Clark County, Wisconsin - Chapter 13: Agriculture, 1918

Dairying and agriculture are now the leading industries of Clark County. The soil is admirably adapted for this purpose now that the timber has been largely cut off. The prevailing type of soil is classified as Colby Silt Loam, having a gently rolling surface shading into a sandy loam and frequently lighter sandy types in parts of the western and extreme southern portions of the county. The predominating soil is officially described as follows:

"The clay soils of this formation constitute throughout good strong: land, very productive and durable. Because of its good drainage, practically every acre of it can be utilized for farm crops, and it gives every promise of being equal to the best and richest agricultural portions of the state or of the northwest. All farm crops are successfully grown. Grass and clover is an abundant crop, and dairying and stock-raising is wisely becoming the chief source of the farm income. The small grains, corn and potatoes can readily be grown and should be raised in rotation with the feeding crops for dairy stock, sheep, and swine. Small fruits and garden truck are easily grown, and upon well selected sites the hardier fruit trees can be grown with success."

The sandy loam soil generally contains sufficient clay to retain the required amount of moisture for crop production. Splendid water is found at depths ranging from fifteen to sixty feet.

"Second only in importance to soil is climate. The average period between killing frosts varies from 120 to 130 days, a period of sufficient duration to ripen all farm crops including early varieties of corn. Clark County is in the same latitude as southern Minnesota, and the length of growing season is as long, as shown by climatic records of the weather bureau combined with the topographic maps of the U. 8S. Geological Survey. The average annual rainfall in Clark County will vary from twentyeight to thirty-four inches, and in its seasonal distribution, about half of the total falls in May, June, July and August.

"Clark County is adjacent to active markets, well supplied with railroad facilities, and is developing a splendid system of highways. This proximity to market means less feeding and shrinkage of live stock in transit, opportunity to take advantage of favorable prices and minimum charges for transportation.

"This section, noted as it is for its forage crops, is fully as well adapted to the production of special crops including clover seed, dry and canning peas, cabbage, sugar beets, and potatoes. Every opportunity is afforded for diversified farm crops. Briefly, this is a country of small farms, weil tilled, with an average yield per acre equal to and frequently surpassing the high priced regions of older states."

The recent establishment of the Condensery at Neillsville, while it has closed some of the creameries, has given a decided impetus to Clark County dairying. The local canning companies are also furnishing a market for all small vegetables, especially sweet corn, string beans and cabbage. Potato warehouses are found in various parts of the county, and potato culture is a growing business.

An extensive system of drainage, all the preliminary steps for which have been completed, will greatly enhance the value of farming lands in the southern part of the county, and greatly increase the crop acreage,

Of the state area of 54,450 square miles, Clark County occupies 1,200 square miles, or .0220+- of the whole state. Counting thirty-six square miles to a township would give an area of 1,260 square miles. The government census gives an area of 1,218, The difference is due to irregularity in the survey. The population in 1900 was 30,073, as compared with a state population of 2,333,860, a percentage of .0218-+-. The population a square mile in 1910, was 25.06,

Early conditions were not conducive to agricultural endeavor in Clark County, and until after the Civil War there was probably scarcely a person who devoted his time exclusively to farming. Settlers looking for farms could still find vacant land on the prairies nearer the Mississippi, where the turf had but to be broken to bring forth abundant crops from the rich black soil. Those who did engage in farming here, aside from the sawmill owners, were for the most part, men who worked in the woods in the winter, and in the springs, instead of going elsewhere as the majority did, stayed and devoted the growing season to the development of little farms in the wilderness. To start a farm here required patience and perseverance, for on the sandy cut-over pine lands, the stumps and brush were a great obstacle, while on the better land, where the hardwood stood, the trees must be cut, and the hardwood, then deemed practically worthless, disposed of.

The first farm in Clark County was cleared by James O'Neill at Neillsville. In 1850 he had some fifty acres cleared, extending from O'Neill Creek up to the present High School grounds. In 1850, Hamilton McCullom and Moses Clark each started small farms in connection with their mills in Levis Township.

