Tobacco Pool Fades as Crop Fades

Source from:  By TIM HUNDT / Lee Newspapers 05/29/2007

The Northern Wisconsin Tobacco Pool in Viroqua began selling its warehouse and office equipment Friday and Saturday, signaling an end to Vernon County's long, proud history of tobacco farming. Local residents, growers and history buffs wandered through the pool's dimly lit main warehouse and office on Decker Street and picked through everything from full boxes of cigars to tobacco harvesting equipment. "It is definitely an end to an era," said the pool's attorney, Gary Monson, who is overseeing the liquidation of assets. At the pool's peak, the organization owned 17 warehouses scattered among Vernon County communities. As recently as the 1980s, those warehouses were filled in the winter months when growers would bring in their crop. The county once grew more than 5,000 acres of tobacco, but by 2004 that had dwindled to just 340 acres. President Bush signed legislation in fall 2004 that authorized a 10-year "buyout" of growers, paying them not to produce, that effectively ended tobacco production in Vernon County. "I would say between 1980 and 1981 was the peak," said office secretary Sharon Hoyum. "I can remember going out and writing checks all day for several days back then." If one person came to symbolize tobacco in the county, it was George Nettum, who managed the pool for 50 years and made tobacco growing one of the region's biggest cash crops. Though in poor health recently, Nettum was able to attend the last few board of directors meetings, Monson said. "If there was grower that was having a problem and would call, George ... would drop what he was doing and go see what he could do. It wouldn't matter what day or the time of day," Monson said. Nettum developed a special process so the pool could have partially-germinated seed to sell, Monson and Hoyum said. Nettum would put seed in cake pans with some water and then place the pans in refrigerators with a light bulb, giving the seed just the right conditions to start sprouting but still keep them small enough to fit through the sprinkler head of a watering can. "That way, growers could buy seed to start their beds," Hoyum said. Nettum's son, John, was on hand for the sale as a stand-in for his father. "I talked to my dad yesterday and he was so happy I could be here," said John Nettum. "He said it may be best if he is not here." It might have been too painful for his father to watch the pieces of what was his life's work ?the old desks, chairs and tobacco axes ?go out the door, his son said. One positive note came from the warehouse's pending owners, Richard Bock and Valorie Schaefer of Viroqua. "It is a beautiful building and it is architecturally sound," Bock said. "We want to preserve it as much as possible." "We will put some offices in the front for now and we have had several people approach us with ideas, but we don't want to make any quick decisions," Bock said Monson said the pool has accepted the offer to purchase and all that is left is to finalize the paperwork. "We are very fortunate to have a buyer, so it doesn't sit empty," Monson said. John Nettum said the two-story brick building was constructed around 1905. Bock said he and his wife have some experience with old buildings, having converted an old church in Madison into a house. Monson said several pool warehouses still are for sale. When all are sold, the pool will distribute the assets to its membership based on pounds of tobacco sold after 1980. If any items are left after the weekend sale, Monson said, historical groups will be contacted to see if they want them. While the Northern Wisconsin Tobacco Pool may have come to an end, at least a few Vernon County farmers have decided to raise tobacco this summer to sell as independent producers. Enditem