Archive of: Farming

Three-year-old Janet Schultze gets comfortable on her father Floyd Schultze’s two-cylinder, nine horsepower tractor. This was no child’s toy, however, as this miniature machine was strong enough to pull a 12-inch plow or a 56-inch disc cultivator.

Floyd Schultze ran a tractor repair shop in Chenoa.

Construction of a corn crib nears completion at the John C. Thomas farm southeast of Bloomington. This crib, with a 5,000 bushel capacity, featured extra heavy framing, as Thomas looked to the future when it might be converted to the storage of shelled corn.

In late June 1951, the McLean County 4-H market lamb show was held at the Producers Stock Yards, located at East LaFayette Street and the Illinois Central Railroad on the south end of Bloomington. Here’s Roger Risser of Danvers (left) showing off his “best pen of three.” That’s Wayne Mohr on the right.

These patient 4-H members are waiting for something to wrap up before they can enjoy their meal. Note the needlework in front of them and the quilts behind. This mystery photograph comes from the Museum’s extensive collection of McLean County Home Bureau photographs. The Home Bureau is now known as the McLean County Association for Home and Community Education.

We don’t know the who, what, where, or why of this photograph. If you can help us with identifications, we’d sure appreciate it!

This mystery photograph comes from the Museum’s collection of Pantagraph negatives. We don’t know the names of these kids or the rural location of this cistern or stock pond. If you can help with the identification, let us know!

Arnold Beatty (left) and Colman Hicks, at the O.V. Douglass farm outside of Shirley, demonstrate patching a worn-out tire after yet another blowout. With a severe wartime shortage of rubber tires, area farmers were calling for the reintroduction of metal wheels for tractors and wagons.

Jane and Doug Freitag horse around with a canine friend at their family farm outside of Stanford in Allin Township.

Thelma Thomas and her brother Glenn examine her grand champion gilt at the Illinois State Normal University Farm.

A Corn Belt harvest time tradition involves farmers helping fellow farmers in need. Sixty-six years ago, in early November 1950, friends of Euel Roberts picked his 560-acre corn crop and then filled his crib.

The Farmers’ and Teachers’ Institute was held in mid-December 1909 at the “Normal University,” as ISU was most often called back then. A highlight of the corn exhibit room was a county map made of corn by nine boys from Price School.

Local, state, and national corn husking contests were all the rage in the 1930s. Seen here are the winners of the 1939 national husking championship outside of Lawrence, Kansas.

Farmer Joel Yordy (right) and his son Willard pose in front of a smartly trimmed Osage orange hedgerow in Heyworth.

Back in the late 1950s, livestock farmer Walter Schroeder (second from right) of rural Bloomington Township fattened about 500 head of cattle a year.

That’s a proud Walter Gottschalk of Danvers at the 1958 McLean County 4-H Club Fair posing with his grand champion gilt hog.

The James W. Owen Nursery maintained a 100-acre “Victory” tomato field east of Bloomington. Back in 1942, Owen Nursery was located on the 1200 block of East Oakland Avenue.

Henry E. Klafke was a Normal Township breeder of Duroc Jersey hogs. He’s seen here watching over the scrub down of his hog houses in preparation for fall litters.

Seen here is Delores Moser of Roanoke with her Poland China barrow (“barrow” being a castrated male swine) judged Woodford County grand champion of all breeds in 1950.

Ralph G. Blue (right) and Harold Davis (with clipboard) weigh steers using a scale box. They’re seen here in early July 1957 at Frank Simpson’s feedlot outside of Farmer City in DeWitt County.

Seen here is “Golden Gleam,” who captured the top prize in the parade class. The trophy winning horse was owned by Harold Mortland of Streator but was ridden by Pete Bradley.

Back in June 1941, E.D. Lawrence, who farmed the Brown estate ten miles east of Bloomington, experimented with blowing chopped hay in the barn mow instead of moving baled hay the traditional method.