2 • Centennial Farms and Ranches of North Dakota • MinotDailyNews.com
CONTENTS
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR This is the fourth annual edition of Historic Homesteads including Centennial Farms & Ranches of North Dakota. With this edition we are transitioning the magazine’s title to Historic Homesteads – farms or ranches in northwest or north central North Dakota 50 years old or more. Yet we will continue to feature centennial farms and ranches of North Dakota. The 2018-19 edition of the magazine was an award winner in the North Dakota Newspaper Association’s annual member newspaper contest this past year. North Dakota is so rich in stories about farms and ranches on the wide open prairie and in the rugged Badlands. Some farms and ranches have passed on to other families and friends but remain part of this state’s rich history and culture. Many people have contributed to the production of this edition of the magazine. In particular, we would like to thank the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame, State Historical Society of North Dakota and State Archives in the North Dakota Heritage Center & State Museum, NDSU Extension — Ward County and North Dakota Centennial Farm Program. We would also like to thank those who shared their stories and photos with us. We welcome your stories and photos about historic farms and ranches. Please read below how you can participate in Historic Homesteads. If you have comments or suggestions about the magazine, we’d like to hear from you. Comments or suggestions can be sent to eogden@minotdailynews.com. We hope you enjoy the 2019-2020 edition of Historic Homesteads: Centennial Farms & Ranches of North Dakota. We look forward to telling more stories of Historic Homesteads in future editions.
– Eloise Ogden
SEND YOUR HISTORICAL FARM OR RANCH STORIES, PHOTOS
Is your farm or ranch in northwest or north central North Dakota 50 years old or more? If so, please send us a story about your farm or ranch along with photos (not less than 200psi resolution). Email is preferred. Please send your information and photos to eogden@minotdailynews.com as soon as possible. Be sure to include your name, city and a daytime phone number. Your farm or ranch may be selected for the next edition of the Historic Homesteads: Centennial Farms & Ranches of North Dakota magazine. Suggestions for stories on historic homesteads in northwest and north central North Dakota are also accepted.
FARMS
4 8 12
Brekke Farm Skinningsrud Farm Rodgers Farm
14 16 21
Bryn Ranch Effertz Key Ranch Murray Ranch
7 11 18 22
RANCHES
EXTRAS
ND Cowboy Hall of Fame ND Homemakers Farm, Ranch Museums Threshing Stone ~COVER PHOTO~
Alma Skinningsrud is shown with chickens on the Skinningsrud farm in the Berthold-Carpio area. The house where Gilbert and Alma Skinningsrud raised six children is behind her. This photo is from the Skinningsrud Family Collection. Gulbrand Skinningsrud, who later changed his first name to Gilbert, took many photos with his large Kodak camera of life on the priarie. Those images were recorded on many glass negatives in the early 1900s.
HISTORIC HOMESTEADS: CENTENNIAL FARMS & RANCHES OF NORTH DAKOTA 2019-20
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR • ELOISE OGDEN EOGDEN@MINOTDAILYNEWS.COM
ART DIRECTOR • MANDY TANIGUCHI MTANIGUCHI@MINOTDAILYNEWS.COM
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS JILL SCHRAMM SUE SITTER SHYANNE BELZER
A PUBLICATION OF MINOT DAILY NEWS AND THE PIERCE COUNTY TRIBUNE.
MinotDailyNews.com • Centennial Farms and Ranches of North Dakota • 3
Historic Brekke Farm The roof of the barn on the Brekke farm, an inverted hull, was designed by a ship builder.
4 • Historic Homesteads • MinotDailyNews.com
This picture of the Brekke farm was taken on Aug. 6, 1914, on Duane Brekke’s grandfather H.O. Brekke’s 50th birthday. Oats was being threshed for neigh bors using a 1912 Minneapo lis tractor 25-50.
