The Roland Canning Company was organized in 1904, officers being: E. Rice, president; John Twedt, vice president; Ben Swenson, manager; Fred John, secretary; O. S. Boyd, treasurer; E. G. Schlanbusch, auditor; E. Rice, Ben Swenson, Joe H. Twedt, John Twedt, and J. M. Mason, directors.
The company was capitalized at $12, 000 and started operations in 1905 with E. G. Mossman as manager. In 1911 it was sold to O. M. Anenson for $1, 300 and he traded it the next year to George Cole, who in turn sold it to Jacobson, Rod & Wilson concrete firm. They used the building as a cement block factory, and it was later dismantled.
The Marshall Canning Company of Marshalltown built a branch factory at Roland in 1918 at a cost of $70, 000. The plant was one large building, 50x400 feet of tile, brick and wood construction, with a two story warehouse section. A green-corn shed of frame construction was 40x160 feet, and boilers were housed in a separate building, with a smokestack 85 feet high.
Additions to the plant were added in 1930, 1931, and 1947. The plant started canning sweet corn, added pea canning in 1923 and discontinued this in 1944, and canned mixed vegetables in 1951. Managers of the factory were J. J. Thompson from 1918-1944; and George Thornblade from 1944-1958.
The plant was sold to Lenore Corporation of Marion, Indiana, in 1958, a dog food processor which shortly went bankrupt, and was later sold to the Kern Furniture Company, an unfinished furniture manufacturer.
E. A. Egeland started in the poultry, egg and cream business February 1, 1932, in the old Shafland building. As the business grew, he moved into larger quarters in the Thompson building on south Main street in 1933. In 1935, the produce business was moved into the Hergistad blacksmith shop, and on April 1, 1937 he moved into the present location.
The peak of the egg business was in 1940 when over 5, 000 cases of eggs were shipped each month over the M. G St. L. railroad to Chicago and New York. The libe poultry was trucked to Chicago.
As time went on, less poultry was raised on the farms. Today the large producers close to the cities have taken over the egg business. As the farms became larger, the farmers did not have time to care for chickens.
Egeland Produce has done business with many three generation families, but only one four generation family--Swen Larson, Sherman Larson, Darrel Larson, and Roddy Larson.
E. A. Egeland married Eleanor Ricker, and to this union three children were born, Byron, Pamela (Mrs. Mickey Clifton), and Ellen Kay (Mrs. Larry Seuferer).
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