J.C. Stout wrote from White Oak, Hopkins Co. TX, January 22, 1906

Submitted by:  June E. Tuck <jparks@neto.com>

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J. C. Stout wrote from White Oak, Hopkins County, Texas, January 22, 1906

I was born 57 years ago on the 10th of this month on the head of Stout^Òs
Creek. We had but few neighbors then; I will mention a few of them: Bob
Junell, grandfather of the Junell boys and the Post boys that live near
Pine Forest. Bart Brumley, the father of George, Pete, and Jim Brumley.
Jessey (sic) Craft who killed the last bear that was killed in Hopkins
County; he killed it near the Cherry Lake in the year 1859. This was new
country then, the grass grew knee high, stock did not have to be fed
through the winter. People raised wheat then and treaded it out with
horses and fanned it with a blanket. Some one will want to know how that
was done. Two men took hold of each end of a blanket and fanned while
some one poured the wheat off of a high place. Wheat made from 10 to 30
bushels to the acre then. In time of the war my father and I run what we
called a ground hog thresher. We commenced threshing in July and threshed
until October. We finished up at Uncle Jakey Holbert^Òs on Big Creek. The
first steam mill that I ever saw was run by Sam Smith near where Dike now
is. It run night and day, and then sometimes we would have to stay two
days before we got our grinding (done). It seems that our land won^Òt
grow wheat like it did then. My uncle, Bill Stout, represented Red River
county in 1855, and I have the minutes of that sitting. About that time
they had commenced to donate every other section of land to the railroads
and my uncle was in favor of it and voted for it every time it come up.
Judge Milton represented Hopkins County at that time. They granted a
charter for a turn pike on Rock Creek, which the old settlers know is
where the levy now stand this side or east of Sulphur Springs