Brekke farm homesteaded at Simcoe in 1904 Story and Photos By DUANE BREKKE
In 1898 Johanna and H.O. Brekke arrived in Churchs Ferry with three young children, having left Bergen, Norway, six weeks earlier. They arrived through Philadelphia, as Johanna had lost an eye in an accident and would not be able to pass the physical at Ellis Island. After landing they took the railroad to Devils Lake, the ferry to Churchs Ferry, then an ox cart to Harvey, where they initially settled. Continued on Page 6
Only big barn in USA with 100% railroad tie floor
The barn on the Brekke farm at Simcoe is believed to be the only big barn in the United States with a 100% railroad tie floor. Four hundred sixty-eight railroad ties, many as long as 16 feet, were installed on a clay and gravel bed for the floor of the big barn when it was built. Two pair of ice tongs were used for installation. The barn was raised 36 inches. The walls all had 2x6 studs and now they are 4x6 with 16-inch on center. The roof, an inverted hull, was designed by a ship builder. Ships are designed to be in the water 24-7 forever. – Duane Brekke MinotDailyNews.com • Historic Homesteads • 5
H.O. was not the typical immigrant. He was 35 years old, married, with three young children. He also had made money and saved a good amount. He settled northeast of Harvey in a heavily populated German community. There was a language barrier there for H.O. and his family. In 1901 a son, Sam, was born. In the winter of 1902, H.O. rode the Soo Line to Voltaire, where he strapped on his skis and took off to the northwest, crossing the Mouse River, continuing northwest until he reached the Hystad family in North Prairie Township. Finding a common language, he decided to homestead one mile south of Simcoe in 1904. In 1907 and 1908 he built a very large barn, 58-by-60 feet with a full hayloft, designed to house four working teams of horses. The oldest son, Chris, was a big 15-year-old at this time. He started breaking sod with good work teams. Chris and a neighbor boy would use a team until noon and then switched to another team for the afternoon. Over the next nine years, Chris and two neighbor young men broke hundreds of acres of sod. While this was taking place Chris became a horse expert, taking care and treating horse wounds and ailments. He also was trading horses with a horse trader in Karlsruhe, New Rockford and every winter he would travel to Valley City – always improving his herd. At this time he joined the Granville National Guard, where he trained with the Cavalry. Because of his love of horses and ability to master them, he became the veterinarian. In 1917 the Granville National Guard was called up for World War I. They were sent to Fort Pike, Ark. Chris became one of the veterinarians at the Army post. He died in the service in 1918 Chris’ death dramatically changed the farming operation for H.O. Chris, the oldest boy in the family, was to inherit the farm and he was the horseman. Sam, the next in line, had no desire for horses. He was a mechanical man. His loves were the tractors and threshing machines. H.O. ended up continuing to farm. For a winter quarter, Sam attended North Dakota Agricultural College in Fargo, for a farm mechanics program. His love for mechanics was with him for the rest of his life. He was the go-to-man to neighbors for repairs on their farm equipment. His interest in horses was minimal. As a boy, I was not as mechanically inclined; therefore I would head to the barn. It was my refuge. (Today, the Brekke farm, owned by Duane and Jeanne Brekke of Minot, is a fully active farm. In 2004, the Brekkes, who have hosted many visiting Norwegians, received a free trip to Norway courtesy of a Norwegian travel agency. While there, they had the opportunity to be hosted by families in Trondheim, Norway, an area where Duane Brekke’s grandparents lived.)
TOP LEFT: Chris Brekke, oldest son of H.O. and Johanna Brekke, who was to inherit the Brekke farm, died in World War I.
Photo by Eloise Ogden
BOTTOM LEFT: Duane Brekke shows a picture of the Brekke farm at Simcoe. The framed photo was taken in the 1970s.
6 • Historic Homesteads • MinotDailyNews.com
Come ride with us!
ND Cowboy Hall of Fame celebrates 25th anniversary By ELOISE OGDEN
The North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame will kick off its yearlong 25th anniversary celebration at the organization’s annual meeting Feb. 21-22, 2020, at 4 Bears Casino & Lodge, west of New Town. Events begin with entertainment Friday evening, followed by the annual meeting on Saturday. A 25th anniversary commemorative painting created by artist Andrew Knudson, a native of Minot, will be available in limited quantities on canvas and as a poster. Both will be available at the annual meeting. The idea for a North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame originated when Evelyn Neuens, a seasoned western icon from Bismarck, her sister Goldie Nutter and Phil Baird of Mandan, author of “40 Years of North Dakota Rodeo,” were traveling on a stretch of U.S. Highway 83 on their way home from the 40th anniversary event of the Minot’s Y’s Men’s Rodeo in Minot. They came up with an idea that turned into the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame. N.D. Cowboy Hall of Fame was formally established with a board of directors and officially incorporated in 1995. With extensive fundraising, the organization opened in Medora its North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame – Center of Western Heritage & Cultures: Native American, Ranching and Rodeo. Submitted Photo Each year the organization accepts nominations and inducts those selected This North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame 25th an- as honorees in the Hall of Fame. niversary commemorative painting was done by Rick Thompson is executive director of the N.D. Cowboy Hall of Fame. For more about the organization, visit northdakotacowboy.com. artist Andrew Knudson, a native of Minot.
