Jun 11, 2026
By Border Queen Harvest Hub
On June 10, in the thick of wheat harvest, I had the opportunity to ride in the combine with my nephew, Dillan Kuehny. It had been quite a while since I had been inside a combine, and I was amazed at how much the technology has changed.
Dillan's 2013 John Deere combine is equipped with an impressive array of technology. A GPS system tracks the combine's exact location as it moves through the field, ensuring that every bushel harvested is tied to a specific area. This data is later used to create visual harvest maps that help farmers better understand crop performance across their fields.
The combine also contains a moisture sensor that measures grain moisture and provides standardized dry-bushel weights. A mass flow sensor measures the amount of grain passing through the machine, while a header-height sensor tells the system when the header is engaged with the crop and when it is raised, preventing the monitor from recording empty passes. An ActiveYield system uses load cells inside the grain tank to estimate weight changes as the tank fills, eliminating the need for constant manual calibration.
And perhaps most importantly for a visitor like me, it even had an extra seat.
The Kuehny family has been farming in the Deer Creek/Renfrow area since 1896. While they did not acquire their land directly through the Oklahoma Land Run of 1893, they purchased it from an original claimant who was unable to meet the requirements necessary to retain the homestead. Under the Homestead Act of 1862, settlers were generally required to live on and cultivate their land for five years before receiving full ownership with a patent signed by Theodore Roosevelt in 1901.
The family's roots in the area go back even farther. Family history records that Henry Kuehny and his father, John, came from the Halstead, Kansas, area in the late 1890s and eventually established the family farm near Deer Creek, Oklahoma. Tragically, John later died in a farming accident.
Today, the operation is run Brad Kuehny. His sons Dillan and Ross work side by side by their dad. During harvest, their sister Brooke helps by driving the grain cart. Brooke also owns "What in Carnation," a flower shop in Caldwell. During wheat harvest, local customers understand when they find a sign on the door reading, "Cutting Wheat — Will Be Open in the Morning!" Brad and his sons raise certified black Angus cattle, and you can find their beef on the Border Queen Harvest Hub under their business name, “Native Grass Beef”.
Like many farm families, the Kuehnys represent generations working together. Dillan, Ross, and Brooke grew up farming alongside their father, Brad. Brad and his brothers learned from their father, Loren Kuehny, who farmed the same ground before them.
Now 88 years old and semi-retired, Loren takes pride in seeing the land remain in the family. For more than 50 years, Loren farmed these acres while his wife, Loretta, kept everyone fed (if you count the years he worked with his dad, he farmed over 80 years). Today, that tradition continues as Jill Kuehny, Brad's wife, and Shannon Kuehny, Dillan's wife, deliver evening meals to the field so the crews can keep working long after sunset.
Loren grew up on the home place, although the original house is no longer standing. Before Loren farmed the land, his father Harold did. Before Harold came Henry, and before Henry was John.
Harold, born in 1907—the same year Oklahoma became the nation's 46th state—lived nearly a century. The family farm has more than 100 years of continuous family ownership and operation.
In addition to farming, Loren spent many years as an industrial technology teacher in Caldwell. Whether he farmed on the side while teaching or taught on the side while farming depends on whom you ask.
Harvest season remains a race against time and weather. Dillan said they typically work until about 11:30 p.m., or until the straw becomes too tough to cut. Between their own operation and custom harvesting crews, they have approximately 8,000 acres to harvest. The custom cutters, who have worked for the family since 2019, come from Sterling, Kansas.
Most of the wheat is delivered to the Renfrow elevator because of its proximity, although some is hauled to the Caldwell elevator as well. During harvest, the elevators generally remain open until around 10 p.m. The crews often make one final trip before closing, then refill the trucks so they are ready to unload first thing the next morning.
With rain forecast for the weekend, the Kuehnys planned to work long hours to harvest as much wheat as possible before moisture once again brings the combines to a halt.
As I climbed down from the combine that evening, I realized that while the machinery has changed dramatically over the years, some things have remained the same. Generations of the Kuehny family have worked this land, helping each other, adapting to new technology, and carrying forward a farming tradition that has endured for more than a century.