Country roads

[Janet Harrington]

Now Turkey Road is not all that bad.  It just has one hill that if you are driving west can be tricky as it comes up to a blind intersection.  That intersection has seen many wrecks.

Anyway, Indygal, I think you guys did great.

[hhjacobs]

Indygal, that little rock house belongs to my sister, Darlene Riggs. It is listed as a historical site. Maragret Gregg wants a roof put on it. Anybody want to help?











/

[Wilma]

I didn't know who owns it now.  It should have the roof repaired and then the inside restored and turn it into a tourist attraction.  Charge admission.  Think Darlene and Leon would go for that?

[indygal]

Well, how appropriate that we were on Turkey Road.......LOL....I'm surprised we made it back too, Wilma! Thank you, Janet, for the compliment. I think we did great too, considering the risk we took without really knowing it. Terrell gets most of the credit, and the Ford gets the rest. All I did was gawk out the window and make weird groaning sounds when the road got squishy under the tires. OK, and I laughed and joked about "If we ever get back to Howard......"

It would be great for that little stone house to get a new roof. However, Terrell and I have a big enough project to tackle -- Harmony -- so, alas, it won't be the two of us out there with hammers and shingles. Maybe someone could train those cows out there to do it; all they're doing now is just standing around anyway, salivating about all those bales of hay just out of their reach.

[Flintauqua]

The road coming from Latham past what I've always heard called the Green Ranch goes down what quite a few call "Jesus Hill", because when you start down it you exclaim "Jesussssss!.  It is one of the steepest and tallest hills in the state of Kansas.  The river crossing at the bottom has washed out so many times that the county finaly stopped putting in back in and instead just grade a path through all the river gravel after a big rain.  This is one of the only major stream crossings in the county that doesn't have a watershed dam somewhere upstream of it.

When you get to the corner east of the crossing, and turn south a half mile you are near the ghost community of Western Park, which was one of the earliest and longest lasting communities in Elk County.  In fact since Western Park lost it's post office in 1905, only three have been closed:  Busby, 1906; Upola, 1909; and Oak Valley, 1954.

[Wilma]

Well, Flint, you have successfully discouraged me from trying Jesus Hill.  I might get someone to take me there from the east to see how the crossing is.  If it looks alright, we could cross, go up the hill, turn around and come back.  That view is worth the trouble anytime.  I had never heard it called Jesus Hill, but I can understand why.  You could also call it "WOW Hill",  That is my first thought when you are at the top looking East.

[Jo McDonald]

THIS WAS WONDERFUL READING this morning.......Thank you ladies. 
I was born and raised in Elk County, but honestly, I don't think I have ever been on this road, but I will bet that Fred has - while he was delivering propane and butane gas to all of his customers.  He has had some scary-mary rides and most of his time was on the worst days of snow and ice.  That is when most of the customers needed the fuel for heat and cooking in their homes.  No matter how deep the snow - nor what hour of the day or night -- he, like the postman - made his deliveries.

[bowie boy]

i know what you mean about indiana. i have relatives up there. there are very few dirt roads, just a lot of pavement!

[frawin]

The little rock house mentioned appears to have been the Oscar Y. Halleen Place, spelling per the 1930 Federal Census and per the same census Oscar was from Sweden.They had chickens and sold eggs, in the 40's they delivered eggs to my brother Neil's store every Saturday and I boxed the eggs to sell. They were really a neat couple and talked with a strong Scandanavian accent. When they moved to town in the late 50s they came into Garison Farm Supply where I was working then and bought a new 1957 Plymouth, they were so excited and proud of it . They moved to town into the house on the corner in the next block South of Gibbons Lumber yard, I think they always missed life on the farm and their chickens. I don't think they ever had children. This website brings back so many pleasant memories.

[frawin]

What is now Turkey Road brings back lots of memeories, my wife was born and raised on that road and over the 45 years since I started dating her, I have travelled it in all kinds of weather. My wife's family have lived on that road for almost a hundred years and my Mother-in-law still lives there.There have always been a couple of places that were bad, had water seeping out of the road and stayed muddy long after the weather improved.