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MinotDailyNews.com • Historic Homesteads • 7
Alma Skinningsrud is shown with chickens on the Skinningsrud farm. The house where Gilbert and Alma Skinningsrud raised six children is behind her.
Skinningsrud Farm Gilbert Skinningsrud homesteaded in the Berthold-Carpio area Photos from Skinningsrud Family Collection 8 • Historic Homesteads • MinotDailyNews.com
Gilbert Skinningsrud is in the homestead shack he built before beginning to prove up his homestead in Carpio Township, Ward County.
By ELOISE OGDEN North Dakota became a state the same year Gulbrand Skinningsrud left his home on a farm in Hadelaen, Valdres, Norway, and came to the United States. When he left the farm in Norway, he was walking down the road and his mother called him back. She removed her wedding ring and gave it to him, said his son, Oliver “Ole” Skinningsrud. Gulbrand arrived in the U.S. in 1898. He had relatives in Mayville, where he went to work for two years. In 1900 he traveled to the Berthold-Carpio area. There he built a homestead shack and began to prove up his homestead in Carpio Township, Ward County. In 1908 Skinningsrud, who had changed his first name to Gilbert, rented out his farm and made a trip back to Norway. A 1908-dated flyer for an auction at the Skinningsrud farm listed several horses, a milk cow and calf and farm equipment for sale. Gilbert Skinningsrud returned to his North Dakota homestead in the fall and began farming again. A few years later Alma Legrid arrived in the area in 1913 from Appleton, Minn., to teach school. She used to walk three or four miles between her home with an area family and school before there were any roads, said Ole Skinningsrud. Gilbert and Alma met and on June 22, 1916, they were married in Minot. That same year Gilbert built a house where they lived and raised their six children: Thelma, Gerald, Elaine, Paul, Inez and Ole. “All of us lived in that house,” said Ole Skinningsrud, indicating a photo of his mother with chickens and a small two-story house in the background. “There was an upstairs with one big room,” he recalled. He said a blanket was hung to divide the boys’ and girls’ bedroom. The main floor of the house had a kitchen, pantry, bedroom and an entry. “It didn’t seem so small when we were little,” Ole Skinningsrud recalled. He said they had a large garden on the farm. “I remember we used to haul coal in for the coal stove in the house. We used to go to Hartland to get the coal,” he said. Hartland is southwest of Carpio. Continued on Page 10
ABOVE: Gilbert and Alma Skinningsrud are on their way to church.
LEFT: Women wore long skirts when they helped make hay in earlier years, as shown in this photo.
BOTTOM: Gilbert Skinningsrud drives a team of horses to break sod. In the winter the sod was placed against the house to provide insulation from the winter weather.
MinotDailyNews.com • Historic Homesteads • 9
LEFT: The Skinningsrud family: Gilbert, Ole, Alma, Thelma, Gerald, Elaine, Paul and boxer dog Penny. Inez is not shown. She died in 1943. BELOW: A gathering occurs at Gilbert Skinningsrud’s homestead shack.
Wheat, oats and barley were among the crops grown on the Skinningsrud farm in the early years. When it was harvest time, Ole Skinningsrud recalled, the neighbors would bring horses and wagons and they’d haul bundles and thresh the grain. “It was a fun time,” he said. “We used to have a binder and an old 10-20. I’d drive the 10-20 (McCormickDeering tractor) and my dad would drive the binder,” Ole Skinningsrud said. Gilbert Skinningsrud also was a musician and a photographer. He could play violin. He also took photos with a large Kodak camera of life on the prairie. Those images were recorded on many glass negatives in the early 1900s. Gilbert died in 1959 and Alma in 1967. Their children took up various occupations: Thelma taught school; Gerald managed lumberyards in Berthold and then Carpio; Elaine was a bookkeeper in Minot, Carpio and then at the Mohall hospital; Inez attended Minot State University; and Paul and Ole took over the farming operation. In 2005 Ole Skinningsrud gave his father’s 10-20 McCormick-Deering tractor to the Makoti Threshing Show. Gilbert Skinningsrud bought the tractor in 1928 from Sundahl Implement in Makoti. Ole Skinningsrud said it was the right thing to return the tractor to the community where it came from and to preserve its history there.
RIGHT: Gilbert and Alma Skinningsrud married on June 22, 1916, in Minot. BELOW: Albert Leathes delivers the mail in Carpio Township to the Skinningsrud farm.
