Bonanza farming era in the James River Valley ends in 20th century
BY JOY POWERS

James Power, Northern Pacific Railroad’s land agent to the northern Dakota Territory, began thinking long before 1873 that large-scale, showcase farms would be the way to advertise the economic promise of the unsettled land along the Northern Pacific’s route, especially the land in the Red River Valley, along western Minnesota.

Power realized the railroad was in financial trouble and believed it would take too much time for this region to be settled and turned into farmland if the railroad sold the land off in small parcels. A large-scale farmer could turn thousands of acres of prairie into farmland faster than one with a single mule or oxen could and create a fast interest in the area.

With Northern Pacific’s crash of 1873, Northern Pacific had many upset bondholders holding possession of their worthless bonds. This factor pushed the railroad into offering the bondholders land in trade for their bonds. This gave the bondholders an opportunity to purchase valuable railroad land at large discounted prices and the era of Bonanza Farms began.

In 1874, 13 thousand acres of land were staked out in the heart of the valley and Bonanza Farms began to rise. The name,Bonanza Farm, implied a lucky strike or a get-rich quick opportunity for those people willing to take the risk.

With the success of the first Bonanza Farm by Oliver Dalrymple, word spread quickly and other bonanza farms began to pop up across the Red River Valley. The idea of trading bonds for land had become a marketing bonanza for the railroad and the region. Stories telling of the giant farms in the Dakota Territory spread across the world and during the 1880’s people began to flock to the northern Dakota Territory. It’s estimated that at one time there were 91 different bonanza farms in operation up and down the Red River Valley and west along Northern Pacific’s railroad line.

The decline of the Bonanza Farm Era began in the twentieth century. Years and years of wheat farming began to take its toll on the land and yields dropped. As land values dropped, along with the price of grain, many bonanza farmers found their profit in selling or renting their land to smaller farmers. The Bonanza Farm Era was gone by the 1920’s. Buildings were being sold off and land was parceled out as the Bonanza Farm Era came to its end.

The Downing Bonanza Farm is located just northeast of LaMoure. The original Downing Bonanza Farm consisted of 4600 acres. At one point in time the Downing Bonanza Farm had 96 binders and 480 horses and mules working at one time. Due to financial difficulty, in 1943 the Downing’s sold their Bonanza farm near LaMoure to M.H. Steffes. Times changed and progress moved on. Buildings were sold, some tore down, some blown down in the wind, and some were taken by fire.

Clarence Steffes remembers when his family moved onto the Downing Bonanza Farm when he was a young boy. One thing that Clarence has always remembered is the large cookstove in the kitchen. Clarence figured the cookstove was approximately 10’ long and had a heating coil that ran through it with hot water heat. Photos showed kettles lined all across the stove as the women cooked for the many workers every day. Near the one end of this cookstove was a large sink approximately 6’-8’ long with, of course, the luxury of running water.

The farm had a powerful artesian well that provided running water in every barn and the house with the remainder of the water flowing out into a water tank for the cows. Just beyond the house was a large sewer system, which provided the modern day bathroom facilities for the house, a feature not many homes during that era were able to afford.

Attached to the north side of the house just off the kitchen had been a large washroom equipped with several wringer wash machines. It’s believed the women also washed the hired help’s clothes here.

The large home had been built in several sections at a time. The upstairs held 8 bedrooms and one full bath. It appeared that one room on the main floor might have also been a bedroom at one time. The bunkhouses consisted of two large bedrooms on the main floor where it is believed those in charge lived. Upstairs in the bunkhouses consisted of a large open area with two rows of beds lined up from end to end creating sleeping quarters for the hired help. These bunkhouses also contained flush toilets and sinks.

Even the barns were impressive. Stalls lined the sides up and down the lengths of the barns. At the top of each support that separated the stalls on a brace each horse’s name was painted. A track ran down the center aisle of the barn making it easier to wheel the cart over to the bin to fill it with feed and then wheel it down the alleys of the barns to feed the horses and mules. A ventilator system was also installed in the barns to circulate the air. Luxury was obvious and money seemed not to be a problem.

The Downing Farm has changed over the years although 3 of the outbuildings are still original today, along with the house. Modernization has changed the home but the beauty and history all still lay inside with the stories being passed down through the generations.

Clarence Steffes and his wife Mar Jo purchased the farm from his father in 1963 with hopes to keep the Downing Bonanza Farm in their family for many generations to come.

Follow along with us next as we head up the road towards the Grand Rapids area in our next story in this series.