William F. Roenfeld stands with William “Willie” Denker on Roenfeld’s family farm near Mineola, Iowa, in Mills County, probably sometime in the 1930s. The land was purchased by Roenfeld’s father, C.F. Roenfeld on Jan. 29, 1867. C.F. has emigrated to the U.S. from Holstein, Germany in 1858, at the age of 22. It was he who built the brick farmhouse (visible in the upper right of the photo) which still stands today. When C.F. passed away Dec. 27, 1914, the farm (which had grown to 1,300 acres) was divided between William and his three brothers. William Roenfeld raised hogs and cattle (many visible in the background by the barn), dairy cows and crops, including potatoes. According to his grandson, Kirby Roenfeld, William always planted his potatoes the week after Good Friday, for the best results. When William died July 13, 1949, the parcel was divided between his five children, including Kirby’s father, Elmer. For 151 years a Roenfeld has fed livestock and raised crops on the farm, now about 174 acres. Willie Denker passed away June 16, 1959.