In 1961 Berthoud was a full-fl edged farming community. Agriculture played such an

important role in the local economy that Berthoud High School offered vocational agriculture courses and sponsored an award-winning chapter

of the Future Farmers of America (FFA).

Floyd Mc-Cormick, the vocational agriculture instructor at Berthoud High School, not only worked with students in his classes but also established ties with farmers in the commu-nity to build his program.

In the winter of 1961 evidence of McCormick’s outreach to local famers came in the form of a ten-week night course in “Farmer and Rancher Law.” At that time of year when farmers weren’t working in their fi elds they had time to turn their full attention to the management of their farm businesses. At that time many of them operated with generational knowledge that had been passed down through their families over the years. The aim of McCormick’s course was to elevate their thinking to a higher level that factored in the challenges they faced in the modern, post-war world.

On January 12, 1961, The Ber-thoud Bulletin reported, “An outline of a course in farm law was made at the Monday night meeting of the class by Frank Starkey, Loveland attorney,

who will conduct the class. It is not the aim of the course to make lawyers of farmers, Mr. Starkey pointed out, but to give farmers an insight con-cerning the legal problems with which farmers are faced and to be able to anticipate when they should seek legal advice to avoid entanglements which can be more expensive.

“It was further pointed out that much of the material is of interest to the wives of farmers and the women are encouraged to participate in the course with their husbands.

“Floyd McCormick, Berthoud High School vocational agriculture instructor who organized the class, pointed out that the course was fi rst developed three years ago in Montana and it has been adapted for farm-ers in Colorado. In previous years it has been the practice to have several lawyers give the course; but in the Berthoud course it was decided to have one attorney carry through for the complete course. As this is the fi rst time that this procedure has been used, Mr. McCormick said that the results obtained will be evaluated for future development of the course.

“Eighteen farmers were present at the organizational meeting. The class will meet on Monday evenings at 7:30 p.m. and the time may be changed as circumstances may require.

“Ten topics will be discussed, one each week for 10 weeks: 1) We buy and sell a farm or ranch. 2) We lease a farm or ranch. 3) We look at a con-tract. 4) We look at boundaries and fences. 5) The farmer or rancher and the law of water. 6) We borrow some money. 7) We look at taxes. 8) We look at the farmer’s and rancher’s duty to be careful. 9) We look for protection against hazards. 10) We plan to die. Mr. Starkey said that there also will

be some discussion on mineral, gas and oil rights.

“While it is not mandatory that every lecture be attended, it was emphasized that the greatest benefi t will be by attending each night. At the beginning of each night’s lecture, Mr. Starkey said that the fi rst few minutes will be given to a short dis-

cussion on the material covered in the previous class.

“A registration fee of $7 covers the expense of the course.”

The Farmer and Rancher Law course offered at Berthoud High School in the winter of 1961 strength-ened the connection between the rural citizens of the community and the

school where their children attended classes. It also provided local farm-ers with facts and knowledge that enabled them to see the wider scope of farming in a world bound by laws, leases, contracts and taxes. It was a class that farmers would still fi nd useful today.

Berthoud Weekly Surveyor November 7, 2013 Page A5

A LOOK AT BERTHOUD

The historical society and Mark French are interested in obtaining and copying old photos from Berthoud’s past. Please contact Mark at 532-2147 if you have any photos you would like to share.

Surveyor Columnist

Mark French

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WWW.BERTHOUDSURVEYOR.COM

Local farmers and ranchers studied law in 1961

Public star nightSpecial to the Surveyor

Public Star Night at the Little Thompson Observatory, 850 Spartan Ave at Berthoud High School (park east of the high school; directions are posted on our website, www.starkids.org) will be held on Friday, Nov. 15, from 7:30 – 11 p.m.

The speaker for the evening will be Steve Kendrick, senior project engineer at Ball Aerospace, and the title of his talk is “No Longer Lost in the Glare: Detecting Hidden Planets.”

NASA is leading one of the most exciting searches in astronomy — the search for Earth-like planets orbiting stars outside of our solar system. Over 900 extra-solar planets have been dis-covered since 1992, although nearly all of these are gas giants. So the search for other Earths continues, as does the research into methods of detecting these planets.

Using coronagraphs is one such method. Coronagraphs were originally invented to study the outer layer of our Sun’s atmosphere, which is called the corona. But coronagraphs have been adapted for fi nding planets around other suns. By blocking a star’s direct light, we can see objects that would be hidden by the star’s bright glare.

