Sunday, May 1, 2016

Farm Field Trip: A Sanpete Turkey Farm Operation

Who would have thought that a field trip would prove to be the hardest assignment given to me for English 3630? 

Given the task to find an aspect of farming that I am not familiar with, to take a visit to the site or event, and then report on it, I struggled immensely trying to find an aspect of farming that I am not familiar with. I have grown up around horse, cattle, dairy operations,  and auctions, and have had exposure to many other forms of agriculture, food production, and culture mainly through my FFA years, but also out of general interest. I am a also the kind of person that can spend countless hours at the keyboard playing farming games as I wish I was still out there on a tractor seat or a saddle in real life.
 
Sanpete County turkey farms. Note they are typically in groups of 3, 1 brooder and 2 feeders.
So I had to find something that I was at least a little less familiar with, within a reasonable travel distance. One day as I still procrastinated, I heard my wife mention that my brother, Brian Madsen had bought out my dad's share of their joint turkey farming operation in Spring City, Utah. I realized that since these two just started this business about years ago, I really had very little knowledge about exactly what they do, as I have never been around a poultry operation in my life. It is strange to think I have not had that exposure, with so much family in the Sanpete County area, and having spent so much time in my life there, especially considering how much apart of local culture turkey farming is.

Summertime at the turkey farm
I met up with my brother to tour his operation just a couple of days ago. The barns are just a few hundred yards from his new home, the tops of which I have seen from his house, though I have never ventured out to the barns their selves before. It is important to note before beginning that Brian had to ask me not to take photos on site. He stated that as his birds are under contract, the contract forbids photos inside of the barns, as fears exist that groups such as PETA could potentially use those photos negatively if made available online or otherwise. So in respect to Brian's wishes and his contract, the photos used in this post are from online sources that I felt would best match to what I saw in his operation. Brian actually suggested a lot of the websites where I found those images as well.

From the road, the 12,000 square foot barns really did not look that big to me. However, taking a walk through a barn of such size, filled with approximately 6,000 hen turkeys really makes one understand just how big the barns are! Brian has 5 such barns, but only operates 3 of these barns currently. One barn is designated as the "brooder" barn. Brian receives a shipment of "poults", which are young turkeys - just a few days old, from producers in California, and occasionally Canada. The poults enter the brooder barn for about 4 weeks, where they will be kept warmer and more secure until they are big enough to enter the feeder barns.

Brian is currently only producing hens at his farm, but he did offer some interesting facts about the different options available for those that raise turkeys. Brian states that there are a light, medium, and heavy grades to both tom and hen turkeys. These grades are based upon weight, and largely determine how many turkeys a farmer can grow in one barn. For example, the medium hens that Brian raises require about 2 square feet of space per bird, whereas a medium tom would require 4 square feet. At 12 weeks, which is the length of time required to grow a turkey to maturity, these medium hens will weigh in from 13-15 pounds per bird. A heavy tom can reach a weight of 38-42 pounds per turkey. So really, regardless of which grade of turkey a farmer chooses to raise, the overall weight of the turkeys in 1 barn at the end of 12 weeks will be relatively close to the same as any other grade, again, based upon weight. So why would Brian choose to raise 6,000 medium hens when he could instead raise fewer heavy toms that could reach higher weights?

That answer is based in mortality rates. As we walked the barn, Brian had to pick up 2 hens that had perished. Brian says that he walks the barns twice a day to remove any dead, in order to keep disease from spreading throughout the barns. Disease if unchecked could quickly wipe out the population of a barn as well as spread to adjacent barns. Some diseases will even spread throughout the valley on occasion. So in regards to production, Brian usually looses about 15% of his birds on average, although he has suffered loss as high as 40% per barn, something he hopes to never repeat. So, more birds with the knowledge that you will loose some means less weight lost overall in the long run, versus loosing larger birds in a smaller population.

Turkey poults
I asked Brian about disease since we were on the subject. "E coli is our most common concern" he stated. In fact, in the brooder barn Brian will completely sterilize the entire barn including feeders, water lines, and even changing the wood shavings on the floor before introducing new turkeys to the barn. In the larger barns, the large amount of natural ammonia that comes from the feces and urine of the turkeys helps provide a natural sterilization. In fact, the air inside of the barns is interesting to breathe due to this ammonia, and quite honestly I didn't want to stay in it for very long. When the turkeys are removed for slaughter, the barn sides are rolled up, the sun warms the inside of the barn, and a tractor will stir up the floor of the barn, which consists of wood shavings and feces. The sun and heat exposure causes the ammonia to be released over about 3 days time. This again sterilizes the environment for the next batch of birds. 

