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Draft horses, dairy, beef cattle all part of the history

Historic Lakewood Farm in Lyon County has an amazing history, said Matt Dengler, son of current farm manager Greg Dengler of Rock Rapids. Built on 500 acres of land purchased by Horace B. MacMillan in 1887, this ag operation was once known worldwide for the livestock that it produced.

MacMillan, who was a federal attorney for the state of Iowa, worked with his sons to create a legacy.

Son Jim MacMillan managed the farm. He had been educated at the State Agricultural College in Ames majoring in animal husbandry.

With careful planning, the family constructed the barns in 1889 and the early 1900s. The style of barn they chose was a Monitor-style peg barn. One barn was designed to house purebred Percheron horses and the other purebred Jersey cattle.

The barns also held purebred China hogs, Dengler said. Many other building were built on the farm which, in its prime, employed up to 25 men, many who lived on the site, with their families, in bunk houses. The farm place was unique in that it had its own electrical plant and water systems.

The horse barn was specifically built for draft horses. At 112-by-76-feet it was immense. High ceilings made the barns safer for large draft animals. Inside the horse barn, the wood was meticulously painted white. The farm hosted a Lakewood visitors' day and opened the barn doors for all to see their prize-winning contents, Dengler said.

In preparation for visitors, the barns painted walls were scrubbed and washed. The farm's water system placed beneath the barn carried soiled waters away from site.

It was said that the family paid for installing a switch in the local railroad system bringing the tracks closer to the farm so the horses could be more easily transported to various fairs.

The cattle barn, measuring 60-by-80-feet, had been built into a hillside, with cattle living in the lower level area. It was later found that cattle suffered from disease in such damp surroundings and changes were made to keep them above ground with more ventilation.

This barn held up to 350 tons of hay, which was hoisted through the center of the barn onto an upper loft.

With the horse market plummeting in the 1920s and the machine age knocking at their door, the MacMillan family put their farm on the market in 1925. From then until 1939 the farm went through several owners.

In 1939, W.D. Reichmann, a German businessman, bought and worked to renew and modernize the farm which had lost some of it's former shine.

Reichmann put $100,000 of repairs into the place. He raised Belgian draft horses here, as well as show horses. He also managed a registered Hereford herd.

In 1946 the property was sold to August Maurer, who was in partnership with his son, Martin Maurer, at a sales price of $200,000 for land, outbuildings and livestock.

The Maurers gutted the horse barn and prepared it for cattle. They continued to raise purebred Herefords.

After August and Martin Maurer died, the farm was placed in a trust until 2015. The farm is now rented and operated by the Greg Dengler family of Rock Rapids. They continue to raise cattle in the barns. In summer 2004 the farm was struck by a tornado. The smaller cattle barn lost its roof and its silo. Other outbuildings were damaged or lost, as well. The Dengler family worked to clean up and they repaired the barn. It is once again standing tall

Even though the place has seen so many changes its grandeur remains.

"Each year," Dengler said, "our families and the families in the Lakewood area continue to have a Lakewood picnic. It's just a place that has become near and dear to many peoples' hearts."

Contact Robyn Kruger by e-mail at rangerob@hickorytech.net.