Ruth's Sheep Farm is an Enchanted Forest location featured on ABC's Once Upon a Time. It first appears in the sixth episode of the first season.
The sheep farm is based on the pauper's house from the novel The Prince and the Pauper.
History
At some point, Ruth and her husband Robert either inherit or buy a sheep farm. While business is failing, a pregnant Ruth gives birth to twin boys, David and James. When the twins become ill, Robert leaves the farm to buy medicine, but returns home empty-handed because of not having enough money for it. The Dark One, Rumplestiltskin, offers a solution to the couple's dilemma; gold to supply their farm in exchange for giving up one of their boys to a childless king and queen. Ruth adamantly declares their sons are not for sale, however, Robert eventually agrees to the deal after Rumplestiltskin implies that with nothing, they may lose both their children during the winter. To help decide which son they'll give up, Rumplestiltskin has Robert flip a coin; heads for David and tails for James. The coin lands on tails, prompting Rumplestiltskin to pick up James and whisk him away, a loss that devastates Ruth and Robert. ("The Shepherd," "Murder Most Foul")
The remaining son, David, grows up on the farm as his parents' marriage turns rocky and he hears his mother in tears over his father's drinking habits. After hearing that James has been kidnapped, Robert tells Ruth about his plans to retrieve the boy and bring him back to the farm. Ruth is doubtful that James would want to come back to a dying farm with a drunk for a father, to which Robert professes that he needs to do this in order to mend their broken family and fix himself in the process too. From upstairs, a six year old David listens in on the conversation as Robert talks about wanting to be better for their son's sake. When David comes down, Robert tells him that he is going on a two week supply run, despite that Ruth knows he is going after James. Robert assures his son that, by the day of his return, he'll be sober. David is elated at the news and gifts his lucky coin to Robert as a good luck charm. On the day of his father's supposed return, David and his mother learn Robert became drunk at a tavern and died after falling into a ravine. From then on, David and his mother run the farm. ("The Shepherd", "White Out", "Murder Most Foul")
Years later, the farm goes into a decline again, as David and Ruth are hassled by the warlord, Bo Peep, for their business earnings. Travelling in from Arendelle, Anna seeks out Kristoff's acquaintance, David, and introduces herself as Joan. She asks to spend a night on the farm before continuing on her "secret mission" and, as the conversation continues, Bo Peep arrives in her carriage. The warlord badgers David and Ruth for their income and, when they do not have it, she brands them with her shepherd crook. Giving them until the next day to gather the money, Bo Peep warns that, if not, they will become her slaves forever. While David would rather submit to Bo Peep's demands, Joan insists he must fight back. She teaches him to sword-fight, but he gives up early. Joan believes he doesn't know anything about loss and is only afraid of it, so David tells her about his father's battle with alcoholism that shaped his beliefs. Nonetheless, she offers to continue helping him. The next day, Bo Peep kidnaps Joan and intimidates David into complying with her monetary demands. Rather than follow through, David wins a sword-fight against Bo Peep and rescues Joan. As she departs, Joan gathers intel for her "secret mission" from Ruth by asking for someone knowledgeable about magic. Too afraid to speak the person's name, Ruth scribbles it on paper for Joan. Gifted David's old horse, which belonged to his father, Anna rides off on her journey. When she enunciates the written name, Rumplestiltskin, the Dark One himself witnesses this from his crystal ball and giggles devilishly. ("White Out")
When a lamb escapes from the farm, David and his tracking dog Wilby head out to look for the lost animal. David returns the next morning to tell his mother that, while Wilby was able to find the lamb, it had died from exposure to the cold during the night. Ruth is dismayed by the news since their flock is shrinking as their resources are already scarce as it is. She suggests they're reached their limit and the farm must be sold if they are to survive. David attempts to make the journey to Longbourn to sell the farm, but on his way there, he rescues a woman and receives money from her in return for his help, which he uses to save the farm. ("Heartless")
