Photo courtesy of Jerry Nelson Danny, Bob, and Paul Nelson will be marking the 145th year of their family farm’s establishment with a free burger feed being held at their farm on August 1 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Bob is the fourth generation of his family to operate their farm, and Paul and Danny are the fifth generation.

Gilbert Nelson left Norway in 1864 and settled in Ettrick, Wisconsin. He then joined the Wisconsin Regulars and served in the Civil War.

By 1881, Gilbert and his wife, Anna, had five sons and a daughter. Hoping to carve out a new life in Dakota Territory, the Nelsons loaded everything they owned onto a railcar and headed west.

Luck wasn’t on their side. All their possessions, except for the family Bible, were destroyed when the railcar caught fire. When Gilbert and his family arrived in the newly established town of Volga in what is now South Dakota, they discovered that much of the best farmland in the area had already been claimed. In a twist of fate, they were able to purchase a quarter-section of farmland located south of Volga from a homesteader who’d had enough of life on the desolate prairie frontier. The Nelsons paid $405 for the farm.

These are just a few threads of the rich tapestry of history regarding Gilbert and Anna’s descendants, who are now marking the 145th anniversary of the establishment of their farm.

Brothers Bob and Al Nelson are the patriarchs of the Nelson family. Bob and his wife, Lynnal, have been married for 62 years and have three children: Paul, Danny, and Kris. Bob and Lynnal have six grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.

Al and his wife, Bette, also have three children: Greg, Randy, and Pam. Al and Bette have eight grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.

“Our dad, Arne, had nine sisters and one brother,” Bob said. “It’s hard to believe that so many people could live in this small farmhouse. Dad hired himself out shortly after he completed eighth grade. He traveled to southern Iowa where he picked corn by hand for three cents a bushel. He also joined threshing crews, following the harvest clear up into North Dakota.”

Arne took over the operation from his father, Albert (Gilbert’s son), in 1942.

“I joined the Air Force right after I graduated from high school in 1961,” Al said. “I was stationed in Texas and Louisiana and spent two years stationed in England.”

Al and Bette were wed in 1962. After receiving an honorable discharge from the Air Force, Al returned home to join the family operation.

“All I ever wanted to do was farm,” Al said.

Bob graduated from South Dakota State University, where he was a standout football player, in 1968. He then joined Arne and Al on their family farm. Two houses were added to the Nelsons’ farmstead to accommodate their growing families.

“The cousins were more like brothers and sisters,” Lynnal said. “Growing up together gave them a deep sense of family cohesion.”

Dairying had long been a part of the Nelsons’ operation. In 1971 Arne, Al and Bob built a 150-cow free stall barn and a new milking parlor.

“Ours was one of the biggest dairy dairies around at that time,” Bob said.

Community service is a tradition for the Nelson family. They have served on the local school board, and various farm-related boards. Paul and Danny are Volga township supervisors and were long-time volunteers with the Volga Fire Department. The Nelsons are lifelong members of First Lutheran Church in Volga; Danny and Paul serve on its cemetery board.

“Dad joined a neighborhood silage chopping run when we were kids,” Bob said. “And we always picked corn and baled hay with our neighbors. We try to support our local community by doing as much business as we can locally.”

Threads of struggle are often interwoven into the tapestry of farming.

“The mid-1980s Farm Crisis was tough,” Bob said. “It’s hard to make a go of it at 19% interest.”

Al left farming in 1990, and Paul and Danny joined the operation on a full-time basis. The Nelsons exited the dairy business some years ago. They currently crop farm and purchase baby calves from a neighboring dairy. The Nelsons feed between 160 and 190 bottle calves twice a day, every day. The calves are fattened in the Nelsons’ feedlot and sold for beef.

“Farming hasn’t always been glorious, but it has always worked out somehow,” Bob said. “It has been a struggle, but it isn’t all about money. We help our neighbors as much as we can. We figure that we’ll need their help someday.”

“Look at all the changes in farming, from horse-drawn implements to modern tractors,” Al said. “I remember cultivating corn with a John Deere ‘B’ and a two-row cultivator. If I got in the cab of a tractor nowadays, I wouldn’t know how to run it.”

Despite all the challenges, the Nelsons have maintained their sense of humor.

“You don’t work here very long before you get a nickname,” Bob grinned.

“Our motto has always been ‘It’s not work if you’re having fun,’ ” Al added.

“We couldn’t have gotten through it all without family,” Bette said.

The Nelsons will be celebrating their 145th year with a burger feed that will be held Aug. 1 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on their farm located 2 miles south and ½ mile west of Volga. This event is free and open to the public.

— Jerry’s book, “Dear County Agent Guy,” can be found at www.workman.com and in bookstores nationwide.