But for the next decade progress was very slow, and the census of 1860 shows but 2,175 acres of improved land, and even in arriving at this figure the most liberal interpretation was put on the meaning of "improved." This improved land consisted for the most part of clearings at Neillsville, at Weston's Rapids and around the mills in Levis. Perhaps the largest farm was that of Conrad Dell, known afterwards as the Chandler place near the mound on the west side of the river across from Weston Rapids. There was some clearing in Town 26, Range 2 West, at Huntzicker's and as far north as Eaton's, and a little in what is now known as the town of Loyal, Erastus Mack being one of the earliest of the settlers in the last named locality. There were also small farms or clearings in what is known now as the towns of Grant and Lynn, made by the early settlers there, the Yankees, Kleinschmidts, Sternitzkys, George Williams,

John D. Wage, Bartemus Brooks, and the Marshes, Nelson and Levi. The census of 1860, taken in the summer, when the loggers were away, showed that there were 188 oxen in the county, thirty-one horses and thirteen mules. There were 170 dairy cows, 241 steers and calves, 362 hogs and twelve sheep. The principal crop products were as follows: Oats, 4,189 bushels; corn, 4,005 bushels; wheat, 3,826 bushels; rye, 1,317 bushels; dried beans, seventy-five bushels; potatoes, 8,820 bushels; tobacco, 105 pounds. These figures, however, are merely rough estimates, and are probably much too large, the census taker being a newspaper man with a laudable desire to exploit the county's advantages.

Until the time of the Civil War, there was practically no farming in the county worthy of the name. Until the nineties, logging was the principal industry, and the early farming was secondary or auxiliary to that business. For many years, flour, wheat and other grains for breadstuffs and feed for horses and cattle were brought in by teams to supply the wants of the residents as well as to supply the men and teams working in the many logging camps.

Such farming as was done in the early days was almost entirely for home consumption. The crops grown most extensively by the early settlers were hay, oats, potatoes and other root crops, all of which went toward supplying their own needs and found a ready sale in nearby camps.

The seventies and eighties, the halcyon days of the lumbering industry, saw an increase in agricultural endeavor, but it was not until the nineties that people began to realize the future of the county in this regard. It was not, indeed, until the dawn of the present century that Clark County came to the front as an agricultural county. It is now the leading dairy county of the state, and rapid strides are being made yearly.

Horticulture is still in its infancy, though there are a number of good orchards here. In 1890 there were 901 apple trees, bearing 90 bushels; in 1900, 5,712 apple trees, bearing 1,141 bushels, while in 1910 there were 14,596 trees bearing 11,837 bushels. In 1910 there were 29 pear trees. In 1890 there were 5 plum trees, in 1900 there were 612, bearing 65 bushels, and in 1910, 1,583 trees, bearing 244 bushels. In 1910 the production of small fruits was 62,839 quarts and the production of strawberries 30,769 quarts. Some grapes and cherries are also raised.

assessor of incomes, contains many points of interest in Clark County Agriculture. The total number of horses, mules and asses in the cities and villages was ascertained to 860, which agreed with the assessment for the "true value."' The assessed number in the townships was 14,136, the true assessment being 14,165, making a total assessed number for the county of 14,996, and a total of 15,025 on the "true value."

On neat cattle the assessment for cities and villages showed 1,309, and that for townships 65,327, a total of 66,636; while the true assessment for cities and villages was 1,309, and that for townships 64,295, with a total of 65,604.

The assessment on sheep showed 33 in the cities and villages and 2,967 in the townships, the total being 3,000. The true assessment gave the same figures in each case.

The number of swine on which assessment was made in the cities and villages was 131, that in the townships, 9,203, with a total for both of 9,334. The true assessment showed the same number, 131, in the cities and villages, and 8,358 in the townships, giving a total of 8,489. The assessment on automobiles in the cities and villages showed a total of 477, and that in the townships 834, the total for both being 1,311. The true assessment for cities and villages showed the same number, 477, while that for the townships showed 838, thus raising the total for both to 1,315.

The total real estate assessed in the cities and villages was $3,235,164, the assessment for the townships being $19,874,127, the total for both being $23,109,291. The aggregate assessment on real and personal property in the cities and villages was $4,984,546; in the townships, $23,784,007, the total for both being $28,768,553.

The dairy interest is the most important in Clark County and presents unlimited opportunities for the future. A detailed study of its development is beyond the scope of this work, but presents a fruitful field of study for the future historian.

A few of the early settlers, as seen by the statistics kept cows. On some of the farms butter was made and used at home, sold to the nearby camps or exchanged at the stores. Here and there, housewives were known for the excellence of the butter they made, and all that they could produce found a ready sale, but for the most part the home-made butter which reached the stores was of poor quality, and unsuitable for human food until after it had been cleansed and renovated.

