Photo Number 275

These men may be part of a threshing crew, there are shocks of grain in the background. It looks to me like they used teams of horses, and both the men and the horses are taking a break.

My Mother used to cook and bake for days before the Threshing crew would show up. I remember the excitement of the crew pulling into the yard, it was going to be a busy day, with a huge meal at noon, with all kind of wonderful pies and cakes for desert.  As a child with a sweet tooth..I enjoyed those days.  In our area of Minnesota the neighbors would get together and thrash grain as a group going from farm to farm until it was all done.
Thanks for stopping by, do come again:)

Photo Number 274

This is some kind of small grain field. It looks like there are shocks of grain.

This is a Threshing machine, or Thrashing machine.  The wagon bringing in sheaves of grain is horse drawn.
 Thresh = to toss about; thrash. To beat out grain from it's husk.
Thanks for stopping by, do come again:)  

Photo Number 273

Four guys on an old wooden wagon,  I wonder what they were doing..hauling rocks?  This does not look like Minnesota.  The trail looks just wide enough for the wagon.
Thanks for stopping by, do come again:)

Photo Number 272

I showed this photo to my Dad.  He said "That is some rickety old hay wagon, nothing about that wagon is right."  I guess he was talking about the boards that should have been going horizontal.  When I bought this photo, the gentleman that had them was charging double for any photos of horses or cars..this one was a double, fifty cents instead of a quarter because of the horses tail...so be sure to look at it!
Thanks for stopping by, do come again:)

Photo Number 271

I think this is a hay wagon and a hay loader. There are three men in this photo.  Although the photo is a little blurry, the team of  horses are wearing fly nets.  Up here when the flies were bad, you attached the nets to the hames, the nets with their dangling strings  helped to keep the biting flies at bay especially when the horses were moving.

 I wish the rider on the horse was not in the way.. I wanted a closer look at the hay loader in action.  There are many of these hay loaders sitting like old dinosaurs in some of the old fence lines. One of our neighbors has one sitting at the end of their driveway, she has vines trying to grow up it.  I remember when my Dad made loose hay..before balers.  But he had a tractor.  I remember getting the slings positioned just right on the wagon was a big deal.  I can still see huge bunches of hay disappearing into the haymow.
This photo is not marked with a date..maybe it is from the 1930's.
Thanks for stopping by, do come again:)

Photo Number 270

This is Emil and his team.  A good team of work horses was very important to a farmer.  I think this photo was probably taken in the 1940's sometime.

 My grandfather kept his team of  "work" horses well into the 1950's, they were his best friends, he took care of them before he took care of himself at the end of a hard day of work in the fields.
I happened upon some horse and some farming photos..since I was raised on a farm in Minnesota..these photographs are all very interesting to me...so we will have a week or so of these old photos.
Thanks for stopping by, do come again:)

Photo Number 269

This real photo postcard is in pretty bad shape.  However I thought it was interesting enough to purchase.  I find foreign languages to be a mystery.  Can anyone read this card?  I had my Dad look at this car he thought it was an Overland..but I think it is foreign because the steering wheel is on the right.  I like the ladies hats..do you suppose that this vehicle was a prop in the photographers studio? 

Thanks for stopping by, do come again! :)
Updates:
From Crex: The postcard is sent by one of the women in the picture. She has been sick. The man is her son, I think.
From Iggy: A very rough translation would be:

Here, I send ugly ghosts of me and my boy and Marie Darb to you.

We went by train(?) from Wonderland for a while ago. I was ill the summer so I'm so "daurlig" out there, but now is am a little better hope I get care fresh now. They were bad you do not like you really good when Johan? For sometimes falls always wings(?)



Update Nov 22, 2010 From Jo!:
I guess norwegian ;)

Here, I send a ugly ghosts of me and my boy and Marie Darb to you

we took this (picture) in Wonderland a while ago.
I was sick this summer, so I look bad in it. I have now recovered, hope i can stay well now.
its a shame that you dont like it (there), Johan.
Because time always seems longer.(goes slower)


 And another update November 24, 2010 !!  Thanks Jo! 


Marie Elisabet Darbu born 15.09.85 emigrated to New york from Christiania (Oslo) with the ship (Hellig Olav) in 1907.
home town was Fiskum.
registered as un-married.
purpose for travel was to make money.


Update: This photo is Full Circle 18 on December 27, 2010