Brown County MN Archives History - Books .....Agriculture 1916 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/mn/mnfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00001.html#0000031 November 20, 2014, 10:04 pm Book Title: History Of Brown County, See Below CHAPTER X AGRICULTURE, HORTICULTURE AND STOCK RAISING. It was no idle dream in the minds of the first colonists who came to Brown county on a land-hunting expedition. They sought out a country where timber, water and good rich soil could he had at government prices, and they made no error in setting their stakes right where they did. It had been their desire for a number of years in the East— Chicago and Cincinnati—to be able to locate outside the confines of a city in some place where they might have plenty of garden room, if not a sufficient amount for farming purposes. Here they could take their choice, and many secured both town lots of several acres each, besides entering lands outside, which today are worth, and are occasionally parted with by the descendants of those pioneers, for as much as one hundred and fifty dollars per acre. When the county was first settled all the fruit available for family use here was the wild plum and grape, cherry and black haw, none of which seem to taste as well to this generation as they did to the first comers to the Minnesota Valley country. Now the apple, tame plum, tame cherry, the small fruits in endless variety, have all come to be a household blessing. The soil and climate are well suited for the hardy varieties which have a flavor unexcelled in any country—east or west of Minnesota. The old theory that Minnesota was too far north to produce corn and fruits has been long since exploded by actual experiments and the successful production of all these articles, so useful and profitable to mankind, goes on annually. The annual displays of apples at the various county and state fairs teaches the stranger that Minnesota can profitably raise about all the grains and vegetables and fruits that can be grown outside a semi-tropical country. The first settlers brought with them a spade and with it they dug for water to test the quality and depth of that necessary element; they also noted with a wise and prudent care the various soil formations on both prairie and in the valley. With the medium of this fertile soil, hundreds of these men have made themselves independently wealthy by farming and stock growing. CORN CULTURE. The early settlers had many difficulties to overcome. With few exceptions all who came here came with very little means, but with honest hearts and willing hands to make the best of a fight to secure a home for themselves and families. The faithful ox-team was usually the only help the early pioneers had, but he used that to a great advantage. Like all new western countries, it was thought that about the only thing that could be successfully raised was wheat and other small grains. This great staff of life was continually grown by the early farmers until, in 1872, the grasshoppers came and for four years this terrible scourge about cleaned up the farmer of everything he had tried to raise. Many could not stand the long continued siege of the grasshopper and left the county. A continuation of destruction of small grain by grasshoppers in this section of Minnesota caused the farmer to commence trying something else as a crop. He experimented with com, and it was found that by selecting early maturing varieties of com for seed that it was a paying crop, giving food for the family and for the farmer's stock. This, indeed, was the commencement of true prosperity m Brown county. It is now ranked among the banner com counties in the state. The amount of small grain has gradually decreased and, on the other hand, the growth of successful corn crops has annually increased. With the advent of corn, more stock was grown and this brought greater revenue to the farmer. In fact, hut few counties in the state now boast of finer stock than Brown county. This applies to horses, cattle, swine and other stock. The recent horse shippers declare that no place in Minnesota affords them the pleasure and profit in purchasing horses that is found in this county. There is now and ever will be a demand for the fine steeds grown in this county. The draft horse type is among the best in the United States. And this stock business has all been the direct outgrowth of the production of corn instead of wheat as was at first raised in countless acres on the prairies of this county. Per capita, Brown county is the richest county in Minnesota—her bank deposits show almost six million dollars. FARM FACTS. In 1908 the average number of bushels of wheat per acre in this county was eleven; of corn, twenty-seven; of oats, twenty-seven; of barley, thirty; of rye, twenty-one; of potatoes, eighty; hay, one and one-half tons per acre. At that date there were sixteen creameries, producing one and one-half million pounds of butter annually. In live stock there was 10,612 horses; 25,113 head of cattle; 3,840 head of sheep; 14,500 head of swine. The assessed valuation of the county in 1908 was eight million and ninety-live thousand dollars, of which one million and one hundred thousand dollars was in personal property, not including cash lists. PIONEER CONDITIONS. Notwithstanding the adversities met with by early farmers in Brown county, the landowner remained steadfast—-in many cases possibly through no virtue of his, for he had not the means with which to remove his family to other parts of the country—but he remained and fought the blasts of a northern winter, the scourge of the grasshoppers which came in endless clouds at noonday