While David tends to the sheep on the farm, Ruth returns from the marketplace. She mentions meeting the miller and casually suggests that David can marry his daughter. He, however, only wants to marry if it's true love. Arriving to the farm, Rumplestiltskin explains the circumstances of Ruth's other son, James who recently died before he could fulfill an important task, so David is needed to take his place as prince. David is shocked to learn he had a twin as Ruth admits that, although they had needed the money for their farm, his father regretted giving his brother away as soon as the deal was done. Since Rumplestiltskin promises both the glory and riches that come with filling James' shoes, David agrees to help in order to provide money for the farm and his mother. Shortly after finishing the deal, David is forced by King George to marry a princess, Abigail, and continue to live as James. As promised, Ruth receives an abundance of wealth due to David's accomplishment, but he returns home to tell his mother of his engagement on King George's wishes. Not knowing if she will ever see her son again, Ruth gives David her wedding ring for his bride. ("The Shepherd")
Trivia
On-Screen Notes
- In the episode "White Out", Ruth's farm consists of a simple farmhouse, an animal pen and a barn (the barn that Anna sleeps in). However, by the time of "Heartless" and "The Shepherd", the barn is gone. In addition, the farmhouse seen in "The Shepherd" (the first appearance of the farm) has different bricks and roof tiles than the one seen in "White Out" and "Heartless".
- The farm is confirmed to not be in King George's kingdom. ("Murder Most Foul")
Filming Locations
- For the episode "The Shepherd", the scenes at Ruth's farm were filmed at Blieberger Farm, a private farm in Langley, British Columbia.[1] Mount Baker can be seen in the background.[2]
- The same farm doubles as Zelena's farmhouse.[3]
- The Blieberger Farm has also doubled as locations for other productions:
- The hideout for a nest of vampires in the Supernatural episode "Bloodlust" (an episode which features Once Upon a Time guest star Ty Olsson)[4] and the house of murder victims in Lincoln, Nebraska in Supernatural episode "The Magnificent Seven" (an episode which features Once Upon a Time guest star C. Ernst Harth and Once Upon a Time in Wonderland guest star Ben Cotton).[5]
- The Deacon Walker Farms in the Psych episode "65 Million Years Off" (an episode which features Once Upon a Time guest star Sage Brocklebank).[6]
- A cabin in the 2014 horror film Leprechaun: Origins (a movie which features Once Upon a Time guest star Bruce Blain).[7]
- The home of Fox Mulder in The X-Files episodes "My Struggle" (an episode which features Once Upon a Time guest star Giacomo Baessato),[8] "Babylon",[9] "Rm9sbG93ZXJz",[10] and "This",[11] Sveta's home in the episode The X-Files episode "My Struggle" and the Vietnam jungle in the The X-Files episode "Kitten".[12]
- A residence housing Arthur's comatose body in the Beyond episode "Ties That Bind" (a show which stars Once Upon a Time guest stars Jonathan Whitesell and Jeff Pierre).[13]
- The location of a village in Japan in the Legends of Tomorrow episode "Shogun".[12]
- The crash site of Air Force One in the Supergirl episode "Resist".[12]
- A hangout for bikers in the Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency episode "Rogue Wall Enthusiasts" (an episode which features Once Upon a Time guest stars Aaron Douglas, Paul Lazenby and Richard Schiff).[12]
- The home of Bass Reeves' in the Timeless episode "The Murder of Jesse James".[14]
- A crop field in the Wayward Pines episode "Blood Harvest"[15] and the abandoned home of Pamela Pilcher in the Wayward Pines episode "Once Upon a Time in Wayward Pines" (both episodes feature Once Upon a Time guest star Kacey Rohl).[16]
- An abandoned house in the Riverdale episode "Chapter Eighteen: When a Stranger Calls".[17]
- The house which doubles as Zelena's dwelling was also used in the filming of Christina Perri's music video for her song The Words (a music video which features Once Upon a Time starring cast member Colin O'Donoghue).[18]
- A redressed version of Donna and Stephen's cottage from "That Still Small Voice" doubles as Ruth's farmhouse in "The Shepherd". The architecture, the door, the wooden shutters, the brick pattern, the enclosure on the right side of the building, even the ladder propped up against the roof, are exactly the same. However, Donna and Stephen's thatched roof has been replaced by roof tiles.