Other sicknesses of worry are bacteria such as bordetella, which can multiply in water. With this threat, water lines are flushed daily to prevent the buildup of the bacteria. Coryza is another virus that sporadically finds its way into the valley with ugly consequences. This disease attacks the respiratory system, specifically the sinuses and nostrils of the turkeys. Dermatitis also attacks the feet of turkeys, and can cripple them. When the birds are weak and lay down, they can often be trampled to death by other turkeys in the barn. With any of these diseases, once they show, it is quite often too late to prevent their spread throughout the barn. But when a farmer knows one of those diseases is going around, they can vaccinate and tighten security to the farms to prevent their turkeys from getting the sickness.
It is amazing to see the other forms of agriculture, and even non-agricultural industry that tie together in this farming operation. Large silos are erected at each barn, each containing about 8 tons of feed! A barn will go through just over 8 tons of feed per week, so Brian typically orders a feed truck twice a week. Large propane tanks are also located on site, which provide heat to the barns in the winter. These are Brian's biggest concern as far as cost goes. While feed prices are fairly constant for him these days, a cold bitter winter can really drive up the costs of his operation when it comes to the gas to heat the barns. 
Inside the turkey barns. Turkeys can be very delicate. In the summer, huge fans and open windows keep the turkeys cool. Misting can also help keep them cool. In the winter, the sides are rolled down, and gas heat keeps the turkeys warm.
Looking back at what we have discussed in the class, in just a few short hours Brian has really described all of the concern we have seen from farmers in our studies. He really just wants to see the farm flourish for his family's sake, and he really wants to expand the operation. Right now, this is a side job, as he does have a full time job that keeps him busy all week. He says he enjoys the relative ease of turkey farming, as he only really strolls through twice a day to pick up dead birds and flush water lines. Every couple of weeks he has to move birds around. Every 6 weeks, Moroni Feed Company shows up to haul his birds to the Norbest plant located in Moroni. With this relative ease though, Brian still has his worries. When he started out, turkey prices were high, and he incurred debt to begin the operation. Today, prices are low, and he feels he is barely getting by. This has hindered his hopes of expanding, for now. But still, he enjoys what he does, and he enjoys being able to have his family working alongside of him, and the values that his kids are learning from it.  

So how does this tie to Sanpete culture? Well, ironically I have written about it before and not thought a lot about the connection I guess. I can scarcely recall a summer without the smell of "Sanpete Turkey" on the grill. The marinade for this dish is a simple one, but creates for me a delicacy. Just about everyone I know in the area uses and loves the recipe, and it is a backyard favorite to this day. Our family still prepares it, and our neighbors have loved it where ever we have lived. We are always happy to tell our new friends how this marinade gets its name, and the tie to Sanpete agriculture and tradition. 

Maybe someday I will be able to have it a part of a restaurant menu, which is another dream of mine. I would love to operate a restaurant where I could feature local dishes that can tie people back to our local culture and traditions.  

Works Cited:

Porter, Jason, Amazing Grilled Chicken Recipe, Southern Utah Hunt and Fish. Blog post, Feb. 29, 2012. Web. May 1, 2016. http://www.suhuntandfish.com/2012/02/amazing-grilled-chicken-recipe.html

Surovi, Ann Marie, Highlights: Leo Society Members Enjoy Look Inside Jaindl Turkey Farm, Da Vinci Science Center. Aug. 10, 2015. Web. May 1, 2016.

Purdue Agriculture Poultry Page, Turkeys, Clip Art. Web. May 1, 2016


Sunday, April 10, 2016

The Farm in Pop Culture: Amarillo Sky



Country music artist Jason Aldean released the song Amarillo Sky as a part of his debut album in 2005. The song and this video earned him the 2006 Song of the Year and Video of the Year at the Academy of Country Music awards as well as video with the best direction at the CMT Music Awards the same year.

The song tells the story of a man that works his family's farm near Amarillo, Texas. The song tell of the hardships the farmer faces as he strives to keep the family farm going through a drought that is plaguing the area at the time. These hardships are also coupled with steep fuel prices and low grain prices, as the farmer worries about providing for his family, keeping the family farm, and still maintaining a hope of seeing his life's dreams come true. Throughout the song the farmer pleads with God to make his farm productive, citing his unquestioning faith and hard work on his part. 

In looking at this piece of pop culture through the lens of farming I think it is very important to look at the video as well as the song. What I particularly like about the video is some other themes from my English 3630 that are brought up in the introduction of the video. The video begins with three young men talking about their family farms which have been in their families for generations, even "over 100 years". One young man talks about his aspirations of taking over the family farm after college. The other talks about leaving for a short time but coming back to the farm and the life he loves. Both of these young men mention the struggles and hardships that their farms face.