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10 • Historic Homesteads • MinotDailyNews.com
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Memories of North Dakota homemakers By ELOISE OGDEN
“Sods, Logs, & Tar-paper,” “Clothes Lines, Party Lines & Hemlines” and “Courtin’, Cookin’ & Castor Oil,” three books in a series with memories of North Dakota homemakers, were done in 1988, 1989 and 1990, respectively. They were an oral history project of the North Dakota Extension Homemakers Council. The first book, “Sods, Logs, & Tarpaper,” tells about immigrants who came to the new state of North Dakota around the turn of the century, how they established their homes and the hardships they endured while they also enjoyed fun times. The second book, “Clothes Lines, Party Lines & Hemlines,” has stories from the narrators, telling about their lives as children and women, mainly in the era from about 1890 to 1930 when farms and small towns were isolated and self-contained. Care of the family and the house and garden were the chore of the homemaker but many women also helped with the farm work. “Courtin,’ Cookin’ & Castor Oil,” the third book in the series, documents the lives of women during this time of many changes, including the coming of electricity. These women worked along with the men on the farm. Illness was common and few doctors were available to treat the ill so they relied on self-care, including folk remedies. The project, “Memories of North Dakota Homemakers,” was funded by the North Dakota Humanities Council. Interviews were conducted by volunteers in the counties. All 53 counties in North Dakota participated in the project. Arlene Sagness was the sole editor of the first two books and Florence Grenz and Sagness were editors of the third book. The three books are available at Minot Public Library.
On the farm ‘They had to work hard and got us to where we are’ By ELOISE OGDEN
Many families had large gardens on their farms to grow their own food. “That was just a habit. Everyone had a garden,” said Ruth Wurtz of Minot. Wurtz grew up south of Ryder in Gate Township in McLean County. She said her mother was a good cook who prepared plain everyday food for their family. They raised their cattle and chickens on their farm, some of it used for meat for their meals. “Everything was raised there,” she said. Women didn’t have all the appliances in those days as they do now. “It was a lot of hard work,” Wurtz said. “My mother had a gasoline-motored kick-start washing machine. Quite often she couldn’t get it started but eventually it would start.” Before washing machines, she said, women had to use washboards to wash their family’s clothes. “Grandma did,” she said. “I don’t know how ladies got all these things done. There were no shortcuts,” she said. “I was lucky. I started out with everything new,” she said. She said she had an all-electric kitchen. Ruth Wurtz married Everett Wurtz in 1949 and they farmed for many years in Gate Township. She said her husband, a master electrician, helped wire many farms when the Rural Electrification Association came into the area. Of those who didn’t have the luxury of modern-day appliances and other equipment, she said, “I think we need to remember: They had to work hard and got us to where we are.” She is a longtime member of the Happy Hour Homemakers Club.
nsccu.com
MinotDailyNews.com • Historic Homesteads • 11
RodgersFarm
Farm passed on from one generation to next By SHYANNE BELZER There is no question that North Dakota is an agricultural state with so many farms sprawling across the land. On many of these farms, the job of a farmer and working the land has been passed from parent to child for a few generations, with farming being a family job. One area farm, run by Howard Rodgers, is on its third generation. His grandfather, Harry John Rodgers, homesteaded there in the early 1900s. Harry Rodgers married Bessie Enger on March 14, 1911. Howard’s father, Harold Harry Rodgers, served in World War II. When he came home from the war he started farming. He and his wife, Mary Ellen, were married June 25, 1949. Howard and Janet Rodgers’ family farm is near Max with around 3,400 acres of land. Farming is something he’s been doing for as long as he can remember. The way of farming and the lifestyle that comes with it has always been something he really enjoyed and always kept going back to. 12 • Historic Homesteads • MinotDailyNews.com
“I attended North Dakota State University and I would come back every summer to help with the farm work. Then I graduated in 1981 and I got married in 1985. I have just always farmed,” said Howard Rodgers. He currently grows small grains, such as wheat, canola, flax and soybeans. While some farms in North Dakota will also raise cattle, Rodgers said he no longer does, having sold them awhile back. Without cattle, there was no need for a barn, so he took it down. Once the barn was gone, he built a shop where it once stood so he could do some work during the winter. The only animal on the farm now is the family’s dog. According to Rodgers, the best part of being a farmer is the special time and opportunities it gives him to spend time and hang out with his kids. “It’s a great time to transfer values and have quality time in a good quantity,” said Rodgers. “There’s a lot of work to be done so we can have a lot of time to do it and it gives me a chance to teach them and pass things along.” Family has always been important to Rodgers,
so having the opportunity to be able to work on the farm with them is one of the biggest enjoyments to him. Working on the same goal really brings everyone together, he said. Doing tasks and jobs together makes the family stronger, and as anyone who farms or has farmed knows, there is a lot of time together with all the work that goes into it all. One of the Rodgers’ children, Caleb, is following in his father’s footsteps. Caleb is a fourth generation farmer, taking on the family job. He lives and works on the farm, also raising a fifth generation of boys. “Our shop is used as a base of operations for the farm repairs, my son’s repair business, Rodgers Repair, and a nonprofit ministry called Grace Corporation, which provides transportation to missionaries while home on furlough,” said Howard Rodgers Farming isn’t always an easy job, but it is something that Rodgers takes pride in doing. It isn’t the only activity that Rodgers devotes his time to though. According to his mother, Mary Rodgers, he is also very active in his local church.
