Sentry Hill Homestead is a generational farm reconstructed, renovated, and rebranded by a family striving to challenge the status quo of Pennsylvania homesteads. The owners of Sentry Hill Homestead are professionals that not only maintain successful careers but also live a homestead lifestyle in rural Pennsylvania. They grew up in rural Pennsylvania, obtained college degrees, lived in the city while establishing their careers, and then decided to take their careers and move back to the country.

Despite being first settled in 19th century, the story of Sentry Hill Homestead began taking shape in 2021 when the owners moved to the land that is Sentry Hill Homestead. At the time, the land was a run-down farm in need of major renovation. The owners began their journey with simply wanting to update their farmhouse and clean up their property.

The land purchase that became Sentry Hill Homestead was characterized by land that had everything (to the well-trained homesteading ‘eye’). The only catch was ‘everything’ was broken. The fields were sparse, the barn was in disrepair, the orchard needed pruned, etc. The owners knew this plight all too well. Pennsylvania, and the United States at large, is scattered with once flourishing homesteads that over the years fell into a state of disrepair through the advent of modern-day convenience. The owners decided that they would carve their own path and rekindle the homesteading spirit that once accompanied the land they had purchased.

Fast forward to the present day, Sentry Hill Homestead is an active cattle farm raising Dexter cattle and striving for self-sufficiency. The fields thrive, the orchard produces, a large garden is maintained, and the homestead is great again (in our opinion anyway!). It took a great deal of effort, sacrifice, and knowledge to get it to the point that it is now, but that was part of the journey (and continues to be part of the journey).

The owners of Sentry Hill Homestead practice what they write: they have real careers, they raise their family on their land, and they work to not forget their roots as Pennsylvanians and stewards of land that will far outlast them. They have a passion for sharing their journey and knowledge with others, and spend their days improving their own knowledge base as well. They hope you enjoy this blog and hope it provides you with a real-life example of homesteading in the 21st century.