In connection with themes and topics discussed in the class over the last 3 months, I was amazed with how many ways a three minute video could connect with those themes. While listening to the song, I jotted a few of those down. To start off, most of this song tells of hard times and challenges this farmer has faced and is facing. We have talked a lot about hard times, from homesteading, to sharecroppers, and the hard times depicted in The Grapes of Wrath. God, faith, and prayer are also themes repeated over and over throughout the song. Nearly every topic we have discussed in the class have had a connection to faith and God in agriculture. One of the earliest examples was with the Sumerians, and their worship of different gods for different purposes throughout the agricultural cycles. Chaucer spoke of these themes in The Canterbury Tales, as his characters showed their connection to God and religion in different ways. Those same characters also experienced hard times in farming much as the farmer depicted in the song. Sharecroppers also experienced hard times, also relying on God and faith to bring them through.

It is also amazing how many of these people throughout history sought God's help in keeping their family farm. Sharecroppers and homesteaders are excellent examples of this, but also in medieval times and the time period of Jefferson's life, people wanted so badly to have their own farms and land to maintain and pass down to their children, as they sought to live lives of righteousness and good doing, as well as worshiping God and praying for his help. 

The theme that pulls on me the most, and has through this entire course is the idea of going back to the farm. I want so badly to go back to the farm life myself. I wish my kids could experience that life that I miss, maybe without the hardships, but to gain a respect for the land, for food, and to learn a strong work ethic as well as love for family and the associated values of farm life. Hearing these young men talk about their desires to preserve the family farm, then listening to the song talk of a farmer's struggle to do so really personalizes these ideas to what we have learned in class, for me. The images of these young men working through the hot and dry conditions, coupled with the words can really help anyone understand just how hard the farm life can be. But at the end of the video, seeing the joy on the faces of the young men as they have some fun also helps one understand that even with its challenges, there is joy and reward, and that it is worth it.   

I believe that this is the reason that this song is important to the theme of this course. It really does pull on the emotions, and that coupled with the several themes within the song that have been presented during the course really do paint a fine picture of modern day farm life. I think a lot of people would wonder why if farming is so hard would people be drawn to it? This video does an excellent job of presenting those values and the pride associated with the hard farm life, which are important themes we have been taught throughout the class. 

Perhaps if more people saw this video they would also understand the importance of agriculture in our society, and that external forces that are not caused by nature, such as high fuel prices, have a great impact on food production and the families of those who produce it.

Works Cited:

JasonAldeanVEVO. "Jason Aldean - Amarillo Sky." YouTube. YouTube, 25 Oct. 2009. Web. 10 Apr. 2016.

Sunday, March 20, 2016

Farm Bill Legislation: The NRCS

For this assignment, students were asked to focus on and discuss one narrow attribute of Farm Bill expenditures. Of the many pieces of the pie when it comes to Farm Bill spending, I chose to focus on a very small piece of that pie. Coming in at a meager 7%, on the pie chart you will notice the "conservation" allotment. What does conservation have to do with Farm Bill funding and agriculture?

Well, my first experience with the Farm Bill in regards to conservation that I can recall came when I was about 14 years old, through a USDA agency called the "Natural Resources Conservation Service" of NRCS for short. The loan came actually came more directly from a sub-branch of the NRCS called the "Farm Service Agency" or FSA. At 14 year old, I heard about a youth program in which eligible and approved youth could apply for agricultural loans up to $5,000 to fund their own agricultural operations. Upon learning of this, my step father suggested to me that it would actually be easier for me to get this type of loan than it would be for himself, and that we could increase our cattle operation by doing so. So, at 14, I applied for the loan, from what I can recall a very lengthy process, but it did educate me a great deal about loans, the stipulations of being approved and paying them off, interest rates, and even record keeping and developing business plans. With $5,000 I bought 8 pair of young cows with calves from a local rancher and began my own cattle business. I made my loan payment each fall with all of the income from the sale of my calves. It would be a few years before I would actually pocket any of these profits. Today it still amazes me that an agency such as this would take on such a risky loan investment in a young man such as myself.

Shane Kerner, Idaho FSA Youth Loan Recipient http://fsa.blogs.govdelivery.com/2013/08/29/from-an-idaho-youth-loan-to-national-youth-leader/



A Panguitch "flood irrigated" farm
Later in life, I was able to see the conservation side of the NRCS drastically affect farmers and ranchers along the Sevier River in southern Utah for the good. Specifically in Panguitch, where I lived during high school, the agency made a big push to encourage farmers to move away from "flood irrigating" to installing and utilizing more efficient pressurized irrigation, using pipes and sprinkler lines. Flood irrigating involved utilizing canals and ditches to get water to the fields, then simply allowing the water to run down "furrows", or rows through the field. Under this old practice, much water is lost through leeching through the ground through the canals, as well as loss due to evaporation. Sprinklers allow an cased environment for water to be delivered, resulting in less water wasted. Farmers were allowed to apply for grants and loans for the funding to convert to these pressurized systems. Many farmers in the Panguitch valley utilized those funds to install pivot sprinkler lines. Those that could not find the means to make sprinklers usable were able to receive funding to install pipelines to deliver canal water to their properties, and gated pipes to the fields to minimize water loss during delivery. Water then is still allowed to run over the field.

