About

Rhode Island                   Farm # 720              Tract # 848

Mission statement

The mission of our farm is to breed and raise quality Huacaya Alpacas.  The goal is to raise the animals for their fiber and at the same time provide a welcome environment for people to visit our herd.

Farm Description

Hope Alpaca Farm is a 20 acre farm that is located in the coastal region of Rhode Island, Little Compton.

Bill and Hope named the farm Hope, the Rhode Island state motto,  as both of their families are native Rhode Islanders.  The state motto originated from Roger Williams prayers during his first winter in Rhode Island-“hope in the divine”

Farm History

The farm has been owned and operated by Bill’s family since the 1900s.

Bill’s great grandfather, Manuel Cotta immigrated from The Azores when he was a young man to Little Compton, Rhode Island.  He worked for the owner and operator of the farm, Captain Butler, for approximately 30 years before buying the property.  Captain Butler raised chicken/geese/ducks until Manuel Cotta started a milk cow farm in the early 1920s.

In Manuel Cotta’s older years, he leased the land to Samuel Flores who ran it as a  milking farm.

Louis Pieri ran the farm after Sam Flores, growing corn.   At this time, the property was owned by 3 of Manuel Cotta’s children, Loretta, Bill & Anna.

In the early 1980s Francis Edward Ryan, Bill’s father, bought the farm off of his aunt, Anna Conklin.

For many years Bill and his father ran the farm and raised beef cows.

In 2016, Bill & Hope started an alpaca farm.

Future Goals

Future goals of Hope Alpaca Farm include more outreach with the alpacas to people who are aging, disabled, and struggling with illness, both at the farm and off site.

The goal is to continue to grow both the herd of alpacas and the amount of people who can enjoy them!