My journal entry for Tuesday, June 4, 1968

[Soapweed]

My journal entry for Tuesday, June 4, 1968

We members of the JO cattle driving crew arose at a good early hour today—2:30 a.m. Before breakfast, we wrangled in the horses and saddled up.

Uncle Stan, Ken, Brad, John Fairhead, Gordie Fair, Ricky Fair, and Billy Fair, and I made up the crew. We rode a couple miles southeast to the pasture where we rounded up. We just barely had enough light to get this job done.

The cattle started onto the highway at 5:00. We made good time to the river, and were across the highway bridge by 8:00. The cattle were watered in one of Jim Gray's ponds on the east side of the highway. Ned Fair met us here with his horse on his pickup. He helped the rest of the day.

Uncle Stan decided to follow the highway all the way this year for something different. His plan didn't work too bad.

We nooned at a windmill in Red Sears' pasture (after a coffee break a couple miles back). I had a relaxing nap, and the horses and cattle enjoyed a one and a half hour rest.

The remaining six miles or so to the Leach Place went awful slow. The Fair boys were our entertainment. They are a wild bunch, but are awful good young cowboys.

Mom met us at the first Leach pasture with a bucket of refreshing lemonade. We left the cattle there and rode the horses over to our horse pasture by the house.

Ken, John, and I slept outside. The Fair boys and Brad slept in the house on some mattresses.

 

[Big Muddy rancher]

The "Good old days"

 

[aspen]

My maiden name was Fair. Not a lot of people spell it that way. My grandfather was Irish. Any idea of the heritage of your friends?

 

[Soapweed]

My maiden name was Fair. Not a lot of people spell it that way. My grandfather was Irish. Any idea of the heritage of your friends?

I tried to look up the Fair name in our local history books, but only found one mention of the name. This said that Lee Sones married Kathleen Gardner in 1946, and in the fall of 1949 Lee went to work for his aunt, Lila Fair. I didn't know this before, so your question gleaned me a little new knowledge. :wink:

My dad, his brother, and two of their cousins sang for Ned Fair's mother's funeral in March of 1972. Dad and I went to Ned Fair's funeral in January of 2003. Some of Ned's rodeo buddies had some good stories about him at the funeral. One time Ned and another man were hauling a horse on a homemade horse trailer. A wheel bearing got hot, and the trailer caught on fire. Ned didn't panic. There was a case of beer in the back of the pickup, so he grabbed a can and shook it up. With a convenient beer can opener, he "popped the top" and the contents shot out making an effective fire extinguisher. A few cans later, the fire was out. I don't remember the rest of the story, but at least no horses were injured and no major damage occurred to the trailer.

 

[aspen]

Thanks for checking anyway. Sounds like they were a resourceful clan!