Submitted Photos
ABOVE: This current photo of the Howard and Janet Rodgers farm in the Max area gives a panoramic view of the farmstead. There are no structures left from the original yard, said Howard Rodgers.
MIDDLE: The Howard and Janet Rodgers’ farm in the Max area started as a homestead. The farm has been passed from parent to child for a few generations. This photo was taken in the 1920s. LEFT: This is a recent photo of the Rodgers family.
MinotDailyNews.com • Historic Homesteads • 13
Bryn Ranch Submitted Photo
ABOVE: The Ole A. Bryn family poses outside their farmhouse near Berwick in this circa 1904 photo. Photo by Sue Sitter
RIGHT: Aaron Bryn, left, poses with his parents, Ole and Amy Bryn, on the porch of the family farmhouse. The home is more than 100 years old.
Generations of Bryn family keep ranch going By SUE SITTER
When towns sprouted across the new state of North Dakota nearly 130 years ago, homesteads appeared around them at a steady pace as settlers filed claims on land up for grabs. Members of Amund Bryn’s large family joined the land rush in the early 1880s, leaving Gudbrandsdalen, Norway, a few at a time, until Amund, his wife, and several of their 17 children were in Minnesota. From there, they settled in parts of Dakota Territory, staking claims in what would become Pierce County, near present day Balta. Sons Ole A. and Thorvald Bryn made the voyage to the United States separately from their other family members and joined four of their siblings at Lac Qui Parle County in Minnesota. Ole worked on farms in Minnesota and eastern North Dakota to save money to stake a claim of his own. In 1886, Ole A. Bryn traveled to Devils Lake,
14 • Historic Homesteads • MinotDailyNews.com
and filed a tree claim for property on the northwestern edge of Pierce County in Dewey Township. He set about proving up the land, built a sod home, and planted shelterbelts. He married Martha Stutrud, began a family and built a wooden farmhouse for them. Ole’s sister Ronnog and brother Paul would file claims near his land a few years later, and around the same time, the McHenry County town of Berwick sprang up just to the south. Over the next several decades, other Dewey Township homesteads changed hands, and people gradually moved from the area. Berwick faded away, leaving a cluster of vacant buildings along a gravel road off what is now U.S. Highway 2. However, the neat wooden home Ole A. Bryn built for his family in 1896 still stands, its exterior protected by new buttercream-colored siding, porch coated in russet paint and insulated windows decorated with drawings done by Ole A. Bryn’s great-great granddaughters. “It was built in pieces,” Ole A. Bryn’s grand-
son, Ole I. Bryn said of the family home as he sat at the kitchen table. “The first part was built in 1896, and then they built onto the north side later, and this part,” he said of the kitchen, “this was built in 1903.” Ole I. Bryn and his wife, Amy, have lived in the home since they married in 1961. However, Ole I. grew up in a different home on land adjacent to his grandfather’s, the quarter once owned by Ronnog Bryn. His father, Melvin, had filed a claim on the land 15 years after Ronnog’s death. Melvin and Florence continued farming, and helped Ole A. Bryn with his operation as the years passed and Martha Bryn’s health declined. They had two sons, Milo, who taught mathematics at South Dakota State University, and Ole I. Bryn, who took over the farming operation. Although Melvin and Florence began their marriage and farming years in 1931, Ole said he couldn’t recall any stories his dad told him about starting out during the Great Depression and Dust Bowl.
Submitted Photos
TOP: This circa 1904 photo shows the family of Amund Bryn.
MIDDLE: Aaron Bryn with wife Koreen and children Josie, left, Leah, Reid and Emily are shown in this photo.
LEFT: Ole A. Bryn sits in the parlor of his home, circa 1940s.
