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CHAPTER IX AGRICULTURE AND DAIRYING It seems to have been ordained from the first that Winneshiek county would be an agricultural community. As is generally the case in newly opened country, the first settlers came here in search of land. There is a sense of security about the possession of a farm that begets confidence, and when one adds to this the courage and resourcefulness of the average pioneer there is formed a partnership that fails less often that any that may be found in the line of mercantile pursuits. History repeats itself each year, when the country is new, in the endeavor of the settler to raise a wheat crop. He must eat to live and his first thought, even though it may not be breathed in prayer on bended knee, is-"Give us this day our daily bread." Forthwith he sets about breaking a patch of ground and from the little store of grain he has brought with him he sows it to wheat, trusting that Providence will smile upon his efforts and in due time he will be able to take to the mill a crop that will furnish his family with the staff of life during the long winter months before he can again reap a harvest. The early comers to Winneshiek county found a country that was fair to look upon. First and all important there were streams of clear, pure water. Whether it was on upland prairie or along the banks of the streams there was an inviting growth of trees, shrubs, grass, and flowers, that told their own story of a fertile soil that only awaited the efforts of mankind to start it on its mission of feeding the thousands that were soon to make their homes here. Wheat raising was at first the chief industry. The soil seemed to be especially adapted to this grain, and while in some years the crop was lighter than in others, there was a general increase in yield that soon made Winneshiek one of the banner wheat counties in Iowa. It is a matter of record that at onetime our county was rated as fourth in wheat production in the United States. So confident were the majority of settlers in the ability of the soil to maintain its fertility that a system of re-cropping was followed that amounted to what today would be considered the most ruthless soil robbery. There could be but one result from this course. Failure was bound to come, and come it did along in the middle seventies. Many were the farmers who were caught in the net of over-confidence and mismanagement. Some were unable to finance the change 121 PAST AND PRESENT OF WINNESHIEK COUNTY 122 from one method of farming to another and as a result they were compelled to gather together what they could from the wreck and try their fortunes in a new country. Minnesota and the Dakotas, Nebraska and Kansas claimed the larger number of these, and many of them, profiting by their experience here, won enviable success as pioneers in their new homes. . While the exodus was of considerable proportions Winneshiek county
was by no means depopulated. There remained behind that element
that had been satisfied to make less haste, but more permanent
footing on the road to success thoughtful, prudent men who had
learned the lesson of doing well that thing that was worth doing
at all, and knowing first the' course they wished to pursue and
then following it with all the force and intelligence they could
bring to bear. These men had early seen the trend of events and
while their grain-raising neighbors were bending all their efforts
toward the production of one crop, they had quietly been busy
trying out other grains-barley, oats, corn, flax, clover,-with
some pigs and chickens, horses, cows and sheep, intelligently
sandwiched in between. These were the pioneers in diversified
farming in this community. Soon they began to give their attention
to dairying and when a copartnership with Madam Cow had been firmly
established Winneshiek county began to come into her own. In paying this tribute to the work of Mr. Goddard, I have degressed somewhat from the main subject of this chapter. But it is not a long stride from the days of those early efforts in diversified farming to the present time. Those clear-thinking men who saw in the distance a day of better things for the farmer in this community showed the courage of their convictions by adding to their possessions some of those farms that were abandoned by the wheat farmers, and today their judgment is confirmed by the wealth that is everywhere in evidence as one drives up the valleys and out into the high lands. Along with better farming has grown the live stock industry. At one time Winneshiek county boasted of some of the best and largest herds of full blood
