From oxen to cars
Posted 1/23/03

My grandfather, John Swanson, sold his oxen when he exchanged his farm for a house in Minneapolis in the summer or fall of 1895. As farm horses became more commonly used for a variety of farm work as well as for general transportation, oxen became less useful for farmers.

Horses were found to be more adaptable. Four workhorses were needed per farm for smooth operations. Often both pairs of horses were in use for different functions. Two horses might be harnessed for field work while the other pair was used to pull the wagon to town. Sometimes three and even four horses were needed for heavy work as when discing, using the grain binder and the manure spreader. Alys states in the Swanson Family History, their potato digger was pulled with four horses.

Farmers invested in a host of equipment to carry out the work of the farmó manure spreader, heavy and light plows, corn planter, disc, cultivator, hay mower, hay rake, grain reaper (later the grain binder), corn binder, hay wagon, grain wagon.

The grain wagon was used for general transportation along with the one- or two-seated buggies in non-winter weather, while the cutter (seating two persons), the sleigh (carrying four persons) and the large wagon-like bobsled were used on snow. Andrew Peterson's buggy had a cover that could be moved upward for protection from the weather, a feature of choice when purchased.

When the Swanson family left the farm near St. Croix Falls, Grandpa traveled with the team and buggy. These horses, Dolly and Elsie, were with the Swansons for many years. Originally Grandpa had purchased them from Andrew Peterson.

Alys adds, "We raised our own workhorses and sometimes there was the exciting arrival of a filly or a colt. During her lifetime, Dolly was the mother of four of our horses. " When there was a new arrival, Alys, who loved horses, designated herself the caretaker.

The heavy work of farming was accomplished with the work of these huge, powerful animals. "There was so much plowing to do, and it took so much time with our simple plow," Alys writes, "that we did some plowing in the spring and some in the fall. Most of the plowing was done with two horses and the walking plow. If sod or new land was plowed, the heavier breaking plow and three horses were used. I often measured the furrows that were plowed in a field and thought of how much walking a man and his horses did."

Going to Milaca with the bobsled was a family enjoyment. Alys relates, "We bundled up for the five mile ride and set bottles filled with hot water at our feet. Even though we had tanned robes made from steer and horse hides to cover our legs, we were cold by the time we got there. We were fortunate to have Grandpa and Grandma living in Milaca so we could stop and visit them while we warmed up. The horses were fed while we talked and had coffee." As stated previously, Grandma and Grandpa Peterson sold their farm and moved to Milaca in 1914.

In winter, Alys says the doctor made his calls by horse and sleigh. "When the weather was warm, he drove a car. There was a seat for two passengers and a single child-size seat in the back. Whenever he came to our place in 1915 and 1916, Gertrude and I thoroughly examined the vehicle. Such a noise and smoke when he started the motor! Once he backed into my little wagon and bent it. I always thought the car smoke caused it to break. We all formed an audience to watch him when he left."

Alys writes of transportation in the winter of 1922 when there was a tremendous amount of snow. "Snow banks reached the telephone wires. Ma and Pa's first grandchild was born on the farm on March 2 that year. Dr. Norrgard from Milaca came by cutter and stayed overnight. Viva was born the next morning. Plowing roads was slow back then. Two weeks later Viva and Esther were taken home in the bobsled to 'early Bock' where Esther and Lenord Bergstrom lived."

Grandpa purchased a Fordson tractor, probably the earliest of tractors on the market, according to my brother-in-law, Lenard West. He states the tractor had four cylinders and it had a particular whine when it traversed the fields. Anyone who was familiar with the sound could easily identify the Fordson tractor.

It took a while for the tractor to replace the horses, according to Lenard, who grew up in Bogus Brook Township. "When Dad purchased our Farmall tractor from someone in Princeton," Lenard says, "he traded two mules for it. I don't know how much cash was paid in the bargain. When the tractor was delivered, they picked up the mules and returned to Princeton."

Cars were another matter. They readily became popular. Alys writes, "The first car Pa bought was a secondhand brass front Ford purchased in 1918 for $250. It was a black Model T touring car with a top. We drove it with open sides in the summertime and in the winter snapped curtains with small isinglass windows onto the doors.

"Interestingly, the car had only three real doors.... none on the driver's side. There was a hand brake used for stopping the car attached to the left front side of the car where the door would be. On the outside of the car on the driver's side, a door was painted on the frame to give the appearance of a door being there. There was no heat in the car."

According to Lenard, "A touring car had a front seat and a back seat, plus curtains which were snapped into place, depending on the weather. 'Brass front' refers to the brass radiator on the Model T's."

Alys comments, "The early cars had no heaters. Even the popular 1929 Model A cars were without a heater." My brother Donald states the cars came without heaters but a hot water heater or a manifold heater could be purchased as an extra for the Model A. He says a hot water heater probably could be purchased for some of the older cars, also.

"Later we got a secondhand Dodge touring car for $200 that we used until 1930," Alys says. "Then we bought a new two-door Chevrolet for $600 in 1931." Surprisingly, my grandfather never learned to drive a car, perhaps because it came so naturally to Charlie and later to Bob, he just didn't need to. I suspect that driving a car never crossed my grandmother's mind.