Tipton County, Indiana - Chapter 13: Agriculture, 1914

Chapter 13: Agriculture

The latest figures compiled by statisticians in regard to the county of Tipton give the total number of farms as 2,067, against 2,290 ten years ago. There are 2,031 native white farmers, and 36 foreign-born white. This num¬ ber of farms gives an approximate area of farm land as 166,400 acres. Ninety-eight and four-tenths per cent, of the land area is in farms. The average number of acres per farm is 79 .2. The figures for the improved land in farms run just slightly lower, which proves that the farmer of Tipton county has land* equal to the best, in equipment, improvement and pro¬ ductiveness. All farm property in the county is valued at $23,637,361. In 1900 this amount was $10,913,568, showing 116.6 per cent, increase. The value of the land alone is now $18,649,185; the buildings, $2,571,565; im¬ plements and machinery, $417,339; domestic animals, $1,999,272; all of these figures being over 100 per cent, increase over those of 1900. The aver¬ age value of each farm in the county is $11,436.

Domestic Animals

There are 2,021 farms in the county keeping domestic animals. The value of these animals, taken together, is estimated at $1,906,047. There are 13,285 head of cattle, including dairy cows, yearling. heifers, calves, yearling steers and bulls and others, valued at $401,901. There are 9,270 horses, valued at $1,049,756. There are 235 mules, valued at $31,046. There are 60,851 head of swine, valued at $360,407. There are 12,827 sheep, including rams, ewes, wethers and. spring lambs, valued at $62,097. There are 46 goats, worth $125.00. There are 154,038 fowls of all kinds, valued at $90,883. There are 636 colonies of bees, valued at $2,342.

The total value of all crops in Tipton^ county is $2,410,445. This in¬ cludes cereals, grains and seeds, hay and forage, vegetables, fruits and nuts. There are 90,881 acres in cereals, yielding 3.899.954 bushels. There are

There are 54,083 apple trees in the county, yielding 25,218 bushels; 15,968 peach trees, yielding 11,904 bushels; 9,206 pear trees, yielding 2,354 bushels; 7,280 plum trees, yielding 1,111 bushels; 13,145 cherry trees, yield¬ ing 8,076 bushels; 394 quince trees, yielding 12 1 bushels; 9,351 grape vines, yielding 202,582 pounds of fruit. In small fruits, such as strawberries, rasp¬ berries, blackberries, dewberries and loganberries, there are 7 acres, yield¬ ing 5454 quarts of fruit.

There are 1,288 farms operated by owners; 767 operated by tenants, and 12 by managers. These figures are lower than those fifteen years ago, showing a startling decrease in the number of farms, productiveness and ownership.

At the time of its settlement Tipton county, with the exception of a few swampy prairies, was covered with dense forests of oak, beech, maple, walnut, hickory, sycamore and tulip trees, with a dense undergrowth. The first attempts at clearing the forested areas for cultivation were made in the southern part of the county, where the natural drainage was better developed. With the exception of that used for domestic purposes the timber was burned.

Owing to the difficulty of hauling products over long and frequently impassable trails, practically no crops were grown for market. Corn, wheat, oats, rye, flax and potatoes were among the early crops grown in the area. Hay was cut from the open prairies. Wheat and corn were grown year after

The advantage of seed selection is generally recognized, but the methods of selecting the seed can be improved. No attempt at corn breeding to im¬ prove the quality of the corn is made.

Check drills are generally used in planting the corn, so that it may be cultivated both ways. This frequently does away with the necessity of hoe¬ ing. In general, three to four, and sometimes five, cultivations are given to the crop. The cultivators used are chiefly of the riding type. The use of power corn cutters has also reduced the labor of harvesting. A large per cent, of the corn now grown is cut usually late in September for ensilage.

Oats has never been a paying crop 'Commercially, but it fits in well with the customary rotation of crops and is especially valued for its straw. The average yields are about thirty-five to forty bushels per acre. The intro¬ duction of the cowpea and soy-bean will probably cause a decrease in the acreage of oats in the future, especially where used with corn for ensilage. Oats are sown with an end-gate attachment at the rate of two and a half to three bushels per acre.

