The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1908-06-11
A Successful Son of Sweden.

any Change Vi lHt map.
A Successful Son of Sweden.
In August, 1870, there emigrated to
this country from Sweden a young
man by the name of Solomon Ander.
son.. He located at Omaha and re-
manned there until the spring OF 1871,
when he came to Clay county and
filed on a homestead in Garfield town
ship, which is the present site of
Alsen. He had little funds, but was
endowed with the necessary hustling
ability for success. Suffice to say,
this son of Sweden, Notwithstanding
the many trials of pioneer life in
South Dakota, including grasshOpper
plaques, seasons of drought and hot
winds, finally began to make things
count, and where many others gave
up in disgust Mr.. Anderson labored
on. Today he has surmounted all diff
ficulties and can almost be said to
be monarch of all he surveys. He
owns and farms 500 acres of the finest
land in Clay and Union Counties, and
his farms are all we'll improved.
One of the beauties of this farm is
the handsome residence which was
erected in 1901 1t has forty-twO
rooms all elegantly finished and is
heated by steam. 1t cost, exclusive
of furnishings, vas Yo,UV0. The AL
sen telephone exchange. with a total
of $50 subscribers, has its central Of
flee in the Anderson home. Andrew
Anderson, son of Mr.. and Mrs. Solo,
man Anderson, of late years has ueen
the leading spirit in looking after the
farm work and Telephone exchange
though the old gentleman is by no
means on the superanuated list.
Two Big Silos.
A novelty on the Anderson farm to
the majority of visitors are the two
large silos. Few of these exist in the
northwest, and the wonder is there
are not more of them, and they certain
ly are profitable investments. The
smaller of the two silos was built in
1894, and has a capacity of IT'S tons.
The larger one was built in 1899, is
25 feet in diameter, SO feet in depth,
and has a capacity of 500 tons. These
silos are filled with c%ornstalks. The
corn is cut green in the field with a
corn binder and hauled to the silO,
where it is run through a large cutting
machine that is run by a fifteen
horse power engine. and then blown
into the silo with a blower at the rate
of about fifty or sixty tons per day.
The yield in the field is from ten to
fifteen tons per acre. This makes he
finest kind of feed for ~fattening stock,
and MI. Anderson informs the writer
that 5000 head of cattle are wintered
each year from these two silos.
Alsen also boasts of a creamery tina
for twelve years has been one or the
most successful creameries in South
Dakota. 1t is owned and operated by
farmer stockholders Of the community
This creamery is run both winter and
summer, and for several years has
been paying it's patrons a total OF
from $4,000 to $4,000 annually. .
There are many fine farms ana
farm houses in the Alsen territory.
There are hundreds of progressive
farmers who are proud of their, sur
roundings. The town of Alsen a al
way been their pride. They have
hoped against hope that the town
would grow to be the Clay county me-
tropolis. But these men, more con-
tent with looking after their farms
than in making Alsen a large town,
have overlooked a golden opportunity.
But a younger generation has come
into the limelight, and on the should
al Call IA