Gordon W. Herman

Gordon "Gordy" Herman, age 80, of Denmark Township passed away on January 3, 2019 with his wife, Karen by his side. Gordy was a lifelong farmer in Denmark Township. He loved the land. He primarily farmed using modern equipment, but always cherished the way his father and grandfather had farmed with horses. He set aside a parcel of land each summer to work exclusively with his team. His word was his bond, if he said something, he meant it. He was generous with his time and knowledge and a wonderful mentor and father figure. If you ever needed anything, Gordy was there for you. He was preceded in death by parents, Lauren and Helen; brother, Harlan; and sister, Laurislee. Gordy is survived by loving wife, Karen; son, Shane; former wife, Betty; brothers and sisters, Jolene Fox; Dwayne (Doris) Herman; Jim Herman; Susan Kubiak; Sally Herman; Steve (Becky) Herman; Mary (Bob) Schweich; Joyce (Roger) Moritz; nephew and farming partner, Terry Herman; aunt, Gladys Gunderson; and many other nieces, nephews, relatives and friends. His final act of generosity was donating his body for medical research to the University of Minnesota. A memorial service and celebration of life will be held 11:00 a.m. Saturday, August 3, 2019, at St. Mary's Episcopal Church/Basswood Grove, 8435 St. Croix Trail S., in Hastings, with Reverend Scott Monson officiating. Following the service, a Celebration of life will be held at Gordy and Karen’s farm, 14753 80th St. S., Hastings. Family and friends are invited to a dinner, (including home-grown sweet corn) and to enjoy spending time together as we remember Gordy. Arrangements are being completed by Starkson Family Life Celebration Chapel of Hastings. Below: FOOTPRINTS VOL., No. 2 September 1992 Memorial Lutheran Church “The Church on the Hill” HOBBY TAKES LOCAL FARMER INTO THE PAST- Farming in Tractor-dependent Denmark Township used to be pretty routine for Gordy Herman. Not Anymore. Not since he began his hobby of collecting antique farm equipment and farming a small parcel of land the old-fashioned way, with a team of horses. Taking a break from plowing on a recent evening, Gordy stood next to his team of three draft horses and talked about his avocation. “I’ve been interested in horses all my life; it’s something we just started; it’s a hobby,” he said waving his right hand toward the horses and antique plow behind them. Gordy’s hobby grew out of his inheritance of his grandfather’s antique two-bottom plow, called a gang plow, as well as his interest in horses. It’s a hobby shared with several friends and neighbors. For example, Elmer Weatherly, who loves on Oakgreen in Denmark Township, serves as an authority on antique equipment, says Gordy. And on this day, as Gordy circles the field, Al Goebel, Hastings, leads the way also driving a team of three horses pulling a sulky or one-bottom plow. Vern “Mike” Nelson, a Demark Township Native who now lives in New Richmond, Wisconsin, follows with four horses and a gang plow. (A one-bottom plow has one disk or share for cutting the soil and one moldboard for turning it. A two – bottom plow has two disks and two moldboards, and so on.) Gordy started his hobby five years ago with a brother’s quarter horse mares. “We took them to the neighbors and had them bred to a Belgian stallion in order to get crossbred work horses.” Said Gordy. “When they were two years old, we took them to the Amish in Augusta, Wisconsin. They broke them. It takes two summers of work to break them well. “Last Summer we brought them back and they worked for is. We plowed a field, cultivated sweet corn, spread manure and, this spring, seeded 15 acres of wheat. In June, we took them on the Camp Courage Wagon Train ( a week- long fund raising event for Camp Courage, a residential camp for children and adults with physical disabilities and speech and hearing and vision impairments located in Annandale), and we use them to deliver hay to our neighbors and for hay rides. Gordy says he plans to work plow and work the ground, seed it, and harvest it next spring. Any more then 15 acres would take a great deal of time, said Gordy comparing plowing a field with horses with plowing a field with a tractor. “Say you plow a field with a gang plow and five horses, you could probably do 10 acres in a day, “he said. “With a tractor, you could plow 60 acres. If you are seeding wheat, you could seed 15 acres in a day with two horses and a seeder. With one tractor and a seeder you could do between 50 and 60 acres a day.” Years ago, all work was done by horses, an 80-acre farm was average. With modern equipment, Gordy now farms 1200 acres, a little above the average of 800 acres. “It’s pretty much all hand work when you plow and plant in horses,” he said. Gordy started farming on his own when he graduated from high school in 1957, and except for two years in the army, has been farming since. One of eleven children, he was born and raised on the farm located across from their Basswood Church on St. Croix Trail started by his grandfather, William, and later operated by his father, Lauren. Like Gordy, his five brothers stayed to farm in the area. His brother Steve still lives on the original farmstead and Steve’s 12-year-old son, Chris, spends time with Grody on his hobby. Friends and neighbors help, too, said Gordy, looking for antique equipment. “They know we are looking for it and they keep their eyes out for what we need. Then they tell me ‘I found this plow,’ or ‘this wagon.’ It (Help finding equipment) makes it easier to get going,” he said. Gordy’s newest acquisition is a three-bottom plow which his wife Betty hauled home from North Dakota this summer. But even with help, some equipment is difficult to find, said Gordy. Right now, for example he is looking for a horse driven corn picker. “We’ll find one, “he said. “With so many people looking for one, we’ll pick it out of the woods somewhere with trees growing out of it, then we’ll fix it up. And that, said Gordy, is hardly routine.