A few more of the 167 pictures I took while on my mini vacation the week of
October 2 and 3 while attending the Dixie Classic County Fair.
My great Uncle Percy was a farmer. He had pigs, cattle, grew tobacco, his own vegetables
and he had a huge chicken barn where hundreds of chickens lived and laid eggs.
I learned a lot when I visited the farm. I milked cows...or attempted to do so,
I learned how to hand tobacco, I experienced my first fall pig pickin' there
but mostly My Mind's eye/nose recalls the smell of the chicken house. No matter where you were on the farm the pungent smell of the hen house found its way to your nose. As far as I know back then there were no show chickens like these pictured below. Uncle Percy's were all white. But then I never took a tour of the chicken house because of the smell.
About 10 years ago it became very fashionable in Raleigh to have back yard chicken condos in the city. Raleigh even has a Tour D' Coop, click on the link to read all about it. One registers to be on the walking tour and folks come to see your chickens. Of course there is a limit to how many chickens one can have in one's backyard but My Mind's Nose still recalls the smell.
Chickens have become the pet to have. I used to follow a bunch of chicken blogs when I was on Blogger. I was a country/rural blog and the people that loved their chickens and kept them as pets and for eggs and not for the pot were an interesting group. Our neighbors in the country used chicken poop for fertilizing their fields... oh my gosh the stink! Fun blog this morning, Cecilia! Love it when you share your memories and a learn a little bit more about you... :)
ReplyDeleteThey sure are amazing looking!!!
ReplyDeleteLots of people have chickens on their land here too. Your chicken photos are beautiful. What a variety. I love your memories of Uncle Percy. I've never noticed the smell of my neighbors' chickens...
ReplyDeleteMy sister gathered eggs and one day I went to the farm she worked. Nasty smelling things. I figured out then how they got the name fowl. It's a foul smell indeed. And the noises they make when there are many. Awful.
ReplyDeleteHave a fabulous day and weekend. Big hug. ♥
these look like fine chickens, we are in a battle right now about chickens in city limits. there of those of us who do NOT want chickens near by and those who do... so far my side is winning and it is still against city code. they stink the make a lot of noise , roosters crowing make me crazy. Bob's daughter has 29 chickens, all diferent types, exotic ones that look weird. she also has 4 horses, one mini horse, 4 great danes, 5 small dogs, 1/2 dozen cats...
ReplyDeleteMy MIL used to have about 200 free range chickens on the farm and they used to drive me nuts! They were forever getting in the garden scratching around and digging up all my smaller plants. Our neighbours who came from the city wanted to keep some and we advised them to build a pen first if they wanted to keep their garden nice, which they did.
ReplyDeleteMom and dad has chickens YEARS ago when my hooman sissy was growing up. There were only 4 of them and dad didn't believe in leaving them cooped up all day and mom remembers them eating so many of her pretty flowers. Of course, there were always eggs to collect.
ReplyDeleteHari Om
ReplyDeletecoming from farming background I can tell you, well-kept chooks ought not to be stinking the 'hood... odour is also partly dependant on the 'intake' - just like we hyoomans... but the key is constant care. Nothing beats fresh-laid eggs! YAM xx
Wow....they look deee-lish! Oh wait....they aren't for us????
ReplyDeleteHugs, Madi's guy Raz and The Florida Furkids
We know a few people who 'show' chickens. And hens are allowed in backyards here....just no roosters. As a recipient of fresh eggs occasionally, it's good to have them around. It could never happen here with three-bird chasing terriers.
ReplyDeleteA friend of mine's grandparents had chickens and grew their on vegetables when I was a child. It was so much fun to visit and shell peas on the back porch. The chickens scared me though. They'd chase us! Have you seen the video of the news reporter and the show chicken? It is hilarious! https://youtu.be/2AdrmfjAhn0
ReplyDeleteSometimes ghostwriter sees chickens in the yards of the farmhouses she passes on her way to work. She always wondered how they know to keep off the road.
ReplyDeleteIt has been 61 years since I last went into a big henhouse to gather eggs. The smell in August is still in the back of my nose !
ReplyDeletePersonally we would not want to have chickens - could not handle the chicken poop.
ReplyDeletehugs
Hazel & Mabel
We think we need chickens at our house. :)
ReplyDeleteOur property is zoned for small farm and we could have chickens here too. One of the reasons we don't is because of the fox, coyotes, raccoons and other wild life that would try to get to them. I don't think I would like the smell either.
ReplyDeleteWhen Mom was a very little girl, her grandmother always wanted a fresh chicken from the "chicken man". How she hated going to his shop because of the smell - those chickens may be tasty and lay yummy eggs, but they sure do have stinky houses.
ReplyDeleteOur Dad's father owned a big tobacco farm in Hatfield, MA, and our Dad worked on it from the time he was only about 7 right through his college years.
Woos - Lightning, Misty, and Timber
Great photos. I used to want to have chickens, but visiting someone that has them cured me :) XO
ReplyDeleteOMD, lookie at those TAIL FEATHERS!!!! Very cool! I do thinks that deserves a FURST PLACE! BOL!!! I thinks they are better to visit than to own ☺
ReplyDeleteKisses,
Ruby ♥
Momma said dere wuz someone who had chikkens when she lived in Austin and dat Whitley always wanted to chase em.
ReplyDeleteChickens are pretty birds but I'm not sure I'd want to take care of a bunch of them! Interestingly, my Mom told me once that when she was a little girl living on a ranch her pet was an "old banty rooster" (her words).
ReplyDeleteLove, Pam
Hee! Hee! Chicken poop is awfully odoriferous! Back in Midway you can have up to 6 - NO Roosters..our neighbor has 4. And boy are they handy in the garden to get rid if the bad bugs! Oh yeah, the neighborhood cats are afraid of them. Nice looking chickens from the fair!
ReplyDeleteLove Barb
My uncle was a chicken farmer. The big barns were overwhelming as a child but I still tried to name all the chickens!
ReplyDeleteoh yes, a lot of chickens together stinks. We go to a chicken farm to get our horse stall shavings. I guess the people that live there get nose blind.
ReplyDeleteOh yes, I've heard that chickens are poop machines. Our neighbors across the street have laying hens...and a rooster. We just had a Blessing of the Animals at church, and there were a few chickens who got blessed, too.
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