Ball Aerospace is developing tech-nology that refi nes exo-planet coro-nagraphs, and Steve Kendrick is the principal investigator for this NASA program. Join Steve for a discussion of

exo-planets, coronagraphs, and space science careers. Enjoy hands-on activi-ties and take home space posters and other space goodies — for both children and adults.

Steve Kendrick is a senior project engineer at Ball Aerospace. He has 40 years of experience in aerospace opti-cal systems spanning space telescopes, star trackers, low-observable optics and optical materials and coatings. He has worked on programs such as the Hubble Space Telescope, Spitzer, James Webb Space Telescope, Terrestrial Planet Finder, and lots of others at Perkin-Elmer, Itek Optical Systems and Ball Aerospace. He uses total solar eclipses as an excuse to travel to inter-esting places all over the world, from the middle of the Pacifi c Ocean to China to Australia.

Weather permitting after the presen-tation, visitors will be invited to look through our large telescope at various celestial objects.

Public star nights are held the third Friday of each month (except July, when we are closed for annual mainte-nance). No reservations are necessary for these nights. Just come and join us for the talk and some observing after-wards.

If you have any questions, please call the observatory information line at 970-613-7793 or check the LTO web site at: www.starkids.org

Public Star Nights at the Pioneer Museum, 224 Mountain Ave. in Berthoud, home of the historical 6” Brashear Refractor from John Bunyan, are held on the fi rst Friday of each month.

If you have any questions, please call the Bunyan observatory information line at 970-532-2147 or check the web-site www.berthoudhistoricalsociety.org/bunyan.htm

COMMUNITY NEWS AND NOTES

Berthoud Bulletin Collection, Berthoud Historical SocietyIn January 1961 a group of local farmers and ranchers attended a “Law Class” taught by Loveland attorney Frank Star-key. The vocational agriculture instructor at Berthoud High School, Floyd McCormick, arranged the ten-week course that attracted 18 men.

Berthoud Family Physicians401 10th St., Berthoud, CO

www.BannerHealth.comTo schedule an appointment, call (970) 532-4910

STUDENT OF THE WEEK

Delaney Lord Delaney is a hard-working student who always goes above and beyond on her assignments. Her presen-

tations are thorough; she is well-spoken and polite.

TURNER MIDDLE SCHOOL

Delaney LordConnor Balliet Connor has put forth

outstanding effort on all of his assignments and his intelligence is always

evident in his classes and grades.

Austin Cannon Austin is always caring

and concerned about the people around him. He is responsible with all of his

assignments and does more than his part with clean up.

Emma Garner Emma always

volunteers to help others and goes the

extra mile to make sure others feel welcomed

and successful.

Berthoud family fundraiser

A fundraiser if being held at City Star Brewery in Berthoud for Michael Griffi n and his family on Saturday, Nov. 16 from 4 – 8 p.m. Griffi n had emergency surgery a last month due to a head injury and a blood clot formed that was causing his brain to shift. The neurosurgeon at the trauma center explained that Michael was in a life-or-death battle.

Michael’s brain had shifted 15 mm, and the doctor was concerned that Michael might not survive if surgery was not performed immediately. Michael made it through the surgery and is currently recovering at home with his family.

City Star will donate $1 per beer sold. We will be selling a chili dinner for $5 per person, and a silent auction will be held during dinner.

Please contact Misti Gudino for donations at 970-481-8597. Items needed include:

• Silent action items

• Crockpots of your favorite chili recipe with the fi xin’s

• Spoons •Bowls• Napkins •Cups

Emergency conservation program to rehabilitate farmland

The Farm Service Agency (FSA) is accepting applications for cost-share assistance to rehabilitate agricultural lands damaged by the September fl oods. The program is referred to as the Emergency Conservation Program (ECP). Applications for ECP will be accepted until Nov. 22 in Boulder, Larimer and Weld Counties, Nov. 29 in Logan, and Dec. 3 in Morgan County.

Farmers and ranchers are en-couraged to contact their local FSA offi ce to arrange for an appoint-ment to complete ECP applications. Restoration activities include replac-ing fences and conservation practices to their pre-fl ood condition. There are also practices that assist with debris removal, land leveling, grading and fi lling of cropland fi elds.

Applications must be fi led prior to the above deadlines and fi eld visits must be performed by FSA prior to starting any restorations, unless an emergency condition ex-ists. Emergency conditions pertain primarily to fencing practices.Contact your local Farm Service Agency call: Larimer County 970-295-5670 or Weld County 970-356-8097.

Berthoud Bulletin Collection, Berthoud Historical Society