Naming the West : Stories Melrose Community

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Melrose Community Student Story 1

Hello I’m here from HH news and I am Hunter Brady and I’m looking for historical news in the Melrose area, and this is my companion Cathy McClain. Hello sir can we ask you a few questions Mr. Martin about your family who homesteaded here in the eighteen hundreds.
Of course you can ask me a few questions.
What was it like to live on a farm?
We had to work very hard on the farm it was a hard job.
I see… how much was an acre of land back then?
An acre cost $4.26. It was very cheap for such good land.
Did you use horses for plowing and anything else?
The horses were a big help when it came to plowing or hauling. Mr. Martin can you tell me what the kids and the ladies did on the farm?
The kids and ladies were a big help. The kids took care of the animals on the farm and the ladies cooked and cleaned. We loved the help from our families and some times our neighbors came over to help us plow.
How would you water your crop?
If we didn’t get any rain that year we wouldn’t have crop.  It was hard if we didn’t have rain sometimes.
Did you have animals?
I had a lot of animals like pigs and cats and every farmer had at least one dog. The animals that I loved the most were my horses they were a big help and fun to ride.
What did you grow on the farm?
I grew wheat, barley and vegetables. I thought it was great growing back then.
I hear you had a dairy farm.
I did have a dairy farm, and also loved working on the dairy farm.

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