THREE QUARTERS of a CENTURY of PROGRESS
1848-1923
A Brief Pictorial and Commercial History
of Sioux City, Iowa
published 1923
(click image for larger size)
|
Grandstand
|
Stock Judging Team
|
|
|
Girls Club Workers
|
Boys' and Girls' Club Workers
|
|
|
Swine Building
|
Baby Beef Show
|
Boys' Club Workers
|
Thirty-four
__________________
Interstate Fair and Its Influence On Live Stock Development
Millions of dollars added annually to value of live
stock in territory because of influence of Sioux City institution on
development of better stock.
THE Interstate Fair was started twenty-one years ago in Sioux City as a live stock fair. Although it is complete in every way as a fair, it still pays particular attention to the live stock end and has never lost sight of its supreme purpose of increasing the quality of live stock in Sioux City's great stock producing territory. The fair was organized by a group of Sioux City business men who soon afterwards interested the farmers and stockmen forming a closer and stronger organization. It met with success from the first, although its story is one of hard work and disappointments on the part of the few who pioneered the organization. Stockmen of Iowa, South Dakota, Nebraska and Minnesota at once took an interest in what was to prove a great factor in the development of their own stock.
Being an entirely independent organization and being interstate in scope, entries are brought from Missouri, Wisconsin, Illinois, Kansas, North Dakota as well as the four immediate states. To this organization is due much of the credit for the making of Sioux City one of the world's largest pure bred live stock markets. It is perhaps the greatest factor in this territory in the making of better stock. Large prizes are offered every year in numerous different classes of cattle, horses, hogs and sheep.
In addition to the big live stock exhibits each year, there are good displays of agricultural products, fruits, home work, horticultural products and everything that goes to make a real fair. There are also wonderful exhibits of farm machinery, automobiles and other products of interest to the farmers.
While a good fair in every way, there are some things in which the Interstate Fair excels. One of these is the Boys' and Girls' Club Work. For many years this has been a hobby of the president, F. L. Eaton. Under his direction has been built a boys and girls club workers department that is not excelled anywhere in the world. The federal and state governments have recognized the fair through their work along these lines and are now giving valuable aid. Every year from one to three teams of boys and girls are brought from eleven different states at the expense of the Interstate Fair to compete in contests. Valuable prizes are given the winners in addition to the expense of the trip.
Thirty-five
_________________
(click on image for larger size)
|
Western Terminal Elevator Co.
|
Terminal Grain Corporation
|
Flanley Grain Co.
|
|
Sioux City Seed Co.
|
Thirty-six
_____________________
Sioux City Fastest Growing Grain Market In America
Sioux City is rapidly becoming one of the leaders
in grain and milling located in the heart of grain producing region
of America.
THE history of Sioux City as a grain market begins in 1907 when six grain firms organized a Board of Trade. Before that time the city had never been mentioned as a grain center, and for ten years afterwards there was little in the way of grain business here that could be enough to call it a market. Those years were full of hard work for the handful of men who were determined that they would see a real grain market in Sioux City. In 1917 the first proportional rates were granted here and Sioux City was recognized as a market. The following year work was started on the terminal elevators that were to play such an important part in the development of the market.
There is over two million bushel elevator capacity here now with more planned for the immediate future. The Terminal Grain Corporation owns the largest elevator in the city. It is a modern reinforced concrete structure with a capacity of 800,000 bushels. It is equipped with labor saving devices and modern equipment of all kinds. The elevators of the International Milling Co. hold 580,000 bushels; the Flanley Grain Co., 125,000; Western Terminal Elevator, 400,000; Akron Milling Co., 35,000, and Martens & Ketels Milling Co., 60,000. These elevators have performed a real service to the small towns and farmers. They relieve the congestion in the small elevators and help to relieve the car shortage caused by long hauls.
Sioux City is located in the very heart of the best grain producing region of the United States. It is located geographically so that wherever there is a demand for grain it can be supplied from here without back hauls or additional freight charges. There have been days when shipments were made from Sioux City to Canada, to the Gulf, to the Atlantic coast and to the Pacific. It is doubtful if any market can show a better record than this.
In 1920 there were 8,000,000 bushels of grain received here. In 1921 this was increased to 16,000,000, and to 25,000,000 in 1922. These enormous annual increases are indicative of the rate at which the Sioux City market has grown and is still growing. Another fact of vital importance to any buyer is that Sioux City is so located as to be able to receive grain from no other terminal market but can ship to any market. This assures the buyer of strictly country run or virgin grain at the market here.
Thirty-seven
__________________
(click on image for larger size)
Thirty-eight
__________________
The Sioux City Grain Exchange, which succeeded the Board of Trade in 1922, is an efficient organization for furthering the interests of both the buyer and seller on the market. They maintain a car inspection bureau, a grain inspection department and other facilities for the proper handling of the grain business here. Under the supervision of this organization all sales and trading is carried on in the trading room, insuring a just deal for everyone concerned. It has been able to profit by mistakes of others since this is the youngest terminal market in the country. Confidence of the grain producers in this market has been the big factor in its development.
Along with the grain receipts and a direct factor in the building of a grain market is the milling industry. The first flour mill was established here in 1867, run by water power from the Floyd river. This mill had a capacity of a few barrels per day and served only a small territory. On the very spot where this first mill was located is now the Martens & Ketels mill with a capacity of 400 barrels per day. The International Milling Co. has a flour mill with 1,200 barrels capacity daily and a corn mill with a 400 barrel capacity. The Akron Milling Co. and the International both have large feed mills.
For years the milling business was hampered by lack of storage capacity. Gradually they built up a storage system of their own, but with the coming of the terminal elevators they were able to expand on a large scale. It is now possible for them to get grain on the local market the year around and can operate their mills every day in the year. The raw products come from all parts of the west and the finished food products are sold in practically every state in the United States and some is exported.
The location of Sioux City on the borderland between the southern wheat and the northern wheat makes it the most ideal place in the country for the blending of flour. As soon as more of the large manufacturers of cereal products recognize this strategic location of Sioux City they will look to this city for the location of their mills. All kinds of grains are received here and much goes to supply mills in all parts of the country. With the mills here the long haul on raw products would be eliminated.
There are more elevators and more cereal mills needed in Sioux City and only a matter of a few years until more will be here. Approximately one fourth of all the corn produced in the United States comes from the three states immediately surrounding Sioux City. This being the case it is only natural that the greatest receipts in grain here would be corn. In 1922 there were over 10,000 cars of corn received here. These three states referred to—Iowa, South Dakota and Nebraska—produced in 1922 a total of 116,717,000 bushels of wheat. The United States produced 856,211,000 bushels. The three states produced 748,573,000 bushels of corn and 353,357,000 bushels of oats, while in the United States there were 2,890,712,000 bushels of corn and 1,215,496,000 bushels of oats produced.
Thirty-nine
Copyright © 2000 - 2003 D. J. Coover All Rights Reserved Webmaster: D. J. Coover - Email