100 years of Uniontown Co-operative featured at Dahmen Barn

A collection of photos and memorabilia of the past 100 years of the Uniontown Cooperative Association will be displayed Oct. 2-30 at Dahmen Barn in Uniontown.

Founded on July 8, 1916, Uniontown Cooperative grew out of earlier 19th century efforts to reform farming and improve marketing practices. Cooperatives were designed to give farmers more control over the marketing of their products, and 2,000 cooperatives operated in the United States by 1900.

The co-op purchased facilities previously owned by the Uniontown Farmers’ Union No. 34 and the Farmers’ Alliance, including a grain warehouse at Uniontown, a grain warehouse at Leon, three sack warehouses and a feed mill.

Over the next several decades, the cooperative continued to grow as farming adapted to new technologies. Tractors and trucks gradually replaced horse- and steam-powered equipment. By the 1930s, the transition from sack to bulk shipments was underway throughout the region, and in 1936, Centennial Mills constructed the Centennial elevator, and the co-op constructed its first concrete elevator.

Wheat was a critical commodity in both World War I and World War II, and the co-op worked hard to supply wheat for the war effort. During World War II, a pea processing building was constructed which today serves as a seed plant.

The post-war years brought many additional changes that impacted the Uniontown Cooperative. Yields increased significantly with the use of fertilizers such as anhydrous ammonia. As yields increased, so too did the demand for storing the crops. In 1959 the co-op acquired the holdings of Centennial Mills, and construction of additional storage capacity was required.

During the 1970s, steel bucket elevators with metal tanks replaced the flat houses, and the combined storage capacity increased to 1,750,000 bushels.

The completion of a series of locks and dams on the Snake River allowed for barge shipments of wheat, and additional steel tanks were constructed in the 1980s.

After nearly a century of service to Uniontown, the railroad, which transported wheat to market since its construction in 1888, was abandoned in 1984.

Today the Uniontown Cooperative continues to serve growers in the area.

The facilities have a combined storage capacity of 2,650,000 bushels, and an 80-foot above ground truck scale is under construction.

The co-op currently has 214 members.

Many are third or fourth generation members.

Uniontown is one of just a handful of regional cooperatives that have not been merged with larger corporations.