Jim Pech
Belle Plaine Farmer
Funk Bros. Historian
On February 16th, 2004, Jim Pech presented a story Funk Bros. Seed Company in Belle Plaine, Iowa.
He told of a one acre field of seed produced in 1935 growing to a high of 14,042 acres of seed produced in 1967. The first office was in the old canning factory building of 11th Street. In 1939 the Palmer Foundry building at the corner of 7th Ave. and 11th Street was purchased, developed and expanded to become the main office and processing plan until 1955 when a site was purchased at 8th Street and 4th Ave. where a new office and processing buildings were constructed. Together with the growth of facilities, the number of employees also grew to an average of 120 regular and hundreds of temporary employees. In 1974 the company was purchased by Ciba Geigy, was gradually phased of out of Belle Plaine and became extinct in 1994, having officially started in May 1938.
FUNK BROS. SEED COMPANY was a family owned and operated seed company located near Bloomington, Illinois. The Funk family owned 22,000 acres of land. The company was incorporated in 1901, sold the 1st hybrid corn in 1916. As time went by, many seed companies joined by producing Funk’s “G” hybrids and selling them under their company names.
In 1935 Mr. Gene Funk contacted his friend, Fred McCulloch, who lived south of Belle Plaine to produce a small acreage of seed near Belle Plaine. Fred McCulloch asked Lewis Falck, who taught agriculture in the Belle Plaine High School, to help him take care of the production. Falck was pushing the local farmers to start growing hybrid corn. He had started an evening class for farmers in the area. The first night 4 farmers showed up, John Schild, Louie Koep, Ed Swatosh and George Raabe. By the end of the year, as many as 84 had attended. At harvest, the seed was hauled to Bloomington.
In 1936 and 1937 Falck and McCulloch became associate growers of Funk’s “G.” McCulloch converted an old country schoolhouse into a seed dryer consisting of 4 rooms. The heat for drying was furnished from a coal stoker. I don’t have any figures as to the acreage they planted in 1936 and 1937. At harvest the seed was hand harvested in wagons and brought to the dryer where it was hand scooped into mesh bags and placed in a drying bin. The bagging was done by a few of us high school kids. Falck had a Model A pickup that he used to haul us out to the McCulloch farm right after school and we would work until the day’s harvest was safely in a dryer bin. This routine was repeated day after day. When a bin was dry, we would empty the dry corn into holding bins in a long hog shed. During the late fall and the winter months the corn was sorted, shelled, and put into cloth bags that had to be hand sewn.
In May 1938, Lewis Falck resigned from his teaching job and was hired as manager of Funk Bros. Seed Co. known as Funk’s Iowa, Minnesota operations. In 1938, 250 acres of seed was grown in the Belle Plaine are by Schild, Koep, Lahn, Schroeder and others.
In 1939, the company leased the local canning factory (more recently the Palco building) south of the railroad tracks on 11th St. and across from Franklin Park, for storage and the first office was established in the NW corner of the building on the 2nd floor. Some of the first employees were Louise Conrad as Falck’s secretary, Cecil Franklin, Jim Pech, Jim Uchytil, Betty Hall Rabe, and Charles McMillin. Seed ready for sale was shipped from Bloomington by rail and was stored in the east portion of the canning factory.
In 1940 the company purchased the Palmer Foundry Building just south of the railroad tracks on the west side of 7th Ave. While an office was being constructed in the southeast corner, a temporary office was set up in a room above the Cut Rate Grocery on the north side of Main Street. I remember that Tom Palmer and his wife lived on the east side of 7th Avenue, across from the foundry. Some time during the war years, the Tom Palmer home was torn down and a dryer was constructed on that location.
From 1941 thru 1946, the foundry was remodeled and the elevator for processing was built along with 2 dryer buildings and 2 large quonset storage buildings. During this time some of us were in the service, so some new employees helped take over including several of our dads as well as farmers such as Bill Grummer, Ed Wehrman, Glenn Case, and a local, John Lahn. The offices were remodeled and this became the main office and headquarters.
In 1948 Funks purchased the hemp plan at Traer, Iowa and it was remodeled and was made int a fulltime seed corn plant and was manned by employees from the Clutier area.
In 1949 the old Emerson School property in the southwest part of town was purchased from the American Legion. This consisted of a couple acres of land upon which were built 2 seed corn dryers and 3 large quonset buildings. The schoolhouse was the home of the Research and Foundation seed offices.
