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Nottawa Fruit Farm

Nottawa Fruit Farm is a family-owned business which specializes in home-grown produce and family experiences. We take great pride in providing the highest quality products possible in our farm market and wholesome activities which help your family create fond memories. We also want to share our wonderful, peaceful country atmosphere of St. Joseph County with you and your family.

Visit us SOON! Our 'farm family' is looking forward to meeting your family.

Farm Market

Located in the heart of southern Michigan's Amish Country, Nottawa Fruit Farm provides an escape to yesteryear, be it the appeal of fresh home-grown produce, the entertainment or the menu items. With its spacious grounds, opportunities abound whether you want lunch, a complete picnic, or you may want to choose from the various activities that are offered throughout the year. Perhaps, you would just like to bask in the serenity of the farm and its surrounding counrtyside.

Attention Families: Visit our Farm during Fall Family Fun in October for a great time!

Fall Fun

In charge of a group of Children? Schedule your School Tour at the farm for a great time!

About Us:

Don and Eleanor Iott, both retired educators, own and operate Nottawa Fruit Farm Although "Farming" in the Nottawa area can be traced back several generations on Eleanor's side, the retail business was begun with the planting of one-half acre of strawberries and then selling them from a card table in the front yard. The "store" that one sees today originally was a large drive-through corn crib constructed by Eleanor's father over sixty years ago across the highway on the family farm. The building's metamorphosis began in 1988 with a bakery and other subsequent additions as the customer growth warranted additional modifications. The Iotts remain firmly committed to the concept of offering their customers the freshest, home-grown produce available in a clean, friendly enviornment, and they are also dedicated to providing wholesome activities for families. Visit the family-like market during the various fresh produce seasons, May-October.

Amish Buggy

About Saint Joseph County:

Amish Culture . . . . .

The local Amish are very, very entrepreneurial; three of the better known Amish businesses that maintain large storefronts are: Miller's Discount, a large grocery store specializing in bulk items; Chupp's Fabrics & Herbs, specializing in natural oils and essences; Yoder's Paint & Appliances, merchandising paint, furniture and gifts. There are many, many other varied Amish businesses featuring produce, greenhouses, wood products, etc., that are located at or near their residences.

Villages . . . . .

Centreville, the county seat, is home to the Langley Covered Bridge that was constructed in 1887 and has the longest span of Michigan's few surviving bridges of this type. The Antique and Collectible Market, featuring hundreds of dealers, comes to the huge Centreville fair grounds five Sundays a year-attracting thousands of visitors. Since 1851, these fair grounds have hosted the St Joseph County Grange Fair, one of the state's largest fairs, averaging about 160,000 paid admissions annually.

Nottawa necessitates a visit to the Nottawa Stone SchoolStone School which replicates the 1870 one-room school setting. It offers its visitors a glimpse into early Michigan public education - complete with McGuffey Readers!

Colon has Abbott's Magic Company begun in 1927 by Austrailian wizard Percy Abbott and Harry Blackstone, Sr., is now the world's leading supplier of magic paraphernalia; naturally, they're the major sponsor of the annual Colon Magic Get-Together, the first week of August, attracting the biggest names in thaumaturgy; in fact, Harry Blacksone, Sr., is buried in Lakeside Cemetery, Colon.

Three Rivers is home to the Carnegie Center of Arts, is housed in one of the few remaining original "Carnegie" Libraries; it functions as a gallery for the fine arts - drawing world-renown exhibits.

White Pigeon was incorporated in 1837 and is the oldest incorporated village in Michigan. The village also boasts the state's last surviving United States Land OfficeUnited Stats Land Office selling land for $1.25 an acre in the 1800's. It is now listed on the National Register of Historical Places.

Agriculture . . . . .

Agriculture is the area's biggest business; as evidence of the impact of farming, you'll notice field after field with large center-pivot-irrigation systems; in fact, the county is the most irrigated county east of the Mississippi River. Due to the micro-climate, the county grows a long list of desirable commodities.

River County Tourism
Saint Joseph County Tourism
INFORMATION

SnowyPond

Summer has come to Nottawa Fruit Farm!

Blueberries