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The Herald-Patriot
[. . . The Lamoni Mill established] early 1940 for the manufacture of chicken feeds and associated milk products for sale in the chain of stores. A bakery
was started for the baking of bread to be sold in the store chain at a competitive price. Both of these units proved to
be unprofitable, however, under war-time O. P. A. regulations and were sold. A meat slaughtering and processing plant
was started in Lamoni in a small way in 1943, growing into such a large operation, that this part of the firm was
incorporated separately July 1, 1948, as Lamoni Packing Company, Inc.
Due to poor railroad connections in Lamoni and an ever increasing volume of ware housing business the firm purchased the
Chariton Wholesale Grocery Company in Chariton, Iowa, on November 1, 1945. This gave Hyde & Vredenburg, Inc., a warehouse
building on the main line of the Burlington railroad. The Chariton Wholesale Grocery name was retained as a trade name
and the territory surrounding Chariton continued to be serviced at wholesale as the old company had done as well as
warehousing service for the chain of stores. This building, however, was not large enough to house both the
grocery and fruit business so, in the spring of 1946, construction was begun on a cement and steel structure, 150 feet
by 425 feet to house the offices, groceries and fruit. Operations from this building began June 10, 1948. The firm
today [1948] comprises 28 retail stores in southern Iowa and northern Missouri, 22 tractor-trailer and truck units, the new
warehouse office and wholesale building in Chariton and a fruit warehouse building in Lamoni.
The firm employs in all units approximately 225 regular and about the same number "Saturday help" employees
with an annual payroll of $800,000.00 of which $100,000 is for employees in Chariton. Dwight C. Vredenburg, president,
was graduated from the University of Iowa in June, 1935, and took over a new store in Unionville, Mo., on August 1
of the same year. He then moved to Centerville in June of 1936 and assumed managership of the company store there. He was
elected president January 1, 1938, when the firm was incorporated, a position he still holds. On November 1, 1945, he
moved to Chariton and assumed the duties of buyer at the newly purchased Chariton Wholesale Grocery, a position he still
holds. Ralph Baker, vice president, became manager of the Kellerton store in 1934. He moved from there to Osceola in
1935 to open a new store there. He was elected vice president when the firm was incorporated January 1, 1938. Later the
same year he moved to Shenandoah to open a new store there and in 1940 moved to Lamoni, Iowa, where he assumed the duties
of fruit buyer for the firm, a position he still holds. Marion M. Coons, secretary-treasurer, was graduated from the
University of Iowa in 1939, and joined the firm in April, 1940, as accountant in the general office. He was elected to the
office of secretary-treasurer and office manager in 1942, positions that he still holds. Kenneth Crist, graduate of
the University of Iowa in 1945, came with the firm in March, 1946, as accountant and assistant office manger in the general
office at Chariton. Crist and Coons are members of the National Association of Cost Accountants. Harold Stange
came came with the firm in August, 1946, as assistant buyer in the general office at Chariton. The board of directors
of the firm is made up of nine men elected annually by the stockholders. They are Chas. L. Hyde of Lamoni, Iowa; D. M.
Vredenburg of Corydon, Iowa; Dwight C. Vredenburg of Chariton, Iowa; Ralph Baker of Lamoni, Iowa; Robert Bixby of Lamoni,
Iowa, and manager of the Lamoni Packing Co. Inc.; Don Monroe of Lamoni, who also in charge of maintenance in all stores;
Raymond Hughes, manager of the firm store in Chariton, Iowa; Paul Dillon, manager of the firm store in Clarinda, Iowa; and
Dale Gamet, manager of the firm store in Princeton, Mo.
There are at present 14 girls employed in the Chariton general office. They are: Eva Atkinson, receptionist and billing
clerk. There are at
present 31 men employed in the Chariton Wholesale warehouse. They are: Ralph Voss, foreman. There are at present four salesmen employed by Chariton Wholesale Grocery.
They are: Dale Burge.
Clipping courtesy of Bob Bixby, July of 2015
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