Frese, Stephen J

English

Iowa Heritage Illustrated

It\u27s Not Every Day You Get to Call the Son of a Soviet Leader

Iowa Research Online

I t ’s not every day you get to call the son
E d ito r ’s N o te : Stephen Frese knows what any historical 
w r ite r  quickly learns: research stretches over great periods 
o f tim e and takes you to  unexpected places and people.“ It ’s 
hard to  stop doing research once you get started." he says.
Frese is a sophom ore at Marshalltown High School. In 
2003, while a freshman, he began researching Khrushchev’s 
1959 visit to  Iowa.“ I’d heard that when Khrushchev came to  
Iowa, he thought that the grain silos were really missile silos 
in disguise. I wanted to  know  m ore about this, and what I 
learned made the Khrushchev visit to  the Roswell Garst farm 
seem like a perfect top ic fo r the 2004 National H is to ry  Day 
them e,‘Exploration, Encounter, Exchange in H istory.’ ”
National H is to ry  Day (N H D ) is an academic program 
that helps students learn about historical issues, people, and 
events. Students in grades 6 through 12 present historical 
papers, documentaries, exhibits, o r performances at one o f 
15 d is tric t events. Top projects advance to  the state event, 
and then an elite few represent Iowa at the national event. 
(For details on N H D  in Iowa contact Naom i Peuse, State 
Historical Society o f Iowa, 600 E. Locust, Des Moines, IA 50319; 
5 15 -281 -6860; o r by e-mail: Naomi.Peuse@iowa.gov.)
Freses project, in the Senior H istorical Paper division, 
was selected fo r national participation at the state event in 
May 2004. Frese had secured this achievement the previous 
tw o  years in the jun io r division, bringing home silver and 
gold medals. But this year he was participating in the senior 
division, against students o lder than he. In June 2004, com ­
peting against 84 others, he won firs t in the nation in his 
category. The judges marked every crite ria  “ superior.”
H istory Day projects require in-depth research and analy­
sis. Researching over eleven months, Frese used some 60 
sources, including books, newspaper and magazine articles, 
documentaries, prim ary sources, and interviews (see N o te  
on Sources below). Here we asked this young historian to  
take us along on his journey into the Garst-Khrushchev story.
W hile searching the Web for Khrushchev information, I came across a CNN interview with Sergei 
Khrushchev, son of Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev. I 
learned from this interview that Sergei had moved to the 
United States and become a professor at Brown Univer­
sity. On the Brown University Web site I located Sergei's 
address and phone number, and then wrote him a letter 
telling him about my project and requesting an interview. 
He answered my letter and then we corresponded by e- 
mail several times before setting December 4, 2003, as the 
date for a phone interview. Sergei Khrushchev had accom­
panied his father to Iowa and it was interesting to discuss 
his memories of the visit. "The Americans thought that 
the Soviets wanted to build Communism on American 
soil," Sergei Khrushchev said, "and we were scared that 
Americans would start war to forcefully implement their 
way of thinking on us." He corrected one rumor that has 
persisted in Iowa since 1959: legend has it that Khrushchev 
thought all of the farm silos were missile silos. "My father 
knew that there were no missile silos in the United States 
at that time—the U.S. started building missile silos in 1962," 
Sergei said. "He knew that Mr. Garst's silos stored food 
for pigs and cows. My father was interested in pigs more 
than missiles."
The Roswell Garst Papers at the Iowa State University 
Archives in Ames were an invaluable source for my re­
search. I examined several boxes that contained extensive 
correspondence, newspaper clippings from all over the 
country, Russian newspapers Garst gathered on his many 
trips (he often made news in the Soviet Union), and tran­
scribed interviews that Garst granted following 
Khrushchev's visit. Garst included countless letters writ­
ten by him about the importance of developing agricul­
ture around the world in order to secure a lasting peace. 
After researching the Garst Papers at Iowa State, I
NOTE ON SOURCES FOR "COMRADE KHRUSHCHEV AND FARMER GARST: SUMMIT IN AN IOWA CORNFIELD"
Early articles on Garst or Khrushchev included these: Curtis Hamack,"Farm Messiah 
from Coon Rapids," Iowan 4 (June-July 1956): 17-44; "Khrushchev Story: How‘Dark 
Horse’Took Over." Des Moines Register, Feb. 9, 1955; Lauren K. Soth, "If the Russians 
