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Huskers had definite preferences for the corn they picked.
"Some hybrid corn picked easier than others," Chester said. "DeKalb was usually easier to husk, while with Pioneer, fewer ears fell off the stalks before harvest. Farmers picking their own corn did the best job of getting the husk off, and picking up any corn that missed the wagon."
In the late '30s and early '40s, U.S. No. 13 was standard, Harry said, noted for its good standability and production.
"The crops were bounteous that year, and we had to put in temporary cribs and pile some corn on the ground," he recalled. "The wages for corn husking were not over two cents a bushel, and the elevator price in December was less than 10 cents, in fact as low as six. From our 240 acres, we were feeding a carload of steers and 100 head of hogs, and still had 1,500 bushels left over."
It was a grim time in rural America.
"The stores in Red Oak, Iowa, did very little business during the winter, and in late February, they tried to stimulate business by offering 30 cents a bushel for corn, in exchange for merchandise," Chester said. Some, though, had more basic needs.
"People who did not have wood to cut sometimes burned corn along with cobs for fuel," Chester said.
The National Corn Husking Competition finals will be held near Branson, S.D., Oct. 17-18. For more information, contact the National Corn Husking Association, in care of Warren Simons, Box 225, Fairview, III., 61432; phone (309) 778-2610.
Also: The Bang Board, a quarterly publication of the Corn Items Collectors Association, providing details on old-time corn memorabilia, activities and related issues, $15/year; write to 613 North Long Street, Shelbyville, III., 62565.