Title: Dan Guenthner and Margaret Pennings Papers Related to Community Supported Agriculture
Inclusive Dates: 1990-2015

Creators:

• Guenthner, Dan
• Pennings, Margaret

Call Number: Mss 1222; PH 7145

Quantity: 0.2 cubic feet (1 archives box) and 0.1 cubic feet of photographs (1 folder)
Repository:

Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Library, Archives, and Museum Collections

Archival Locations:

Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)

COLLECTION MAY BE STORED OFF-SITE: see catalog entry to request materials and for additional information.

Abstract:

Papers, 1990-2015, collected by Dan Guenthner and Margaret Pennings, owners of Common Harvest Community Farm, in Osceola, Wisconsin, documenting their experience with the community supported agriculture (CSA) movement. Included are newsletters and subscription materials for their farm, as well as information on other early CSA farms (notably Philadelphia Community Farm in Osceola, Wisconsin), CSA conferences, and university research on CSA farms.

Note:

Forms part of the Organic and Sustainable Agriculture Collection.

Language: English

URL to cite for this finding aid: http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-mss01222

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Dan Guenthner and Margaret Pennings established Common Harvest Farm in 19890, originally in Orono, Minnesota, outside of the Twin Cities, in an effort "to shorten the distance" between the farmers and a community of forty households. After development forced the farm to relocate a number of times, Common Harvest moved nearby to land near Osceola, Wisconsin, the site of another community supported agriculture (CSA) farm, Philadelphia Community Farm, operated by Rick Hall and Verna Kragnes. A study group led to the development of the Minnesota/Western Wisconsin Community Farming Association, and several other CSA farms were established. In 1992, a number of these early CSA farms held a conference in Minnesota in which both farmers and members participated. Subsequent years saw the development of more CSA farms in other states, continued cooperation between the farms, and research into the CSA movement as a whole.

The papers document the role of two early CSA farms in the upper Midwest, and the relationships created between farmers and community members through the CSA model. A speech given by Dan Guenthner in 2013 reflects on the region's importance to the CSA movement, while newsletters and subscription information on the two farms document their activities. Research papers and regional directories provide further context.

Agriculture, Cooperative -- WisconsinCommunity-supported agriculture -- Middle West.Manuscript collection.Photographs.

See also Midwest Organic and Sustainable Education Service Conference Recordings and Materials (Audio 1747A) for Dan Guenthner and Margaret Pennings presentations at the Organic Farming Conference.
Fairshare CSA Coalition Records, 1983-2012 (bulk 1992-2012) (Mss 1087)

Acquisition Information

Presented by Dan Guenthner, Osceola, Wisconsin, February 28, 2022. Accession Number: M2022-027

Processing Information

Processed by Julia Wong, June 2022.

Mss 1222	Common Harvest Farm
Box   1   Folder   1	Barn raising, 2004
PH 7145 Folder   1	Photographs
Mss 1222 Box   1   Folder   2	Newsletters, 2000-2015
	Community supported agriculture (CSA)
Box   1   Folder   3	Articles, studies on CSAs 1994-2003
Box   1   Folder   4	Brief history of CSA movement : speech, 2013 January
Box   1   Folder   5	Directories, 1997-2001
Box   1   Folder   6	Midwest CSA Conference programs, 2013, 2015
Box   1   Folder   7	Other CSA farms, undated
	Philadelphia Community Farm
Box   1   Folder   8	General, 1992-2006, undated
Box   1   Folder   9	Articles, news clippings 1990-2004
Box   1   Folder   10	Newsletters, 1991-2003