The length of its existence is interesting, but by todays standards, the farm may have been just as unsustainable as it was at its onset.

Notably, the Smithsonian article only asks about recent changes affecting the farm.

Slavery was common in Massachusetts through 1700s.

If the farm was made sustainable through slave labor in its first 100 years, it would have avoided the same concerns that the article says are doing it in now: dependable and low cost labor.