Milking Cows: 1911 and 2011

Posted on October 20, 2011 by Sheryl

16-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Thursday, October 20, 1911:Got out of school early this afternoon. I gathered some walnuts after I got home. Mollie gave me a kick in the back while milking another cow this evening. I’ve named Ruth’s twin calves, one Brutus and the other Caesar, but I can’t tell which is which.

1911: Probability of being kicked = high (photo source: Kimball's Dairy Farmer Magazine, December 15, 1911)

2011: Robot milker--Probability of being kicked = almost zero

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

Ouch! It sounds like the kick hurt. Grandma’s cow Mollie had her first calf in August. And, Grandma had been pleased with how well Mollie adjusted to being milked, For example on September 27 she wrote:

“Was in doubts and fears as to how Mollie would act when I commenced to milk her. Pop milked her last night, but I had to do it after that, so I got up early this morning, resolving to come off conquering and I did. Hurrah. She didn’t kick.”

But apparently something upset Mollie while Grandma was milking the next cow—and she gave Grandma a kick.

There have been huge changes in how cows are milked over the last hundred years. In 1911 most farmers had just a few cows that were milked by hand. Today most cows are milked by machines in milking parlors (and some are even milked by robots.)

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U.S. Crop Yields and Production, 1911 and 2011

Posted on October 14, 2011 by Sheryl

16-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today: 

Saturday, October 15, 1911: Was so busy all day. Had to help Daddy pick corn and husked pop corn between loads. Both of these jobs aren’t finished yet either.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

Whew, it sounds like a lot of work. There weren’t combines (or even mechanical corn pickers) a hundred years ago. Horses would have been used and much of the labor would have been by hand.

This entry made me curious about how crop production and yields have changed over the last 100 years.

Crop Production

Corn production has mushroomed. In 1911, approximately 2,475 million bushels of corn were produced in the US. In 2011, about 12,447 million bushels were produced.

So few soybeans were produced in 1911 that the U.S. Department of Agriculture did not even track it.  In 1931, 17 million bushels of soybeans were produced in the U.S. –and by 2011 approximately 3,329 million bushels were produced.

Barley and oats production decreased substantially between 1911 and 2011—probably due at least in part to the reduced number of horses that needed to be fed in the US. Wheat production increased a little over the years.

Crop Yields

Crop yields increased significantly for all the major cops between 1911 and 2011.

Corn yields increased the most. For example, in 1911, about 24 bushels per acre were produced. This increased to approximately 148 bushels per acre in 2011. Yields increased substantially between the 1930’s and 1950’s due to the widespread shift from open pollinated corn to hybrid corn. The increased use of commercial fertilizers and pesticides in the later part of the last century also increased yields.  In recent years the use of genetically modified seed has led to major yield  increases.

Another factor that has increased the average yield per acre over the past 100 years, is that some of the less productive land in the US has been taken out of production.

Data Source: US Department of Agriculture. For some crops 2011 data are not yet available. If not available, 2010 data were used to construct the figures.

Filed under: Farming and Gardening, Statistics | Tagged: , | 9 Comments »

Hulling Black Walnuts

Posted on October 7, 2011 by Sheryl

16-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today: 

Saturday, October 7, 1911: Hulled some walnuts this afternoon. Tried to be careful of my hands, but they got stained somewhat.

Black Walnuts

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

Black walnuts grow semi-wild in Pennsylvania–and across much of the US.

The hull is the outer  husk. It must be removed to prevent spoilage. The nuts are then dried. After they are dried they can be cracked.

Crack hulls with feet. Then use hands to remove.

Last week-end my husband and I gathered some black walnuts at a park. We took them home and hulled them. We put the nuts in an old net onion bag and hung them in the garage to dry. They’ll be ready to crack and eat by December.

Walnut stains on my hands. This is one powerful stain. Three days later my hands are still brown, and everyone at work is teasing me about being an auto mechanic. (Bottom line: Wear gloves when hulling walnuts.)

Oct. 15 Addendum: I mentioned putting the walnuts in a net onion bag to my father. He was horrified and said that they would mold. He said they should be spread out on newspapers in a cool dry place (an attic is ideal).  So I checked my walnuts and noticed that two of them had a spot of mold of them. I discarded those walnuts–and spread the rest out on newspapers to dry.  Stay tuned . . .

Nov. 9 Addendum: I’ve now successfully cracked some black walnuts. Click here for today’s post on How to Crack Black Walnuts.

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Threshing and Old-time Pickled Cabbage (Pepper Hash) Recipe

Posted on September 13, 2011 by Sheryl

16-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today: 

Wednesday, September 13 , 1911: Was in such terrible trepidation this morning, lest I would have to miss school and help Ma with the work, but Besse came to my relief. So glad I was. I missed those stacks and stacks of dishes for dinner, but have to confront them tonight.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

Besse was Grandma’s married sister who lived nearby. The previous day Grandma wrote that the threshers were at the farm.  All the farmers in the community probably were at the Muffly farm helping with the threshing. And, I bet that all the hard work made them very hungry.

