When railroads were extended through Ringgold County, stock raising became still more profitable. Long hauls by wagon, or long drives to market, were no longer necessary. Farm communities grew more compact, centering their trading activities in nearby towns. Some of the railroad station points had stockyards, and all of the villages made bids to handle the stock shipments. Some of the rural churches moved to town and more business sprang up.

Since 1876 the county had been known for its fine horses. Thousands of thoroughbred Percherons, Normans, Clydesdales, English Shires, and Belgians were shipped from nearly every railroad station. In addition to draft horses, a few sotckmen bred Cleveland bays and French coach horses. The leading breeder of these roadsters was Melvin BENNETT, who owned the fastest stallion in southwestern Iowa. During the 1880's and 1890's Ringgold County was known for its matched teams as far away as Boston, Massachusetts, and the people in the villages were as proud of the county's fine horses as were the breeders themselves. One of the most successful breeders was E. N. [Elucaus Nelson] DeWITT, who, with his brothers, ran the livery stable in Tingley. Some of the DeWITT stallions took sweepstatke prizes at Illinois State and county fairs. The DeWITTS frequently paid as high as $2,500 for breeding stock. D. D. McGREGOR of Tingley had the reputation of raising the best horses in the county. He bred draft horses and had specimand in his stable that weighted from 1,800 to 2,300 pounds each.

Prominent horsemen in the county rated one particular carload of horses shipped to the Boston, Massachusetts, market in February 1885 as the best ever sent from the locality. The average weight, all nearing five years old, was 1,800 pounds. The teams were almost perfectly matched for size and color. Some of the big steel-gray draft horses brought big prices in the Eastern markets. One team of dapple grays was reported as ideal for a city fire department. According to the Ringgold Record and the Twice-A-Week News for February 1895, this carload had never been beaten by any county in the State.

About this time, too, there were several horse companies that flourished in different parts of the county. One of these, the Liberty Township Horse Company, was organized by Norm ROGERS, S. F. LOUDER, D. C. TIDRICK, and F. M. EIGHME. The splendid horses each year attracted horse buyers to the township. The Tingley Percheron Horse Association was organized. Other horse companies were the Mount Ayr Horse Company and the Tingley Shire Horse Company. The Tingley Colt Show, established during the 1890's, was popular until 1899, when interest lessened somewhat. But in August 1900 Tingley boosters sponsored the First Tournament and Street Fair in the town. In 1906 a foal and colt show was added and stallion owners paid premiums for the best colts.

One of the annual features of this fair was the riding exhibition put on by the Tingley Riding Club. Sixty costumed young ladies and gentlemen, trained by E. N. DeWITT, rode in two's and four's, eight's, twelve's, and in other and more difficult formations. Nine of the ladies engaged in a needle threading contest while they rode at a full gallop. The winner threaded her needle in nine seconds flat. This fair became known as the Tingley Farmers' Tournament and Horse Show, all breeds of horses and mules being shown.

By 1910, however, this had developed into a real couty fair, replacing to some extent the Ringgold County Fair which had not been a great financial success, and had dissolved in 1908. By 1936 this was identified with the Farmers' Institute, and the horse shows were still a popular feature, During the show the town's facilities were always taxed to the limit to provide space for the large number of entries. In the spring of 1941, a large horse buyer from New York told John BLAUER, the president of the Farmer's Institute, "Tingley Township, Ringgold County, is listed as the best place to go to buy the best horses to ship, and it keeps its place at the top by its competition at their local fairs."

By 1903 Ringgold County had two annual Farmers' Institutes. They were begun as such in the State when the Twenty-fourth General Assembly passed an act allowing $50 to each county holding an institute. Ringgold County held its first institute at Mount Ayr four years later, and in 1902 Redding initiated a second institute. In October of 1903, classes in corn culture, judging, buttermilk, and livestock were taught at the Redding institute. Professors P. G. HOLDEN, H. R. WRIGHT, and J. W. KENNEDY of Iowa State Agricultural College at Ames assisted in the four-day session. Railroad officials at this time helped HOLDEN by providing what were called "Seed Corn Specials" -- several cars having equipment to give corn and other farm demonstrations. The seed corn specials were sent to all corners of the State to interest the farmers in improving the quality of their crops. These Farmers' Institutes to a large degree replaced the Grange. Then, later, the Farm Bureau took the place of the institutes.

Sometimes farm troubles called for the cooperative effort of all in the community. In the fall of 1904, the raids of rats on the stored grain in Rice and Middle Fork Townships made wholesale action necessary. Chosen representatives of the two townships engaged in a rat-killing contest during the week of December 19. Sixteen men from the "Southsiders" raced against 16 from the "Northsiders" to see which team could collect the most rat tails.

Captained by Elmer DEFENBAUGH, the Southsiders won by bringing in 2,000 tails. The Northsiders, under N. V. TYRREL, got 1,250. Later the Northsiders treated the Southsiders to an oyster supper at A. J. KASTER'S home.

  In commenting on local successes in raising cattle and other stock, the Mount Ayr Record News of August 11, 1914, stated that Captain A. JOHNSTON was one of the first men in in the county to lay the foundation for a fine Shorthorn herd. Just after the close of the Civil war he enlarged his herd with fine breeding specimens and sold a number from time for the improvement of other herds in the county. For years Shorthorns were the leading breed of cattle in Ringgold County. They were still the most numerous in 1896 when Charles H. ROBINSON wrote an article for the Twice-A-Week News of June 12, reviewing stock raising as the basis of the county's prosperity.

  After Z. T. [Zachary Taylor] KINSELL introduced Hereford cattle in the county, about 1886, four or five others established herds.