PAST AND PRESENT OF WINNESHIEK COUNTY 123 cattle in Iowa, It was not an uncommon thing then for a particularly choice animal to sell at $250.00 to $350.00. The writer remembers with much interest of listening to the negotiations that took place one day at the county fair between Samuel Aiken of Decorah and Mons Foss of Canoe township for a cow owned by the latter. These men were rival exhibitors in the Holstein classes, but Mr. Aiken had the larger and better herd, The cow in question was an exceptionally handsome one, and no one--not even Mr. Aiken--could resist admiring her. It was while he was thus engaged that I heard him say: "That's a pretty nice cow you have there, Mons. Is she for
sale?" "Yes, I think she is a nice animal, but I don't care to sell her," replied Mr. Foss. "How much will you take for her?" was Mr. Aiken's next question. Mr. Foss was reluctant to set a price, but finally he said that he would have to have $360.00 for her. Gently rubbing his hand over her broad hips Mr. Aiken replied in a quiet tone, "Well, Mons, I guess she's mine." I was the only witness to the transaction--no others were near--and it was not a trick of the trade to gain publicity, for at that time I was only a boy and my "nose for news," as the expression goes among newspaper men, had not been developed. It was such transactions as these that made the fancy stock business boom. Other herds that were located or owned in the county were the Shorthorns of L. R. Brown and William Goocher of Orleans township, and John McHugh, who resided in Cresco, H. L. Coffeen and Capt, Gardner of Decorah, A. Lincoln and John Wingate of Hesper, the Red Polled cattle of S. A. Converse of Cresco, the Black Polled cattle of Robert Simpson of Burr Oak, and the Jerseys of D. A. Leach of Freeport. These were notable herds that are readily recalled by all who were familiar with county affairs at that time. Others were engaged in a less pretentious way. There were also numerous individual horses of standard or draft breeding that helped to sustain the prestige of the county as a breeding center. The prices of blooded cattle throughout the country became so inflated that a slump was inevitable, and when it came, nearly all the herds above mentioned were dispersed, but the value of good stock had been so thoroughly demonstrated and prices became so reasonable that many were encouraged to improve their holdings by the addition of full blooded animals, and it is a fact beyond contradiction that today there are more full blood animals on Winneshiek county farms than at any previous time. This is notably true of cattle, swine, and sheep, while the improvement in horses has been very marked and has resulted in making this an exceptionally good horse market. During the past three years interest has been developed in the growing of alfalfa. In 1911 there were but two and three-quarters acres reported by assessors, but the reports of 1913 show a total of forty-three acres. The interest in this crop is growing and the next two or three years will see a large increase in the acreage devoted thereto. Probably no one industry has done more to develop the worth of
Winneshiek farms than dairying. It may be truthfully said that
William Beard, one of the pioneer settlers of Frankville township,
was the foster parent of the business. Always a great lover of
cattle, long before the agitation that developed the PAST AND PRESENT OF WINNESHIEK COUNTY 124 creamery, he was engaged in making and selling from his farm what was, for those days, a large amount of superior butter. Early in the seventies he began to give serious consideration to the establishment of a creamery in Decorah and, encouraged by some of the influential business men, he finally embarked in the enterprise. Like all other new undertakings there were many obstacles to be overcome. It was not always easy to secure cream, and especially in the condition required, while on the other hand there was a prejudice in the minds of many against man and machinery-made butter. It is no secret that many times Mr. Beard was thoroughly discouraged and sorely tempted to give up, but it was not his nature to be overcome by a project, once he had convinced himself that he could make it succeed, and ere he passed to his reward he had the satisfaction of knowing that his confidence in the ultimate development of the creamery business had been vindicated. Since that day many changes in methods have taken place and what was then a model in completeness would not now be considered for an instant. Then there were numerous small concerns working independently, with an uncertain market for their product. Today the industry has grown to such proportions that nearly every state has its dairy commissioner. Iowa was one of the first and foremost states in the movement, and Winneshiek was a pioneer in the enterprise. There may not be today as many creameries within our borders as there were a few years ago, but each year sees a steady upward trend in quantity and quality, while the demand for good butter has had the tendency to develop a host of good butter makers who depend entirely upon the local market for the sale of strictly dairy butter to people who for economic as well as other reasons prefer it to the creamery product. |
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