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Preserving a bygone time

Slideshow: LeSueur County Pioneer Power Show turns 50

Kevin Schulz, Editor

September 22, 2023

10 Slides

This year the Le Sueur County Pioneer Power Association reached a milestone in keeping yesterday’s agriculture alive, as the association’s Pioneer Power Show turned 50.

On the last weekend of August, 130 acres between LeSueur and Montgomery are transformed into a showcase of all things farming — the way it used to be. Visitors to this annual step back in time can see horse-drawn equipment, steam engines of all sizes, unique pieces of equipment as well as gas and diesel tractors and farm equipment.

In addition to the numerous tractor and equipment displays, there are also daily demonstrations of threshing machines, one-row corn pickers, check-row planters, a sawmill, and tillage with moldboard plows with fewer than a handful of bottoms.

Most of the main brands of equipment of yesterday and today are represented — Allis Chalmers, Oliver, Case, John Deere, Massey Ferguson, International Harvester, Minneapolis Moline, etc. Also on display are equipment and implements born out of farmer ingenuity and necessity.

A daily parade of equipment is a highlight for attendees to see a lot of the tractors thundering around the grounds.

The August weekend power show is one of two major fundraisers for the LSCPPA, with the other being an annual swap meet that takes place the last weekend in April.

Numerous volunteer hours are put in year-round to ensure that shows such as the LeSueur County Pioneer Power Show go on, keeping the history of agriculture alive.

About the Author(s)

Kevin Schulz

Editor, The Farmer

Kevin Schulz joined The Farmer as editor in January of 2023, after spending two years as senior staff writer for Dakota Farmer and Nebraska Farmer magazines. Prior to joining these two magazines, he spent six years in a similar capacity with National Hog Farmer. Prior to joining National Hog Farmer, Schulz spent a long career as the editor of The Land magazine, an agricultural-rural life publication based in Mankato, Minn.

During his tenure at The Land, the publication grew from covering 55 Minnesota counties to encompassing the entire state, as well as 30 counties in northern Iowa. Covering all facets of Minnesota and Iowa agriculture, Schulz was able to stay close to his roots as a southern Minnesota farm boy raised on a corn, soybean and hog finishing farm.

One particular area where he stayed close to his roots is working with the FFA organization.

Covering the FFA programs stayed near and dear to his heart, and he has been recognized for such coverage over the years. He has received the Minnesota FFA Communicator of the Year award, was honored with the Minnesota Honorary FFA Degree in 2014 and inducted into the Minnesota FFA Hall of Fame in 2018.

Schulz attended South Dakota State University, majoring in agricultural journalism. He was also a member of Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity and now belongs to its alumni organization.

His family continues to live on a southern Minnesota farm near where he grew up. He and his wife, Carol, have raised two daughters: Kristi, a 2014 University of Minnesota graduate who is married to Eric Van Otterloo and teaches at Mankato (Minn.) East High School, and Haley, a 2018 graduate of University of Wisconsin-River Falls. She is married to John Peake and teaches in Hayward, Wis. 

When not covering the agriculture industry on behalf of The Farmer's readers, Schulz enjoys spending time traveling with family, making it a quest to reach all 50 states — 47 so far — and three countries. He also enjoys reading, music, photography, playing basketball, and enjoying nature and campfires with friends and family.

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