ordered a 135 phosphate grade at $13 a ton. Some were able to buy a higher analysis of different nutrients namely potash and nitrogen. At first the bone dust came in 225 lb bags and it took a man to handle them. In fact most farmers had to empty them into 1/2 bushel size galvanized containers and carry them to the drill. Later it came in 167 1/2 lb. bags. Then 125 lbs. , 100 lbs. , and then 50 lb paper bags and now in bulk.
My father at first always ordered 3 tons of 13% phosphate and gave a note to Mr. Sinclair for $39 with interest at 6%. When we threshed the wheat we paid the old note and made a new one. Think of the work entailed in producing a crop of wheat. In the first place three tons of bone dust meant three day long trips to Eckerty with a good team and wagon. One that could pull a ton up the big hills and through mud holes. Not all teams could do it. Then after threshing it took at least two trips to haul the 40 bu. of wheat at 85 cents to $1.00 per bu. to pay off the note.
Then realize all the plowing, sowing, preparation of seed and seed bed, swapping labor at threshing time, cooking for the wife or more. In spite of all these many farmers made a profit on a wheat crop and bought more land. In fact Seldom bought 40 acres from the Fred Eckerty farm South of the Sinclair farm. He also once owned the big Peter Gottfried , Ed Moery farm West of Wickliffe plus stocks and bonds. Even in those hard days men were successful.
The Desco Sinclair family tore down the old buildings and constructed more
modern ones for that day. These are still standing though in ruin and unoccupied. The house has eight rooms large and with very high ceilings. There are four downstairs and four upstairs. It is well build and structurally sound today. It is weather boarded with first class yellow poplar lumber. In 1910 my father and I prepared a set of large yellow poplar logs on our farm. We had much of the lumber sawed 1 1/4 inch in thickness for making siding. We stacked this lumber for drying. We sold the lumber or 1800 board feet of it to Desco to make the siding for this house. He paid #3.00 per 100 or $54 for the lot. He came with a large, four horse wagon and loaded it and hauled it to Schnellville to a planing mill.
This Sinclair farm from 1914 to 1918 on the average per year produced 800 bu. of wheat, 500 bu. of corn, 30 bu. of clover seed, fifty head and cattle and sheep and other farm products. This was true of many other farms around Wickliffe. Desco kept four or five large draft horse, also buggy horses, all kinds of horse drawn machinery. The place was well fenced. It was watered by five clear water springs North of the house. He kept a hired hand and found work for him in rainy or clear weather. Homer Byers and Jesse Montgomery were his faithful farm hands for years. Now compared to our large commercial farms these farms do not grade too low in the production of crops and livestock. Isn’t this s good story for a Crawford County farm?
In 1918 Hiram Gittfried and his wife Anna (LImp) purchased this farm and moved from their Batman farm in Dubois County. Here lived Virgil, Willie and Arthur. All that was said of the