BACK IN TIME: Corsica area farm, early century

This photo was taken at the Schlegel farm located two miles south of Corsica. Circa 1910-1920, it shows how loose hay was put up in the hay loft using a winch. Slings were used under the hay, then hooked to the trolley on the barn. The guy with the rope would then pull it up and it would travel across a rope in the barn to where they wanted it placed. Notice the high wheels on the wagon; by the 1940s these were not used anymore because they made it hard to load the hay onto the wagon. In reference to last week’s “Back in Time” photo, the machine shown was in fact a “Capstan Winch” used to move large items. It had a series of pulleys and gears that were powered by a pair of horses that would constantly circle the machine and as they did, a cable attached to the church would pull it. Most likely the cable was about 200 feet long, it required moving the machine after each pull. The machine was held in place by a “deadman,” which was a large timber buried several feet down horizontal to the machine and attached by chains. (Photo courtesy of Karen Baier, Corsica)