Panguitch fields that have been converted to pressurized irrigation. http://utahspatchworkparkway.com/panguitch.html

*I was not able to obtain any source information about irrigation grant work done in Utah, but have cited a source of this type of work being conducted in California. See "citations" at the end of this post.*


While I knew these things about conservation programs such as the NRCS, there are things I did not know about the program and it's funding. For example, the program also uses it's funding to provide relief to loss that farmers face from drought, crop disease, pests, etc., as well as assistance in many other ways to improve their lands besides just through irrigation means. The NRCS also provides easement programs that are designed to help landowners conserve not only their working famrlands, but also wetlands and forested lands. They also provide landscape planning to help people manage natural resource problems and to manage those resources in accordance to "economic, social, and ecological considerations to meet public and private needs". (NRCS California)

NRCS (Alabama) Pine Plantation. http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/al/programs/?cid=nrcs141p2_023019
I knew the NRCS worked a lot with other federal agencies (such as the US Forest Service that I work for), however I was not aware that Farm Bill funding made that work possible until this week. Just days ago I learned that a future timber sale on the Ashley National Forest (if approved per environmental process called NEPA) will be made possible through funding provided by the Farm Bill by way of the NRCS. Quite often I think we tend to forget that timber harvest truly is a form of agriculture.

I would dare say I am just scratching the surface of the different ways that the Farm Bill provides to conservation. I definitely know that there are a lot more unknowns to me when it comes to the Farm Bill than what I do know about the work that it does.

Sources Cited:

NRCS Main Page/Farm Bill:
 http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/main/national/programs/farmbill/

 NRCS Conservation Stewardship Program
 http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/national/programs/financial/csp/?cid=stelprdb1242683

FSA Youth Loans
 http://www.fsa.usda.gov/FSA/webapp?area=home&subject=paca&topic=you

NRCS (California) News Release:
 http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/ca/newsroom/?cid=nrcs144p2_064274

USDA Water Quality Information Center/Irrigation:
 http://wqic.nal.usda.gov/irrigation-1



Sunday, March 13, 2016

Film Review,Troublesome Creek: A Midwestern

Academic Review of Troublesome Creek: A Midwestern

Troublesome Creek: A Midwestern. Dir. Jeanne Jordan, and Steven Ascher. 1995. 1996. Film. In Association with PBS American Experience.

“Good guys, bad guys, trouble”. Russ and Mary Jane Jordan use this term to define western films. This definition of a western movie is also a fitting description of the plot and challenges that played out in the lives of farmers in the 1980s and 90s as thousands of American farmers lost their family farms. Troublesome Creek: A Midwestern by Russ and Mary Jane Jordan’s daughter Jeanne offers a great account of the struggle that the Jordan family went through as they tried to hang on to the farm that had been in their family for nearly 4 generations. Although the fate of their farm ends up being fairly unique, the film offers a great perspective into the plight that faced farmers across the nation during that time period.

Throughout history farming has pulled on the hearts and emotions of man. There’s always been a strong desire in people to own their own land, to provide for themselves, and hopefully to be able to make a profit doing it, but few people actually understand the reality of farm life. As Jeanne Jordan puts it, “People love to idealize farm life. They think it is wholesome and simple”. Most people that grow up farming understand the luck and chance that exists with farming, and the hardships associated with that chance, along with the complexities of everyday life as farmers try to keep a farm alive. Those not exposed directly to farming have difficulty seeing that even “life and death are a matter of chance” on the farm, and that uncertainty, toil, and stress are all part of a “normal” life of the farmer.

Jordan summed up her family as having “incredible luck, incredible timing, and teetering on the edge of disaster”. How true those words are when one looks at the life of a farmer. Markets are hardly ever predictable, Mother Nature is less so, and the farmer is at the mercy of both of those forces in the struggle for success. This struggle is brought to life as we look at farming at the close of the 1900’s. Farmers enjoyed nearly 40 very successful years from the 1950s to the early 1980s. During those years farmers were able to expand their operations, made possible by banks that were willing to lend to those farmers to provide for that expansion and further success. Nationwide, this began to change in the 1980s as first prices crashed, followed by banks changing policies on lending.