Belle Plaine Farmer
Funk Bros. Historian
On February 16th, 2004, Jim Pech presented a story Funk Bros. Seed Company in Belle Plaine, Iowa.
He told of a one acre field of seed produced in 1935 growing to a high of 14,042 acres of seed produced in 1967. The first office was in the old canning factory building of 11th Street. In 1939 the Palmer Foundry building at the corner of 7th Ave. and 11th Street was purchased, developed and expanded to become the main office and processing plan until 1955 when a site was purchased at 8th Street and 4th Ave. where a new office and processing buildings were constructed. Together with the growth of facilities, the number of employees also grew to an average of 120 regular and hundreds of temporary employees. In 1974 the company was purchased by Ciba Geigy, was gradually phased of out of Belle Plaine and became extinct in 1994, having officially started in May 1938.
FUNK BROS. SEED COMPANY was a family owned and operated seed company located near Bloomington, Illinois. The Funk family owned 22,000 acres of land. The company was incorporated in 1901, sold the 1st hybrid corn in 1916. As time went by, many seed companies joined by producing Funk’s “G” hybrids and selling them under their company names.
In 1935 Mr. Gene Funk contacted his friend, Fred McCulloch, who lived south of Belle Plaine to produce a small acreage of seed near Belle Plaine. Fred McCulloch asked Lewis Falck, who taught agriculture in the Belle Plaine High School, to help him take care of the production. Falck was pushing the local farmers to start growing hybrid corn. He had started an evening class for farmers in the area. The first night 4 farmers showed up, John Schild, Louie Koep, Ed Swatosh and George Raabe. By the end of the year, as many as 84 had attended. At harvest, the seed was hauled to Bloomington.
In 1936 and 1937 Falck and McCulloch became associate growers of Funk’s “G.” McCulloch converted an old country schoolhouse into a seed dryer consisting of 4 rooms. The heat for drying was furnished from a coal stoker. I don’t have any figures as to the acreage they planted in 1936 and 1937. At harvest the seed was hand harvested in wagons and brought to the dryer where it was hand scooped into mesh bags and placed in a drying bin. The bagging was done by a few of us high school kids. Falck had a Model A pickup that he used to haul us out to the McCulloch farm right after school and we would work until the day’s harvest was safely in a dryer bin. This routine was repeated day after day. When a bin was dry, we would empty the dry corn into holding bins in a long hog shed. During the late fall and the winter months the corn was sorted, shelled, and put into cloth bags that had to be hand sewn.
In May 1938, Lewis Falck resigned from his teaching job and was hired as manager of Funk Bros. Seed Co. known as Funk’s Iowa, Minnesota operations. In 1938, 250 acres of seed was grown in the Belle Plaine are by Schild, Koep, Lahn, Schroeder and others.
In 1939, the company leased the local canning factory (more recently the Palco building) south of the railroad tracks on 11th St. and across from Franklin Park, for storage and the first office was established in the NW corner of the building on the 2nd floor. Some of the first employees were Louise Conrad as Falck’s secretary, Cecil Franklin, Jim Pech, Jim Uchytil, Betty Hall Rabe, and Charles McMillin. Seed ready for sale was shipped from Bloomington by rail and was stored in the east portion of the canning factory.
In 1940 the company purchased the Palmer Foundry Building just south of the railroad tracks on the west side of 7th Ave. While an office was being constructed in the southeast corner, a temporary office was set up in a room above the Cut Rate Grocery on the north side of Main Street. I remember that Tom Palmer and his wife lived on the east side of 7th Avenue, across from the foundry. Some time during the war years, the Tom Palmer home was torn down and a dryer was constructed on that location.
From 1941 thru 1946, the foundry was remodeled and the elevator for processing was built along with 2 dryer buildings and 2 large quonset storage buildings. During this time some of us were in the service, so some new employees helped take over including several of our dads as well as farmers such as Bill Grummer, Ed Wehrman, Glenn Case, and a local, John Lahn. The offices were remodeled and this became the main office and headquarters.
In 1948 Funks purchased the hemp plan at Traer, Iowa and it was remodeled and was made int a fulltime seed corn plant and was manned by employees from the Clutier area.
In 1949 the old Emerson School property in the southwest part of town was purchased from the American Legion. This consisted of a couple acres of land upon which were built 2 seed corn dryers and 3 large quonset buildings. The schoolhouse was the home of the Research and Foundation seed offices.