Early Settlers Personal History

1.  Lon Garrett.

2.  Huntsville, Ark.

3.  Lawyer.

4.  I have been a farmer and stockman, also Sheriff and Collector.

5.  March 1^st, 1870.

6.  Marbel, Ark.

7.  Yes to Miss Ada Gray at Marble, Ark., in 1888.

9.   Native.

10. I have lived in Arkansas all my life.  (69 years)

11. I am a Native.

12. Native

13. The early homes were built of logs, with clapboard roof weighted down with rocks and logs, the doors were made of logs split as thin as they could, fastened together with hewn cross pieces with wooden pegs, we had no nails, the windows were just squares cut out in the log house with clapboard shutters, the shutters were sometimes bound together with limber sticks tied with hickory bark, the floors were “Puncheon” (Split Log), and the chimneys were built of stone, sometimes if the chimney was not high enough and did not draw good it was made higher with sticks and mud.

14. The lamps were both grease and tallow, the candles were poured at home, and were only used when we had company, the rest of the time we used grease lamps.”

15. I saw my first electric light in this section in 1912, of course I had seen lights before then in other towns.

16. Wood was the only fuel we have ever used, it was and still is plentiful.

17. We eat Corn Bread, Hominy, Beans, potatoes, Hog meat, some beef, Fish, Game, game was very plentiful, I have county as high as 13 deer in one herd, we also had plenty of Turkey, some Bear, Quail and Squirrel were also plentiful.

18. All the clothing I had until I was grown, was homespun, home dyed and homemade they used walnut hulls for the brown dye, and sumac berries for a bluish green dye, they were all hand sewed.

19. The marriage customs of this section, were the same s other sections of the country, bundling was not practiced to my knowledge, buy “shivarees” always followed a wedding, following the “shivarees” the groom was supposed to “treat”, if not he was either “ridden on a rail” of ducked in the nearest creek or pond, or both.

20. Prices were much lower then than now, corn was 25 cents per bushel, Wheat 50 cents per bushel, oats 50 cents per bushel, bacon and hams 7 to 10 cents per 1lb., Hogs on foot 2 to 3 cents per pound, Beef run about the same, Clothes after they began to come to the market when I was about 16 years old sold for 8 to 12 dollars per suit, we paid 12 cents per yard when we had our cloth woven by hand.

21. We did nor have any disasters that I remember where the sharing of food was necessary, sometimes we had a few individual cases.

22. The early cultivated crops were, Corn, Sorghum cane, Potatoes, Beans, some wheat when we could get the seed, Oats for hay, also Millet, I don’t remember when tomatoes ceased to be known as “Love Apples”, but I do remember that they were not eaten until about 1903.

23. The early plows were “single stock” or “Georgia Stocks” as they were commonly known, later the “Twisting Shovel” was brought on the market, they were used on the single stock plows and in many cases used to turn ground, all the woodwork of the plow was homemade, and lots of times the iron parts were made by a blacksmith, the were pulled by an Ox.

24. There were no early industries, unless you would call sorghum making an industry, usually there was only on sorghum mill in the community, and the people hauled their sorghum can to this mill, it was made of wood, and the power was an Ox, the can juice was boiled down in large kettles some of them copper, some cast iron, we did not know what an evaporating pan was in those days, I remember you could hear the ”Squeek” of the Sorghum Mill  for miles.

25. The native wild plants we used for food were, Sour Dock, Wild Mustard, Crow’s Foot, Square Weed, and Poke, we used Sassafras and Spicewood for a tea, Mullein for coughs an Colds, Sunflower seed for horse medicine, Paw-Paws for food, Sumac Berries for Dye, than we had Blackberries, Huckleberries, Dewberries and wild Strawberries for fruit, also Service berries and Wild cherries, After the war we used parched corn and wheat for coffee substitutes, and that is all I remember that was used.

26. There was no interesting incidents in my youth, e had to work for dawn to dark to make a living, of course my childhood impressions were that, this was a beautiful country with all its trees, creeks, rivers, and flowers, and the wild things that lived in the woods, I remember that, we very seldom went huckleberry hunting that we did not scare up some wild Fawns, while squirrels and rabbits were so plentiful they would play at your feet.

