O.T You can't go home again.

As a child I lived about two miles outside Cassville Missouri. As Google earth has updated their views of a lot of the U.S I decided to
take another look at the old Farm. Thought it might be a little clearer than before. The farm sat at a left hand curve in the old Exeter highway. Didn't recognize what I was looking at first. I finally realized that they had built a Walmart Super Center where the farm used to be. There was a song from the 1970s called " The
Big Yellow Taxi." does "They've paved over paradise to make a parking lot" come to mind? I know you can't stop progress but..Walmart has certainly caused a lot of small businesses to
close. I am sure Walmart has employed a lot of people from Cassville but a small business trying to start up could never match their prices. this is not a rant just personally a sad moment.

There is something I built that can be seen from Google Earth. I built a phone pole swing set using 20 inch phone poles. The two support poles are 7 ft in the ground, and 18 feet apart. The top pole is about 22 feet long. Google Havre Montana. Follow the milk river out of town to the west. (it is goose necked). The first house on top of the bench (western term) south of the river shows a white rectangle of roof, then to the West of the house 50 feet is the swing set. It is also no longer home. JimN

I can still drive by the old farm in Iowa and it hasn't really changed much except it is not all in the same farm today. Just not the same with part belonging to one neighbor and the rest to someone else. Would have been nice to keep it in the family, but not that easy to do these days with everyone going their own direction. Folks bought it and we moved there in '56 when I was a freshman in HS. Mom sold the last 60 acres of it in about 2000 or 2001.

I know just what you mean. I-65 in Alabama; exit 231, east side of the interstate: Wal-Mart, motels, McDonalds, Taco Hell, boat dealer and a bunch of other stuff. It was the farm where my wife grew up..... We cannot even recognize it today, but for the railroad track behind the property.
mike

Mike, I know where you mean. I live in Trimble, Smith lake park
area. Exit 304.

Well I guess it depends on whether you left or not.

Family has been here for the last 140 years. I doubt, however, if it will get to 170 years. The next generation isn't worth a damn and are incapable of simple maintenance duties. They won't be able to afford the place and will have to cash out. Not sure what to do with my will.

Well, anyway, the outhouse is gone. The barn is about 75% bigger, the picket fence collapsed and was replaced with antique granite blocks. The side porch, not original to the house, became infested with carpenter ants and was removed. Neighbors thought that was a bad idea. I built an apartment in the 14 room house so that my brother would have funds to hire the maintenance. He and his family decided to move into it and leave the main part unoccupied.

There are about 15 more tractors now than thirty years ago. My brother likes his wheelbarrow and doesn't like my tractors. I'm happy living in the barn.

The town liked our front field across the street so much that they built a school on it while we were in the military. Vietnam, no less. None of this "Thanks for your service" lip service either. We were the owners at that time.

Oh well, such is life in suburbia.

We just got our "Century Farm" signs. Over 100 years in the same place, same family line, still in ag production.

I am doing estate planning to pass it on to the next generations.

sons have BS in Ag and working on MBA. Think they can handle it.

Gene

talking about wal mart i was in the one in hopkinsville other day at the check out line,, man in front of me was pitching a b----t about how it was running all the mom and pop stores out business when he finished i ask what was he doing at wal mart then that he should go to the local mom and pop stores get his stuff, look at me said {quote}what you think i am crazy there to dam hight for me, i just shook my head and the clark said we get all type here,

A friend of mine bought a oil can that says, E.B.Edie Cassville Missouri McCormick Deering. Any Idea when he was in business? Thanks,Mark..

My sister lives at Purdy, and my BIL grew up at Wheaton they own the farm he grew up on. My Sister has taught school for about 28 or 29 years at Exeter.

You can't go home anymore



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtI-cZhqviE

(quoted from post at 18:20:36 10/27/09) Not sure what to do with my will..

Click to expand...

Be glad to help you out Bro.......... :roll:

How true.
My Dad never owned a farm, always rented. Had chance to try going back a couple years ago. Even the town name changed.
After we all grew up, we went out to seek fame & fortune, never found either one. Youngest sister went to Left Coast in 63, hadn't been back since.
So when she came for a visit in 07 we took a little drive to scout the old homestead.
Born on farm between Truimph & Ormsby Mn. Town merged with Montery to become Tri-Mont in 58. Yes, we were all born at home. Hospitals are for sick people. Driveway has been moved to opposite side of house, everything else is the same, have some old pics of the place.
Moved to Granada in winter of 43-44. Only thing still there is red chicken barn. Dad thought that it was in such bad shape then that he never used it. Rest of the buildings have been replaced. Creek bottom & hillside cow pasture completely grown over with trees.
Moved to Sherburn in winter of 47-48. Big barn has been lowered & made into machine shed/shop. Everything else replaced, or just gone. Current owner has sold off crop land to neighbors, still has 5 acre building site.
After Dad died, Mom bought a house in nearby Dunnell. That has since surned down.
Now the irony of it all. We hated farming, couldn't wait to move to town. Now retired, I live on a lakeshore. Have tractor/loader to clear snow from my 150 foot driveway.
Brother retired to a 30 acre patch in Wi. Has same number of tractors as Dad had in his whole life. Hated horses, now has 3 hay burners.
Such is life.
Willie

E. B. Edie Co hardware was the McCormick Deering Dealer in Cassville. I
know he was in business in 1917. My father was a district manager for International Harvester in Pratt Kansas in the 1930s. We moved to Cassville when he was seriously injured in an accident.