Middlesex County Agricultural Hall of Fame Announces 2025 Inductees
May 1st, 2025 - (London) – The Middlesex County Agricultural Hall of Fame is celebrating 25 years recognizing the history and tradition of agriculture in Middlesex County. The primary objective of the Agricultural Hall of Fame is to recognize those who have demonstrated unselfish achievements within the realm of agriculture and service to the rural community in Middlesex County and beyond. This year marks our twenty-fifth induction ceremony, and to-date there have been over ninety individuals recognized for their contributions. In 2025 the following nominees have been selected; John DePutter, Norman Hodgins & Douglas Hodgins, and Burton Matthews. They will be honoured on Sunday, June 1st at the Western Fair District.
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JOHN DEPUTTER (born in 1953) – John was raised on a farm near Appin, attended high school in Glencoe, and received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Western Ontario. His career began working for the Middlesex Federation of Agriculture, as well as broadcasting farm radio shows for CFPL 980. John formed DePutter Publishing Ltd. in 1981, offering a subscription service called Ag Alert. For the next four decades his company provided information to farmers, and John became a sought-after public speaker. In 2021 the business was sold, after which John focused on an investment fund called Ag Capital Canada (ACC). This nomination reflects his pioneering of Canadian commodity marketing analysis, and his many years of providing this valuable information to farmers and entrepreneurs.
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NORMAN HODGINS (1921-2013), and DOUGLAS HODGINS (born in 1948) – Norman’s family settled in West Williams Township, and in the 1940s he eventually took over the farm with his wife Margaret. His foresight led him to realize the need for proper drainage, which was the start of Hodgins & Watson, providing farm tiling and municipal drainage. He was active in the community, and then served as Reeve before being elected as Warden in 1963. During this time, his family took a stronger role in the farm operations. Following his graduation from the University of Guelph in 1968, son Doug worked with his father to expand their feedlot and then the commercial beef herd. For a number of years, Doug ran the bull test station in the region, continued to expand the land base, and acquired a grain elevator near Thedford. Their success and initiatives in the area, as well as their involvement in various organizations is being recognized with the nomination.
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BURTON MATTHEWS (1926-2004) – Burton was born and raised on a farm near Kerwood, and showed great academic potential as a student. He entered the Ontario Agriculture College at 16, then achieved a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture from University of Toronto in 1947, a Master’s from the University of Missouri in 1948, and a PhD in 1952 from Cornell University. He returned to Guelph as an assistant professor, contributed to soils science research, and was a Department Head from 1962-1966. He was known as Dr. Dirt to his students, and held a number of positions from 1966-1988. Burton was President of the University of Waterloo, and then the University of Guelph. Throughout his career, he took part in many leadership roles, encouraging inter-disciplinary studies, and researching complex issues of modern society. This nomination is based on his contributions to agricultural education, soil research and collaboration.
The induction ceremony will be held at the Western Fair District, in the Agriplex Lobby on Sunday June 1st, 2025 at 2:00pm. For tickets or further information, contact Hugh Fletcher at (519) 666-1572. The portraits will be added to the Middlesex County Agricultural Hall of Fame gallery in the Western Fair District Agriplex Lobby.
