Work Animals of Appalachia A Time Gone By

The beautiful farm country of Appalachia all throughout the south and pretty much the whole country not just the Appalachians. But you ever think how beautiful these mountains are and all these vast valleys and all these river bottom lands. It's so beautiful all the fields the beautiful corn fields a beautiful pasture field and we know these people had a hard time when they come in here trying to settle this country how to set up farming and make a living off the land. But we never think about the animals they use to do all this hard work. This is before the modern tractor come in combustible engine. They really worked these animals hard but they took care of them too that was their livelihood. So I'm gonna look at all the old work animals of a day a time gone by. We'll look at the farm we'll look at the mining we'll look at the logging and just general transportation throughout these hills. So let's get started. We will start out with the farming. These people when they come in this country they brought the cattle with them and all the work animals. And the first thing we'll start on is an ox. People say well what's an ox or an oxen? Well they're bulls that's been castrated so it'd make them docile. If they hadn't have done that they'd never control them. But they worked these animals good they were they were just big babies is what I've been told. They would work you've heard the old phrase strong as an ox well there you go. These were strong animals and they were real good working animals. They were just on the slow side but they was powerful that was like putting it in bulldog. They liked to pull heavy loads and they could pull them heavy loads over real rough country real slow. So they liked them for that and they worked them a lot back in them days. Now the yokes are used on them look like this is what they went around with them when they teamed them up together one on each side and they could pull a real load too. But they still use them time to time mostly for show. But the most famous on an old farm in the old country is the old mule an old trusty mule. They was more of them used than anything just above a horse and they worked these animals hard. But they took good care of them and these mules was not dumb people think they're a dumb animal these are smart animals. They know what to do after they've done it so much they know exactly what to do and they work these animals good. Most of these farmers they love these old mules today they've done a lot of work with and some rough rough side these old rocky ridges and sometimes these old mules they get a good break because they would outwork the person that was running them. They really worked hard these old people they had a struggle back in these old ridges back in them days hard work even as you started out young behind these old mules plowing these fields trying to scratch up a living for your family it was hard work. But these old mules was up to they really worked them in these old fields day after day year after year that was a big prized position for a working animal to have. The next step was the horses and they right behind the mule they worked just as hard and they're really smart animals but these these take care of them they took care of you and they've done a lot of work on these farms transporting goods hauling stuff out of the fields working around between the barn and back in the settlements and all that stuff they used them a lot especially on these farms like this going to the barn milking the cows they were real docile animals too and they worked them in these fields that's primarily the tractor of the day what that was the mules and the horses plowing these fields cultivating these fields day after day and they used machinery like this right here the old cutting machine here instead of mules pulling it out in the field cutting the hay these old mules they'd stack it on them on them wagons they'd haul that hay in. Now I visited an old farm old farm here's an old tack room on an old farm it's probably back from the 1800s here's what's left of it it's just amazing for me to see stuff like this this is all going away an old tack room still got all the horse and mule tack that they put on them their harnesses the beds saddles old stuff like that just going away thing of the past look at this old log there's the old tack laying there now this ain't like back in the old days you took some time to hook up a horse to work with and on this old farm out here too out in the thickets you can't find it in the summer but here's the old equipment that the horses and mules used to pull out in the fields cutting the hay cultivating the fields just sitting there rusting museum pieces beautiful pieces of history it just amazes me to see this stuff old stuff there's the old rake they raked them up with before they could throw the hay up on the wagons bring it in it's about what it looked like different machinery pull cutting raking stacking and they still use these old horses today sometimes here's one grinding up old corn surrogate stuff where they make molasses from at the time gone by it just amazes me to see this old stuff and it's sad to see it go away but times change now out west with a big farm or out down south at the big open farm there's over 30 horses right there pulling that cultivator harvester my goodness the tack that he took to get them horses set up to work them in the morning and to control that many horses it just amazes me a lot of work there and they took care of these animals right here on the farm they took care of all their needs their horseshoes and doctoring them up and taking care of everything and this was the mechanic of the day he kept them horses up and running whatever shoes they need repairing the tack and he was a big demand for a blacksmith somebody take care of them horses shoes is always losing shoes so that was a big that was a big job anywhere you went there was a blacksmith in any place but as time went on the combustible engine wasn't being this was an old steam engine this is the start of it way back before the turn of the century now they went on the tractor and this is an old tractor it just times has changed modern times went on but they still use these horses today they mostly exhibition ready rodeos and show horses but they still use them next up is logging they really big