The Bill Barker Agriculture Resource Center
The Bill Barker Agricultural Resource Center is named in memory of the fifty year director of Monterey County Farm Bureau, fifth generation California agriculturalist, and founding member of Monterey County Agricultural Education, Inc. The library contains the largest collection of agricultural education materials on the Central Coast. Included in the collection are videos, curricula, literature, references, and research archives.

The Barker Agricultural Resource Center is at the headquarters of Monterey County Agricultural Education, Inc., located in The Davis House, 141 Foster Road, Salinas, California. Due to current renovations to the Victorian, the Center is temporarily closed.

A searchable database is being developed and will soon be published on this website. Materials will then be available, on a loan basis, through the On Line librarian or as a download file.

Example:
Monterey County Salad Bowl Lesson (pdf)

The Davis House
141 Foster Road
Salinas, California 93908

The new home for Monterey County Agricultural Education, Inc. is the historic Davis House, situated in the middle of the most productive agricultural land in Monterey County. Its long historical connection with agriculture makes it a fitting location for the agricultural advocacy work of this organization. It will also provide a unique meeting place for other agriculture and community organizations.

Monterey County Agricultural Education has been an active advocate for agriculture since the mid-1980s. It has gained state and national recognition for the quality and extent of its programs. The Farm Day Experience is the largest program and has, to date, reached more than 68,000 Monterey County Students.
The organization has been operating from extremely cramped quarters since 1995. The 2003 Board of Directors decided that relocation was a must, both for increased space and increased visibility. The Davis House became available, was judged to be sound, so with a unanimous vote, the Board decided to seize the opportunity.
The property is still owned by descendants of the Davis family with the farming acreage leased to Tanimura and Antle. Both the owners and Tanimura & Antle agreed that Monterey County Ag Ed would be a perfect tenant for house. The basic legalities were finalized in the latter part of July, 2003.

Our vision is to revive The Davis House to the Grand Lady that she once was, as economically as possible. The idea is to bring her back to life, with quality, but not extravagant renovation. Once the renovation is complete, we will encourage other ag organizations to host meetings or other functions at this historical . The general plan is to house the working offices of Monterey County Agricultural Education, Inc. on the second floor, leaving the first floor similar to what it would have been when it was a home. In addition, the Carriage House and Garage will be renovated to be used as meeting rooms, with internet and presentation capabilities. The yard will be an extension of the house and meeting rooms, with lawn, kitchen garden, roses and barbecue area.

Renovation work has started on the house, and the office of Monterey County Agricultural Education is now located there. As you can imagine, bringing this Grand Lady back to life is a major undertaking, but not an impossible one. The renovation budget is not large, in comparison to other community projects, but it is for Monterey County Agricultural Education, Inc. By working together, our agriculture community will be able to help provide a grass roots agricultural education center that will benefit our entire industry and, at the same time, preserve one of our local treasures.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture provided the funding for the initial renovations through a Specialty Produce Block Grant. With those funds, repairs to stabilize the house and prevent further deterioration were possible. The house and the carriage house roofs were replaced, the house was rewired and set up for wireless Internet service, heating ducts replaced and extended to second floor, and new plumbing installed. In addition, some cosmetic work was started.

A Capital Campaign has begun to raise funds the necessary funds for renovations. This is a one time campaign, and it is important that it remain separate from the program funds. While this project is very important to the growth and future of Monterey County Agricultural Education, Inc, programs continue to be the priority of the organization. General membership, local support and grants are the main source of program funds.

The Davis House, when restored, will be a living link to the proud agricultural heritage of our valley, and have renewed purpose as the home of Monterey County Agricultural Education. We hope that you will be a part of preserving this legacy.