brought my wife and I here to this authentic pioneer homestead from 1903. I was able to locate a newspaper article from the
World's smallest 'homestead' next to Jefferson County FairgroundsOriginally built about 1903
MADRAS - Perhaps the smallest "homestead" in the world is located adjacent to the Jefferson County fairgrounds. Planned by the Jefferson County Museum Association as a permanent record of rural life at the turn of the century, Loree Bierly, fair board chairman, says she hopes it will be open to the public by the time the county fair begins August 10.
Authenticity of the house is recognized by its single construction, old timers say. They remind us that homesteaders were farmers, not carpenters, and "box" houses, like this one, were built to provide shelter, not beauty or even comfort.
This method of construction required minimum amount of lumber and labor, both scarce items in the homesteader's busy life of battling sagebrush and rock to "prove up" the land.
Upright, rough-sawn 1 by 12-inch boards made one wall do the job of two. There was no dead air space or insulation between inside and outside walls. Just one wall - an inch board separated the outdoors from the inside of the house.
On the outside, cracks were battened, but probably gave little protection from winter cold, summer heat, or dust storms.
Inside, paper of some sort was usually pasted to the boards or to cheesecloth tacked in place.
"It's almost impossible to find this type of construction today," John L. Campbell, president of the museum association, said in explanation of why he was so please "to get this particular home."
It was donated to the association about four years ago by Phillip Farrell, and his wife, Alice Belle. The original, one-room shack, built in about 1903 by Walter Eldinger, was acquired by W.M. Farrell, Phil's grandfather, in 1905.
"I guess Farrell offered Eldinger a little money, and he moved on," Campbell said of the transaction that took place almost 70 years ago.
Nellie Farrell Priday, daughter of W.M. and sister of H. Ward Farrell, Phil's father-recalls that the family of four "was pretty crowded in the little shanty," which measured 14 by 18 feet.
"We moved in two beds, a kitchen range, a piano, and high-boy," Mrs. Priday said. The remainder of their furniture was stacked outside under a tarpaulin.
"There was about six square feet of floor space that wasn't occupied," she recalls. She remembers this well, because it was her job "to scrub it with white sand soap" until the red pine floor was spotless.
Of necessity, the family made the best of the limited space, doubling up in the two beds. Mrs. Farrell and Mellie slept in one, while W.M. and H. Ward occupied the other.
String was used to hang curtains made from sugar sacks at the windows. If a shelf was needed, "we put it up ourselves," Mrs. Priday said, explaining that "father was no carpenter."
In 1909, the Farrells expanded their crowded quarters adding a "new part." This two-story wing included a living room and bedroom downstairs, and two bedrooms upstairs.
Although George Monner, who built the addition, was "just a rough carpenter," he must have been a good one. Even today, the stairs leading (to) the second floor are solid, though the house was moved in sections from its original location 10 miles northeast of Madras, midway between the Mud Springs school and Sage Brush Spring.
A green rug with yellow flowers covered the wood floor in the living room. Colorful tissue paper flowers brightened the inside, and a small flower garden under the living room window contrasted with the bare, dirt yard.
Flowers thrived thanks to the second-hand water carried from the washing machine, stored in a small room at the end of the porch. Water was hauled from Sage Brush Springs three miles away, and it had to be used more than once if possible.
Restoration of the house as it was when (the) Farrells lived there is the goal of the museum association. Most of the furniture to refurbish the house is on hand, Campbell says, although a Home Comfort kitchen range is still being sought.
A split-rail fence has been built by Collin Dawson, who brought the rails from Gordon Monroe farm in the Grizzly area. Poplar trees, indicative of old homesteads, have been planted by garden club members. these quick-growing trees provided a windbreak and shade, and their golden spires were beacons of light on dreary fall days.
I'm currently trying to obtain information on the restored one-room schoolhouse that sits next to this homestead. If and when I find any info I'll post it here.