Document text
Mrs. Belle Xilgore
718 vq111Ae Street
Clovis, New Mexico
Hugh M. Wood's Story
MAR 6 1937
1,200 Words
Mr. hugh M. Wood and wife, 711 Walloe Street, Clovis,
hew Mixioo, came with a uolony of thirty.five fumilies from
Ft. Worth, Texas and settled ntvr Melrose Aid St Yrain, in
Sept 107. Ur. Wood tooik up a claim ons and one.half mile from
St Yrain. In 1908, Mr. Wood moved his family to Melrose for
school purposes' Of course, they had to go 1:sck and forth to
the claim to hold it. fter they proved up they moved to Clovis
in 1910.
These families orgnised a Melworth Club among themselves,
They organized the first Sunday School in th t pert of the
country and met at Mr. Wood's home every lunday, for they had
a three room house and a piano. Mr's Edellbrook wrs th* plan.
let, she was a pipe orgnn plaer in 'orth Worth. Mr'
J. 0, Riley, Mrs. Wood's father w s Supt. of the Union MwMifr
School.
"Our house would be filled and the yrd also, for every one
was anxious to talk to their neighbors and her from home'
We never made anything for three yers„ but if we had we
oould had kyvo sold it, for there 1ms no mk:rket. The first year
we cAhe out, I bought feed for 1/ a.buisdie. L:ne year it looked
as if we were goagg to raise a caw' Une morning we found our
corn white with antelopes, there were about thirty of them in
the field' 4o used the dogs to keep the prairie chickens out
of our rrden' Theliattlesnakes were awful bad, too, we had to
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Wood's Story
earry a stick or a hoe ivory where we went to protect ourselves.
The wolves were so bad thit we had to build howl's *lose and
tight to keep them away from tho chickens, ft men would have
a bit of fun digging tha wolves out of the holes in the ground,"
said Mr. Wood.
"Yes, and there was n whits lobo wolf in the c_Itntry, as well
as the brown ones. Whin they howled it seemed thlt they just
shook the gronnd4 spoke up Yrs. Tood.
"One morning, e'rly in the spring, a man o'vne to the door,*
cortinuod Urn. Wood, "and asked if I had seen a cow. Itio, I
sf,id, 'but I saw her troks, She his been in my g rdlen.
Well, why did you come out h,Jro for?" he askod.
"We o,mo out here to get land of course," I answered.
V411, this is my land." he said.
"Did you turn your cow loos* on us?" I asked,
Yoe, I turned her out ',,nd I am going to ttzrn some more out,"
he said, and he walked away and I found out it we Wild Hors.
Brown. Bo ours enough a he'll of 37 o ttle was soon tramping
down our crops. But the mon drove the cattle off our claim onto
the next man's claim nad he in turn drove them on to tho other
man's olaim until they had been drivon seven,' miles away. They
kept them moving until when Ur. Brown found them the could only
get about fifteen."
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Wood's Story.
In a few mks the Velworth Club &soiled to have a picnic. Ws
wont esvorti miles south of Melrose down Utast' Alkali Lake.
which we dry and grassy. Soon after we had stopped nnd got
unpacked getting ready for a good Urns, a man rode up.
"Hello," he said, "you are the woman I ralked to ono* about
the cattle," said the rider.
"Yes, and you are the man who trove his cattle into our
crop," said lire. Wood.
"Well, I live in th t big house on top of thin and, you folks
just send up there ziul ger all the milk and butor and eggs you
want. iimmUmmk I'm Wil Horse Brown," heasaid.
"Won't you stay and eat with us?" I asked. him.
"Yes, I'll go and get my wife." he replied.
They cams book and we had a very pleasant stoning. A cloud wass
rising, but as we had not soon a rain sines we had been out hors
we paid no attention to it.
"'You people come tp to the house for it is going to rain,
requested Mr. Brown.
"Well it has'nt rained rinoo we have been out hors, so we
are not -fraid, we told him.
All of us women put down the mattresses and slept in the
lake. The men were higher up on the sides of the lake, and
we were all bedded down for too night, where there was a flood
Iape .4
Woods .tory
of rin feli and ere.we oould otoltt of the lake, our mat
tots and olothee were flo Ling. e we wore r ts in our hair
then and took them off tA, night, theso rats wore fio ting around
in VA) w. ter.
Jut at
out of the laoke irld went to
the oonvey4nces md spent the rot. of the night the best tht
we could': and jire. .:,00d 1 ugned it ti:eir terrible elc:orionces,
"V'e got a ood b th for once, "s id .1r, Wood.
"Thon we iovod to Clovis in 19M0
.alt once eforo 14 0 to wlovie, c id re. ood, went
to 'elroe to ret-some feed rd t -e it out to the claim, Aldthe
oFilldren 7ere with me, The ponIo were very em •11 -,nd the
but we ptiod It full of Fran -nd feed. ..)ne of te norr-es
out, it vPs ciLrl and fin fly some of the children went up
to a •PX12.90 mile rd rot h.not:Acr
21 to brin' i horse,
but te cildeer did rot know the re d ipck so t'le woman took
tho wron road, and after an tw_ul on time the got tore and we
drove in r;ome aviL.y ..fte2 the middle of tde .3. rat.
Yho firLt school :louse stood vaere the u,uno Field school
now at ds. it wile t -o room house 4. JJ. P. Taybor Itre the
first to ef;.er. .he primary jr iee woe •Lught in a tin ailed,
which hud on ueed ?as a e1in;
r. )od vuLe bi:ok arita for eiOit ye ma, io WaS ppointed
doptuy sheriff in h)18 and served four ye re, when he iae elected
rileriff which office he hefl for four yors. I .E:!ked if he
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Wood's Story.
any trodbie much when he shoriff.
'Lo, rr,ting to rpe k of. I col eGte4 tvntyt.iroe stills."
Did tioy men recent you t_kine tilomT Ilow did you do it?"
naled. "Oh. I'd find, go get'or nmel. to em."11be EvAd in his
crisp v, y of t•Jking.
is town ws aevelor.inp. fet There w rTt e trck ,own
M1toei Street at .7,re tir'e.
_nertv)rning I went clown town 'Jazsw3 frin sittir4:7 down aginst
a bui,Idirg te4ing on. 1 ked lim wh.t w a the m. ttor.
fl
se. sick, rie GA.d.
"64, sick? ztow is th_t there is no w,ter in 100 miles of
heret° ianswerod.
"II in sea sick from riding these .6mes on the street."
wood has been (yfretuer for the olf course for the last
Low y,evrp.
140 Son Wood Jr. is in anger of joy 'Omit) Pallor Shop.
flevliwas on Lain 2treet 1215,
Ural Wallee Carmack A.41 7itchel 6t drnz,-ter. Mr. Car-
le man or of Mandel Jrygood store.
Ary nd Lve. od hve be- home A, 711 ;41.1ace
treet,
an he taen pro t delight in ;eel-TinF, the lavm of tale home nd
t*e dr,plex house jst sout;1 of M.