Lieutenant Governor Suzanne Crouch and the Indiana State Department of Agriculture have presented the Hoosier Homestead Award to 65 Indiana families. The award is presented in recognition of the recipients’ commitment to Indiana agriculture. To be eligible for the Hoosier Homestead Award, farms must be owned by the same family for more than 100 consecutive years, consist of more than 20 acres or produce more than $1,000 of agricultural products annually. There are three categories for the award, including the Centennial Award for 100 years of ownership, the Sesquicentennial Award for 150 years of ownership and the Bicentennial Award for 200 years of ownership. The recipients include: LaPorte – Brooks – Bartmess – 1860 – Sesquicentennial and also in LaPorte – Lloyd & Helen Steinke – 1855 – Sesquicentennial.