Appearances
Once Upon a Time: Season One | ||||||||||
"Pilot": | "The Thing You Love Most": | "Snow Falls": | "The Price of Gold": | "That Still Small Voice": | "The Shepherd": | "The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter": | "Desperate Souls": | "True North": | "7:15 A.M.": | "Fruit of the Poisonous Tree": |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Appears | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
"Skin Deep": | "What Happened to Frederick": | "Dreamy": | "Red-Handed": | "Heart of Darkness": | "Hat Trick": | "The Stable Boy": | "The Return": | "The Stranger": | "An Apple Red as Blood": | "A Land Without Magic": |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
Once Upon a Time: Season Two | ||||||||||
"Broken": | "We Are Both": | "Lady of the Lake": | "The Crocodile": | "The Doctor": | "Tallahassee": | "Child of the Moon": | "Into the Deep": | "Queen of Hearts": | "The Cricket Game": | "The Outsider": |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Mentioned |
"In the Name of the Brother": | "Tiny": | "Manhattan": | "The Queen Is Dead": | "The Miller's Daughter": | "Welcome to Storybrooke": | "Selfless, Brave and True": | "Lacey": | "The Evil Queen": | "Second Star to the Right": | "And Straight On 'Til Morning": |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
Once Upon a Time: Season Three | ||||||||||
"The Heart of the Truest Believer": | "Lost Girl": | "Quite a Common Fairy": | "Nasty Habits": | "Good Form": | "Ariel": | "Dark Hollow": | "Think Lovely Thoughts": | "Save Henry": | "The New Neverland": | "Going Home": |
Absent | Mentioned | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
"New York City Serenade": | "Witch Hunt": | "The Tower": | "Quiet Minds": | "It's Not Easy Being Green": | "The Jolly Roger": | "Bleeding Through": | "A Curious Thing": | "Kansas": | "Snow Drifts": | "There's No Place Like Home": |
Absent | Absent | Mentioned | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
Once Upon a Time: Season Four | ||||||||||
"A Tale of Two Sisters": |
"White Out": |
"Rocky Road": |
"The Apprentice": |
"Breaking Glass": |
"Family Business": | "The Snow Queen": |
"Smash the Mirror": |
"Fall": | "Shattered Sight": |
"Heroes and Villains": |
Absent | Appears | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
"Darkness on the Edge of Town": |
"Unforgiven": | "Enter the Dragon": | "Poor Unfortunate Soul": |
"Best Laid Plans": | "Heart of Gold": | "Sympathy for the De Vil": |
"Lily": | "Mother": | "Operation Mongoose Part 1": |
"Operation Mongoose Part 2": |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
Once Upon a Time: Season Six | ||||||||||
"The Savior": | "A Bitter Draught": | "The Other Shoe": | "Strange Case": | "Street Rats": | "Dark Waters": | "Heartless": | "I'll Be Your Mirror": | "Changelings": | "Wish You Were Here": | "Tougher Than the Rest": |
Absent | Mentioned | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Appears | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
"Murder Most Foul": | "Ill-Boding Patterns": | "Page 23": | "A Wondrous Place": | "Mother's Little Helper": | "Awake": | "Where Bluebirds Fly": | "The Black Fairy": | "The Song in Your Heart": | "The Final Battle Part 1": | "The Final Battle Part 2": |
Appears | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
Once Upon a Time: Specials | ||||||||||
"Magic is Coming": |
"The Price of Magic": | "Journey to Neverland": | "Wicked is Coming": | "Storybrooke Has Frozen Over": | ||||||
Archive | Absent | Absent | Archive | Absent | ||||||
"Secrets of Storybrooke": | "Dark Swan Rises": | "Evil Reigns Once More": | "The Final Battle Begins": | |||||||
Absent | Archive | Absent | Absent |
Note: "Archive" denotes archive footage.
References
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