Stanley Agriculture

The Stanley area is part of the productive Central/ Western Wisconsin agricultural belt. Dairy farming, since the early 1900's has been one of the areas chief industries. Although the number of small family farms has decreased, the number of acres being farmed has actually increased. Several large dairy operations have been developed in recent years. The largest such operation is currently milking between 300-400 cows. The chief characteristics of such an operation are that the cows spend their day in a large loafing barn, automatic feeders are used for feeding, and the milking parlor allows multiple cows to be milked at one time.

In recent years Mennonite families, mostly from Pennsylvania, have purchased many of the areas most productive farms. They are good farmers who use most modern techniques to maximize production. Their presence in the area is most pronounced because many of them use horse and buggy as their chief means of transportation. Their numbers are sufficient enough that they have established a Mennonite Church about a mile from Stanley, and they operate several rural schools in the Stanley-Boyd Area.

Many of the Mennonite farms also engage heavily in the production of vegetables and flowers that they sell at a large Mennonite Auction Market in nearby rural Withee. Several of them also occasionally appear in Stanley selling vegetables and fruit. They have also become known for the quality strawberries that some of them allow locals to pick during the strawberry season.

Another transition that the Stanley area is experiencing is the shift to the major production of corn and soybeans. Since the July 2002 opening of an ethanol production plant in Stanley, more and more farmers have increased their corn production. The plant is close by and provides a cash market for corn. Each month more than 550 semi-trucks of corn arrive at the ethanol plant. Local farmers are allowed to deliver their corn to the plant in grain boxes if they so desire. A corn drying facility has been built directly across the road from the ethanol plant, as the corns moisture content usually needs to be reduced for ethanol production.

So agriculture in its changed form is still a major factor in the Stanley economy. To the lament of many "old timers" their memory of the farm is much different than what it is like on today's remaining dairy farms! One thing that hasn't changed is that locals and visitors to the Stanley area can purchase cheese at LaGranders Hillside Dairy, W11299 Broek Rd., in rural Stanley. Many varieties of Colby and cheddar cheeses made at LaGranders can be purchased directly at their outlet store. The LaGranders can be reached at 715-644-2275.