Jordan likens this change to the western, as her parents, the good guys, struggled to save the farm that had been in their family for nearly 100 years. Not only had dealing with the bank began to be difficult, the bank also changed ownership, and their new loan officer now seemed like more of a “hired gun” than someone that was there to help them keep their farm alive. Russ and Mary Jane even went so far as to say that they felt “ambushed” just as the cowboys in their western movies.

For most family farms, examples like this are not the first time that someone has fought for a family farm throughout a family’s history of ownership. Even Jeanne Jordan shared the example of her great-grandfather fighting off the “Crooked Creek Gang” that threatened their way of life in the farm’s early life. While not all farmers fought gangs to keep their farms alive, farmers have fought other battles such as drought, crop failure, pests, land disputes, water rights ownership, and even economic hardships such as the Great Depression. It seems that this “good guy, bad guy, trouble” scenario of western movies has played out over and over for farmers throughout history. It becomes clearer to see why families fight to the bitter end to keep their family farms, even when the odds seem insurmountable. There’s a great sense of duty to keep the farm in the family and keeping it productive, and also probably a great fear of shame of being the one who lost it. Jordan shares the experience of her parents visiting the farm that they rented until the time came for them to move onto the family farm and to take over operation from Russ’ father. Visiting their old farm was hard on the family. In fact, Jordan explains that her family stayed away from the farm for 15 years in order to “remember it as it was”. It was easy to see that Russ and Mary Jane had a hard time visiting the farm and seeing it in a rundown state. This really increases the understanding to why they chose to fight the bank and the challenges to keep their farm in their family, rather than simply giving up and selling out to satisfy the bank debt.

As those that idealize farming see the peace and simplicity, it would probably come as a shock to them to see where the minds of those that grow up in a farm life tend to wander to. Jordan describes the farm being everything when young, but as a teenager “town” became everything, and the goal seemed to be more of getting away from the farm. This makes a lot of sense. Jordan describes the life of her parents on the farm, which is fairly typical of the farmer and his wife. She explains that Russ, the farmer, has little time to worry as work requires his full attention, and he works to avoid the worry as well. Mary Jane, the farmer’s wife, was dubbed “the family worrier”. She was the one that took care of the bills, the bank, and put on the face of confidence in order to keep the family calm and steady.

How true this “Midwestern” struggle is. Growing up when my own family went through losing our farm I truly never understood that we were in trouble until it was gone. Jordan also mentions that through her mother’s calmness she never knew the trouble either. Maybe the calmness that the farmer and his wife display is why those not acquainted with farming view farming with that simplicity and peacefulness.


Jordan points out that in a western, while the bad guys find some success, the good guy eventually wins. But as she says, “since when have westerns ever been true?” One could only wish the western would ring true in the case of the farmer and the crisis of the 80s and 90s. While Jordan’s family found a unique way to ensure the survival of the farm enabling it to stay in the family, most families lost during this crisis. Jordan points out that quite often these farms end up in the hands of a wealthy neighbor that can afford to buy them. While those that idealize farm life might dispute farming hardships and loss, Jordan points to evidence that is hard to dispute when it comes to these hardships. Jordan talks about families leaving as they sell farms and towns shrinking. This has happened all across the country, not just Iowa. This also hit me hard personally, as I have watched my own hometown dwindle with the loss of families as the family farm has gone to the wayside. The schools in my hometown teeter on the edge of closing today. What will the fate of my hometown be? 

I can only hope that in the future the good guy will continue to find a way to win.


Wednesday, February 17, 2016

Southern Utah Folklore: Everett Ruess

"So tomorrow I take the trail again to the canyons south."

-Everett Ruess-

N.p., n.d. Web. <http://blogs.harvard.edu/cqtwo/files/2009/07/05utah600.jpg>.


In November 1934 a young man with 2 burrows wandered into the town of Escalante, Utah.  Little did people then know, this gentle wanderer would not only have an impact on the community and the area, his letters would also give a peek into their lives to future generations.

The story of Everett Ruess is a great piece of Southern Utah folklore that I have heard dozens of times since I was a young boy.  I can vividly recall trips down the "desert" south of Escalante (the Hole-in-the-Rock road), where as I drove my mind would imagine Everett alone with his burrows, leading them through that unforgiving landscape.  Where did he end up?  Did my ancestors speak to him when he came through Escalante?  I also tried to imagine where I would travel had I been him. Twenty years old and alone through 60 miles or more of the most remote country on earth, it is hard to put yourself in those shoes.

Retrieved http://old.seattletimes.com/ABPub/2009/07/04/2009419120.jpg
National Geographic has written an excellent article on the search for Everett.  For now however, I chose to take a look at Everett's experience in the small town of 1930's Escalante.  David Roberts of National Geographic paints a great picture of conditions in Escalante during that time; "The country had been mired in the Great Depression for more than five years, and no town felt the pinch of poverty more acutely than Escalante. Founded by Mormon pioneers 59 years earlier, the small settlement in southern Utah—then one of the most remote towns in the United States—had been stricken in successive summers by a plague of grasshoppers that ruined the crops and by the worst drought in nearly eight decades" (Roberts).

