Embracing Change is Mason Dixon’s Motto

Name: Richard Waybright

Farm name: Mason Dixon Farms

Family: Sons Doyle, Bert, Alan and Joel; and brother, Harold, and his son, Jeff

Location: Gettysburg, Pa.

History and innovation don’t usually go hand-in-hand, but at Mason Dixon Farms in Gettysburg, Pa., they have proven to be the calling card of one of the country’s most recognizable and well-known dairies.

The History

Mason Dixon Farms is located on each side of the Mason Dixon Line, the historical marker that separated the north and the south during the Civil War. In the late 1700s, the Waybright family bought 375 acres of farming land from Richard Penn. This is the land that Richard Waybright and his brother, Horace, still call home today.

In 1948, Richard and Horace entered into a partnership with their dad, Clarence Jacob. Back then, the farm included only 12 dairy cows, along with chickens, pigs, sheep and other farm animals. In 1951, the brothers took a risky step and built one of the first milking parlors in the country. This innovative measure was the first of many for the farm, where the motto is, “Change is inevitable, success is optional.”

The Innovations

The cows at Mason Dixon live in specially designed barns that are built for comfort, air movement and light. The newest innovation at the farm is the use of robotic milkers. About 550 cows are enjoying the freedom of being milked at their leisure by these intelligent and gentle machines. By using the robotic milkers, the cows can choose when they want to be milked and adjust to their own particular schedule for eating, resting and milking.

Mason Dixon is also committed to the land and the environment; in fact, the farm has been "cow powered” since 1979. Cows not only provide healthy and wholesome milk, they provide the Waybright farm with their electricity needs. This is done by converting the cows’ waste products into electricity by use of a methane digester.

The Family

Even though Mason Dixon is one of the largest dairy farms in Pennsylvania, it is still a family business. Today, the farm is run by Richard’s sons and his nephew, while he and Horace continue to oversee all aspects of the operation. Richard’s sons Doyle, Bert, Alan and Joel each specialize in one area of the farm: Doyle is the general herd manager and nutritionist, making sure the cows are healthy and well-fed; Bert is the main engineer and also oversees animal waste; Alan raises the calves into healthy milking cows; and Joel is the crop and maintenance manager. Horace’s son, Jeff, is in charge of feeding all the cows each day. And with more than 2,400 dairy cows on the farm, that is an important task!

“I’m proud that my sons have been able to provide their families and our employee’s families with a good, quality life,” Richard says. “Each day, our goal is to keep our dairy cows happy. Every decision and innovation we’ve made on our farm has been led by our belief that the cow is the most important piece of our success.”

“We’ve done our best to create a ‘cow heaven,’ and think we have achieved it well,” he adds.

Each year, Mason Dixon hosts thousands of visitors from all over the world – a task that Richard often oversees himself.

“I enjoy giving tours. I’ve met so many wonderful people from all walks of life, it truly has been an amazing experience for me,” he says. “When visitors step onto our farm, they often have preconceptions – things like smell, sounds and sights they have traditionally associated with the word ‘farm.’ Each of these visitors is an opportunity for me to tell not only our family’s story, but to tell the story of the dairy industry as a whole.”

With the continued innovations at Mason Dixon and the farm’s fascinating history, the Waybrights will have a unique story to tell for many years to come.