When growing up on rural family farms during the 1960’s and 1970’s, life certainly did not entail the typical city childhood. Urban children would spend their evenings watching television, while kids farm kids were on the tractor helping mom and dad. Here are some of the skills and experiences the children of rural America gained that their urban peers missed out on.
Table of Contents
- 1 1. Operating a Tractor Before Age 10
- 2 2. Hand-Milking Cows
- 3 3. Birthing Animals
- 4 4. Building and Mending Fences
- 5 5. Weather Prediction Without Apps
- 6 6. Butchering and Food Processing
- 7 7. Operating Farm Equipment
- 8 8. Animal Healthcare
- 9 9. Crop Management
- 10 10. Water Management
- 11 11. Equipment Repair
- 12 12. Hay Baling
- 13 13. Grain Storage
- 14 14. Natural Navigation
- 15 15. Early Rising
- 16 16. Slopping the Hogs Before Sunrise
- 17 17. Churning Butter by Hand
- 18 18. Driving a Grain Truck at Harvest
- 19 19. Castrating Piglets and Lambs
- 20 20. Cleaning and Dressing a Chicken
- 21 21. Shocking Wheat and Stacking It in the Field
- 22 22. Reading a Stock Tank and Fixing a Float Valve
- 23 23. Navigating Pastures by Landmark, Not Address
- 24 24. Pulling Calves with a Come-Along or Calf Puller
- 25 25. Using a Grain Elevator and Auger
- 26 26. Rendering Lard After Butchering
- 27 27. Walking Beans to Pull Weeds by Hand
- 28 28. Sharpening Tools on a Pedal Grindstone
1. Operating a Tractor Before Age 10
Long before we a proper bike, we could steer and drive a tractor. Of course out legs didn’t reach the pedals, and we wern’t tall enough to cross the high tension power lines that emerged on every American farm. But that didn’t stop children from participating in farm work.
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2. Hand-Milking Cows
In the daily grind of life on a pre-mechanized dairy farm, we knew how to hand milk cows. Considering that not all cows are created equal and some tend to be mean and aggressive, anticipation and preparation for the task were key. Many kids could fill a bucket before breakfast, and hand milking one cow meant a first and last name to add to the growing list of cows.
3. Birthing Animals
Additionally, farm life meant welcoming new animal family members every week. We learned to recognize the signs of labor. And this hands-on experience taught us, there was no better teacher about life cycles than a book.
4. Building and Mending Fences
Building and mending fences helped us learn and practice basic engineering and problem solving. We became skilled in fence construction, including wire stretching, post setting, and weather and livestock pressure resistant repairs. We also learned the different kinds of fencing needed for different animals and uses.
5. Weather Prediction Without Apps
We learned to recognize and read the natural signs leading to a predictable weather change; cloud formations, direction of the wind, behavior and movement of animals, and change of atmospheric pressure. Other than the radio, we relied on ourselves and our weather sense more than anything else.
6. Butchering and Food Processing
From a young age we understood where food comes from. We helped with butchering and meat processing, including the packaging, preservation, and processing of meat for winter. Summer sausage making and practical education in meat science included meat from animals that we had personally slaughtered.
7. Operating Farm Equipment
In addition to tractors, we operated a wide variety of complex machines such as combines, grain augers, and balers. Safety was always our priority. We understood the mechanics of different pieces of equipment and had a strong working knowledge of maintenance, troubleshooting, and repair.
8. Animal Healthcare
Basic veterinary care was just another routine skill. We learned to treat common ailments, give injections, and recognize when professional help was needed. We also learned dosages, the proper storage of veterinary medicine, and preventative care for animals.
9. Crop Management
We naturally gained the knowledge of soil condition, planting time, and crop rotation. We were able to identify different types of weeds, pests, and plant diseases. We also had a practical knowledge of the importance of timing in the farming operations.
10. Water Management
Understanding how to manage water was important. This meant learning about irrigation, well management, and the dynamics of watersheds. There was also the construction of pumps, the laying of pipes, and the preservation of water during drought periods.
