The Superior Express -

It was "Corn Picking Days" in Jewell, Kansas Saturday and Sunday. It started out a bit chilly on Saturday morning but Saturday afternoon and Sunday saw great corn picking weather.

The event was organized by Jr. Vandergiesen (Smith Center) and Calvin Bohnert (Jewell). There were other "old timers" around too - Robin Edmonds (Berryton, Kan.), Dan Emmott (Beloit), Brian Cockroft (Mankato) and Dusty Covault (Tucumcari, N.M.). But, as usual, Corn Picking Days also saw some new faces.

Merritt Blain came from Glen Elder wanting to pick some corn – like in the "Good Old Days." After talking a bit to a young "old timer," William Cockroft, he was out in the field with a Massey 135 tractor and a Ford corn picker. A flat tire on the wagon slowed him a bit but Dan Emmott had that fixed in a jiffy and he was off again.

Gerald Wright, along with his nephew Nathan, came from Newton. Gerald brought his own restored H Farmall but picked with a Dearborn Woods Brothers machine owned by Bohnert. Wright estimates his H to be a 1941 model. In contrast to the 80-year-old tractor, Nathan Wright had the most modern machine around. His two-year-old drone flew over and had a great bird's eye view of the event.

Peter Smith (Scottsville) came to pick corn too. He first came to Corn Picking Days with his grandfather, Dave Smith, in 2019. He was 12. That year he got on one of Bohnert's tractors, started picking corn and didn't want to go home.

He now has his own early 1950s SC Case tractor. This year he was pulling one of Bohnert's Wood Brother's corn pickers. His dad, Brad Smith, younger brother, Jacob, and dog, Duke were riding in the wagon and Grandpa Dave was watching. Brad Smith said, "We came to support him."

Not only does Brad Smith support his son, he understands the attraction of old machinery. He was one of the organizers of "The Big Dig" near Concordia in August. He and his dad have an array of old machines and memorabilia on their Scottsville farm.

Peter Smith had just brought in a load of ear corn and was ready to head back to the field when another first timer, Dale Herredsberg from Lebanon, arrived. Herredsberg had his daughters, Kacee and Jessa along, but also had Ro Garcia from Madrid, Spain with him.

Garcia is an exchange student attending Smith Center High School. Peter Smith loaded up the new group in an empty wagon and headed back to the field. Garcia added a bit of an international flavor to the event as she rode through the Jewell County corn field.

Corn Picking Days would not be complete without Jr. Vangergiesen's John Deere 50 in the field with the two United States flags flying. The tractor was used by both Jr. and his son, Gary. Dusty Covault rode along with Jr. and Jim Burks (Jewell) was seen riding with Gary.

Another Corn Picking Days "regular" in the field was Bohnert's Case 210 Corn Picker-Silage Cutter. The machine is a rare one, made only for a few years in the early 1950s. Frankly, the machine was not successful. Most were recalled and scrapped. When the corn was dry enough to be picked, the silage was too dry to be good feed. Successful or not, Edmonds and Bohnert had old machines in the field on both Saturday and Sunday.

Sunday evening brought the close to the 2021 Corn Picking Days but it will be back again next year. Look for it!