Dry Farmer, Creative Problem Solver

Mary Ella wrote a series of reflective articles on her and Fred's past in America Falls, Neeley, and Pocatello in the Spring of 1915 in the local American Falls Press. They've been quite the pleasure to find, and help flesh out some of the gaps in Mary Ella's life prior to meeting Fred, her mother Minerva Wade's activities, as well as Fred's own activities up until his mission in 1905. As always, they suggest further areas for research. I'll start with the April 22, 1915 article, "First Dry Farm Started in 1899" on the front page.

"First Dry Farm Started in 1889

Trials of a Pioneer in Harvesting Wheat with Scythe and Threshing by Hand – No Machinery to Harvest his Crops.
Mrs. Fred J. Kohlhepp Tells of Early Dry Farming Experiences Near American Falls – Inability to Procure Machinery Resulted in Developing Inventive Genius of Mr. Kohlhepp.

On April 7^th, 1889, Mr. Fred J. Kohlhepp went on his dry farm situated about five miles south of American Falls. He succeeded in getting in a few acres of grain and proved to his own satisfaction that dry land grain could be raised there.

He could get no machinery to harvest his crop and had to cut it with a scythe and thresh it by hand. This did not pay, so after spending all the money he had on hand, building and fencing, he returned to Pocatello on December 12^th and went to work again in the car shops. The next two years he spent in Pocatello trying to get money to buy machinery to improve his homestead, going on it only every six months to comply with the law, which was not as strict as the present time.

On June 16, 1893 he met with an accident from which he never entirely recovered. Being unable to work for wages he determined to make a success of his dry farm and hired help to break about fifty acres of land.

For several years he raised good crops of wheat but could get no machinery to cut or thresh it. Once he persuaded a man with a binder to come and bind his grain and he was filled with hope, when the team came with the machine, but when the man got on the grain field he decided the soil was too soft. It would ruin his binder, he said, so he drove away, leaving Mr. Kohlhepp in despair. But necessity is the mother of invention. He got an old mowing machine and rigged a table behind to catch the grain which was raked off by hand when enough was cut to make a bundle, thus saving several stacks.

Being unable to get it threshed he constructed a merry-go-round, using the horses to tramp the grain and thresh it with their feet. He raised good wheat and corn in 1897 when there was no rain from April to October.

In 1900 he decided to raise rye and feed it to cattle so he might have success even if the threshers failed him, so he put in about fifty acres, which yielded an excellent crop, the whole field averaging six feet in height. This drew the attention of all who came near. Many made special trips to see the wonderful dry land crop and said: “Why cannot we do likewise?” Some of them did and from that time dry land farming has grown until American Falls is one of the largest grain shipping points in the United States.

Mr. Kohlhepp had been laughed and jeered at and told his land was not worth five cents per acre, and asked if he could raise enough to feed the rabbits, which indeed were a great pest, but he persisted and proved his principle, not only in raising grain, but potatoes, peas and other products.

Had machinery been available Mr. Kohlhepp would have proved his theory twenty-three years ago, that wherever grass will grow, grain will grow, but pioneers must have patience and it sometimes take a life time to prove a principle."

Several items of interest:

(a) 1889 and Neeley property -- I assume this is the Neeley land, which I believe BLM has land grant records of. I'll need to corroborate this.

(b) Railroad work -- Notice how the article states he "went to work again in the car shops," implying that he'd worked in the car shops in Pocatello prior to 1889. I also believe his autobiography describes him doing railroad work in the West during his travels in the early 80's.

It's interesting to see for what purpose he did the railroad work -- it was for the end goal of making a success of his farm, and getting help for his land. It was ambitious, and as noted, tragic.

(c) The incident referenced feels like it means the eye incident that left him blind in one eye. A devastating injury for a 31 year old, at least according to the time that this article noted. It no doubt changed the course of Fred's life and financial prospects.

(d) The creativity Fred had here to solve his problems is impressive, and something I've wanted to understand further. I can only vaguely understand and visualize how the mower and the cattle merry go round worked. I'm curious how the animal hoof threshing didn't destroy the grain. But to be honest, I know very little about farming, so I've got a lot to learn here.

(e) Other little details: rabbit issues, public ridicule to public admiration

It's rather sad that Fred didn't have more success, in proving out a theory that others in the community then profited far more from.