Rasmussen Farm – Established in 1910

Originally emigrating from Denmark in 1910, Peter and Madisine Hendricksen along with their two daughters, homesteaded 160 acres NW of Sidney, MT in the community of Brorson.

Emma, one of Peter and Madisines daughters, married Chris W. Rasmussen in 1920. Chris had emigrated from Denmark in 1908 and had homesteaded 320 acres in the Three Buttes Community. Their first child Curtis was born in 1922.

In 1925, Chris and Emma moved to the Hendrickson farm in Brorson to help take care of Emma's parents who were growing too old to farm. In addition to farming the home place and the Three Buttes farm, Chris bought adjoining farm land in Brorson and eventually sold his Three Buttes farm.

Curtis married Florence Sorensen in 1944 and they gave birth to their son Kerry in 1947. Curtis helped his father farm and took over the farm in 1958 when his parents retired and moved to Sidney. Curtis and Florence rented the farm in the beginning and eventually bought it from his parents. When Curtis's brother passed away, his farm was purchased and added to the family operation.

Kerry grew up and became an Agriculturist for Holly Sugar (now Sidney Sugars) in 1973 while continuing to help his father (Curtis) farm. In 2005 Kerry purchased the farm from his father. Then, in 2012 he retired from Sidney Sugars and continued farming. He is proud to be the 4th generation to own and farm the original homestead as well as the rest of the farm.

The main crop on the Rasmussen farm is Spring Wheat just as it was when Kerry's Great-grandfather Peter farmed it. Approximately 40% of the farm is leased to neighbors to pasture their cattle.

Kerry states, "Some of the biggest changes over the years have been the size of the machinery - which keeps getting bigger and more recently, the Bakken oil boom. Because of the oil boom, many landowners have sold their land for high prices for other purposes besides farming. And with all the trucks and railroad traffic, the roads are congested, and the grain elevators are having trouble shipping grain."

 

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