Minden in Kearney County, Nebraska — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
Center Pivot Irrigator
Historic Landmark of Agricultural Engineering
Photographed by Marshall Nelson, March 23, 2020
1. Center Pivot Irrigator Marker
Frank Zybach, farming near Strasburg, Colorado, patented a "Self-Propelled Sprinkling Irrigating Apparatus on July 22, 1952. Mobile towers carried a pipeline in a circle around a pivot. Sprinklers on the pipeline distributed the water. In 1954, rights were sold to Valley Manufacturing at Valley, Nebraska. This started an industry with several manufacturers, mostly concentrated in Nebraska.
Pivots were the first system to automatically irrigate a variety of crops, soils and field sizes. Today, over 110,000 pivots irrigate 14 million acres in the U.S. while efficiently using soil and water resources.
Erected 1993 by American Society of Agricultural Engineers.
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Agriculture • Industry & Commerce. In addition, it is included in the ASAE Historic Landmarks of Agricultural Engineering series list. A significant historical date for this entry is July 22, 1952.
Location. 40° 30.302′ N, 98° 57.07′ W. Marker is in Minden, Nebraska, in Kearney County. It can be reached from North Street (U.S. 6) just east of Brown Avenue (State Highway 10), on the left when
this page online
Regionally, this marker is in Eastern Nebraska. It is also in the American Midwest, in the Corn Belt, and on the prairies. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Louisiana Purchase.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 11 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: World War Memorial (approx. 0.4 miles away); Kearney County Courthouse (approx. 0.4 miles away); Civil and Spanish-American Wars Memorial (approx. half a mile away); Kearney County Pioneers (approx. half a mile away); Axtell, Nebraska (approx. 9½ miles away); The Burlington & Missouri River Railroad (approx. 9½ miles away); Fort Kearny (approx. 9.9 miles away); Dobytown (approx. 10.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Minden.
Also see . . . Pioneer Village. See the website for
Photographed by Marshall Nelson, March 23, 2020
2. Center Pivot Irrigator display and Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on April 8, 2022. It was originally submitted on March 25, 2020, by Craig Baker of Sylmar, California. This page has been viewed 508 times since then and 32 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on March 25, 2020, by Craig Baker of Sylmar, California. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.
