METTOWEE FARMS
Mettowee Farms was an Upper Saddle River landmark. It was located on East Saddle River Road on land that had belonged to Otto Kramer (b. Germany 1863), a hotelier from New York, and his wife Louise. Otto purchased the land from Mary A. Peck in 1905. In 1920 the farm was purchased by Richard Dykstra and his family, who ran it as a dairy farm initially called R. Dykstra and Sons Dairy. The name was changed to Mettowee. The Dykstras came from the Netherlands and built the house that’s between Oak Drive and Grandview Avenue, opposite the site of their farm.
John Martin sold his dairy business in Clifton in 1951 to purchase Mettowee and went into business with his sons, William J. and Raymond W. Martin and eventually sons Edward R., John, Jr. (Jack) and George A. as well. John Martin had taken over his father, Cent Martin’s dairy business, Martin Dairy Company, founded about 1911, so they were dairy farmers for decades. John retired in 1969, leaving the business to his sons. The Martins delivered their own brand of milk in glass bottles until 1987. They then closed the dairy, but maintained the milk routes, selling another farm’s product. Mettowee was the last remaining farm in Upper Saddle River. The Martins sold the 17-acre property in 1997 and it was developed into luxury homes on what is now Mettowee Farm Court. It was a picturesque site to see and a loss for the town when it came down.
This image, taken by Joel McKim in the 1980s, shows Mettowee’s large barn, initially used to house milking cows.
Richard and frances dykstra
This photo was taken May 22, 1918 on their wedding day, two years prior to buying the farm that became Mettowee in Upper Saddle River.
RICHARD DYKSTRA
Taken around 1940, this image is looking east toward the Dykstra house (which is still standing) at the crook of Oak Drive and Grandview Avenue. This shows Richard Dykstra heading toward the barns at Mettowee, carrying one of their glass milk bottles.
Richard was born in 1888 in the Netherlands. He married Frances Minnema (b. 1894 Netherlands). They raised ten children in Upper Saddle River.
JOHN DYKSTRA (1920-1984)
This photo was taken in 1945 in the driveway of Mettowee Farms. The building that served as the farm stand can be seen on the left.
This photo was taken in 1940 and includes Sidney (Sid), Jeanette (twin to Frances), Frances (Fran), Robert (Bob) and Fred (Fritz) Dykstra. It appears that East Saddle River Road is running behind them.
John Martin and fellow veteran dairymen were honored for 40 years of work in the dairy business in a ceremony at Mettowee in August, 1961.
Gas pump at mettowee
This photo was taken by Lori Geiger and reproduced in the Upper Saddle River Heritage Calendar in 1989. The gas pump, long gone, probably dated to around 1930.
Mettowee sold pumpkins from this cart for years when the Martin family owned it. This photo was taken in the 1980s by Lona Kissinger and was reproduced in the Upper Saddle River Heritage Calendar in 1987.
Mettowee c. 1980
This image was taken by Christina Cappitella, the founder of a facebook group, “Upper Saddle River in the 1980s” and it captures a very common view traveling north on East Saddle River Road.
Mr. Martin and pumpkins for sale in the fall.
RAY MArtin delivering milk
This photo ran in the Ridgewood News in 1990 after the Martins stopped selling their own brand of milk, but were still delivering milk to Ho-Ho-Kus, Saddle River, Upper Saddle River, Mahwah, Ramsey, Allendale, Montvale and Park Ridge. Their day began at 4:30am.
METTOWEE IN THE 1980s
This image was taken by Christina Cappitella, who grew up in Upper Saddle River.
A selection of bottle tops demonstrating a variety of names and decades (likely 1920s-1950s) of Mettowee’s existence. Photograph by Barry Huber.
This image, taken by Danielle P. Richards, ran in The Record in 1996 as the fate of Mettowee and its picturesque land, sloping down toward the Saddle River, was at stake. Local activist, Jane Emsbo, led a coalition of 13 members who tried to save the farm and convince the borough to purchase it. The effort ultimately failed.
Mettowee truck
This image, taken by Danielle P. Richards, ran in The Record in 1997.
This photo, taken by Beth Balbierz, appeared in The Record in 1998 as bulldozers arrived to clear the land for luxury home development. It was one of the last photographs taken of the old farm.
Bulldozers ready for demolition
This image, taken by Beth Balbierz, appeared in The Record in 1998 and shows bulldozers ready to remove the remnants of Upper Saddle River’s last farm.