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• In the early twentieth century,however,there was a general <br /> downsizing of farms.The total amount of acreage devoted to <br /> farms in Sherburne County,which was at 34 percent in 1860, <br /> peaked at 55 percent in 1900.During this period,the county's <br /> population rose from 490 to 7,281. <br /> Elk River and the Potato <br /> Sherburne County <br /> pattern of an initial reliance on l <br /> whea wheat cultivation followed by <br /> more diversification after the collapse of the wheat market and <br /> soil depletion.With improvements in agricultural machinery <br /> and the railroad,more markets opened for Sherburne County By 1880,the leading grain crop was wheat,followed h„� <br /> by oats,corn,rye,and buckwheat. Potatoes were the leading <br /> produce crop,with over 4,000 bushels produced.19 , <br /> The sandy soils of Elk River Township have long favored This wayc10 is among of <br /> y p g Highway 10 is among possible <br /> potato and rye cultivation. In the mid-1880s,a specialized survivors of potato and <br /> potato district developed north of the Twin Cities,with producwarehousing.Photo <br /> markets as far as New England and the South. Starch factories 2002. <br /> were also a by-product of the potato industry.20 <br /> • j3f <br /> ® 1 <br /> tte' <br /> r� <br /> t w.R (f ° l a Al � ;� .$T'Y l s ;` r • <br /> era 4°4ia <br /> iq° s h ,fir t•f • v 6 �� �'•afl <br /> + , F 3 y 'River potato warehouse,ca. <br /> ,1h4{ w„ :'i'�+ � s { ''•` i i .rK.y . �'?Er it' ,4 4'"% z asp.:5 k q 1• 1.3, <br /> °�0.Photo:MHS. <br /> Elk River's production likely followed the trend of the county, <br /> where the yield of potatoes rose from 14,290 bushels in 1860 to <br /> 963,073 in 1910.In 1910,Sherburne County was a part of the <br /> potato belt,but was surpassed by counties such as Anoka <br /> (1,255,880 bushels),Chisago(1,874,597)as well as Hennepin <br /> (2,438,132),and Isanti(2,150,573)21 The period between about <br /> 1906 and 1910 was a boom period for potatoes,with three new <br /> warehouses erected in Elk River in 1908,and a second starch <br /> factory built in 1910.Photographs from this period show the <br /> • Elk River depot area packed with farmers atop potato-laden <br /> wagons,ready to load on railcars.The highway system serving <br /> Elk River Historic Contexts Study Draft 5/2002 <br /> 11 <br />