Windmill Lane/Brown Co. Ag Museum.....
Windmill Lane/Brown Co. Ag Museum.....
Location: From the Jct of US Hwys 36 and 73, go North approximately 1/2 mile to Iowa St. Turn East and go about 3/8 mile (follow the signs, also, Windmill lane is visible from both US Hwy 36 and US Hwy 73).
Nearest Town: Hiawatha, KS
Contact: ph. 785/742-3330
Also in the immediate area: Davis Memorial
Please Note: Hours are Monday thru Saturday 10-4. Closed Sunday
Mankind has long harnessed the power of the wind... since the first ancient mariner hoisted a cloth from the mast of his primitive craft, and used the energy of the wind to propel it. This half-mile long row of windmills includes a number of variations on the common theme of using wind energy. The original inhabitants of Kansas, the Kanza Indians, were known as "the people of the South wind". It is fitting, then, that the windmill has come in a way to symbolize Kansas.
Wind power was put to use pumping water, but what is less well known is that it was also used to generate electricity for rural homesteads. There are several of these "wind chargers" as they are called, on display in windmill lane. Many of these were donated by a local resident, the late Fred Kale, whose hobby was collecting windmills and wind chargers. When in operation, wind chargers produced either 6, 12, or 32 volts of DC current. Some of this was stored in batteries for times when the wind was calm. There are several different wind charger designs on display.
There is a lot more than windmills to see at the Ag Museum; it has a large collection of horse drawn and other old farm equipment. There is a one-room school house, a turn of the century farm house, and wood working shop. Included in the collection of farm equipment is a sod plow (large photo) which was used to make the sod bricks of a sod house. Also, they have a very early combine which was originally pulled with horses, but was switched over to be pulled by a tractor. A small engine mounted on the machine provided power to run the thrasher. An interesting feature of the machine is the folding grain table--this isn't even done today! An Allis All-Crop '60' pull type combine with factory mounted corn head is there also. It is one of only 20 or so of this vintage ever built. Like many of Allis's ideas of the era, it was simply ahead of it's time, and there was no market for it.
The Hiawatha Fire Department also has a display at the museum. Currently there are two antique fire trucks on exhibit. Also at the museum is a scale farm constructed by a local resident. It took 6 years to complete, and is an exact scale model of the farm where he grew up. It is accurate down to the door knobs and pictures hanging on the walls of the farmhouse.