A. [Andrew] INGRAM built up one of the finest herds in the State from imported Herefords. KINSELL bred his won Maple Grove Herefords on his 480-acre farm two miles southwest of Mount Ayr. A show herd of nine head were taken on a month's tour in 1898 and visted the Union and Lucas County fairs, as well as the Nebraska State Fair. This stock, conceded to be the best in Iowa at that time, was under the care of Thomas ANDREWS of Herefordshire, England. In August of the next year, KENSELL sent them to the Iowa State Fair where they won top prizes. According to the Breeder's Gazette, quoted in the August 25, 1899, issue of Twice-A-Week News, "St. Elmo of Shadeland was at the head of the herd, and it is doubtful if there are many living bulls bred like him. His sire was Garfield and his dam, Henrietta by Lord WILTON. A bull nowadays whose sire and dam were both royal winners is rather scarce."

Aberdeen Angus cows were first brought to the county about 1890 by T. A. [Thomas A.] STEVENSON, and a few farmers followed his lead and established Angus herds. Only a few farmers owned Jerseys, but this breed was popular with the townspeople of those in the county who owned only one or two cows. Briggs WILBUR bred Holsteins for a time, but sold them out in 1894.

Sheep raising became profitable again for a number of years. Shropshires were introduced in 1885 by J. [Jospeh] ROBINSON and sons. D. B. JOHNSON owned a fine flock of Merinos. During the early 1900's the Ringgold County "clip" averaged about 12, 000 pounds and sold at from 25 cents to 28 cents a pound. In 1905 the CHANDLER Brothers of Kellerton exhibited entries. At the "Show Me" Fair, the CHANDLER entries carried away more prizes than all the other exhibitors combinded. This flock, ranked as one of the finest in the United States, was shown at the Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Minnesota State Fairs. In 1907 the CHANDLER Brothers, with the exception of C. W. CHANDLER, moved to Chariton with their flocks. As late as 1916, C. W. CHANDLER still showed sheep and won prizes.

With all the improvements that had come in farming methods, one rural problem remained unsolved -- the bad roads. The dirt highways were not bad after they had been dragged and smoothed, but were impassible after a rain. Wheels bogged down in the gumbo ruts and the wayfarer who got stuck stayed stuck. The first action for better roads was probably started by M. Z. BAILEY, the county's representative in the State Legislature. He urged the passage of a bill which gave the farmers credit on their tax bill for dragging the roads in their neighborhoods. Not more than ten draggings at fifty cents a mile, or five dollars, could be credited to any farmer, but this stimulated the interest of farmers in keeping their roads dragged. Four years later Mount Ayr business men staged a better roads campagin among the farmers, and a good many graveled roads resulted, but the county was slow in utilitzing its share of the gasoline tax to provide cement roads. Ringgold was the last county in the State to introduce cross-county concrete highways.

The depression of the 1930's brought its own problems to Ringgold County when the extent of erosion in the once fertile soil was recognized. The county is in the southern Iowa loessial area where, according to the Second Report of Iowa State Planning Board, April 1935, the soils were "probably eroded more than any other soils in the State and present the most serious erosion problem." Much of the top soil had been worn away through the years by heavy cropping and overgrazing, or carried off by excessive rains. Gullies yawned in the earth where the native timber had been cleared off. Through the aid of Government agencies, steps were taken to check this by putting out more trees to slow up the erosion caused by floods. Although Ringgold had more forest area than the average in Iowa county, the Grand River often overflowed, washing away tons of soil in its flood periods. Ringgold County farmers participating in the Federal Soil Conservation program under the Agricultural Adjustment Act in 1941 led all other counties in Iowa, with 96 per cent of its farmers enrolled.

Added to the problem of soil depletion came a season of drought during 1933 and 1934, the worse the county had experienced. The year 1933 was almost rainless, and when the spring of 1934 passed with no rain, the farmers feared for their planted crops. Through May, Jun, and July there was still no rain. The days were hot and clear, with temperatures ranging from 105 to 111 degrees. According to Mrs. B. M. LESAN'S History of Early Ringgold County, the corn, oats, gardens, and p astures were burned by July 1. The rain that poured down on August 30 came too late to save the crops, though it did fill wells, ponds, and creeks. Pastures grew up in weeds. The clovers and grasses had been killed. Many farmers sold their hogs, cattle, and chickens because there was no feed. Some gave hogs away. Had there been no corn-hog loans, many of the farmers would have had to go on relief. During the winter of 1934 and 1935 the Farm Bureau office at Mount Ayr was filled with farmers trying to get hay or fodder, anything that livestock could eat The Farm Bureau, organized in the county in 1918, proved to be a real friend. The boys and girls who had been in the corn and pig clubs then were managing farms in 1936, and were becoming accustomed to turn to the Farm Bureau for advice. They remembered how their fathers had listened cautiously during the early days of the Farm Bureau's history to the advice to increase the production of spring wheat and to purchase new seed corn for planting since the old was low in vitality. They remembered, too, how successful the new seed corn distributed by that organization had been. They had confidence in the Farm Bureau's plans.

Farming in the county followed the same pattern in 1942 that it had for several previous decades. Pasture land still occupied the major part of the farm area, and most of the farmers depended upon stock raising for their chief income. Grain was raised chiefly to feed the stock that grazed on the rolling grasslands. A stranger driving through Tingley Township, seeing the splendid horses cropping in the pastures, might wonder if this could be a portion of the Middle West not yet invaded by tractors. If he asked he would learn this this was a famous horse raising section, and that many of the stallions racing across the fields could wear strings of premium ribbons for a necklace.

Back to Ringgold County History, 1942 Index

Ringgold County Iowa History The Iowa Writers' Program Of the Work Projects Administration. Pp. 32-36. 1942.

Transcription by Sharon R. Becker, January of 2011