William “Sumner” was born August 9th, 1892, at Point Peter in Searcy County. He passed on August 11, 1976, at Boone County Hospital in Harrison Arkansas and is buried in the Hall Cemetery.
Sumer was the son of Landon “Lee” McCutcheon and Susan “Texann” Crone McCutcheon. Sumner was married to Lona Emiline Stephens McCutcheon. Lona was born in October 15, 1893, at Cave Creek Arkansas, Newton County. She passed March 17, 1950, at private residence in Harrison, AR. Last name was Watts, I need to ask more questions before I can verify this. She is buried in the Hall Cemetery. Her parents were James “Samuel” Stephens and Mary Lucy McGee (Ghee) Stephens.
Sumner and Lona were married in September 1916. They had four children: Louis who passed just a few weeks old (1917), (the name I have listed is Louis, this was handwritten) Samuel Newton “Sam” McCutcheon (August 17, 1918), William “Armon” McCutcheon (November 2, 1932) (my grandpa), and Olee McCutcheon (November 3, 1921).
I never got to meet Great Grandpa Sumner. Looking back at old records it shows that on the United States Federal Census he was a resident of Richland in 1900. I haven’t seen anything further back from that, but his birthplace is listed Point Peter, I think most of them are listed like that which is just at the Richland Valley area! However, he would have been 7 years old when that census was taken. Same age as my Jackson Claud Fisher is now! Can you imagine what life was like for a 7-year-old then? Let’s see what Randy says- he grew up over there, and still lives there today.
When Sumer was old enough to get social security, he found out he didn’t have his birth certificate. He had to make calls to his brother J.C. McCutcheon in California to verify who he was. A copy of his birth certificate lists Point Peter or Cave Creek as place of birth. During that time, I think they just listed the nearest post office at the place of birth!
Thinking back, Randy (my dad) recalls being a kid and Sumner (his grandpa) teaching him his ABC’s, to count, and to read. He was an amazing teacher. By the time Susie and Randy were in school, they knew their alphabet and had an educational foundation. They followed Grandpa Sumer around soaking up any bit of information they could. Granny Lona passed before Randy, or his siblings were born.
Randy recalls that Sumner never learned to drive- not a truck or tractor- just his team! If it had a motor on it, he didn’t mess with it! The day Randy was born, May 19, 1960, Sumner was said to have plowed his corn crop with a team a mule and horse, in his coat! Randy remembers him working his team, guess they worked very well together. The horse, King, was a Palomino. He was also used as a “rider”. The mule, Kit, was a hard worker, when Sumner only needed one to plow it was Kit. The garden was huge, Sumner raised enough corn to feed his animals: horses, mules, chickens, cows, hogs and ducks I guess when granddaughter Elona brought some in. He raised cotton for cash. He had a cotton shed, the barn that stands on the farm today, it was just above it. The upper field was used for corn and hay. Randy recalls picking cotton by hand, he was little, so he got to smaller sack. If you started a row, then you had to finish hit! The handwritten notes were a must, it listed who picked it, how much it weighed, and I am sure many other things! The old cotton scale it still hanging on the farm!
Sumner had an old iron wheeled wagon, Randy recalls riding in it. When the wood spokes got dry and loose in the wintertime, they would take the wagon down to Richland Creek and soak it so the wood would tighten back on the iron rims. Randy spent a lot of time in the ole wagon. Grandpa Armon started farming down the creek. Armon would take his truck; he dad Sumner would go with the wagon and team! They would load the truck and then gather it wagon; Sumner would then take it to the barn. They would take it to what we call the Sid place, it had a shed on the back of the house. This is where the corn was stored for the working team, horses, and cows. They had stalls in the barns for the mild cows/calf and the team. The stalls had a hay rack for hay to be easily fed and stay the ground, and a trough for the cows. Sometimes, if there was a preacher coming through, him and his family would be loaned a milk cow and calf. That way their family would have fresh milk! If calf came back and looked like he had been “knocked in the head with churn dash”, that meant they didn’t give if enough milk!
There were several grist mills where farmers and families could take their corn and have it ground into cornmeal. If they had wheat, it could be ground into flour! Randy recalls the Mill Hole, straight across the valley to the east. It was close the horse racetrack. It has been shared on a few Facebook pages that Belle Starr once raced there. Belle Starr, given name Myra Maybelle Shirley Reed Starr (February 5, 1848-February 3, 1889) was an Americal outlaw, so I read! I may have to do a blog on her!
Coming up the creek to Woolum headed to Richland, go past the Nars, at the sharp curve, on the left was where the Wyatt School was, just north of that was where the Point Peter Post Office and Store was located. It is hard to see from the road now, but in the field, there was an old road that come across, with a big hump, in that area was thought to be the racetrack.
So, there is a glimpse of what life might of been like in 1900s.
I sure hope you enjoyed reading this! More to come later!