The acreage devoted to wheat was originally restricted by the expense and difficulty of harvesting the crop. With the reap-hook or sickle a good hand could cut only one-half acre per day. The manual labor necessary in harvesting the crop has been reduced to a minimum by the introduction of the self-binder, and the acreage has been increased. The yields, however, have not increased proportionately. At present an average yield of fifteen to twenty bushels per acre is obtained instead of the thirty-five to forty bushels produced when the land was first cleared. Wheat is generally recognized a not particularly profitable, but as a nurse crop it is conceded to be better than oats, since the straw is lighter and shades the clover less.

The use of ground limestone will be equally beneficial to the wheat and clover. The lighter colored soils of the area are better suited to wheat. They also show a stronger reaction when tested for acidity. Wheat should be seeded in corn during the latter part of September, not later than the ioth of October, preferably after the corn is shocked. It is generally sown with 'a disk drill having a fertilizer attachment.

The production of hay shown in the 1910 census report was only about half that for 1880. Of the 4,165 tons produced in 1910 the clover yield was 4,044 tons. The acreage of timothy is being rapidly reduced as its soil-rob¬ bing properties become more generally known. Some of the leading farmers of the area have excluded it entirely from their rotations. The growing pop¬ ularity of the silo has also done much to reduce the acreage of timothy. The

The average yield of hay for the county is about one and a half tons to the acre, though as much as two and a half tons per acre are frequently obtained. The planting of cowpeas and oats for hay has been tried, but the results' thus far have not been generally satisfactory. Hay makes a ranker growth on the black lands, but the quality is said to be better where it is grown upon the clay soils. Heavier yields are obtained from the latter soils where ground limestone is applied. '

Stock raising and dairying are important industries in the county. The 1910 census shows an annual production of 1,607,230 gallons of milk and 321,096 pounds of butter from 3,389 cows. The milk is handled through creameries, located in towns along the railroads and traction lines. The milk and cream is collected by wagons sent out from the creameries. Jersey and Holstein milkers are the favorite cows. A large number of beef cattle is marketed annually.

Fruit culture was profitable up to about 1880. Since that time various diseases have affected both trees and fruit, so that the neglected orchards have become practically worthless. It has been demonstrated, however, that with proper care excellent fruit can be produced. The pear is probably most seriously affected at present. One or two large commercial orchards in the vicinity of Tipton have recently been partially destroyed by blight. The growing of fruit for domestic use is to be encouraged, but it is doubtful whether its commercial production would prove profitable in this county. The orchards should be small, in order that they may be given proper at¬ tention. In many cases adequate care is given to the orchards, but the spray¬ ing is not practiced at the proper time.

Most of the farmers in Tipton county follow some form of crop rota¬ tion, but in many cases without a definite purpose. The rotation should be so planned as to produce larger yields, to distribute the work more evenly throughout the year, to be more certain of a regular income than is possible with a one-crop system, to maintain, or rather increase, the productivity of the farm, and to reduce to a minimum the injury from weeds, insect pests and disease which frequently accompany the one-crop system. Hence in formulating a rotation it is necessary to take into account the income it will bring, the needs of the land, the requirements of the stock at hand, the effects of one crop upon another if followed in succession, and the profitable dis¬ tribution of labor. The three main classes of crops to be dealt with in plan- ning a rotation are small grain, hay and cultivated crops. Every successful rotation must include some legume to enrich the soil. Red clover is now used for this purpose throughout a greater part of the corn belt. This crop often fails to make a stand, and in this case a good practice is to disk or plow the land and plant in cowpeas or soy-beans. The planting of cowpeas or soy-beans in the corn at the time of the last cultivation, as a green manure or for pasture, is particularly recommended for the light thin land. Alfalfa sown at the rate of two to three pounds per acre with clover and timothy until the fields are thoroughly inoculated will enrich both the hay and the soil, and better yields of corn will be obtained. Alfalfa can be grown successfully in the county and should be grown more extensively. Wherever difficulty is en¬ countered in maintaining a stand of clover commercial fertilizers or. lime should be applied. Commercial fertilizers if depended upon alone for in¬ creasing crop yields will injure rather than improve the soil, but if used judiciously in improving the yields of clover and other legumes from which the ultimate enrichment of the soil must come they will generally increase the profits of the farm. A good rotation, with proper utilization of all the farm manure, is required for success in farming.

