Wayne County, NC - Hannibal Carr Well Drilling

Our North Carolina ancestors were amazing!  

A woman had to know botany to grow a garden, she had to know medicinal 
herbs to treat family illness; she had to have the finesse to make soup, 
and know the chemistry involved to make soap just to name a few skills.

Men were just as flexible and rivaled anyone today in multi-tasking.

Here is a photo of Hannibal H. Carr and his mule drawn, steam powered well 
drilling rig. Hannibal was born in 1866 and as an adult lived in Wayne 
County's Goldsboro with his wife Martha Cox Carr and their three sons.

Hannibal had to know how to care for mules, how to operate and trouble-
shoot a steam engine, and how to find the likely places to drill for water!  
He had to be part veterinarian, part mechanic, and part geologists!

Hannibal, his son, and crew traveled the area digging water wells for families. 

In this old photo, Hannibal is the man standing on the side of his drilling 
rig with his hand on his hip. Sitting atop the rig in a hat is Hannibal's 
son, Archie Carr. Four other unnamed workers are in the photo.  

Hannibal had piercing blue eyes and was an entrepreneur all his life. He was 
a carpenter, a well driller, a business man, a salesman and an apartment 
manager in later life. 

Archie left school at age 15 to travel the country-side to help his father 
drill water wells; later Archie became an electrical engineer, married Katie 
King and had 7 children.

Well digging was a very important part of settling the country-side in NC 
since fresh water was a necessity for families as they moved about and 
established homesteads.  

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This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by
Delores Reagan - familyseeker@harbornet.com
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