Here are a few pictures I have run across on the internet and had saved. Just a few to help us think of a little warmer weather (as shown in the background of the pictures) since many of us have been blasted with cold snowy weather across the midwest. Even so, many people have feed grinding and grain processing/shelling going on even when the weather is brisk outside.
One of my favorites is the last one which appears to be a grandfather/granddaughter with the little dog, where they posed for a moment amid the work probably for grandma to take a picture. I would venture to say it was taken a few years back by the color tones and style of the gentleman's eyeglasses.
That Crib in the middle pics is interesting. I don't think I have seen one like that before. It doesn't appear to have a roof ?
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Randy Freshour Member: White County Antique Power Association, Indiana Allis Chalmers Partners Own: 1955 Wd45, 1953 AC 66 All Crop "Small Bin" Combine, #53 3-16 plow, various other implements
Great photos! I remember helping my dad grind ear corn from the corn crib, crawling inside and pushing corn down to the hopper. As I got older, it seemed that I was the one shoveling out the crib-gee I wonder how that worked out?!?! I was just a little tyke when we would go up the road and help the neighbor shell out his double corn crib. He also had on of those long narrow cribs as well. Both are still standing. There is one of the longest corn cribs I have ever seen located near the intersection of Hwy 52 and MN State Hwy 44 near Mabel, MN. I am pretty sure it is still standing but has not been used for awhile. Jimla, I bet you know the one I am talking about.
Sure do! Right next to the old truck stop. That is a big one. I dont think I have ever seen corn in it either?
The D17 and Gehl 65 mill picture brings back alot of memories as well. We used to just have a double drive through crib. We would fill the sides then the middle. What was left over we would dump on the ground and grind like they are in that picture.
I'm too young to remember but a local guy used to custom grind feed for all the farmers around. He used a John Deere tractor and a Gehl mixer mill. Later years he went to a John Deere because the flat bottom mill would unload wet ear corn better. He told me one year he did over 2000 batches of corn.(you do the math!) Being he ground more feed than anyone John Deere brought up a prototype mill to work with him on. I guess it was similar to todays horizontal tmrs. Dad said it would unload in just a few minutes. I guess Deere spent a million on the project, saw the mixer mill buisness was ending and shut the mill line down. Anyway, while they were at our farm with this experimental mill my Dad and Grandpa were scooping corn off the ground into the mill. One of the Deere engineers asked why dont we take the loader tractor and scoop some corn up and dump it in the gravity box? To say the least thats the way we did it from then on!
Dont you hate it when someone else sees something that should have been obvious to us. ? lol Reminds me of the time i ran down to get the mechanic to figurre out what was wrong with my elevator. Turns out it was out of gas. lol
I am starting to feel outdated! My dad (68 years old) and I still grind a load of ear corn per week for our cow/calf-to-finish operation (about 35 calves per year). We use a pretty similar setup as the first photo, only we use a Farmhad 2-ton grinder instead of a Gehl with our D17. Pop still fights me to see who gets up in the squirrel cage to kick down the ear corn, though. Is that a belt pulley on the D-17 in the photo? I can't say as I have seen any on a D-17, but I don't know that much about Series I models. That's a great set of photos--thanks for sharing.
