Stories of Iris McFann Woodard

The Ohio River Behind The Store

In the spring, summer, and fall, farmers brought eggs, chickens, 200-pound veal calves (6-8 weeks old), and butter to trade. Dad would put the butter in large lard cans which a particular produce-house used in making soap.

On Friday evenings, Dad, using a sled, would take the 2 or 3 calves he had and he would walk them down to a thicket of willow trees and tie them up. By then, he would have collected 3 or 4 lard cans of butter, 6 to 8 cases of eggs (each case held 30 dozen). I would case the eggs on Thursday. Eggs sold for 10 cents a dozen in those days.

Dad would cut the letter M on the flank of each calf, and these went to Gallipolis, Ohio. He would receive a bill of lading which listed all he sent. Then by the end of the next week, Dad would receive his check.

The boat was due at 4pm. I often waited til very late - it often arrived after 7pm from Cincinnati, Ohio. I had a flag, also a lantern if I needed it. All of this occurred before we moved to the big home in 1916-1917. I was young, but dependable.

One of the boats, Carrie E. Brown, burned in a fire at Gallipolis [ed note: The Carrie Brown burned in November 1913]. The C. C. Bowyer, we saw this boat on a huge ice floe going down the Ohio River. It crashed against a bridge downstream.

When the boat came to me, a big gangplank was lowered. The Captain in uniform came to me and took my Bill of Lading, checked it, and gave me a receipt. Black deck hands took my produce, then I ran all the way up the bank towards home.

The Ohio River Behind The Store
Written by Iris McFann Woodard
1985

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