Early 20th century photos of steam-operated threshing machine. Photo was taken in the midwest, so the machine in the photo was probably a little larger than what would have been used in central Pennsylvania. (Photo source: Library of Congress, Fred Hultstrand and F.A. Pazandak Collections)

I’m on a roll remembering traditional Pennsylvania sweet and sour foods that might have been served to the threshers. Yesterday I wrote about spiced crab apples.  Another fall sweet and sour food is pickled cabbage (pepper hash).

Pickled Cabbage (Pepper Hash)

1 medium head cabbage, shredded (approximately 4 cups)

1 green bell pepper (green mango), coarsely chopped

1 red  bell pepper (red mango),  coarsely chopped

1/2 cup vinegar

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)

Mix all ingredients together and let  stand at least 1 hour. This salad may be kept covered and refrigerated for several weeks. Drain before serving.

I got this recipe from my sister-in-law, Linda— and she says that she got it from her mother.  It is a very typical old-fashioned central Pennsylvania dish.

This recipe is very adaptable and can easily be made in larger or smaller quantities. Just use equal proportions of vinegar and sugar to make as much dressing as needed.

Linda says that the original recipe called for green and red mangos rather than green and red bell peppers. Traditionally people in central Pennsylvania and other parts of Appalachia referred to bell peppers as mangos. Of course, the mango fruit doesn’t grow in Pennsylvania, and until recent improvements in transportation the tropical  fruit wasn’t sold there, so there never was any confusion.

Filed under: Farming and Gardening, Food | Tagged: | 9 Comments »

Feeding Calves a Hundred Years Ago

Posted on September 9, 2011 by Sheryl

16-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today: 

Saturday, September 9, 1911: Today was rather a blue Saturday. It was so rainy this morning. Henry the nosey one upset almost a whole bucket full of milk. I felt rather sorrowful, but there was no use of crying over spilt milk.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

Who was Henry?—a dog?, . . a cat? . . . a calf? I’m guessing that he was a calf that Grandma was trying to feed. He probably was really hungry, and in his enthusiasm managed to tip over the bucket of skim milk.

A hundred years ago cream separators were commonly used. The cream was sold or used to make butter—and calves (and pigs) were fed the skim milk.

Ad in July 1, 1911 issue of Kimball's Dairy Farmer Magazine

According to a book published in 1911 called The Farm Dairy by H.B. Gurler:

The calf should be allowed to take the first milk from its dam as nature requires this and if her rules are violated there will surely be trouble. After the calf has once nursed, it should be removed from its mother but fed its mother’s milk for a few days, depending on the vigor of the calf. Commence to add skim-milk after a week or ten days, adding a small amount at first and increasing it daily until the calf is on an entire skim milk diet.

There are a few simple rules to follow in growing calves on skim-milk. The milk must be sweet; it must be as warm as the mother’s milk and care must be exercised not to feed too much of it. There are many more calves injured by being fed too much skim milk than there are by not having enough of it. Four quarts at a feed twice a day is sufficient for the average-sized calf for the first month.

Add a spoonful of ground flax seed to each feed and teach the calf to eat a little corn-meal as soon as possible. Corn is the most economical food to balance a ration containing so much skim milk. Feed shelled corn as soon as the young calf will digest it well.

Filed under: Farming and Gardening | Tagged: , , | 4 Comments »

Every Dairyman Should Take a Vacation–And be Sure to Take the Wife!

Posted on September 7, 2011 by Sheryl

16-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Thursday, September 7, 1911: Really nothing so very much for today. Am getting used to going to school now. 

The caption says, "Every Dairyman Should Take a Vacation."

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

Since Grandma didn’t have much to say a hundred years ago today, I’m going to go off on a tangent.

Summer’s over—and based on the diary I don’t think that the Muffly’s took a vacation during the summer of 1911. I just assumed that farmers didn’t take vacations back then because the animals needed to be fed regularly and the cows needed to be milked twice each day.

I was surprised to discover that my assumption was wrong and that some dairy farmers did take vacations a hundred years ago. The cover story in  the July 15, 1911 issue of Kimball’s Dairy Farmer magazine recommended that dairy farmers take vacations.

However, apparently many farmers took vacations without their families–and they left their wives at home to do the farm work. The article reprimanded  men who did this:

The farmer’s vacation should include other members of the family besides himself. The wife who has been struggling through the entire year with her difficulties and her tasks that oftentimes seem hopelessly burdensome should share in the recreation pleasures.

Kimball’s Dairy Farmer (July 15, 1911)

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Early Farm Management Cartoon

Posted on August 30, 2011 by Sheryl

16-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today: 

Wednesday, August 30, 1911: Really there isn’t very much for today, so I won’t write about any of the occurrences.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

Since not much happened a hundred years ago today, I’m going to share a cartoon I found in the July 15, 1911 issue of Kimball’s Dairy Farmer magazine.

Caption: What system and good management do for the dairy farmer.

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