Baker dreamt big, made it to 100

By JIM SCHAEFER
For The Gazette

                BAKER - Largesse might be the operative word for the way in which the Baker Chamber of Commerce tried to lure businesses and farmers to the area in 1915.

                The chamber's book, "Baker, the City of Opportunity," said, "The growth of Baker to a city of 10,000 or 15,000 inhabitants is a practical certainty." While the population never reached those numbers, other predictions were closer to the mark.

                "Baker is in the center of the largest and most perfect geological structure or reservoir on the American Continent, for the accumulation and retention of petroleum and natural gas," the promotional book brags. While it took several years for petroleum production to reach its peak, energy extraction and production are important elements of the economy in the town of 1,600.

                The town is celebrating its centennial with activities that continue through Sunday.
A quilt show, several class reunions, a homestead parade, a threshing demonstration and a bowling, golf and pool triathlon are some of the events on tap.

                A pig roast and the "Kahuna Beach Party Concert," a tribute to the surfing songs and artists of the '60s, begins at 5:30 tonight at the fairgrounds. A tour of Baker's new wind farm is also planned.

                As the years went by, one thing that has remained steady is a need for housing. The Chamber of Commerce bragged in 1915 that "houses are invariably sold or rented before completion."

                Mayor Clayton Horning and City Clerk Kevin Dukart are hopeful that projects being considered will encourage oil field workers who commute from other communities to move to Baker. The same high energy prices that boost oil production also may serve as an incentive for these commuters to move to Baker if housing were available, they say. Multifamily housing, apartment houses and subdivisions are all being considered as ways to alleviate the shortage.

                One of Baker's most evident landmarks is Baker Lake, first developed as a source of water for Milwaukee Road's steam engines. It was used for that purpose for only a couple of years, but today it provides fishing, boating and swimming opportunities on its 160 acres. The duck hunting that the city fathers were touting as an activity available in 1915 is no longer allowed, but watching yellow-winged blackbirds, western meadowlarks, pelicans and other avian species is still a popular and relaxing activity.

                Baker has had its ups and downs in its 100-year history. Despite the varying fortunes of the oil field, many of the residents of Fallon County's county seat are descendents of pioneers who first responded to the promises of the Milwaukee Road railroad, which needed towns to be established along its newly laid track to ensure business for the company.

                Family names like Buerkle, Rieger, Stanhope and Wendt have deep roots in the community and are still common in the area; their ancestors started farms, ranches, hotels and implement dealerships. One area south of Baker was once known as "Minnesota Valley," according to longtime resident and historical resource Myrtle Stanhope.

                "It was called that because so many friends and relatives from Minnesota moved into the area in a short period of time," she said.

                The landscape of downtown Baker has changed in 100 years. When the Chamber of Commerce and Milwaukee Road were encouraging people to relocate to Baker, there were "sixty business houses, more than two hundred private residences, four elevators, a large flax fibre mill, three lumber yards and a creamery," not to mention seven secret societies.

                Today, there are two elevators and two lumber yards, but the flax mill and the creamery are businesses of the far-distant past. Businesses include a grocery store, a hardware store, a farm supply store, two drugstores and several businesses that cater to the oil companies that have headquarters in Baker. The current number of secret societies is unknown.

                While farming and ranching are still important in the area, costs of production and a diminishing number of young people interested in the industry have led to many acres being idled through enrollment in the Conservation Reserve Program and other federal programs designed to help stabilize the supply and price of agricultural products. Even with record-high prices for grain, many farmers are making the choice to idle their land in exchange for yearly payments.

                But the spirit of Baker still lives on. The residents continue to maintain a positive outlook for their future and embrace the changes that come with new technologies and the forces of the global economy. Demands for renewable energy resulted in the construction of a large wind farm east of the city, making Baker a player in that emerging technology.

                Another thing unchanged since the early days of Baker is summed up in the last line of text in the 1915 promotional publication. It reads "Baker invites the reader to come and get acquainted."

                That's exactly what the folks in Baker hope for as the town celebrates its 100th birthday.

Published on Saturday, June 28, 2008.
Last modified on 6/28/2008 at 1:03 am

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