Perhaps no other farm property in this vicinity has been owned as long by one family as the 220-acre farm which is occupied today by Lloyd Pearson. Mr. Pearson is the fourth generation of Pearsons to till the same soil. His sons, Roger and Ralph, lend valuable assistance in doing the farm work, so it can be said that five generations of Pearsons have had a hand in running the farm over a span of approximately 100 years.

It was that many years ago that Richard Pearson obtained ownership of the property. He was an influential man during the early days of Iowa history and had the distinction of being the first probate judge in Clayton county. Quite often he would walk from the Pearson farm to Elkader, a distance of 18 miles, to hold court.

After he passed away his two sons, Geo. W. Pearson and Richard Pearson, Jr. owned the property. They carried on where their father left off, working the land for many years. In the following years, R.V. Pearson, son of Geo. W. Pearson, purchased the property. For over 50 years he lived on the farm, working industriously to make it one of the better properties in northeastern Iowa. R.V. Pearson will be well remembered as he took a prominent part in the affairs of the community during his long life. He was a brother of C.A. Pearson, who is now living near Postville.

Lloyd Pearson, the subject of this sketch, is a son of Mr. and Mrs. R.V. Pearson, being born on the farm on May 11, 1895. When he became old enough he helped his father with the farm work and lived on the property until 1917, two years after his marriage to Miss Grace Hinman, which occurred on December 191, 1915. In 1917 Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd Pearson purchased the old Buttolph farm, adjoining the old homestead on the west, from his uncle, C.A. Pearson. They lived on this 100-acre farm until five years ago. Mr. Pearson's brother, Leonard Pearson, had been living on the homestead and when he moved to Postville with his family , the Lloyd Pearsons returned to the homestead, where they are located today. Mr. and Mrs. Pearson's son and daughter-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Roger Pearson, are now located on the 100-acre farm. They have one daughter, Janice Jean.

"It takes the combined efforts of my two sons and myself to operate both farms," Mr. Pearson stated. "We hardly have time to do anything else but work as there is always something which requires our attention. About the only opportunity I get to go to town is in the evening, when the day's work is done, and I'm usually too tired to make the trip." Mr. Pearson's father, R.V. Pearson, passed away about two years ago and his mother passed away a month later.

The farm is well kept up today as Mr. Pearson believes in using paint liberally in preserving a beautifying buildings. Although the exact dates of the erection of the various farm buildings are not known, Mr. Pearson stated that the house itself was constructed about 40 years ago. A barn, 80X130 feet, was built in 1915 and a corn silo in 1925. Other buildings on the property include two hog houses, sheep shed, double corn crip (which also serves as a garage), machine shed, chicken house and well house. There is also another house on the property which is rented by Harry Schutte who works for Dan McNeil, Jr. Mr. Pearson has about 30 ewes, 30 Holsteins and Shorthorns, 210 pigs, 30 heifers and calves, four horses and a flock of about 100 chickens.

The farm is well equipped with machinery as they have their own threshing machine and silo filler in addition to a tractor. When the Herald writer called at the farm the Pearsons had just completed the big task of filling the silo. "This year has been a good one for corn," Mr. Pearson remarked, "as we should get about 65 bushels to the acre." As 35 acres are devoted to corn, the Pearsons will get a large yield at husking time. "The corn is safe from frost, which is a good thing, as it has been quite cold a few mornings during the past week," he added. Mr. Pearson received a yield of 1,900 bushels of oats and barley from 45 acres during the recent threshing season. "We just finished shocking four acres of soy beans this morning and it looks like the soy beans will be an excellent crop," he remarked.

The Pearson farm is located four miles west of Postville at the historic site of Hardin, once a thriving village rivaling Postville as a trading center. Although Hardin was on the decline when Mr. Pearson was born, he can well remember some of the houses, which have been torn down in past years. At one time there were two blacksmith shops, two creameries, cheese factory, postoffice, hotel and many stores and houses in Hardin. "See that cornfield just south of the house?" Mr. Pearson questioned. "At one time there was a row of houses on that field. that wasn't so long ago as I can remember when people were living in them. there was also a row of houses right along the road in front of our farm house. One of the houses is still standing, but it is about ready to fall apart. "I can remember hearing my father talk about the good old days in this vicinity. He knew stories which had been handed down from his father and grandfather and I guess they used to have some high old times at Hardin in the old days. When railroad officials decided not to build a road down through the hollow, Hardin suffered and people began moving away. Storekeepers moved away to other towns and finally the postoffice was discontinued. "One of the reasons Hardin was once a thriving town was due to the old stagecoach, which stopped here on its way from Prairie du Chien, Wis., and McGregor to Decorah. The stagecoach didn't go to Postville, as it traveled a short route to the north."

Mr. Pearson has three sisters, Mrs. Colby Jones of Lawler, Mrs. Frank Coon of McGregor, Mrs. Elmer Christofferson of near Frankville, and one brother, Leonard Pearson of Postville. Mrs. Pearson has three brothers, Clifford Hinman of Mondovi, Wis., Clyde Hinman of Luana, Harry Hinman of the Hardin vicinity and one sister, Mrs. Chas. Smith of Forest Lake, Minn.

~Postville Herald, Oct 2, 1940

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