The Ox Cart is Rolling
November 2008

Have you driven or walked past Blessing Square lately?  Members gathered on the last of our nice Fall days and put down the sidewalk in front of the museum.  Most of the bricks are likely from the Drayton Brick Yard and were removed from the hotel that was formerly on the museum lot.  Other bricks were removed from a sidewalk at Milt Steenson’s home, which was part of the buyout after the 1997 flood.  The group also made a pad for the oxcart using broken bricks.  The oxcart is moved indoors for the harsh winter months.

The Walkway project started with setting up the design using an extension cord for a pattern.  After that, the sod was removed with a tool that is pushed forward with the operator’s foot.  Several members tried their hands at the sod cutter, but only Ron Boll seemed to have the special technique down pat.  (The sod was replanted next to the log house to finish off that project.)   The walkway area was worked up and sand (thanks to the generosity of Helm Enterprises) was placed on top of the black soil.  The bricks for the sides of the walkway were put in place first with additional bricks filling in the rest of the area.  A plank was used to tamp the bricks into place so they would stay put, after which a mixture of Portland Cement and sand was brushed into the cracks.  With Mother Nature’s help the mixture received the water it needed to become hardened concrete that will hold the bricks in place for a beautiful walkway into the museum. 

We also moved to the museum block one of the millstones used in the flour mill that operated along the Red River on the southeast side of Drayton.  The wheel-shaped stone was placed in the ground but will probably be raised up in the Spring so you will also be able to see the back side.  The matching half of the millstone is missing and probably lies along the Red River bank somewhere.  We thank Andy Duncklee and Dave Halcrow for saving this piece of history from flood control bulldozers.

The door and windows will soon be installed in the log house.  We will then be able to work on the floors and finish the inside.  This has been a very rewarding project but is far from complete.
 
Drayton’s Old Fashioned Christmas is just around the corner.  The historical society will again be filling the candy/peanut bags for this event.  Be sure to join in the fun – there are some different events being planned for this year’s celebration which is sponsored by Drayton Community Chamber of Commerce. Old Fashioned Christmas is December 6 at H G Johnson Memorial Hall.  Watch for the advertising on this community event.

For more information on the projects of Ox Cart Trails Historical Society, contact Marlys Boll, 701-454-6103 or email president@oxcarttrails.net.