Harvests - Past and Present

On a recent day while driving through the countryside I noted the harvest neared completion.

Clouds of dust followed combines in the corn fields and big trucks loaded with their yield stayed

busy hauling it to storage or market. Fast work is made of each field with the machinery eating

several rows at a time. The whole process from planting to harvesting varies greatly from that of

the last generation.

In the way of marketing, something new has risen on the Sheldon skyline. Recently several

conjoined concrete silos were poured in an around-the-clock construction project. When the

special railroad spur is built the facility will be able to handle the long trains of cars that meet the

modern idea of efficiency.

The writer looks back with old eyes to one row corn pickers that slowly worked their way

across the width of fields with small wagons hauling the cobs home to shovel into cribs. That

was even an improvement over what existed before. On the wall of our shop Dad had a strange

looking glove with a metal peg attached. He said it was a husking peg used to strip the husk from

each cob when they picked the corn by hand and tossed it in a wagon.

In those days of old-fashioned harvesting methods the Nonpartisan League was born. Exactly

one-hundred years ago in 1923, the “Nation” magazine pronounced, after the League’s heyday,

that the NPL was “one of the century’s outstanding political events in America.” A strong

statement like that deserves some attention.

Go back to the year 1912 and find where A. C. Townley lost his flax crop due to an early frost

north of Beach, North Dakota. His bonanza-like farm covered over 7,000 acres. For money to

operate his farm he had borrowed about $80,000 from various places which now couldn’t be

repaid in full. The money he had borrowed would be equal to about $2,500,000 today. A major

source of contention for him came when his remaining equity was wiped out on the Minneapolis

and Chicago commodities exchanges as they drove the price below the cost of production.

Recognized as a talented organizer, he soon found the focus for which he is remembered. He

knew things must change since farmers felt exploited. As a farm state with little infrastructure,

farmers found themselves at the mercy of out of state industries such as railroads, banks, and

grain millers that considered North Dakota a colony to exploit for raw materials.

Townley was determined to spread the word and recruit membership. He started by walking

from farm to farm where he’d convince them to join. His effort was supported in a few weeks

when supporters pooled their money and bought him a Model T Ford. As the word spread he

found farmers in agreement and the organization bought more Model Ts. At its peak there were

250,000 paying members in the NPL.

There is much involved in the way the NPL organized and operated to a successful end, but

simply by 1919 they dominated state government. We know that some of their successes live on

today in the Bank of North Dakota with its record profits that neared 200 million dollars in 2022.

The State Mill and Elevator remains a positive force in the state’s economy. The majority of the

grain it purchases is from North Dakota growers or grain elevators to the tune of about 206

million dollars. The North Dakota Mill receives no funds or financial assistance from the State ofNorth Dakota to subsidize the milling operations. Selling value-added milled wheat products

generates all operating funds.

The Public Service Commission was given authority over the telephone companies in 1915,

and over all public utilities including water, gas, steam heat, and electricity in 1919. One of their

responsibilities is maintaining standard weights and measures. I know that the gallon of gas I

pump measures an actual gallon or the bushel of grain I sell pays me a bushel’s worth.

As happens so often, the king of the hill comes tumbling down. The NPL met opposition from

the Independent Voters Association who were strongly supported by small businessmen and old-

line politicians who felt disenfranchised. Their strength began to wane and through the years

little attention is paid to the history of the NPL.

The NPL governor Lynn Frazier became a victim in an ironical turn of events. The state

historian Elwyn B. Robinson wrote to the point in History of North Dakota: “In 1920 the voters

had approved a League-sponsored constitutional amendment by which petitions could bring

about an election to recall a state official.” The governor signed off on it. Then voters turned

around and used it to kick him out of office.

It’s already forty-five years since a film about the organization’s beginning and initial success

made the rounds. “Northern Lights” was filmed in a grainy black and white format reminiscent

of the time it depicts. Restricted by budgetary concerns, filming needed to continue in spite of

conditions. Therefore we see a threshing scene captured in an actual snowstorm. You can feel the

cold!

The movie dramatizes the founding of the NPL and was recognized for a major award. It

represents a fictionalized version of the farmers movement, but the factual renderings can be

found in history books. It’s a fascinating time where farmers took control of their own destiny.

Lovers of our state history can take a deep dive into the personalities, accomplishments, and

demise of “one of the century’s outstanding political events in America.”