"And it is what it was..."
That is the beginning of an Irish tale, I have read, so this is your wee Irish story.
Cowboy and I took a road trip today to go and see the new oil activity on the "old" Dutton place and just look around as he has been saying that he wanted to take me to the original homestead. Cowboy cannot remember the last time he was over in that area. It is pretty and rugged and it is just open country all around. We looked at the Rattle Snake drainage and we looked at the Sage Hen drainage. He told about some of the old timers that lived "here" and "there" but we didn't stop to take pictures, but the buildings have melted into the ground over time.
Bill didn't zoom in as no view finder, but you get the picture. Beside the windmill to the left is a spring house where the windmill pumped water into the spring house to keep the milk and cream cold, whatever they wanted to keep cool. We didn't walk up to old buildings as it was very muddy. I use the term buildings loosely as they are falling in ruin. I was imagining children there and how very far it was from the highway. If the old buildings could talk...
If we go again, I will take more pictures.
There was far more activity here that I was expecting. I had never seen a drilling operation. Looks like everything is in a holding pattern. We have been told they are going to "frack" this well, but it is all pure speculation on our part since we are NOT in the loop on this!
I could not help myself, I had to take pictures of the heavy equipment lined up beside the road. Dad would have enjoyed looking at all of it.
There are stories to be told about the old homestead, but it won't be today...
Good pictures of the old place. This drilling operation looks quite a bit different from what I see here in the Permian Basin mainly because it is so far away from all the different entities involved in bringing in a well. There are never this many trailors, graders, etc. at a location around Andrews, because they just come, do the job, and move over about a mile or two to the next location. People really do not know how much is involved in bringing in a well. The roads and cattleguards are one of the nice perks for the ranchers. I am glad they are finally doing some drilling out there.
ReplyDeleteMom looked at this blog, and I want to add her comments. She said Dad built the sping house, with some help from Bruce, during May, 1945, when Bruce was home on furlough. Bruce went back to Louisiana, and he barely got there when he got word Granddad Dutton had passed away (June 17, 1945). The folks were shearing sheep at the time. Mom and Dad moved to the Diamond X in 1947, and Joe and Daisy lived at the old place. Mom didn't have a spring house at the Diamond X.
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