Page 8 2023 Fall Farm Outlook Lincoln Daily News Oct 2023 Richard E. was drafted into the United States Army in 1950. Upon his return from the war in 1953 Richard married Dema Smith and in 1954 their son Steven Paul Schmidt was born. The late 1950’s was a time of tremendous growth for the business. Case introduced their first automatic tractor transmission in 1958 and the “New Idea” farm equipment line in 1960 increased the customer base tremendously, to a larger farming community and to seed corn producers. Due to the increase, a second building was added at the downtown location and Paul A. Schmidt and son employed five people at the time. Paul A. Schmidt passed in 1969, officially passing the business to the third generation. Richard E. “Dick” Schmidt’s son Steven P. Schmidt joined the family business in 1976 after graduating from Illinois Wesleyan University with a degree in business administration. An eight-acre parcel of land was purchased on the south edge of Atlanta and an 11,200 square foot building was erected to keep up with the growth of the business. That location, once the northwest corner of the Atlanta fairgrounds is marked with a cornerstone. Steven and his wife welcomed a son, Michael in 1977 and a daughter, Jenni in 1979. Dick was elected as President of the J.I. Case Dealer Council in 1978. Continued --
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