The first creameries and cheese factories_in the county were started in the early eighties. By 1895, at the diminishing of the logging industry, factory manufacture of cheese and butter was already assuming considerable importance. The census of that year shows eight creameries in the county, operated as follows: W. F. Meyer, Greenwood; Granton Cooperative Creamery Association, Grant; W. F. Irwin, agent, Hixon; Loyal Creamery Association, Loyal; Geo. A. Austin, Pine Valley; A. Albert, Thorp; Solon Davis, York; John Kubat, York. The census for the same year shows seven cheese factories operated as follows: A, Steinwand; Distelhorst & Co, (2), Mayville; W. B. McPherson, Sherman; Joseph Fane, Unity ; Otto Decker, Warner; S. D. Gibson, York. However the statistics of the State Dairy and Food Commission for this year give sixteen creameries and thirteen cheese factories.

The serious discrepancies between the United States, State, State Dairy and Food Commission, and Assessors statistics on this subject, are probably due in some instances to the fact that in some of the establishments both butter and cheese was made, and sometimes the same factory was counted twice, once as a creamery and once as a cheese factory.

The State Dairy and Food Commission statistics for 1900, credit Clark County with fifteen creameries, seventeen cheese factories, one combination factory, and ten skimming stations.

The state census of 1905 gives some interesting figures regarding dairying in Clark County. In that year there were twenty-eight creameries in the county, the value of the buildings and machinery being placed at $89,350.00. There were 1,997 patrons, with 16,170 cows, contributing 49,688,838 pounds of milk. The number of pounds of butter produced was 2,123,540, of the value of $426,673.00.

In the same year there were thirty cheese factories in the county, the value of the buildings and machinery amounting to $34,600.00, There were 686 patrons contributing, with 6,107 cows. The amount of milk received was 15,084,492 pounds, producing 1,529,000 pounds of cheese of the value of $136,619.00.

In addition to that furnished to the creameries and cheese factories, in 1905, there was otherwise sold or consumed, milk to the value of $98,- 077.00, butter to the value of $115,680.00, and cheese to the value of $332.00; making the total value of all dairy products sold to creameries and cheese factories, $563,292.00, and the total sold to others or consumed, $214,089.00; making a total of dairy products for that year of $777,381.00.

This, added to the sum of farm products hereinbefore tabulated at $980,346.00, makes a grand total for the year 1905 of farm and dairy products in the county of $1,758,727.00,

The following summary by townships gives the name of the town, the number of cheese factories, the number of patrons, the number of cows owned by the patrons, and the total received by the factories for their product,

The following summary by townships and villages gives the name of the town or village, the number of creameries, the number of patrons, the number of cows owned by the patrons, and the total received by the factories for their product:

The auditor's official list for 1909 gives the names of thirty-eight creameries and twenty-six cheese factories as follows: Creameries - Peltzdorf Creamery, town of Loyal, Seitz Bros.; Farmers' Prog. Cream Co., town of Eaton, John Wenthrich; Bright Creamery, town of Green Grove, H. A. Bright; Clover Belt Creamery, Owen, Wis., Thos. McAdams; Clark County Butter Co., town of Weston, Mike Prock; Acme Creamery Co., town of Weston, Orlo Robinson; Coates Creamery, Sec. 16, town of York, E. Coates; Crystal Creamery, Sec. 8, town of York, Seitz Bros.; Maple Grove Creamery, Sec. 14, town of Sherman, R. H. Sleyster; Day Cream and Cheese Co., See. 2, town of Levis, J. W. Short; Greenwood Creamery, city of Greenwood, Eau Claire Creamery Co.; Thorp Dairy Co., Thorp, Wis., Rudolph Verweyst; F. Albert Dairy Co., town of Thorp, A. Albert; Pine Valley Cream Association, Sec. 16, town of Pine Valley, O. M. Arnold; Curtis Dairy Co., Curtis, Wis., Emil A. Laabs; Enterprise Creamery, town of Lynn, O. W. Becker; Granton Cream and Cheese Factory, Granton, C. A. Guth; Pleasant Ridge Creamery, town of Grant, A. A. Huckstead; Dodge Creamery Co., Dorchester, Dodge Creamery Co,; Banner, Sec. 34, town of Fremont, Harry Eide; Humbird Creamery Co., Humbird, Wis., Fred Theiler; Pleasant View Creamery, Sec. 12, town of Rese burg, Chas. E. Eckerle; H. J. Grell Butter and Egg Co., Neillsville, Wis., H. J. Grell; Pine Valley Butter Co., Neillsville, Wis., Geo, E. Crothers;