No doubt in this small, tight knit LDS (Mormon) community during such hard times, seeing a traveler arrive would have been very surprising.  For his young age, Everett was in fact, a very seasoned traveler, having spent the previous 4 years wandering alone all over northern New Mexico, Arizona, and southern Utah.  

Escalante circa the Great Depression
While the legend and mystery of Ruess focuses around his disappearance, as he made stops throughout the small communities of Garfield County, Utah, his letters to his parents offer a great look into farm and family life during those times.

From Bryce Canyon, Utah, Ruess describes time spent with a Mormon family in the area.  Ruess describes the family as having 9 children, their father being a ranger at Bryce Canyon.  From the book The Escalante Story we find that Ruess wrote, "This morning I rode out with one of the boys to look for a cow.  We rode all over the hills and stopped at an orchard to load up with apples.  Then I went to church, my first time in a Mormon church" (Woolsey).  It is very interesting that a traveler would spend his time helping someone find a cow, and gathering apples.  In such destitute times, agriculture and livestock would have been very valuable and important to people of the area.  Maybe it things were so bad that Ruess could see it, and felt inclined to help.  Or perhaps he was just that kind of person.  

Sheep herd near Escalante (Woolsey)
Ruess later writes his parents telling them of his trip over the mountains and into the town of Escalante.  I Escalante he described riding horses with the local boys, hunting for arrowheads, and even taking in the movie, "Death Takes a Holiday" with them (Woolsey, Roberts).  It appears that even in such times there was time for recreation, and just plain old "having fun".  Everett concludes his Escalante experience by writing, "Tonight I have been sitting by the campfire with two of my friends, eating roast venison and baked potatoes" (Woolsey).  Ruess sounded so pleased with his last night in Escalante, enjoying a couple of the main staples that the area had to offer.  The area was abundant with deer, and residents frequently filled their meat stores with venison.  Also, Escalante was once named "Potato Valley" due to the wild potato tubers that grew there, as well as the area's favorable conditions for growing potatoes.  

Davis Gulch near the Escalante River.  Near the last kown location of Ruess
From there, Ruess slips into legend.  Well, almost.  There were in fact 2 other men that saw him before he disappeared.  These men were sheepherders from Escalante that one week after he left town shared a campfire with him this time 50 miles south of Escalante.  It is also interesting that the sheepherders shared with Everett the main agricultural resource of Escalante at that time, mutton.  Well, they tried to share.  Upon offering Ruess a leg of lamb to take with him, he replied that he preferred to travel light and had plenty of chocolate and other concentrated food (Woolsey).  After departing the camp, Ruess was never seen nor heard from again.

Just as it appears that Ruess gained an attachment for the people of Escalante (and the surrounding area), it also appears that Escalante took an attachment to him!  In fact, the men of Escalante swore to his parents to, "search for him like he is one of our own" (Woolsey).  Although unsuccessful in finding him, they did find his burrows, and the inscription "NEMO" (for the Italian "no one") etched into a sandstone alcove.  Today Ruess is as deeply ingrained into the area as his etching in the sandstone.  Escalante now bears an art festival, "Everett Ruess Days" in his honor and memory.  

"Here in the utter stillness,
High on the lonely cliff-edge,
where the air is trembling with lightning, 
I have given the wind my pledge."

-Everett Ruess-


Works Cited:

Woolsey, Nethella G, and Nethella G. Woolsey. "Some Old Stories." The Escalante Story: A History of the Town of Escalante, and Description of the Surrounding Territory, Garfield County, Utah, 1875-1964. Springville: Art City Publishing Company, 1964. 414-419. Print.

Roberts, David. "Finding Everett Ruess - National Geographic Adventure Magazine." Adventure -- National Geographic. National Geographic Society, May 2009. Web. 17 Feb. 2016.

Sunday, February 7, 2016

Nothing Better Than a New Pair of Boots

There's nothing like a new pair of boots!  Within the last few months I bought a couple of new pairs of boots, a square toed (more of a dress style) pair, and a pair of new fire boots for my job.  There are striking differences between the 2 pairs of boots.  The square toed boots feature designed stitching, emblems sewn into the boot, and a heel and sole that are made of a composite material that also accent the boot well.  The fire boots are instead made for a functionality, to keep my feet safe in hot embers and ash.  These boots are made almost entirely of leather, with the exception of a "Vibram" sole which will not melt or burn when in direct contact with coals and embers.  These boots are more heavily sewn, but lack the flair and appearance of the cowboy boots.