Want More Meat..." Des Moines Register, Feb. 10, 1955; Ftichard Wilson,"Khrushchev 
Rise Causes U.S. Concern. Des Moines Register, Feb. 9, 1955. During September 1959, 
the Des Moines Register provided extensive coverage of Khrushchev's visit to the U.S. 
and Iowa, including a series of articles by Harrison Salisbury, Richard Wilson, and George 
Mills.These articles (too numerous to list here) were very helpful.
Other newspaper and periodical articles covering events in 1959 include:"Astray 
in Hawkeyeland: A Day in the Country," Iowan 8 (Oct-Nov. 1959): 49; William Clabby. 
"Mr K & Com: He'll Leam in Iowa How U.S. Lifts Output Through Acreage Drops," 
Wall Street Journal, Sept 1, 1959; Edmund K. Faltermayer, “Farmer Khrushchev: He Has 
Better Luck in Space RaceThan with Milk and Meat" Wall Street Journal. Aug. 10 ,1959; 
"Global Crossroads:War and 'Peace'—As We Stand," Newsweek. Sept 14 .1959:31 -36; 
“Great Encounter:The 'Moon Man' Cometh," Newsweek, Sept 2 1 and 28. and O ct 5, 
1959; "Iowa Governor Opposes Visit by Khrushchev." Minneapolis Tribune, Aug. 23. 
1959; Robert G. Kaiser,"Roswell Garst’s Links with Soviet Union Being Renewed," Des
Moines Tribune, July 15. 1971; Henry A. Kissinger. "The Khrushchev Visit—Dangers and 
Hopes. New York Times Magazine, Sept. 6, 1959; 5.44; Don Mitchell. "Mrs. K. Gardener" 
Newark [N.J.] News. Sept 2 .1959;“Mr. Garst's Mail,” Omaha Sunday World-Herald, Sept 6, 
1959;"National Affairs," Time, Sept 28, 1959; 9 - 17;"Nikjta Down to Earth at Iowa Farm." 
[Denver] Mountain News, Sept 24, 1959; Richard Orr, "Iowa Farmer Bob Garst Has 
Much to Show Nikita," Chicago Sunday Tribune, Sept 13, 1959; Dan Perkes. "Khrush No 
More Blunt Than Freethinker Garst," Gncmnati Enquirer, Sept 13, 1959; Neal Stanford, 
"Eisenhower, Khrushchev to Swap Visits," Chnstian Science Monitor, Aug. 4. 1959; "State 
Department Gets a Lesson," Cedar Rapids Gazette. Sept 24, 1959; John Strohm, NEA 
Special Correspondent “Why is U.S. Far Ahead of Russia in Farming? Mr K. Seeks the 
Answer" Kingsport Times, Sept 21,1959; "War and 'Peace'—As We Stand," Newsweek. 
Sept 14. 1959: 3 1-37;Tom Wolfe, "Official Nerves to Jangle In Salute to Khrushchev,' 
Washington Post, Aug. 21,1959.
Archival research sources included Roswell Garst Papers, Iowa State University 
Archives, Ames; Fagan D. Adler, "Seed Com Genius Garst Helped to Pave Way for 
Historic Session at Camp David," undated newspaper clipping, Garst Papers, box 84, file 
4; State Historical Society of Iowa Special Collections (Iowa City), photographs of 1955
154 Iowa Heritage Illustrated
i  ¿ I
a fo rm er Soviet leader
toured the farm of Roswell and Elizabeth Garst on High­
way 141 near Coon Rapids. The farm is now the Garst Farm 
Resort and is operated by their granddaughter, Elizabeth 
"Liz” Garst. The tour made the history of my project come 
to life before my eyes. Being in the place where this his­
toric East-West encounter occurred—even though it was 
now quiet and there were no reporters nesting in the trees— 
gave me a sense of its significance. The farmhouse has been 
restored, maintaining its early 1900s flavor, and is filled 
with photographs of Khrushchev's visit and the Garst fam­
ily; memorabilia from the Garst and Thomas Seed Corn 
Company; gifts from Russian visitors; and hundreds of sto­
ries of the Garst family and their guests. With Liz Garst as 
my tour guide, it was as if the walls could talk.
While interviewing her I learned things that were not 
disclosed in published accounts. For instance, none of the 
700 National Guardsmen activated to protect Premier 
Khrushchev in Iowa were given bullets for their guns be­
cause our State Department was afraid of an assassination 
attempt from the inside. Liz was eight years old when the 
visit took place, and the memories she shared with me of 
her childhood encounters with the Soviets (during the 1959 
visit and others before and after) added another dimen­
sion to my research. While many American children were 
conditioned to believe that the Soviets would start a nuclear 
war, Liz followed Russians around her grandfather's farm, 
collecting medals from the Soviet visitors and spying on 
Khrushchev's food-tasters, hoping to find out what would 
happen if "one of them dropped dead."
Following my tour and interview, I watched a video­
tape compiled from newsreel footage from Khrushchev's 
visit. Newscasts showed the crowd of reporters, photog­
raphers, and curious onlookers as they crushed in around 
Garst and Khrushchev throughout their inspection of 
Garst's farming operations. I had read so many accounts
Russian delegation to Iowa;"Encounter with Garst: Challenger ofTradition," scrapbook, 