Cheese factories - Big Four, town of Beaver, Chas. Devall; Beaver Cheese Factory, town of Beaver, John Joss; Mandel Cheese Factory, town of Beaver, David Mandel; Dodgeville Factory, Loyal, Waterstreet & Smith; North Star Factory, town of Loyal, M. Fitzgerald; Clover Leaf Factory, Sec. 9, town of Worden, Frank Pritzel; Martin Cheese Factory, Sec. 25, town of Unity, H. A. Martin; Meyers Cheese Factory, Sec. 5, town of Unity, E. C. Meyers; Maple Grove Factory, Sec. 14, town of Unity, Rich- - ard Meyers, Coates Cheese Factory, Sec. 16, town of York, E. Coates; York Cheese Factory, Sec. 27, town of York, J. B. Daughetee; South York Cheese Factory, Sec. 34, town of York, E. H. Tucker; Fishers Cheese Factory, Sec. 35, town of Sherman, Geo. Fisher, Jr.; Spokeville Cheese Factory, Sec. 19, town of Sherman, C. A. Voight; Seefeld's Cheese Factory, Sec. 3, town of Sherman, H. T. Seefeld; Sherman Cheese Factory, Sec. 22, town of Sherman, P. Knickle & Son; Dells Dam Butter & Cheese Co., Sec. 17, town of Levis, Victor Horton; Levis Cheese Factory, Sec. 14, town of Levis, William H. Rath; Greenwood Cheese Factory, city of Greenwood, Dr. Fuchs; Longwood Dairy Co., Longwood, Ed Swenson; Roger Creek Cheese Factory, Sec. 29, town of Thorp, Walter Fero; Hoard Cheese Factory, Sec. 11, town of Hoard, H. W. Marquardt; Star Cheese Factory, town of Lynn, Peter Jensen; Co. Farm Cheese & Butter Co., town of Grant, R. A. Zickert; Pleasant Ridge Cheese Factory, Grant Center, H. A. Martin; J. F. Steinwand, town of Colby, J. F. Steinwand; A. M. Steinwand, town of Colby, A. M. Steinwand; Mandel's Cheese Factory, town of Colby, Ernest Mandel; Blumenstein & Bornheimer, town of Colby, J. F. Tessmer; Gust Sampe, town of Colby, Gust Sampe; Chili Cheese Factory, village of Chili, O. F. Sampe; Humbird Cheese Co., Humbird, Fred Theiler; Dorchester Cheese Factory, town of Mayville, O. G. Peterson; Mayville Cheese Factory, town of Mayville, A. Natchway; Reseburg Cheese Factory, Sec. 8, town of Reseburg, Otto Sommer; Clark Co. Central Cheese Factory, town of Warner, H. W. Decker; West Side Cheese Factory, town of Warner, Zetsche & Schlinsog; Town of Warner Cheese Factory, town of Warner, Farmers' Co-operative.

The total receipts for the products of the cheese factories and creameries of Clark County for 1917 were $3,304,735.56. The cheese factories produced 13,006,294 pounds of cheese, for which $3,037,129.71 was received, which, with $6,699.50 received for other products, made the total receipts of the cheese factories $3,043,829.21. The creameries produced 626,831 pounds of butter, for which $249,723.44 was received, which, with $11,- 182.91 received for other products, made the total receipts for the creameries $260,906.35.

Following are the butter factories and creameries in Clark County March 1, 1918, furnished for this publication by George J. Weigle, Dairy and Food Commissioner of the State of Wisconsin. The abbreviation "comb." in parentheses after the name of the factory or creamery, signifies that the factory is a combined cheese factory and creamery. In the list the name of the factory or creamery is given first, then the postoffice ad- dress, then the name of the operator. Where the address of the company operating the factory is not the same as the address of the factory, the operators' address is given after his name:

Co-operative extension work in Agriculture and Home Economics has recently been inaugurated in Clark County. Money for the purpose was appropriated by the county board in the fall of 1917, and on April 1, 1918, R, V. Brown started his work as county agent. His first effort has been the organization of new cow testing associations, several of which associations are already in existence in various parts of the county.

The Clark County Agricultural Society was organized on the 15th of March, 1873, with a large membership and the following officers: John S. Dore, president; L. J. Glass, secretary and W. T. Hutchinson, treasurer, the vice-presidents being selected one from each township. The same year the Association purchased forty acres of ground in Section 23, on the outskirts of Neillsville, paying therefor $1,200; and completed improvements at a cost of $2,500.

The improvements have continued, buildings have been erected, and developments continued until the grounds now compare with any in the state. Fairs have been held annually, greatly to the benefit of county agriculture. Corn shows and local exhibitions have also been held in various parts of the county.