(below) Former residence of Valentine and Verna Becker; built in 1938. The original design for the house was created by Maurice Klumpp.
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“Valentine (1903-1989), the son of Henry Sr. and Christine Gloor, helped his parents on their farm until his younger brothers were old enough to help with the work. Then he was hired by neighbouring farmers. In the 1920’s, he travelled west on one of the harvest excursions. He was later hired by Thomas Klumpp to work with the threshing crew which threshed grain and white beans in the summer and fall. In the winter months, V.L. worked in the Dashwood Planing Mill, owned by the Klumpps.
V.L. bought the property at 125 Philip Street, Dashwood from Elmore Willert in 1930. It consisted of a frame house, barn and an acre of land. The property was first owned by Absolom Fried, founder of the village of Dashwood about 1860, who may have built the one storey frame house on the property. In 1879, Fried sold the property to William Kleinsteuber for $300.[Ed. note: According to the Eby book, Absolom Fried passed away in January of 1874, thus it must be Noah Fried who’s being referred to here.] Others who lived on the property were Nicholas Sitter, George Sitter, Daniel Sachs, Charles Schroeder, Elmore Willert and Rheinhart Willert. V.L. had hydro installed in the house in 1930. A second storey had been added to the house by one of the owners.
In 1930, Valentine married Verna Marie (1911-1991), daughter of Luther and Sarah Oke, of Usborne Township. They kept several cows, pigs and hens. Milk, cream, butter, and eggs were sold to the neighbours. Extra cream was sold to the Dashwood Creamery and eggs were sold to Schatz’s Egg Grading Station so the family could purchase food and clothing. Verna grew many fruits and vegetables, in her large garden, to feed the large family and hired help. Potatoes, carrots, onions, and apples were stored in the basement for winter use, as were jars of jams, jellies, canned fruits and pickles.
In 1938, Valentine and Verna decided to make some major renovations. The house was completely demolished and plans were made to erect a two story house covered with cream stucco on the outside. Maurice Klumpp designed the house; the lumber and woodwork were obtained from his planing mill. The family, with five small children, set up living quarters in the back of the implement shop on the main street for the next three months. In 1944, an addition with a large living-room and an upstairs bedroom was built on the south end of the house by Cliff Salmon. The house and property was purchased by son John in 1991. In 1949, V.L. bought the 140 acre farm across the road from the house from the Earl Gaiser estate for $9000.[Ed. Note: Roughly the equivalent of $200,000 in today’s funds.] Henry Guenther owned this farm in the early 1900s. He was killed in 1913, when his team of horses ran away in front of Nadiger’s Harness Shop, on the Stephen side of Dashwood. The farm was then sold to J.C. Reid, later to George Edighoffer, and then to Earl Gaiser. The Gaisers lived and owned another farm, on the Stephen side of Dashwood, operated a dairy farm, keeping mostly Holstein cows, and delivered milk to the residents of Dashwood.
Various improvements were made to the barn and farm property. An addition was built in the Sixties and a silo in 1965. The house was rented for a number of years, but was torn down in 1955. Beef cattle, pigs, sheep, and laying chickens were raised and hay and grain crops were grown on the farm. V.L. later bought 25 acres, Lot 25, Con. 13 from Aaron Restemayer and the farm of John Becker, N 1/4, of Lot 4, SW Pt. Lot 5, Con. 17, about 62 acres, was purchased. All three properties were sold to John and Mary Becker in 1978. In 1932, V.L. started a farm implement dealership with the International Harvester Company, which he operated for over 50 years.
In 1972, V.L. and Verna enjoyed a trip to England with 400 International Harvester dealers from all across Canada. V.L. participated in many local organizations and clubs. He was a Dashwood school trustee, Dashwood Police Village trustee, a Hay Township councillor from 1948 to 1953, Deputy Reeve in 1954 and 1955 and Reeve from 1956 to 1962 [in Hay Township]. He was Fire Chief of the Dashwood Fire Department for many years, belonged to the Dashwood Men’s Club, Zurich Lion’s Club and South Huron Hospital Board. He served as director of the Zurich Agricultural Society and president of the Society from 1959 to 1965.
In 1984, Valentine was awarded a citizenship award from the Province of Ontario, the only Hay Township recipient. He proudly displayed this medallion and was very appreciative of the honour. Besides caring for her family, Verna belonged to the Women’s Institute and Ladies Aid of Zion Lutheran Church. In later years, she enjoyed making quilts, crocheting, tatting and making craft articles and growing flowers which she exhibited at the Exeter and Zurich Fairs. They had a family of 13, six daughters and seven sons, who all live in Ontario. […]”
extracted from “Hay Township Highlights: 150 years of Diversified Progress, 1846 – 1996”, published by the Hay Township Book Committee under the auspices of Hay Township Council, Alice Gibb ed.; pgs. 299-300 ISBN : 0-919939-43-0
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“The history of this company begins in 1932 when the International Harvester Company made inquiries for a new dealer in the Dashwood area and someone suggested V.L. Becker’s name. V.L. Becker started doing small repairs in the back of the house and then fixed up part of the barn for storage and a small shop. These premises were used until 1936 when operations were moved to Herb Wein’s garage on the main street of Dashwood. Local farmers were showing a strong interest in replacing their horse-drawn vehicles with tractors. After only a year, the business outgrew the Wein garage.
(left) V.L. Becker’s International Harvester dealership when it was operating in Herb Wein’s garage for a one year period, during 1936. The garage is the textured cement block building to the right of the brick structure which at various times housed Tieman’s Furniture and the McIsaac telephone exchange.
In 1937, Valentine purchased the former Evangelical Church beside Philip Fassold’s blacksmith shop on Dashwood’s main street. Operations continued in this building until 1948. The Fassold blacksmith shop was demolished in 1946, but due to the war, it took some time before supplies were available to complete the new building. The larger work space was finally opened on December 21, 1948. The business was now called V.L. Becker and Sons. Valentine’s son Bill, officially became part of the business at this time, although he had worked for his father for many years. The new building had a showroom, parts department, offices and work space for several machines, and more employees were hired to handle the increased business.
(left) From 1937 until 1948, V.L. Becker operated his business from the former Evangelical Church building on the right in this image. This structure was formerly located on Main Street, on what is today the blank lot immediately to the west of “Arc Angels”. It was subsequently relocated around the corner to a site on Philip Street and still stands; although now covered in siding. Valentine Becker is visible in the centre-left of the picture standing beside a tractor, wearing a dark hat. The brick house at left, is the former Thomas Klumpp residence; the frame home in the middle, once belonged to the Schenk family. Click on image for larger view.
“The next major change occurred in 1984 when a merger between two farm machinery manufacturers created Case International Harvester. V.L. Becker and Sons was approached to carry on business under the new banner. The Beckers formulated a plan to cover the increased sales area – a second brother, Bob, returned from Western Canada to join the family business. A new partnership was formed in 1986 and a second location opened in Exeter under the new name of Becker Farm Equipment. The two locations operated jointly until December, 1990 when all operations were moved to Exeter, ending over sixty years of business in Dashwood.”
extracted from “Hay Township Highlights: 150 years of Diversified Progress, 1846 – 1996”, published by the Hay Township Book Committee under the auspices of Hay Township Council, Alice Gibb ed.; pgs. 118-119 ISBN : 0-919939-43-0