Joshua Simmons Farm

In 1824 Joshua Simmons of Bristol, New York, obtained a patent from the federal government for 160 acres of land in Livonia Township. Simmons and his wife, Hannah, were among the township’s earliest white settlers. Their first home was a log shanty, built in 1826. In 1841 they constructed this house in the Greek Revival style, popular in New York State. The farm was named Meadow Brook. Joshua Simmons (1801-1882) hewed lumber to build the earliest barns and mills in Livonia, Farmington, and Plymouth. He continued to acquire acreage, becoming one of Livonia’s most prominent landholders. In 1920 Sherwin and Jean Boyd Hill purchased the farm and renamed it Greenmead. The city of Livonia acquired the property in 1976 as a park. The Joshua Simmons Farm is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.