Sheridan Research and Extension Center

Agricultural Experiment Station

General History

The Sheridan Research and Extension Center (SREC) is located in Sheridan County, 6 ¾ miles east of the City of Sheridan and is at an elevation of 3,800 feet. The SREC is located in United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) plant hardiness zone 4 with an average growing season of 120 days.  Average annual precipitation is 15 inches. The SREC was jointly managed by The USDA and The State of Wyoming through The University of Wyoming. The USDA opened the SREC in 1916 by leasing 160 acres of state land.  In 1926 an additional 160 acres were purchased for the station.  Wyoming State Highway 336 and the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway covers about 14 of the 320 acres leaving the station with 306 total acres.  Approximately 250 acres are farmed today and all of the crops are produced by dry-farming methods. The SREC has had many different names since it has been established which include; Sheridan Field Station, Sheridan Substation, and Sheridan Experiment Farm.

The farm originally operated on funds from the Wyoming Farm Board of Commissioners and the USDA Bureau of Plant Industry.  In 1919 the Farm Board of Commissioners was replaced by an Agricultural Advisory Board and later replaced by the UW Board of Trustees in 1923. By 1953 the USDA had stepped out of the picture and the station was operated entirely by the University of Wyoming.  Direct federal funding ceased in 1958.  Currently funds are appropriated by the state legislature; however the Director of the Agriculture Experiment Station supervises SREC programs.

Importance of SREC

Since the start of the SREC, the aim has been to make research work useful to the farmers and ranchers of Wyoming. In addition, SREC conducts horticulture and turfgrass trials. The research is geared not only to farmers and ranchers, but also to homeowners, golf course superintendents and horticulturalists. In the past the station has been incredibly important for northeastern Wyoming because many of the resources had yet to be developed.

The SREC has a cooperative agreement with Sheridan College. The Director of SREC teaches one course per semester and serves on the Sheridan College Ag Advisory Board and Sheridan College provides field research areas, laboratory space, greenhouse space, and library access to the SREC.

Superintendents

Since 1916 these people have been superintendents and/or directors of the SREC:

Leroy D. Willey	1916-1920
R.S. Towle	1920-1945
Charles R. Hills	1945-1946
V.C. Hubbard	1946-1952
Oscar K Barnes	1952-1958
Alvin F. Gale	1958-1962
L. Ross Richardson	1963-1965
Jerry Costel	1965-1983 (left to go to Somalia)
Stacey Page	1983-1985
Jerry Costel	1985-1986 (Retired)
Roger Hybner	1986-June of 2004
Dan Smith (Interim)	August 2004-June 2005
Justin Moss	June 2005-January 2009
Valtcho Jeliazkov (Zheljazkov)	2010-Current

Trials

Since 1917 the SREC has been conducting trials in winter and spring wheat, oats, barley, alfalfa and many grass trials.  In the past the SREC also conducted trials in flax, potatoes, millet, corn, sweet clover, winter rye, field peas, and a few varieties of beans; however these trials have been discontinued.

Orchard and Vineyard

Fruit trees and bushes have been tested at the SREC since 1923.  The previous orchard used to be located south of the office.  These tests included apples, plums, currants, and berries. The existing orchard is now located east of the office.  Currently on the station's orchard there are apples, crabapples, cherries, pears, and plums.  The SREC established a vineyard in 1987 where over 50 varieties of grapes have been tested.  There are currently 20 different varieties of grapes planted in the vineyard today. 

Shelter Belt

The Shelter Belt, located west of the office, was started in 1917 as a beautification project as well as a variety trial.  Originally 3,625 trees were planted in a space of 100 ft. x 500 ft. Of the 3,625 only 24.5 percent survived.  Throughout the years the Shelter Belt has been added to and trees that were killed during winter have been replaced several times.  All of the trees on the station have been mapped using a Global Positioning System (GPS) and ArcMap Geographic Information System.  The goal is to create a tree identification trail that will be used as a learning tool for visitors.  

Livestock

When the SREC was run cooperatively by the USDA and the University of Wyoming they had livestock on the property.  The livestock included cattle, chickens, hogs, and sheep.  Both the cattle and the chickens brought in a profit for the SREC through beef, milk and eggs.  In 1965, all livestock were removed from the property. 

Wyoming Seed Certification

The Wyoming Seed Certification Office opened in 1932 in Laramie at the University of Wyoming.  In 1981 bids went out for a new Office and Seed Building at the SREC.  It was finally relocated in 1986 to Sheridan where it was managed by John Keenen up until 1988.  Denny Hall became the manager in 1989.  The Wyoming Seed Certification Office was relocated for a third time to the Powell Research and Extension Center in 1990.  In Powell, Denny Hall remained the seed manager up until 1996. Mike Moore is the current seed manager.  

Excerpt from the 1916 USDA Annual Report

The first mention of this particular piece of land for experimental work, that came to the writer's attention, was by Sam Fuller the County Agent for Sheridan County, and S.G. Boswell who had charge, in 1915, of the experimental work of the State Board of Farm Commissioners near Sheridan.  Through them, it was suggested to W.L. Quayle, Director of the State Board of Farm Commissioners, that this land might be procured for permanent experimental work, and as a result Mr. Quayle and the writer inspected the land on June 24 and 25, 1915, and thought favorably of the land for state use.  As the Office of Dry Land Agriculture of the United States Department of Agriculture had once thought favorably of starting an experiment station at Sheridan, it was naturally suggested that the State Board of Farm Commissioners and the Office of Dry Land Agriculture cooperate in work here, the experimental data they were desirous of obtaining being the same.  Cooperation did not develop to be a serious matter until October, when John S. Cole, Field Agent for the Office of Dry Land Agriculture, inspected the land in question, and visited the Sheridan Commercial Club to find their feelings regarding cooperation.

As the land was leased State School land, steps had in the meantime been taken to put it on sale at public auction on November 17^th, when it was bid in at $51 per acre by the Sheridan Commercial Club.  However, the sale was not confirmed by the State Land Board.

It was not until February of 1916 that a Memorandum of Understanding was drawn up in Washington, D.C. by W.L. Quayle and E. C. Chilcott, in charge of the Office of Dry Land Agriculture.  Lease was made on the land to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and this memorandum duly signed on June 16, 1916.

Author: Leroy D. Willey, Superintendent of the SREC 1916.

References

Information in this document has been gathered from the USDA Annual Reports dated 1916-1953, and by the University of Wyoming Agricultural Experiment Station Annual Reports dated 1916-2001.  Additional information has been collected through oral sources including: Byron Nelson, Farm Manager at the SREC, and Debbie Nuss, Office Assistant Senior at the Powell R&E Center.

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