About Townline Hatchery, Family Owned Since 1913
Watch Townline’s featured segment on American Farmer TV!
Go behind the scenes at Townline Hatchery to learn more about who we are and how our “hands-on” approach provides quality poultry with service you can count on
Townline’s History and Tour
During the 1920s through 1950s, Zeeland, Michigan was dubbed the “baby chick center” of the Midwest. Detroit News called Zeeland “Michigan’s chick-tropolis – a town that contains but 3,000 persons yet produces 18 million baby chicks, ducks, and turkeys annually and ranks third in national importance as a hatchery center.” At its peak the area had as many as 60 hatcheries, and in 1943 Zeeland shipped 11 million chicks in a single year. The high school teams became the Zeeland Chix, and when a second high school opened, its teams became the Dux.
Townline Poultry Farm, Inc. is the only chicken hatchery left in Zeeland
Townline was established in 1913 by Jacob and Ada Geerlings and originally began as a cow farm. Due to the growing poultry industry in town, it quickly became a chick hatchery. It was and continues to be, very common for children to help and maintain the farm, and Jacob and Ada’s son Henry came home from Michigan State in 1942 to work the hatchery with his father, and he and his wife Gertrude bought the farm in the 1950s. Not long after, the poultry industry began to dissipate in Zeeland due to the relatively inflated expense of raising poultry in the cold climate of Michigan. Many moved south for reduced feed and heat costs. Others shut their doors altogether as a result of a lack of interest from buyers or heirs. Fighting on, three of Henry and Gertrude’s sons, Jack, Richard, and Don took over the farm in 1988 as 3rd generation owners and operators.
Over the past 5-10 years, backyard flocks have been gaining in popularity and Townline has risen to help meet the demand for baby chicks. As such, new coops and additions to the hatchery have greatly changed the face of the farm.
With 110 years and 4 generations of experience, we hope you will find Townline Poultry Farm, Inc. has earned, and strive to keep, their reputation!
Not only does Townline hatch chicks, but they also use a “hands-on” approach by raising their own breeder flocks of 70,000 hens across five breeder farms. This ensures constant monitoring and care to control the quality of the chicks produced. Raising corn on 300 acres to be used as feed for the breeder hens also helps to produce healthy, thriving poultry.
Today, many of the same buildings and equipment from as early as the 1950s are still being used along with newer technology. The tradition continues on as Jack’s sons Bill and John run the family farm as the 4th generation of Geerlings. While much of the extended relation still works on the farm, the Townline “family” has grown to include many dedicated individuals.
It has always been and continues to be Townline’s goal to provide quality poultry with friendly, helpful service through using time-tested techniques and applying new technology.
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