ducks.

The farm also included facilities for killing, picking, packing and cold storage.

The farm was home to thousands of White Pekin ducks. Barber noted in his story of the farm that the facility was designed to accommodate 100,000 ducks. The farm actually raised as many as 50,000 ducks per year.