The following is an excerpt from the 1949 Hector Mirror:

Another step in modernizing the nation’s agricultural industry has been begun with the building of a four-row corn combine by J.R. Dvorak, owner of the Dvorak Machine Shop in Cosmos.
Mr. Dvorak put his machine into operation for the first time last week on the Leonard and Lloyd Freberg farm, 13 miles southwest of Cosmos, and from all reports, it is living up to its expectations 100 percent.
The hug machine weighs over 14 tons with a 225-bushel load of shelled corn in its tank and is self-propelled by 113 horsepower diesel engine. It is run by one man, who can easily pick and shell 30 acres of corn in a single day and having combined 2 1/2 carloads of white corn in 36 hours.
This proves to be quite a contrast to the present single and two-row pickers which can only move through 7 and 14 acres, respectively, on a good day. Then after the corn is p8icked it must be hauled to the storage bins until a sheller can be obtained to finish the job. Dvorak’s machine combines all of this work in a single operation and leaves the cobs right in the field where the work is done.
Reportedly, there is only one other corn combine in the United States. That one is owned by John Eyestone, an Ohio farmer, whom Dvorak contacted before beginning his work.
Both Dvorak and Freberg were well pleased with the combine on its trial run. No breakdowns were encountered during the breaking-in period and Leonard Freberg stated that he expected the machine to be a “great time saver” for the farmer.
Dvorak feels that it is the “coming way of harvesting corn” and may revolutionize the corn-raising industry.
Over its trial period, the machine ran on 17 gallons of diesel oil daily or approximately two dollars per day.
It had attracted many interested visitors during the entire building period, which covered a four-month span of time, and now that the machine is in operation still more inquirers are coming to the Freberg farm every day.

Editor’s Note: The Freberg 4-Row Corn Combine is on exhibit each year at the Renville County Fair. Stop by Building # 4 for more information.