demand for these work animals in them days they worked them hard too mules horses oxen he didn't matter there was money to be made in this log and they worked these mountains hard and sometimes they had to use these special breed horses that were really strong just for logging to snake these old logs out of these wood Belgian horses big workhorses right here is a big one I don't know what breed that is but that is one monster horse right there and that's what they was bred for they love to pull and they still use these mules and horses pulling these snake and these logs out of these old wood they really worked a lot of trouble snaking them down off one of these steep bridges you had to be careful you could hurt yourself hurt your horses you had to know what you was doing now here when they use some oxen that looks like about at least eight or ten oxen there that's some horsepower right there buddy that's putting it down in low low look what they're trying to pull right there look at the size of them logs but they could do it now look down here in the bottom right hand corner using an old cross cut saw and they use these animals year round in these old wood these ridges these mountains logging was a big industry back in this day and it still is today now sometimes you don't think them old mules and horses animals didn't work hard at what they're doing sometimes I think they put more of a demand on than what they that they should my goodness this ain't an old log truck these are live fleshing animals that's hard on but they took care of their animals because that was their livelihood without their animals they was nothing so there's your logging and mining there was a big demand in this mining industry back in its day before modern technology come into it all in these mines throughout these Appalachias and some of these animals was like people they didn't want to be underground so it took a special animal to work underground and they worked them hard too they were just like part of the team because without them like the logging and farming and everything else they was nothing they were the horsepower they was the machine of the day without them horses they couldn't stand much of this ain't no man can do this all day pushing a coal car back and forth ain't no way so they took care of them horses and mules and stuff and they they they got a special bond with that old horse or mule that they was using they know just what they wanted to do and how to do it and day in and day out and back in the old day the younger men or these boys would take care of the animals they would before their backs got strong enough that they could work with their dads now a lot of times they would take their animals home with them in the evening in some places and take care of them feed them put them up and take them back to work next day they always said the old miners used to tell me that the company people say we can hire a man but we gotta hire or we gotta buy a horse they always used to say that or buy an old mule but you can hire a man so they didn't care much about a man but they did that cost money for them horses and mule now back then they used you can see here that they used these uh oxen in the mines too they did use them they used goats when the scene got lower they used little goats little ponies mostly goats and when it got real real low i've seen drier pictures here of them using dogs pulling cars out now these animals and these mines were their livelihood and they become a special bond in these mines with these animals you did not push them i've heard these old timers when i start in the mines when they used to be in the mines with mules and stuff you push these old mules hard and they just back you off into a gob pile somewhere snapping at you they had their breaking point too just like anybody else but they worked hard but when they wanted to take a break they would take a break that they would they would bring these animals out they'd keep them on the ground in some places but they'd bring them out once a week to keep them from going blind so they they did that a little bit too at certain mines but you can see here that they they had a special bond with these animals they was just like one of the team they took care of them and it took care of them it was just one big big bond of working but as time went on like everything else progress come in they got electricity in the mine and they started using electrical equipment the old trolley here pole and the old tram system they started hauling coal with it instead of pulling it with horses and animals so times have changed and it's even more technical now so there's the mining use of animals now here's transportation ride of the day this is an old country preacher going from community to community revival bless his heart back in the good old days here's a nurse in the southeastern part of Kentucky going to visit a patient that's a rare thing ain't it you ever hear such a thing no more do you hospital going to a house here's an old mailman delivering mail back in West Virginia back in the day times have gone by here's a couple going to the store or been back from the store back in the hollers of East Tennessee looks like he's got some coal on kerosene it was usually a day's trip here's an older couple going to going to town on a Saturday that was their ride now here's rush hour on a Saturday in any little town or community you went to back in them days or no how big the town was here was the bus line of the day you wanted to go anywhere cross country or across state this was the bus of the day I bet you that was a rough ride and this was the truck of the day the old family truck you went got your supplies you went shopping in it you worked in it that was the time and these old farm animals these mules and horses they still useful today even with these modern modern cars and started coming in a century ago they still needed them time to time to pull them out of places like this how ironic now I visited another old farm and they had some old wagons buckboards and stuff in it times gone by now progress is a good thing but we never want to forget our old ways we want to be remembered these old ways to pass them on for future generations so I hope you enjoyed this little thing of the work animals of a time gone by so I want to thank you for watching god bless y'all and I'll see you next time