Working On The Road

1937 was one of the driest years of the 1930s. Working on road repairs would help to pay the municipal taxes for their farm so many farmers contributed their labour and horses to improve the prairie trails. Here is Bill Nevard's account of two days on the road near their farm.

I took Gleam this morning with Topsy to give her a first taste of road work. I got a barrel of water at the big slough to provide drink for my team and Uncle Horrie's . While loading it up it came on to rain pretty smart, but with grim resolution I kept on my way.
The scene of our operations to be was a sylvan glen close to the far-famed school of Headlands. The participants: William Senft with a goodly crew of noble lads. Uncle Horrie, plowman. W Bordass, J Pahl, E Senft, and D Schmidt, fresnoliers. Cliff Barton and myself sliponians, and Arnold Senft, fill-em-upper.
All being assembled we bent to our task with dynamic energy and unabated fury vieing with the ant and the seven year locust for ruthless industry. My team found road work pretty easy as they were standing still most of the day while I built the grade. Several of the Headlands scholars paid us brief visits when free from their studies.

July 18
Last night it rained pretty hard and I was doubtful about going on the road but I took a chance on it. It was so slippery that my team could hardly keep to their feet on the way there. Most of the fellows were late and Dan Schmidt did not come until after dinner but we managed to get going and finished near the school, moving a mile and a half south to Bill Senft's corner before quitting.
Brian Michelson came to review our handiwork this afternoon. The grade is 150 yards long. A diversion.

More On The Horses

August 1, 1938

Dick and I digging the new well. We got down to about 9 or 10 feet. We took 40 pails of water out in the morning before starting the operation.

 We had to get up early this morning. Dick rounded up the horses and we put them in the stable. Henry Berner and his son came along ere we had finished breakfast and he vaccinated the horses for the second time. He lost a horse from the disease the day before. He charged 50 cents a horse for the two innoculations making the total cost $1.75 for each horse.

Uncle Horrie and Bud were down here fixing the bull wheel of their binder. Dad and both Uncles went to a meeting at Shawlands with Mr. Fisher and McWean speaking. Arrangements have been made for farmers to get binder repairs and twine up to a certain amount.