In 1900, Bill Caylor’s great-grandfather decided to purchase land and start a farm in south Alabama’s Coffee County. Now, more than 100 years later, Bill and his wife, Sharon, and their daughter, Faith, are proud to carry on a tradition that has been in the Caylor family for decades.Bill, who grew his first crop at age 16, knows it’s hard work to run a small farm by himself, but it’s what he loves.”I always wanted to be a farmer, and I never really thought of doing something else,” said Bill, who grows peanuts and feed grains on his family farm. “It’s what I do, and though I have a small farm, I do it rather well.”Bill partnered with his dad for three years until his father retired in 1997. Since then, he has run the operation by himself, with occasional part-time help from his now 76-year-old dad. Bill is glad he has the opportunity to follow in his father’s footsteps, and says he loves watching the fields change from bare in the spring to full after a long season of hard work.Since his is a small farm, he acts as jack-of-all-trades. “I make all the decisions, and do everything–decision-making, bookkeeping, spraying, harvesting and mechanics–I do it all….I like the operation that I’m in, and I like the fact that I do 90 percent of the work instead of relying on hired help.”From a financial standpoint, there are several advantages to his small operation: He has low overhead, and he also doesn’t have to go behind other workers making sure things are done correctly.The Caylor farm is the recipient of the Century and Heritage awards, given to families who have continuously farmed the same land for more than 100 years. Bill hopes the future will only continue to bring good things.”I want to continue operating an efficient and profitable farm while carrying on the family tradition,” he said.