“It wasn’t much fun, I’ll tell you that,” Ole noted. Amy Bryn recalled one story: “Remember the story (Melvin) told about it being so cold the water in the kitchen turned to ice, and it cracked?” “Oh, yes,” Ole said. “They lived in a two-room house, and one night, it was so cold, ice froze in a bucket in the kitchen. They could hear the ice cracking, and my mother had to keep Milo under blankets to stay warm.” Family lore from further back in time tells of Ole A. Bryn and his neighbors surviving a terrible blizzard, and helping one of them recover from severe frostbite on both of his hands. But the Bryn family endured, and their interest in farming and ranching continued through four generations. After Ole A. Bryn’s death in 1954, the house stood empty until Ole I. and Amy Bryn moved in seven years later. Although drought and grasshoppers tested the newlyweds in their first year, their cattle, wheat and barley operation grew. They had three sons: Michael Gene, who owns a body shop in Towner; Rodney Melvin, who works for John Deere in Crookston, Minnesota, and Aaron Reid, who now operates the family ranch. “All my kids are interested in farming right now,” Aaron said, “but the oldest is only 13. My oldest is Emily, then there’s Josie, Leah and Reid,” he added, pointing to a family photo that sits on a shelf made by the children’s Grandpa Ole. Amy brought out more of Ole’s handiwork – a box with a 3D design of inlaid wood. “He does woodworking now that he’s retired,” she said. “He built cupboards above my washing machine and in the bathroom, and he built a china closet.” Aaron said he’s happy to keep the family ranch going into another generation. He oversees 2,500 acres, mostly devoted to Angus and Charolais Hereford beef cattle. He also grows some acres of oats. Aaron and his wife, Koreen, live in a home with their children north of his parents’ home. “It gets in your blood,” Aaron said of agriculture.
MinotDailyNews.com • Historic Homesteads • 15
Effertz Key Ranch Velva ranch originated as a homestead in 1903
16 • Historic Homesteads • MinotDailyNews.com
This is the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame plaque telling about Gerald “Pat” Effertz’s induction in the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame’s Hall of Honorees. Gerald “Pat” Effertz, the youngest of eight children was 13 in 1938 when his father Joseph died, leaving he and his two older brothers to help their mother Hannah hold onto the farm homesteaded in 1903, near Velva. After graduating and serving in the Merchant Marines for two years, Effertz returned home and worked in Minot until he was able to rent and then buy the home farm from his oldest brother. His ranching life began by convincing a banker he could buy young feeder cows from the sale barn and use homegrown feed to add weight for profit. In 1950, he married Loretta Ann Bodine and they began to build a family and ranch that would eventually produce 13 children and 40 annual bull sales. The switch to seed stock production began with purchase of a Charolais cow in 1959 and the purchase of grazing land 25 miles north of the Velva homestead. Today, the cattle operation of registered Charolais, Salers and composite cattle is managed by several of Effertz’s sons. Effertz embraced the traditional values of ranching, but also recognized the need to adopt new technology and innovations. Tools such as performance testing, EPDs and DNA testing to improve ranch, feedlot, carcass and
Submitted Photos
Today, the Effertz Key Ranch cattle operation of registered Charolais, Salers and composite cattle is managed by several of Gerald “Pat” and Loretta Effertz’s sons.
eating quality have always been the focus at Effertz Key Ranch. This has resulted in numerous repeat customers, National Champions and Pen of Bulls Champions at national shows as well as many winning entries at the Midland Bull Test. Effertz is a 53-year member of the North Dakota Stockmen’s Association and served on the Beef Cattle Improvement Association and the N.D. Beef Commission. He was national president and vice president of the American Salers Association, and served on both the Animal Health and Taxation committees of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. He has also received the 1974 NDSU Alumni Association Agriculturist Award, the 1986 NDSU Agriculturist of the Year award, the 1991 Pioneer Breeders Award from the N.D. Cattle Breeders Association and was presented the 2010 Rancher of the Year Award by the North Dakota Stockmen’s Association. In 2017 he was recognized as the patriarch of a North Dakota Century Family with more than 100 years of 4-H membership. Gerald “Pat” Effertz was inducted in the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame Hall of Honorees in the Modern-Era Ranching category in 2019. – Information from North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame
Submittted Photo
Gerald “Pat” Effertz, fourth from right, was among 2019 inductees in the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame Hall of Honorees. He was inducted in the Ranching (Modern-era) category. Photo from Marie Odermann, Annie O Photography. The induction ceremony was held June 15, 2019, at Tjaden Terrace, west of Medora.
