Water is always a crucial resource for farmers. The Martin farm, in the southeast corner of Jackson Co., Kansas, was blessed with a good supply of water--until the dust bowl days of the hot, dry 1930's.

Usually water was not a problem on the farm, especially after a new water system was installed in 1923. A well had been dug in a pasture east of the windmill. It was fed by an underground spring. The windmill pumped water from the well to hydrants by the barn, the smokehouse and the garage. Water was used for watering horses and livestock, and was also used to fill a reservoir near the house. 

A cistern (fed, via guttering, from rain water runoff) was dug east of the farmhouse to feed the pump inside the house. There was a spring in the lower (south) pasture used to water stock. Barrels had been buried in the yard and used to automatically water the large front lawn and several huge elm trees shading the house.

George Martin hauled water by using a water wagon, a long metal tank on wheels drawn by a team of two mules. This tank was also used at harvest time to feed the boiler of the steam engine of the thrashing machine. (The same type of tank also supplied boiler feed water in steam locomotives.)

The tank had a manhole cover on the top and George would fill it with water from the well. Leaving the lines to the mule team laying on the ground, he would first run a galvanized metal pipe from the well to the hole at the top of the tank, then would hand pump the water into the tank.

One day, as he was unhooking the pipe, George dropped it. The loud clang of metal scared the mules and they took off, running full-tilt. George watched in amazement as they headed down along the ditch, past the windmill, then back up along the fence.

Thinking fast, George raced to the fence and managed to grab the flapping lead lines as the mules raced past him. He then managed to stop the mules before they tore through the fence or tipped over the wagon on rough terrain. His older brothers were proud of how well he had handled a dangerous situation.

Nineteen thirty-four and thirty-six were record-breaking hot, dry summers in Kansas. Suddenly, without warning, the wells went dry. Fortunately there were two functioning community wells, built by the WPA, in the area--one was one-half mile west of old Muddy Creek Baptist Church and the other was one mile east of the church. Unfortunately, all farmers needed water--and the long lines of farmers waiting their turn to hand pump water at the wells into waiting storage containers could involve an entire day wasted waiting in line. 

Harry hauled community well water for the Martins. He would go to the well late at night or in the dark hours of morning to avoid the wait. He would take the water wagon and fill it to the brim, making it unnecessary to make multiple trips to and from the well. At home, the water could be stored in the reservoir north of house. 

It must have been a long summer of hard work for Harry Martin!

Finally, the rains came again and the Martin farm had no further trouble with lack of water. The farm was sold in summer 1955 when Cleve and Mabel retired and moved to town, living in a small house in North Topeka. (The following summer, 1956, they celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary.)
 
 
 

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