11. Equipment Repair
Basic mechanics skills were necessary. We changed oil, replaced belts and fixed simple mechanical problems. If something broke in the field, we couldn’t afford to wait for a tech to come out and fix it, we needed to find a solution ourselves.
12. Hay Baling
Everyone participated in the hay harvest. We learned how to evaluate hay readiness, operate a baler and efficiently stack bales. This also included understanding when the weather was right to cut and bale.
13. Grain Storage
Managing grain storage required knowledge of moisture levels, how to ventilate and manage pests. We learned how to operate augers, maintain storage bins and monitor the grain. This was vital to prevent spoilage and maintain the quality of the grain.
We could traverse large areas of land using the sun and other natural landmarks as a guide. Knowledge of property boundaries, reading the landscape, finding one’s way in inclement weather was critical. We could go anywhere on the land without a GPS
15. Early Rising
16. Slopping the Hogs Before Sunrise
Every farm kid heard a slop bucket banging against the fence before sunrise. The pigs were always more hungry than you were.
17. Churning Butter by Hand
For farm kids, standing at the kitchen counter cranking a wooden churn was a Saturday morning well spent. When the cream broken and turned, that sudden change in heaviness in the paddle was the reward.
18. Driving a Grain Truck at Harvest
You were still too young to drive, but during the wheat or corn harvest you were driving the grain truck right next to the combine as the auger poured wheat into the bed. If you made a mistake, you could cost your family a lot of time and money.
19. Castrating Piglets and Lambs
There was no way to know this exact task before being put in front of the animal. Farming children found out this was a quick and simple task that was a part of the livestock life cycle, and that was done without any hesitation.
20. Cleaning and Dressing a Chicken
In only a few hours, everything transformed from the yard to the table, and farm children experienced every step of the process. You learned how to end a chicken’s life, scald it so the feathers would loosen, and gut it without accidentally puncturing organs. You began to develop a real appreciation for Sunday dinner because of the work that went into it.
21. Shocking Wheat and Stacking It in the Field
Long before combines were in every field, farm children were working all day in August because the wheat bundles had to dried before being picked. The wheat stubble would poke through your jeans and the wheat dust would get everywhere, but the rows that you left behind were picture perfect.
22. Reading a Stock Tank and Fixing a Float Valve
When the cattle tank was overflowing or bone dry, the farm kids were the only ones who could figure out what was happening. They learned to pull the float valve apart using their bare hands, replace the rubber washer, and have the tank filling before there was even a hint of a problem.
Country roads didn’t have any street signs. Instead, the farm kids would give directions using landmarks, such as the bent cottonwood tree or the neighbor’s red barn from the south gate. By age ten, most of us built a mental map of countless miles of the countryside.
24. Pulling Calves with a Come-Along or Calf Puller
When a heifer was having trouble with calving, you didn’t have time to wait for the vet. Farm kids gained first-hand experience with a calf puller. Working with the cow, they would control the contractions, and at just the right time, the calf would come out — and you would be there to rub it dry with a gunny sack.
25. Using a Grain Elevator and Auger
Moving grain from a pile on the ground into a bin with an auger was a complex task that required understanding of angles, rpm, and timing. Farm kids learned how to run these machines at an early age, just as kids learn to ride bikes.
26. Rendering Lard After Butchering
Rendering lard at a family hog butchering event was one of the final steps. Your reward for the process was a salty and crispy snack that vanished before supper.
27. Walking Beans to Pull Weeds by Hand
Prior to the widespread use of herbicides, children on farms spent their summers pulling cocklebur, waterhemp, and volunteer corn from soybean fields. Each day, they’d walk each row of the field to the treeline. With no shade and no breaks, they had to finish the entire field.
28. Sharpening Tools on a Pedal Grindstone
An entire skillset was required to keep the axe, hoe, and scythe sharp. At the foot of a water-cooled grindstone, farm kids learned to pump steadily to sharpen the blade, and then use a whetstone to finish the job.
Life required getting up before the sun. Animal care was needed, no matter what the weather was. This taught us that human’s preferred schedule was not how nature operated, and cultivated a strong work ethic.
