The Wakefields: Two Brothers, Six Generations

After the devastating farm sale that Thad called "the worst day of my life," the Wakefield brothers face the daunting challenge of rebuilding their family's farming legacy from the ground up. With full-time jobs off the farm and mounting expenses to replace the equipment they once owned, JT and Thad fight to preserve a way of life that's disappearing across America.

In Bedford County, Pennsylvania, the six-generation Wakefield family dairy farm faces its greatest challenge when an accident leads to a family division and an ultimatum. Journalist Cade Miller documents the unraveling of a farming legacy as brothers JT and Thad confront impossible choices that will determine whether their family tradition survives or disappears forever.

This is a preview of "The Wakefields: Two Brothers, Six Generations," reported, written, and produced by Cade Miller, a journalist with the Penn State News Lab—a program dedicated to addressing critical coverage gaps across Pennsylvania. Miller's reporting was made possible by the Arthur P. Miller Newsroom Fund and the Curt Chandler Storytelling Fund. This two-part podcast was originally aired together on West Virginia Public Broadcasting and "Inside Appalachia" in August 2024.