Rocking Out!

I am a rock enthusiast of sorts. I like flat rocks and character rocks, and my sense of character may be entirely different from anyone else. This interest in rocks brings to mind the many hours that farmers have spent clearing ground of rocks in order to till the ground.

I am sure there are some who remember rocks being removed from areas using a team of horses pulling a sled-type thing, which was called a “stone boat.” Imagine the backbreaking work this was, and I am pretty sure it involved the whole family. As you travel the highways or rural roads, you will often notice a line of rocks along the edge of a field, or a pile of large boulders along a fence line. I had a lady call me one time to ask about the rocks she had noticed that were enclosed in a wire “cage." I have no knowledge of when this type of brace came about, but I am sure it was a case of using what was at hand. Most of the present day fences sport railroad ties and or drill stem for corner posts or additional bracing, but our ancestors liked work so well, they didn’t use those things. Of course it probably was that it wasn’t available to them, but the work comment sound good.

Most present day ground used for farming has been cleared of rocks, but I think that more manage to surface through the years.

Our ag workers have wonderful modern equipment that is used for removal and sometimes we get to see it at work also. Just thinking of all the heavy work rock “picking” required, brings to mind the old saying “strong back, weak mind” but I am almost 100 percent sure that saying did not apply to our forefathers who managed to scratch a living from the soil in the early days.