Jasper County Democrat, Volume 19, Number 60, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 25 October 1916 — ON SAME FARM MANY YEARS [ARTICLE]

ON SAME FARM MANY YEARS

John T. Culp Oldest Native Born Resident of County.

John T. Culp of Rensselaer is probably the oldest native born resident of Jasper county, and has the unique distinction of having lived on the same farm for about seventy-five years. Mr. Culp will be 80 years old on December 2. He was born on the farm in Barkley township where he resided, continuously until he moved to this city, a few years ago. It is a real pleasure to sit down and converse with Mr. Culp and hear him tell of this county in the early days of his life. In those times wild game of all kinds were quite plentiful and while he himself was never much of a hunter, yet he recalls the abundance of deer, wild turkey, pheasants and prairie chickens that were in this county during his youth.

And times and modes of living then were far removed from what they are today. There were no stoves of any kind, the cooking being done over the wide open fireplaces, which also furnished heat for the house. Corn pone or johnny cake wag one of the chief edibles, and when eaten with home-made molasses was genuinely relished. Their clothing then was all homespun and made by the good housewives and mothers of that day. We of this age are too prone to neglect the hardships and trials these sturdy forefathers and mothers encountered and endured in making this country what it is today. With our present-day ease of living it is hard to comprehend all that they were obliged to /contend with as the real builders of the land.