Horse power event Sept. 12

The Chippewa County Historical Society announces that the 16th annual “Horse Power Event” will be from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 12, at the historic Swensson Farm Museum. The Swensson Farm Museum is located six miles east of Montevideo or 11 miles west of Clara City on Highway 7, 5 miles south on Chippewa County Road 6, and 1/8 mile east on Chippewa County Road 15. From Granite Falls, go 4 miles north on Chippewa County Road 5 and 2 3/4 miles west on Chippewa County Road 15. Signs will be posted.

This popular event celebrates farming in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and focuses on horse-drawn equipment. The 17-acre museum site consists of the preserved 1880s’ timber-frame barn, grist mill remains, family burial plot, and 1903 22-room family home. With the presence of COVID-19 and to keep our visitors, vendors, staff and volunteers safe, we are requiring all in attendance to wear a mask that covers the mouth and nose when within 6 feet of other attendees.

Teams of draft animals will be on hand throughout the day to demonstrate some of the following: corn binding, dragging, plowing, disking, raking, and potato digging. Other equipment that might be featured are a manure spreader, hay loader, hay tedder, burr mill and more. Additional horse drawn events include using the gang plow and the walking/sulky plow. A parade will begin at 3 p.m.

Horse drawn wagon rides will be available all day to move people throughout the site. Please be patient as the drivers will need to clean all touch points between riders.

Freshly dug potatoes will be available at 11:30 a.m. and again at 1:30 p.m. For only $2, you can “hand choose” potatoes to put into your 5# bag. There is also a pumpkin patch for the children.

Activities will be held around the preserved 1880s’ timber-framed barn. A harnessing demonstration and rope making will take place near the barn.

There will be a Wild Edibles Tour, led by Audrey Arner, at 11 a.m. Please meet near the back porch of the house to participate in this tour.

This year the house and barn will not be open for viewing. Vendors, selling a variety of crafts, garden produce, pickles, homemade lefse, and pickles, in addition to arts and crafts, will be located on the lawn. Just outside the family home, children and adults can try their hand at washing clothes on a scrub board. Music will be part of our day as well.

The Yellowstone Trail Alliance Sociability Run will also be traveling to the farm on this day.

Lunch will be available on the grounds from the Papa D’s Diner. There are picnic tables on the grounds, but feel free to bring chairs or a blanket to have a physically distanced picnic. Admission is free this year but donations are very much appreciated. For more information or if you would like to bring a team of horses for the day, please contact the Chippewa County Historical Society at 320-269-7636,by email at chippewahistory@outlook.com or you can visit our website at www.chippewacohistory.org.

Iowa spends $100M in federal funds for farmer, ag programs

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — The state will provide $100 million in federal funds to help Iowa livestock producers, the biofuels industry, beginning farmers and small-scale meat processors recover from the coronavirus pandemic, Gov. Kim Reynolds said Tuesday.

As many Iowa farmers deal with the impact of a massive storm and continue to suffer from lower demand for corn and soybeans and extremely low prices, Reynolds allocated the money from the federal CARES Act to programs that help agriculture-related businesses and farmers.

The governor provided $60 million in grants for producers of pork, beef, chicken, turkeys, dairy, fish or sheep to serve as working capital to stabilize their operations.

US Sen. Stabenow urges USDA to extend food program waivers

LANSING, Mich (AP) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture will not continue to provide food program waivers that have ensured students are fed while schools are closed during the coronavirus pandemic unless Congress acts, U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow of Michigan warned Tuesday.

Stabenow, a Democrat, said she is fighting the department’s decision. At the end of August, locations other than schools will no longer be able to provide government-reimbursed meals to children and students will no longer receive meals on weekends, which was allowed under the summer rules.

“This is really, really important. We are not done with this pandemic. We are still in the middle of it, and families in Michigan and across the country are facing incredible hardships,” Stabenow said during a virtual news conference in which she and other officials talked about the 30 million children in the U.S. that get government-funded meals.