and lighted on the growing corn and grain, devouring all in sight; then, after laying a good supply of eggs for reproduction of their kind, they rose with the morning wind and moved on, darkening the very sun in their flight, until they settled down on some other fair farming section to curse the farmer as they had done in Brown county. The Indian had became an enemy to his white brother (because his white brother had first wronged him) and in harvest time, 1862, seven years after the settlement here was made, the life-blood of many a settler with that of his dear family stained the ground he had so come to prize. The Sioux outbreak came and with it many homes were forever broken asunder, but those who remained kept plodding onward until success gloriously crowned their efforts. Then came the violent cyclone in all its mad fury in 1881, and again made wreck and ruin in both country and towns throughout Brown county. This was overcome and again, with a doubly renewed vigor, the farmer set his hand to the plow and reaper. The prairie fire came with its consuming flames and devoured hay and grain in the stack, but nothing drove the sturdy farmer from the limits of this county. Today his children and children's children are living off the sacrifices made back fifty and sixty years ago, by a noble band of agriculturists, who hauled grain a hundred miles and sold it at a mere nothing, as compared to prices today. All honor, then, to the first farmers of Brown county, Minnesota. FARM NAMES. Under a recent provision of the Legislature of Minnesota farm names may be recorded in the office of the register of deeds, in a book provided especially for this purpose. A small fee is required and up to this date the following have taken advantage of what seems to be a splendid way of fixing the name and location of one's farm holdings. "Lake Shore Farm," Hans F. Frederickson; August 9, 1909; situated in section 29, township 108, range 31. "Pioneer Farm," Anton J. Zeig; August, 1909; in section 14, township 110, range 31. "Oak Wood Farm," John Dapporn; August, 1909; in sections 11 and 7, township 109, range 32. "Riverside Farm," Herman Pfaender; September, 1909; in section 12, township 110, range 31. "Pioneer Stock Farm," Peder Thormodson; September, 1909; parts of sections 2S, 21 and 29, also in 32, all m township 108, range 30. "Sylvan Border," George F. Lee; December, 1909; in sections 32 and 33, township 108, range 31. "Lake Side Farm," T. C. Hovde; in section 30, township 108, range 31. "Grand View Stock Farm," J. W. Koester; January,: 1910; in seel ions 27 and 36, in township 108, range 30. "Cedar Lodge Farm," Carl Olstad; January, 1910; in sections 16 and 21, township 108, range 31. "Roadside Farm," Andrew Losleben; February, 1910; in section 12, township 110, range 32. "Evergreen Stock Farm," Ad Schubert; February, 1910; parts of sections 28 and 29, township 110, range 31. "Willow Grove Farm," A. A. Backer; September, 1910; in sections 22 and 21, township 110, range 31. "Meadow View," Jacob Runck; December, 1910; in section 16, township 109, range 35. "Maple Leaf Farm," Ole Pederson; November, 1911; in sections 12 and 13, township 108, range 30. "Sunny Heights," Herman Juni; February, 1912; in section 31, township 111, range 31. "Oak Bend Grove," Johann Krueger; April, 1912; in, section 27, township 110, range 31. "Pleasant View Farm," Mrs. Maggie Halverson; August, 1912; in section 11, township 108, range 31. "Brude Hill," Frederick A. Frederickson; December; 1912; in section 19, township 108, range, 31. "Meadow Brook," C. C. Current; December, 1912; in section 1, township 110, range 32. "Cloverdale," Gottfried Schmidt; March 1913; in section 4, township 109, range 32. "Walnut Hill," Edward Hensel; June, 1913; in section 11, township 110, range 31. "Holstein Dairy Farm," J. M. Hanson; July, 1913; in section 1, township 110, range 33. "Elmwood," Marcus Frederickson; May 22, 1914; in section 18, township 108, range 31. "Lake View," George Brudelie; May, 1914; in section 18, township 108, range 31, "Sandy Lane Farm," N. P. Nelson; January, 1914; in section 15, township 109, range 34. "Maywood," Herman Polkow and Anna Polkow; October, 1915; in section 5, township 109, range 34. COUNTY FAIR. The Brown County Agricultural Society was organized in 1859, but during the outbreak of the Indians in 1862 it went down. In 1864 a new organization was effected, with J. Reinartz, president; J. Manderfeld, secretary; P. Gay, treasurer. Annual fairs have been maintained ever since the re-organization of the society. The present grounds were purchased about thirty years ago, and now they have good improvements, including a half-mile track. The association now usually pays out about fourteen hundred dollars in premiums annually to the winners of exhibits. The farmers and stock raisers are much interested and do their share toward making the county fair a success. Nine hundred and sixty-eight dollars are now received from the state each year for the maintenance of the fair. The officers in 19'6 are: President, Ferdinand Crone; vice-president, J. Klossner, Jr.; secretary, William E. Engelbert; treasurer, F. H. Belmke. The association owes no debts. Additional Comments: Extracted from: HISTORY OF BROWN COUNTY MINNESOTA ITS PEOPLE, INDUSTRIES AND INSTITUTIONS L. A. FRITSCHE. M. D. Editor With Biographical Sketches of Representative Citizens and Genealogical Records of Many of the Old Families VOLUME I B. F. BOWEN & COMPANY, Inc. Indianapolis, Indiana File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/mn/brown/history/1916/historyo/agricult51gms.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/mnfiles/ File size: 11.8 Kb