Drews Boots. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Feb. 2016. 
One thing these boots do share in common is leather.  I also do a good bit of leather work in my spare time, building wallets, belts, and other items by tooling, staining, and stitching leather.  I love the many, many things that can be done with leather.  Products made of leather are found around us everyday, just about anywhere you go in the world.  Boots are no exception, they are extremely popular right now.  But how often does one pause and think about, just where did my boots come from?

As I look into this, I am going to use the fire boots as the subject of looking into that question. Firefighters have to meet very specific requirements when it comes to their boots, the main requirements being: all leather, Vibram sole, and 10" high top to the boot to protect the ankle and lower part of the leg.  Few manufacturers can meet these specifications.  The brand I chose is called "Drews Boots", located in Oregon.  Drew's touts a reputation of an "All American Made" product.  So as we trail the history of my pair of boots, we know now that they were hand-made in a boot shop in Oregon.  The leather that went into the boot was made in the USA.  While I cannot locate on their website exactly where in the USA their leather comes from exactly, let's look at the leather process in the US.
Tanned leather "side" "The Leather Guy." The Leather Guy, N.d. Web. 7 Feb. 2016.
Drews may do all the work to put together a great looking product, but they have to do some shopping themselves to obtain the leather to create their product.  Boot manufacturers seek out their leather from leather producers, often called "Tanners" or "Tanneries" where leather is prepared for the final product. A tannery such as "Horween Leather" turns an animal hide into, "tannages from our vegetable tanned Genuine Shell Cordovan to Sport Leathers and Footwear Leathers such as Chromexcel".  So just what is the role of a tannery?  The website "Leather for Us" states, "Leather is produced traditionally even today. The skin, discard  of the food industry, is "recycled" from the tanneries and processed  with advanced machinery and vast research, in such a way  to make it a  “noble” and fashionable material. There is a large number of tanneries, but the uniqueness of the result is given by the ability and the skill of experienced  craftsmen".  Just as was done in ancient times, tanners soak an animal hide, flesh it (remove all meat/flesh from the back of the hide), remove the hair, then go through the delicate process of tanning that removes fibers, grease, balances the pH levels to prohibit decay, and finally use chemicals and minerals that give the leather a desired texture and color, which will then be ready for say, a boot manufacturer.

We still are not at the answer of where the leather comes from.  The tanner receives a hide; where does the hide come from?  With the boot example, let's stick to cowhide although leathers come from various types of hide.  "Leather for us" states that, "Immediately after killing the animal, in order to avoid degradation processes in the tissues, the skin is salted, dried or refrigerated before the production process of tanning starts".  So we now know that immediately after slaughter, a cowhide is removed from the animal carcass and goes straight to a preservation mode to prepare it for the tanner.  While there is a lot of controversy about this part of the process, let's suffice it to say that cattle are slaughtered under requirements of the 1958 Humane Slaughter Act, which in it's most notable requirement calls for, " the need to have an animal completely sedated and insensible to pain. This is to minimize the suffering to the point where the animal feels nothing at all, instead losing a consciousness from which it will never awaken" (Wikipedia).  


Feedlot "Feedlot – Engorde a Corral." AGROadvance. Agroadvance, n.d. Web. 7 Feb. 2016.
From the slaughterhouse, we can trace the cow that produced the leather back to a feedlot where the cow was fed and conditioned prior to shipment for processing.  Before the feedlot these cattle arrived at such a facility from farms and ranches from all over our country.  It is really hard to say when it comes to leather if you are using a product of the small, family farmer, or that of more of a business farm or ranch.  With the mix of cattle that end up at the feedlot, there can really be no way to be sure.  


"Grass Finished Beef." James Ranch. James Ranch, n.d. Web. 7 Feb. 2016.
As I look into the process I have to wonder, how many people purchase a pair of boots and think about where the leather to make that boot came from.  Do they realize that agriculture provided the means for their fashion?  Do they realize that leather production is a very time consuming process, and that leather changes hands so many times from the farm, to feedlot, and from the slaughterhouse to the tannery, eventually to the boot manufacturer?  I would think that a detailed look into the process would sicken some people, especially when we look at the fate of the animal, along with the fairly gross process of processing a hide to create a leather product.  For myself, I find a lot of satisfaction knowing that very little (if anything at all) goes to waste when an animal is processed.  For me that hide provides comfort, safety, and style.  It gives me a whole new level of respect right down to the farmer feeding cattle on the range our in their fields.  It also amazes me that this ancient process of tanning hides and producing leather has changed very little over thousands of years, and we still use many of the same applications with leather today.  