27. When we had a forest fire, which was quite often in the spring of the year, the neighbors would meet, and  either scratch out a trail to stop the fire at a certain point, or they would select an old road if one could be found suitable, and from this point they would fire against the oncoming fire, In case of house fires, the was fought by carrying water in buckets from the nearest spring or creek, the most of the houses were log, and burned slow, so they were usually put out with only the loss of the roof.

28. The only place I know of is that Kings River, was named for John King, one of the early settlers at the head of this river, he died there and was buried on the banks of the river.

29. I don't remember anything in particular about the early taverns or Stage coach stations, as we lived in the country and very seldom come to town.

30. I went to my first school at what was known as the “Old Camp Ground”, near Marble, Ark., in 1880, I don't remember the name of my first teacher, but I believe it was John King,

33. Funds were provided by paying the teacher $1.00 per month, if you had the money, if not, than you paid in produce.

34. We used Webster's Blue Back Speller, McGuffey's Reader, Ray's Arithmetic, our writing was a copy “Set” by the teacher.”

35. The only reading material we had was, school books, and the Bible, The first newspaper I remember, was the Madison County Democrat, published at Huntsville, Ark.

36. There has never been a Telegraph Station is this country.

37. We have never had any Horse Cars, Street Cars, or other things of that sort, that I remember, until recent years.

38. I saw my first Automobile in 1912, at Huntsville, Ark.

39. I saw my first Train in 1885, at Van Buren, Ark.

40. I saw my first Airplane in 1929, at Huntsville, Ark.

41. The first Bus line I remember was in 1912, it operated from Fayetteville to Eureka Springs, Ark., by the way of Huntsville, but the roads were not so good in those days, and it soon ceased to operate.

42. The only early shows that I remember seeing, was put on by local people, I saw my first “Magic Lantern Show” in 1887.

43.The only celebration I remember except the fourth of July, was when Grover Cleveland was elected President.

44. I remember when the James Boys came into this country, but I was small and don't recall what they did.

45. I don't remember any Duels having been fought.

46. I don't recall any Feuds.

47. I don't recall any tombstone inscriptions of any importance.

48. The only Bank Robbery that I recall, was in 1912 when the First National Bank of Huntsville, Ark., was robbed, the robber were all caught.

49. I don't remember much about the Civil War.

50. I don't remember any Battles.

51. I don't recall anything in particular about the reconstruction days, you see I was very young.

52. I know nothing at all about the old Ku Klux Klan.

53. The organization that I ever helped to organize, was the I. O. O. F. Lodge at Marble, Ark.

54. My people were all Southern.

55. I do not remember seeing any Indian Mounds, however I understand there is some here.

56. I do not remember any Historic Sites.

57. I have 7 Children, and 9 Grandchildren.

58. Bertha Garrett Rice, Huntsville, Ark.; Claude Garrett, Ft. Gibson, Okla.; Douglas Garrett, Muskogee, Okla.; Vay Garrett Logan, Huntsville, Ark.; Howard Garrett, Huntsville, Ark.; Laxine Garrett, Huntsville, Ark.; Virginia Garrett, Huntsville, Arkansas.

59.The names of my Grandchildren are, Morris, Betty and Polly Rice, Huntsville, Ark.; Catherine and Lendy Logan, Huntsville, Arkansas.; Ady Gray, Kate, Claude Wallace and Betsy Bo Garrett, Fort Gibson, Okla.

60. I have never written anything along this line.

Authors Comments

Mr. Garret has always been an active and progressive citizen, he has been very active in politics, he was elected sheriff and collector in 1896 and served until 1900, prior to this he taught school, farmed and was considered one of the best traders in the county, He was admitted to the legal bar, in 1903, and has pursued  this vocation every sine, he was a charter member of the Farmers and Merchants Bank when it was organized in 1906, and is today for anything that is for the betterment of the community and the progress of the Nation.

 

Transcribed by Dustin Roten, Class of 2012