Farmers' Day 1926

Bridgeport August 18, 1926    All roads led to Bridgeport from the muddiest narrowest lane in Lukin to Len Small’s 16- foot pavement were covered with Fords, Cadillacs, and horse and buggies (not so many of the latter). They each had one goal in view, the cool and shady nooks of Lanterman Park which was the scene of the annual farmer’s picnic.

Thousands of people were at the picnic, we won’t say how many thousands, but we never thought for a moment that there were that many farmers in Lawrence County.  If the rest of the country is like this there is no need to worry about the farm to city movement.  Of course, everyone there wasn’t a farmer, for a few city dudes mingled with the agriculturists.  But the dudes kept mighty quiet.  This of all other days was the farmer’s day. A goodly number of farmers and their families dragged out the old picnic basket and dined in the park, but the majority seemed satisfied to eat at home and came in the afternoon to get their share of the fun. The weather conditions were ideal, cool and sunshiny without too much sunshine.

The Bridgeport band began shortly before noon and played all through the remainder of the day until five o’clock.  An eating stand operated by the United Brethren Church of Sumner did a thriving business.

The fun began immediately in the afternoon. All boys under fifteen years of age were invited to “run the board and back”, the winner to get 50 cents and the runner up to get a quarter.  A number of boys, some of whom were not under fifteen, endangered their future amateur standing by competing. 

Following this the smaller boys had their chance at professionalism by “running the board” and back.  Then the small girls competed in a “Carry the Egg in a Spoon Race”, a diminutive lass by the name of Schoffield taking the blue-ribbon position in this.  Following, the girls had another race.  A bun eating race took place later, the winner finally being decided when one of the competitors backed his bun against a post to win.

Two baseball games were played in the afternoon and several small boys discovered, if they hadn’t known it previously, that their daddies were not quite so competent at the national pastime as they had led them to believe.  In the first game the County Board of Supervisors and the farmers played against the supervisors. The challenge had been issued by the farmers for each team to have only nine players, and since the board was known as a pretty game bunch it was accepted.  The supervisors won but who could win when the other side ran in a ringer like Supervisor Harbaugh.  The Christy township gentleman was easily the star of the game.

The ballgame between Bridgeport and Pinkstaff failed to materialize so a pickup game was played instead.  A rumor was afloat that a scout from the New York Yankees viewed the game and would soon sign up several of the farm boys for his team, but little credence was given to this rumor.  Following are the winners in the various contests that provided amusement for all. Despite a demand for a hog calling and chicken calling contest be repeated from last year, this did not happen.

1st boys’ race

1.      Loran Litherland

2.      Wilson Armitage

3.      Gilbert Miles

2nd boys’ race

1.      Merlin Wampler

2.      Jacob Elder

3.      Ernest Litherland

Girl’s egg race

Virginia Schoffield

Girls’ race

1.      Lela May Harper

2.      Ellie Fern

3.      Vilma Green

Rolling pin throwing

1.      Mrs. John Lathorp

2.      Mrs. Orville Wright

Bun Eating contest

1.      Dudley King

2.      James Dumphy

3.      Virgil Jordan

4.      Robert Schrader

Men’s race

1.      Gilbert Seitzinger

2.      Harley Tedford

The speaker of the afternoon was Frank Baron from Cornell Illinois who was with the Illinois Agricultural association.  His speech was “The Backbone of the Country-- Farmers and Farming”.  Then everybody went home to wait until next year’s picnic.

This is how Lanterman Park looked in the 1920s.