References:

Drew's Boots | Boulet Boots | Winter Pac Boots | Drew's Boots. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Feb. 2016.
Horween Leather Company. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Feb. 2016.
"The Leather Production Process." Production Tan Leather - How Leather is Tanned for Handbags - Shoes - Clothes - Hide, Harness and Saddle - Production. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Feb. 2016.
"Humane Slaughter Act." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc, n.d. Web. 7 Feb. 2016.

Saturday, January 23, 2016

My Farming Heritage

Reaching back into my family history, I wanted to find the most significant time period in which my ancestor's attachment to farming changed.  My family has always had a connection to agriculture, but during my life it has been on a very small scale in comparison to generations past.  So, I sought to find the time period when it all changed, and what was behind the loss in farming and ranching that my family first had.
Escalante Utah farm ground

Let me share with you the history of my family in relation to agriculture, in order to paint a good picture of their farming and ranching in the past.  My family were like many others in Utah, Mormon pioneers who moved and settled several communities during their days. The last time they picked up and moved my ancestors settled in "Potato Valley", a valley near the head of the Escalante River in south-central Utah in 1877.  The community that they helped pioneer became known as Escalante. Though my family arrived in the area to establish a sawmill, like any other pioneer family, they still had their own farms and livestock in order to feed their families.  The land proved very favorable for them to increase their herds and farm development.  Cool conditions on the mountain also favored dairying for my ancestors, and ample water at the time along with warm, long summers meant good crop production in the valley below.  The desert country to the south provided great winter range.  My ancestors mainly grazed sheep on this landscape, although they also had good sized herds of cattle and horses.
Sheep herd on Black Ridge, near Escalante, Utah 

For this assignment, I spoke with my grandfather, Marvin Porter, who still lives in Escalante today. Before choosing a time period to examine on the "Growing a Nation" Historical Timeline, I wanted to talk with him first to identify the proper decade to research. My grandpa stated that the first hit came around 1916-1917, as his father told him. Summarizing my grandpa's words, these were the years that the Spanish Influenza hit the area especially hard.  The sheep and cattle were on winter range that winter, and many of the farmers and ranchers in town were just to sick to make the trip down to the desert to move their herds, or they were bound to home to care for their families that were inflicted.  To make matters worse, that winter was especially hard, with very deep snow.  The herds were caught in the deep snow, and without anyone there to push them to safer ground, great numbers of animals in the herds perished.

An example of the rugged winter range country south and east of Escalante.  The Henry Mountains appear in the background.
Grandpa went on to say that recovery during the 20's started to look promising, but everything changed in the late 20's, but especially more so the 1930's.  This would be the time period when most of my ancestors left farming, or drastically reduced their lands and livestock.

Summer range, near "Hog Ranch", Boulder Mountain
So what caused this change?  Well, to start off with, one doesn't have to dig very deep to notice that the 1930's would be the time period of one of our nation's most notable historical events, the Great Depression.  When this came to my mind, I first had to ask myself if an community so small and remote would have really felt the effects of the Depression that drastically.  "Not really, from what pa said", my grandpa responded when I posed the question.  "People mainly still lived off of the land. Most people were poor enough that they never really saw much of a change as far as that goes".  

So I asked him what changed.  I honestly wasn't too shocked to hear that one of the biggest factors was drought.  Growing up in Escalante, I had seen drought years and how it effected people in town. Grandpa said the drought was so persistent that springs dried up, which never did really come back, which also hurt irrigation. Years of hard grazing also took its toll, and the range conditions themselves also began to change. When it rained, severe floods gutted washes and streams.  Grandpa also pointed me to a book containing history of the area called, "The Escalante Story".  This book states that in 1922 there were about 8,850 cattle and 23,200 sheep in the valley.  By 1950, after years of drought and deteriorating range conditions, the numbers were 5,073 head of cattle and 5,896 head of sheep.  By 1963 the sheep herds were gone, and 2,452 head of cattle remained (from table located on page 138).
Another example of winter range country just south of Escalante

In comparison to the "Growing a Nation" historical timeline, one can see that drought was in fact a national problem in regards to agriculture.  Of course, we also find the Great Depression also cut back on agricultural production, advancement, and economic growth.  The Taylor Grazing Act was introduced to address grazing practices and health.  The "Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act" was also established, which helps us see that erosion problems were not just an issue that plagued my ancestors, but also a national problem.

While my family did retain a little land and a few head of sheep and cattle, they never really considered themselves farmers after those hardships and loss.  Today, much of their farm ground in the area is dry ground thick with sagebrush.  It is hard to tell they were ever there. But I will always value and cherish that pioneer heritage.

Farming today in Escalante.  Most of the agricultural production still consists of alfalfa farming and cattle ranching.


Reference:

Woolsey, Nethella Griffin, "The Escalante Story" (page 138) Copyright 1964

"Growing a Nation, The Story of American Agriculture" http://www.agclassroom.org/gan/timeline/1930.htm