Who remembers when

[coveredbridge]

I have an old McCormick-Deering Cultivator that looks a lot like that plow. We kids rode it while Dad pulled it behind the Tractor (an old Ford, I guess a 9N). As we went across the slope of the hill, you had to work the foot pedals to keep the cultivator straight. If your foot slipped, or you couldn't reach far enough, the inside teeth would get in the row and tear out the plants. It didn't matter to Dad, it was always your fault. We laugh about it now, but it wasn't funny back then.

 

[smstonypoint]

I'll jump in.

Do you remember when fertilizer came in burlap bags? One of my post-planting duties was to wash the bags in the creek. We used them when we combined wheat, oats, and soybeans -- I remember growing old enough to ride on the AC combine, filling the bags, tying them off with baling twine, and sending them down the chute.

Steve

 

[teg]

I wish that I had got more experience around farms, farm equipment, and killing animals for food...

Ditto, last couple of years, I've been learning from an old timer, how to deer hunt... not as much about shooting but processing it. Age it, cut it up, grind it up and package it. Even learning how to cook shoulders (the easy way!!). Comes out great...

Loved talking to the older people that lived around us in the city... I also, loved read every story here and I hope this thread lives long...

 

[Timber]

I'll jump in.

Do you remember when fertilizer came in burlap bags? One of my post-planting duties was to wash the bags in the creek. We used them when we combined wheat, oats, and soybeans -- I remember growing old enough to ride on the AC combine, filling the bags, tying them off with baling twine, and sending them down the chute.

Steve

I remember when oats came in 100 lb burlap bags and molasses came in a 55 gallon drum. We had 2 wooden hoppers we kept the oats in and mix a bucket of molasses in with it and mix it with a galvanized grain scoop. I can still remember the smell. We had about 20 brown swiss milk cows an I went down to the barn every night for two 1/2 gallon glass jars with paper caps.

Do you remember you had the shake the milk before you poured a glass to mix the cream that always rose to the top

 

[bstrom]

I remember when oats came in 100 lb burlap bags and molasses came in a 55 gallon drum. We had 2 wooden hoppers we kept the oats in and mix a bucket of molasses in with it and mix it with a galvanized grain scoop. I can still remember the smell. We had about 20 brown swiss milk cows an I went down to the barn every night for two 1/2 gallon glass jars with paper caps.

Do you remember you had the shake the milk before you poured a glass to mix the cream that always rose to the top

Nothing compares to raw milk with the cream on top. A lot of kids grow up now with the 1 and 2 % garbage, they don't have a clue what real milk is. The sad part is you can still get it at some stores but people don't buy it because they are scared of real food or clogged arteries or something. I personally think it's nuts. But to each his own I guess.

 

[milkman]

I remember hog killin' day, was always cold and family and neighbors standing around the fire waiting for the scalding water to get hot. Used a single shot .22 to down the hog and dad would flip it on its back and stick it with the butcher knife. Three or four guys would drag it to the scald barrel and dunk one end in the barrel then drag it out and scrape the hair off. Hang it from a tree with a gamble stick and cut the head off and gut it. Dad used a double bit chopping axe to split it down the back. The women would work up the quarters and cut up the fat to render into lard. Have to finish this later.

 

[smstonypoint]

I remember hog killin' day, was always cold and family and neighbors standing around the fire waiting for the scalding water to get hot. Used a single shot .22 to down the hog and dad would flip it on its back and stick it with the butcher knife. Three or four guys would drag it to the scald barrel and dunk one end in the barrel then drag it out and scrape the hair off. Hang it from a tree with a gamble stick and cut the head off and gut it. Dad used a double bit chopping axe to split it down the back. The women would work up the quarters and cut up the fat to render into lard. Have to finish this later.

Now that brings back memories. Gid Tanner and his Skillet Lickers even recorded "Hog Killing Day." Unlike my family, they managed to spice up the activity by passing around a jug.


LiveLeak.com - Gid Tanner and the Skillet Lickers - Hog Killing Day

Steve

 

[Army grunt]

Really great post. Some not all people can reflect back. I can, Its a gift you are very lucky to have.
Army Grunt

 

[MBDiagMan]

That's right grunt. My Mom had fourteen brothers and sisters and my Dad had six. Not all of them are left, but over the years at family get togethers I would reminisce about things and my Aunts & Uncles would say, "how can you remember that, you were just a toddler."

Some days I can't reliably remember the route to work, but I remember lots of details from my youth. My Grand Dad was born in the early 1880's. As a teenager he drove cattle from Texas to Wyoming and Montana until he saved enough money to buy his own place. He was great at telling all about his lifes experiences. I listened attentively, but took it for granted at the time. Now his life is probably the most fascinating part of my family's known history.

BTW, were you an 11 Bravo? I was in the Army 68 to 71, but had it super easy as a radar mechanic.

 

[Bird]

I can barely remember a hog killing day at my grandfather's place when they dipped the hog in the hot water and scraped it. But for some reason my dad didn't like the skin left on the hog, so of course, I remember many hog killing days at our house when the hog was killed with a .22, but was then skinned. For those who don't know it, skinning most animals (cattle, goats, squirrels, rabbits, etc) involves cutting a bit but also just pulling the skin off. It's different for a hog. That skin is attached to a layer of fat and you have to cut every inch of the way. When the hog was skinned and the head was cut off, it was lifted with a single tree hooked to the hind legs and gutted. Then it was split right down the backbone, but with a hand saw instead of an axe.

And of course the same process was used once a year for the beef we killed. And whether hog or beef, the head was split with an axe to get the brains out. Scrambled eggs and calf brains were good, but pork brains were just as good.