MinotDailyNews.com • Historic Homesteads • 17
Museums tell story of ND farms, ranches By ELOISE OGDEN
Anyone interested in learning more about agriculture – farms, ranches, machinery, Native American agriculture, early-day life on the prairie or in the Badlands – can visit a number of area museums. Mark Halvorson, curator of Collections Research for the State Historical Society of North Dakota in Bismarck, said there are many static displays across the region, some large, some small, but worth a visit. Threshing shows held in several locations between June to September are “educational, fun” and there’s good food as well, he said. The North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame Center of Western Heritage and Cultures in Medora has one of the most extensive collections of ranch life in North Dakota. The North Dakota Heritage Center & State Museum covers a wide variety of topics in exhibits there. North Dakota museums with agriculture-related displays include: 1. Bottineau County Historical Society N. Main St. Bottineau 228-2355
2. Buffalo Trails Museum Main Street Epping 3. Burke County Historical Society Village Off Highway 50 Powers Lake 4. Cando Pioneer Foundation & Museum 502 Main St. Cando 968-3943
5. Dale & Martha Hawk Museum (Farm Show - 2nd weekend of June) 4839-78th St. NE Rural Wolford 583-2381 6. Divide County Historical Society (Annual Threshing Show - 3rd weekend in July) 412 5th Ave. SW Crosby 965-6321
The North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame Center of Western Heritage and Cultures has one of the most extensive collections of ranch life in North Dakota. Photo by Eloise Ogden
7. Dunn County Historical Society 153 Museum Trail Dunn Center 548-8111
13. Frontier Museum 6330 2nd Ave. W Williston 580-2415
16. Knife River Villages National Historic Site 564 County Rd. 37 Stanton 745-3300
14. Joachim Regional 17. Lake Region Heritage Museum Center Dickinson Museum 502 4th St. NE Center Devils Lake 188 Museum Drive East 662-3701 Dickinson 465-6225 18. Lansford Threshers & Historical Association 15. Lake Country 9. Flickertail Village Museum Historical Society (Threshing bee last Hwy. 2 E. weekend of June) 4 2nd St. Stanley Lansford Kenmare 628-2326
8. Eddy County Museum & Historical Society (Central N.D. Steam Threshing Reunion - 3rd weekend in September) 1115 1st Ave. N New Rockford
19. Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center (Fort Mandan) 2576 8th St. SW Washburn 877-462-8535
20. Lewis & Clark Trail Museum 102 Indiana Ave. E Alexander
21. Makoti Threshing Association Pioneer Village (Makoti Threshers Association - threshing bee, last weekend of September) Makoti
10. Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park 4480 Fort Lincoln Rd Mandan 667-6340
11. Fort Union Trading Post National Historic Site 15550 Highway 1804 Williston 572-9083 12. Foster County Historical Socity 2nd St. & 16th Ave. S Carrington 653-5473
18 • Historic Homesteads • MinotDailyNews.com
Photo by Eloise Ogden
Paul Broste Rock Museum in Parshall has the largest rock collection in the state.
26. North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame Center of Western Heritage & Cultures 250 Main St. Medora 623-2000
22. McKenzie County Heritage Park 950 2nd Ave. SW Watford City 204-1554 23. McLean County Historical Society 602 Main Ave Washburn 462-3744 24. Mercer County Historical Society 108 7th St. NE Beulah 873-5070
27. Paul Broste Rock Museum 508 Main St. N Parshall 862-3264
25. Missouri-Yellowstone Confluence Interpretive Center (Fort Buford State Historical Site) 15349 39th Lane NW Williston 572-9034
28. Pioneer Historical Society for Sheridan County 609 Frank St. W Goodrich
29. Pioneer Trails Museum Hanks
30. Pioneer Museum of McKenzie County (Also Long X Trading Post Visitor Center) 100 2nd Ave. SW Watford City 444-2990 444-5804 or 1-800701-2804
31. Prairie Village & Museum 102 Hwy. 2 SE Rugby 776-6414
32. Ray Opera House Museum Society 111 Main St. Ray
33. Renville County Museum & Historical Society 504 1st St. NE Mohall 240-7015
Photo by Andrea Johnson
Pioneer Village Museum, operated by the Ward County Historical Society, moved to a new site at Burlington in 2019. This is the original Ward County Courthouse.
34. Rolette County Historical Society 119 6th Ave. NE St. John
35. Ryder Historical Society Main Street Ryder
36. Three Tribes Museum 202 Frontage Rd New Town 627-4477
Photo by Jill Schramm
The interior in a homestead house moved to Flickertail Village, Stanley, represents life on the prairie in the early 1900s.