Coon Rapids Public Library, Coon Rapids, Iowa.
On Dec. 4,2003,1 conducted a phone interview of Sergei N. Khrushchev (digitally 
recorded). On Feb. I 1,2004 ,1 toured the Garst Farm Resorts ( 1390 Hwy. 141, Coon 
Rapids. Iowa), interviewed and tape-recorded Elizabeth Garst (Roswell’s granddaugh­
ter), and viewed a videotape, "Film Memories: Roswell Garst”
Secondary sources include the following: Robert Conquest "Loudmouth," The New 
Yorker. March 31,2003:99.100; David Elbert"Historical Farm Will Become Resort Site," 
Des Moines Register, May 3 ,1997; Lonen R Graham. Science in Russia and the Soviet Union 
(Cambndge: University of Cambridge Press, 1993); Robert R Grathwol and Donita M. 
Moorhus. Berlin and the American Military: A Cold War Chronicle (New York; New York 
University Press. 1999); "JFK; A Presidency Revealed," History Channel documentary 
produced by David Taylor (A&E Television Networks: 2003); Nikita S. Khrushchev, For 
Victory in Peaceful Competition with Capitalism (NewYork, NY: E. R Dutton, 1960); Nikita 
S Khrushchev. Khrushchev in America (New York; Crosscurrents Press. I960); Sergei N. 
Khrushchev, Nikita Khrushchev and the Creation of a Superpower (University Park; Penn­
sylvania State University Press. 2000); Harold Lee. Roswell Garst A Biography (Ames:
by S tep h en  J. Frese
N a t io n a l  H is t o r y  D a y  w in ­
n e r  S te p h e n  F re s e  a n d  L iz  
G a r s t  a t  t h e  G a r s t  f a r m .
of the crowded scene, but as 
Khrushchev often said in 
quoting a Russian proverb,
"It is a hundred times better 
to see than to hear." I enjoyed 
watching the chaotic scene for 
myself while sitting in the 
farmhouse at the center of the 
event. Looking out the dining 
room windows, I could al­
most imagine the excitement 
of the day. A sense of place 
helps bring history to life.
After my day touring and conducting research at the 
Garst farm I stopped at the Coon Rapids Public Library to 
read the local newspaper's coverage of Khrushchev's visit. 
The librarian set me up with the September/October 1959 
roll of microfilm, and then, after asking questions about 
the nature of my research, returned with a crumbling scrap­
book stuffed with photographs and clippings that 
chronicled Roswell Garst's work as a citizen diplomat. The 
librarian did not know who had compiled and titled the 
scrapbook ("Encounter with Garst: Challenger of Tradi­
tion")—she only knew that it had been in a library cup­
board for years. The scrapbook was an extremely valu­
able source of information about Garst.
Doing research for National History Day makes you 
feel special. People treated me like I was a real historian, 
not just a high school student working on a history project. 
It's not every day you get to call the son of a former Soviet 
leader and talk to him about an important event in world 
history. It's kind of humbling to walk in the same places 
as the people you're studying. And it was great to talk to 
Liz Garst about her memories, to see major world news 
through the eyes of an eight-year-old. ♦>
Iowa State University Press, 1984); Marlene Lucas,"Garst Farm Resorts in Coon Rap­
ids Opens Doors to Visitors.” Cedar Rapids Gazette. Oct. 4, 1998, Andrew H. Malcolm, 
"Coon Ftapids: Unchanged Since Khrushchev" New York Times. May 23. 1972; Don 
Muhm and Virginia Wadsley, "Roswell Garst," lowans Who Made a Difference: l50Years 
of Agricultural Progress (West Des Moines: Iowa Farm Bureau Federation, 1996), 80-82; 
Kenneth Pins,"FBI Saw Garst as ’Difficult’ Say Secret Files," Des Moines Register, Aug. 27. 
l989;William David Sloan and Laird B Anderson, eds., Pulitzer Prize Editonals: Amenca's 
Best Writing, 1917-2003, 3rd ed. (Ames: Iowa State University Press. 2003); William 
Taubman, Khrushchev: The Man and His Era (New York; W. W. Norton, 2003); William 
Taubman. Sergei Khrushchev, and Abbott Gleason, eds., Nikita Khrushchev (New Ha­
ven: Yale University Press, 2000); Evan Thomas, "Cold War: Bluster Before the Fall," 
Newsweek. Sept. 15. 2003: 10; Steve Weinberg, "Iowa State Press Collects Best His­
tory-Changing Writing," Des Mo/nes Register, undated clipping; Alden Whitman. 
"Khrushchev's Human Dimensions Brought Him to Power and to His Downfall,” obituary, 
New York Times, Sept 12, 1971.
Annotations to the original National History Day paper are held in Iowa Heritage 
Illustrated production files (State Historical Society of Iowa, Iowa City).
Winter 2004 1 55
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It\u27s Not Every Day You Get to Call the Son of a Soviet Leader

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