Farewell to the Iconic Mahopac Farm

MAHOPAC, N.Y.—With the recent demolition of the Mahopac Farm buildings, I thought it fitting to write about some of the history of what was a Mahopac fixture for decades. From the late 1800s, the property at the corner of what is now Route 6 and Baldwin Place Road was home of the Willow Brook Dairy—one of the oldest dairies in Putnam County.

After the turn of the century, Willow Brook Dairy, Inc. purchased an adjoining 350 acres immediately to its north. This property became known as Mahopac Farm.

Originally, the dairy took in milk from local farmers for processing. Cans of milk from northern Mahopac were transported down the Mahopac Mines Railroad to Baldwin Place, where they were transferred to the dairy. The tracks of this railroad passed through the farm property. As the area farms slowly disappeared over the years, the Willow Brook plant switched from being a receiving station to a bottling and distributing plant. Eventually, the Willow Brook Dairy was taken over by the Borden Company group of dairy farms.

Enter Bernie Zipkin. Bernie and his wife, Florence, bought the property from Borden in 1968. They converted the barns and other buildings into the “Mahopac Farm and Museum” complex, consisting of a country store, farm animal petting zoo, corral, theater and museum.

On the right side of the entrance road was the Mahopac Country Store. Here, you could find Halloween costumes, candy, gourmet foods, antiques, jams, jellies, items from England, Ireland and Scotland and other assorted gifts.

In the barnyard and barn, there were scores of animals to pet—cows, donkeys, sheep, ducks and geese. There was a corral for pony rides.

Many school trips took kids to the “Mahopac Farm.” Bernie darted around the property caring for all the animals.

I remember one day in the 90s when I took my young daughter to the barnyard there. I watched Bernie, walking quickly and hunched over, carrying two large pails of water. He stopped, looked at me and said, “You think I’m nuts, don’t you?!” He was quite an amusing and curious fellow. On another day, we were in McDonald’s early in the morning heading somewhere. Bernie was there, collecting scraps of lettuce and tomatoes for his farm animals. He looked my daughter in the face and said, “Be good to your parents!” He really had a heart of gold.

Across from the Country Store was the theater (or Playhouse) which doubled as the museum. It was the largest of the dairy farm buildings. The museum opened in 1971. Its collection was enormous and included antique cars, horse-drawn vehicles, vintage motorcycles, old clocks, toys, butter churns, washing machines, and player pianos – just tons of Americana. Highlights included Al Capone’s 1927 Franklin sedan and a 1911 Packard which had been hired out for films like “The Godfather” and “The Great Gatsby,” to name a few. There was also an antique dentist’s office, barber shop and funeral parlor. I was fortunate enough one day about thirty years ago when Bernie took me through his amazing and well-organized collection of antiques. I was astounded that all these fantastic items were in this one old farm building. Who knew?

The playhouse opened in late 1970s. It had 300 seats and was the former cow barn. Tickets were purchased in a small office which contained old post office relics. A curtain allowed entrance into the theater. Numerous musicals and revivals were performed over the years such as “Fiddler on the Roof,” “Hair,” “Man of La Mancha,” “Equus,” “No No Nanette,” “Godspell,” and “Jesus Christ Superstar”. These shows were performed by both amateur and professional actors. [Mahopac New Editor Emile Menasché remembers a school trip to see “The Fantasticks” at the farm’s theater in the ’70s]

The farm was famously used as an exterior representing a small theater in the 1982 movie “Tootsie” starring Dustin Hoffmann, Bill Murray, and Jessica Lange.

The Zipkins, who resided in Ossining, were antique dealers and ran a prop rental business for movies and television. I would occasionally notice that a statue or other outdoor relic had gone missing from the farm, only to see it return months later. They also rented out farm animals for programs such as “The Late Show with Conan O’Brian” and movies like “The Godfather” and “Ragtime”.

Bernie and Florence were married in 1950 and converted a former turkey farm in Ossining into their home. Bernie started a business called Bernhad Creations Ltd. and manufactured decorated gifts of many types. Florence was a violinist, having studied at the Juilliard School in the 1940s. She taught there and at the Manhattan School of Music. She also showed German Shorthaired Pointers at the NYC Westminster Dog Show. They were involved with the animal-assisted therapy work at Green Chimneys and the Delancey Street Foundation, both in Brewster.

Bernie passed away in 2016 and Florence in 2020. The property will be the home of a future state-of-the-art, climate-controlled storage facility. However, their creation of the “Mahopac Farm” was the Zipkin’s life-long passion, and we were exceedingly fortunate to have them among us. For decades, the farm provided a happy, educational and long-remembered experience for untold thousands of children and theatergoers from Mahopac and beyond.

Brian Vangor is the vice president of the Town of Carmel Historical Society