In 1909 there were mortgages aggregating five hundred and ninety-eight thousand eight hundred and ten dollars held against the lands of Tipton county. These mortgages usually represent loans which were made to parties increasing their holdings of land. The price of land has increased rapidly within the past twenty years, and little if any land can now be bought in the county for less than one hundred and fifty to two hundred dollars an acre.

Farm hands receive from twenty to twenty-five dollars a month, in ad¬ dition to board, lodging, washing and horse feed. Harvest hands and extra laborers receive from one dollar and fifty cents to two dollars and fifty cents per day.

Agricultural Societies

The Tipton County Agricultural Society was first organized on August 11, 1855, and on the first of September a constitution and by-laws were adopted. The first county fair was held on October 4th and 5th of {he same year. Much care was taken, and no expense spared, in fitting up the grounds near the downtown depot with sheds, etc., in which to make the display. Rain seriously interfered with the plans, however, and when the opening day came the display was very small. There were no shows, races, and other things we now associate with a county fair; consequently, there was little

The second fair was even more of a failure than the first. Crops were a failure that year, and when the first day of the fair came there were less than fifteen people in attendance. The fair lasted two days and the total number of tickets sold was forty-seven. Subsequent to this dismal failure the fair organization dissolved.

Another company was organized in 1857, and they rented a piece of wopds across the street from the home of Judge Green, where the high school building later stood. They gave a fair that year, which lasted three days, and, as usual, it rained every day. However, people came from every direction, and after all was over the directors discovered they had clear about one dollar above expenses.

The fourth and fifth fairs were little better than picnics. The people refused to pay admission, so the gates were thrown open and a round of hilarity begun.

In the year i860 no attempt was made to hold a fair, although there was an attempt at a celebration, aside from the jurisdiction of the fair authorities. Campaign spirit, and the threatening clouds of war, rendered impossible a successful fair.

In 1865 another company was organized and they secured ground across Cicero creek, near the railroad bridge, and the county donated two hundred dollars for the purpose of building a fence around it. The soldiers were coming home, there was more or less excitement all the time, and the people loved public gatherings. The exhibition was the largest held in the county up until that time, and gave indication that the farmers were paying more attention to fine stock and the best varieties of grain. The fair lasted three days and the crowds were large. On the second day it was estimated that three thousand people attended the exhibition. The receipts comfortably overtopped the expenditures, notwithstanding that it rained every day - an invariable fair accompaniment.

After several years the fair organization almost suffered a third death, but it was revived in time, in 1874, and became known as the Tipton County Joint-Stock Agricultural Society, quite a pretentious title. In 1874 much ex¬ pense was incurred in having the fair. Rain came every day. The Burr Robbins circus troupe was advertised to be in town on another day. The show came overland from Anderson, and on the morning of their arrival Col. Robert L. Porter met them four miles east of town. He made a con- tract with them to pitch their tents in the fair ground, and in the afternoon give an exhibition for the sum of four hundred dollars. They agreed to do it, but the Colonel didn't have a dollar. It looked like defeat, but he told them that he owned a jewelry store, expected to be a candidate for county office some day and was well acquainted with P. T. Barnum. That clinched the bargain and the show exhibited, and made money. In 1878, however, the Joint-Stock Company went to the wall.

In 1879 an entirely new organization, called the Tipton County Fair Company, was organized. This proved to be the most stable of all, and fairs were given regularly until 1893, when the fair association went out of ex¬ istence. The Columbian world's exposition held at Chicago in 1893 was s0 big. that county fairs became very insignificant. All interest in them was lost. No attempts at agricultural fairs have since been made, the state fair at Indianapolis, and such other exhibitions as at St. Louis, detracting interest in local effort. However, in 1910-12-13 free stock shows were held in the streets of the city, showing that interest in farm exhibits has not altogether died out. The free stock show has become a permanent fixture and the ex¬ hibits equal that of the average county fair. Business, live stock and indus¬ trial parades are a special feature of these shows and thousands of people attend them.