Sommerer Family Website

Good enough for who it's for

farm

Conservation Service Application

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The conservation program application (in white) is from 1967, but the photo that was included in the application is from 1942. I also included the letter that detailed the program down below. As always, click on the images to see a larger version.

conservation program2 formconservation program1 map

Update:

You’re right, that picture of the farm is confusing. Mostly because it is wrong. whoever cut the photo out of the larger picture just missed a few lines here and there. I added the actual outline of the farm to the picture. Then, for good measure, I did the same outline on a modern picture of the farm. Then, really just because I could, I superimposed the two pictures together, so you could see some changes.

farm-fix-1942
Old picture with correct property lines. (click to enlarge)

 

Modern picture with correct property lines. (click to enlarge)
Modern picture with correct property lines. (click to enlarge)
Old and modern pictures together (click to enlarge)
Old and modern pictures together (click to enlarge)

Aunt Naomi’s Story (Part 40)

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How dear to my heart are the scenes of my childhood
When fond recollections presents them to view
The orchard, the meadow, the deep tangled wildwood,
And ev’ry loved spot which my infancy knew.

I was born at Selma’s Place on Tanner Bridge road, but we moved to the “7th Place” before I was one year old.  The farm I grew up on was 140 acres.  It had three springs.  One was at the edge of the southwest woods so we never saw it much but the other two were close by.  One lay in the ravine to the south and the other in the ravine to the north.  The farm animals drank from these.  The south spring ran on down to what we called the first waterfall and then on down through the Watergate to the second waterfall.  This is were we liked to fish and sometimes swim.  Further down from the second waterfall was a real good swimming hole.  Erosion has changed all of this since I was small, but the springs are still there.

We had an area of flat, blackish rocks, like someone poured bumpy concrete, to the top of the west hill on our land.  We played house here a lot.  One of the rocks formations looked like a bed with pillows.

Aunt Lolly’s Story (part 2)

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Being the tenth of twelve children, life was better for me because of my older brothers and sisters. They seen to it that we had nice clothes and things we needed. ‘My older sisters made or bought us beautiful dresses, and the older boys worked hard to make the farm successful. When they left home one by one, it was up to Cleo, Naomi, Lloyd and I to carry on. We got up at 5:00 AM everyday and milked the cows. The milkman came at 6:30 AM. Then we had to wash and get ready for school. We walked 1/2 mile to catch the school bus at 7:15AM.  If we.found time, we ate breakfast and made some school lunch. If we were running late, we did without.

We milked Jersey cows and raised tobacco for a living. We had a large garden. We raised chickens, sheep and pigs. We used -horses to farm and had a mule named “Ole Bert”. When I was about 14 years old, we got a brand new Allis-Chalmers tractor. We were up at 5 AM each morning and didn’t get to bed before 10 PM. Our lives were work, school, church & 4-H club. I had many wonderful experiences in 4-H.