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37. Tioga Historical Society — Norseman Museum Corner of 2nd St. NE and Welo St. Tioga
38. Pioneer Village Museum Ward County Historical Society 8181 Hwy. 2/52 West Burlington 839-0785
Sources include: State Historical Society of ND’s 2017 Museum and Organization Directory and Mark J. Halvorson, curator of Collections Research, SHSND
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Murray operated one of Mercer County’s first ranches Ralph Murray maintained and improved one of Mercer County’s first ranches. Ralph Francis Murray was born Oct. 3, 1911, on his family’s homestead at Beulah and spent his lifetime in Mercer County He owned and operated the Ralph Murray Ranch, 12 miles southwest of Beulah, from 1948 until 1971. The ranch consisted of about 3,600 acres of deeded land. He also leased about 1,500 acres on North Dakota state school trust land. The ranch was started by Tom Keogh in 1896. The Keoghs were old family friends, known for their kindness and helpfulness, which they extended to Ralph when he bought the ranch from Tom and his sons, Paul and Clarence. Murray grew his operation to a herd of about 300 cows, careful not to overburden his pastures. He raised Herefords and purchased many bulls from the Miles City (Mont.) Experiment Station, building up a high quality herd. He did much of his own veterinary work, using skills learned from his father. He was well known to help out more than a few neighbors when they needed a hand caring for an animal. Murray was a good neighbor and one of the “old school” cowboys who preferred working with cattle on horseback rather than a noisy motorized vehicle. He kept a herd of up to a dozen horses, many of which he broke himself. In the early ranch years, he hauled hay to feed the cows in winter using a flatbed sled pulled by a team of mules. He sold the ranch to Don and Kay Voigt in 1971. Currently, it is known as the Coyote Creek Ranch, operated by Casey and Julie Voigt. Murray also participated in many local rodeos. He was rodeo arena director for the Beulah Cowboy’s Reunion Rodeo. He was elected first vice president of the newly formed North Dakota Rodeo Association in 1952. He was a 50-year member of the N.D. Stockmen’s Association, a charter member and director of the Mercer County Farm Bureau and N.D. Brand Inspector. His volunteer positions included that of charter member and director of the Beulah Chamber of Commerce, leader in the Knife River 4-H Club, president of the Mercer County 4-H Club Council, board member of the Beulah Congregational Church and board member of Beulah County Nursing Home. Murray died May 9, 2004, in Beulah. He was inducted in the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame in the Modern-Era Ranching category in 2018.
Murray was a good neighbor and one of the “old school” cowboys who preferred working with cattle on horseback rather than a noisy motorized vehicle.
– Information from North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame.
Submitted Photos
Ralph Murray, shown in earlier days and later, maintained and improved one of Mercer County’s first ranches.
MinotDailyNews.com • Historic Homesteads • 21
Threshing stone: An early technology to thresh grain
ABOVE: A threshing stone is displayed in the North Dakota Heritage Center & State Museum in Bismarck. Photo by Eloise Ogden
RIGHT: A family in North Dakota uses the threshing stone shown in this approximately 1900 photo. The family came to N.D. from Bessarabia, part of the Russian Empire in earlier days. Submitted Photo
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By ELOISE OGDEN A primitive-type grain thresher made of stone called the threshing stone was used for a time in North Dakota’s early days. A roller-like tool, one of these large oblong-shaped stones is on display in the North Dakota Heritage Center & State Museum in Bismarck. This threshing stone was used by Leonty Teachmond, who emigrated from Odessa, Russia, to the United States in 1899. The solid granite stone weighs about 39 1/2 pounds and weighs about 168 pounds, according to State Historical Society of North Dakota information. “He came over and made his homestead in Ward County,” said Mark Halvorson, curator of Collections Research for the State Historical Society of North Dakota. Teachmond acquired a homestead in Iota Flats Township in Ward County near Benedict in 1908. Teachmond made the the threshing stone between 1900 and 1901. It was pulled by a minimum of three horses to thresh grain on a threshing plaza, according to the State Historical Society of N.D. information. The threshing stone was used to knock the grain from the head because it was less labor intensive than the traditional way of using a threshing flail, a hand tool used for threshing. “Germans from Russia used these,” said Halvorson, indicating the threshing stone on display. “These were becoming obsolete by the 1890s because even in Russia they were going to horse-powered or boiler-powered threshing machines,” Halvorson said. He said some American manufacturers were exporting farm equipment to the Russia Empire. In Odessa, they were doing some manufacturing of the smaller farm equipment like drills or simple plows, he added. The threshing stone is displayed in the Inspiration Gallery: Yesterday and Today.
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