Cabool’s early years

It must have been close to 25 years ago now. 

My wife had went “yard saleing.” It’s rare that she can get me to go with her, as I don’t take a shine to seeing some poor sap’s boots sitting in his wife’s yard sale for $5.  Well, this time she came home with this little history book she thought I would enjoy. It is called “Cabool’s Early Years.” 

To say that I enjoyed it was an understatement; and with replacement after a house fire, it, along with my three volumes of “Texas County Heritage,” are some of this ignorant hillbilly’s most prized possessions. 

Well, in that little history book was a picture that caught my eye, for it was a man standing in a field with his team of young oxen. As someone who still cultivates garden with a Jenny, it quickly struck my interest. As you know, they say that a picture is worth a thousand words. I say some are worth 10 thousand. Such was the case with this, and I didn’t know why – yet. 

For beginners, you could see that the fella was tough, and no-nonsense in his riggin’. He meant business, and knew how to get a job done. I admire that in a man; keep it simple, less to go wrong. Other than that, I couldn’t explain it, but through the years I would come back to that picture and just stare at it; it had me kind of puzzled, so to speak.

His name was printed beneath the photo, but to be more precise, I wanted to know who was he, and where was this photo taken?

Fast forward to about four or five years ago. I was doing a small job for a man, whom I had never met, in the neighboring town of Mountain Grove. Well, we got to jawin’ about old times. He made the comment that his grandpa was good with a team of oxen, especially enjoyed starting young teams, to be exact. Hmm, that sure fit the description of the photo I had at home. 

I asked, “What is your name?” 

He answered, “Elmer Sigman.”  

I replied, “Mr. Sigman, I do believe that I have a picture of your grandpa plowing with oxen.” 

I tell you the truth, it appeared the blood just about left his face. 

So I finished up, and when I got home, I went straight for my little history book “Cabool’s Early Years,” and turned to page 111. There it was, Marcus Lafayette “Fate” Sigman. I took a photo of it on my old flip-phone and sent it to Elmer’s number, waited about two minutes, and then I called him. When he answered, he was crying, “That’s my grandpa.” 

Well, that put a huge lump in my throat indeed, and how about that?  To think that I had looked at that picture all of those years and it finally made its way to its rightful home. 

After we finished talking, I got to thinking a little later about something, so I called Elmer back. He was in town getting copies for his family. I asked him if he had any idea where that photo was taken. 

He responded, “I sure do.” 

And don’t you know, to my surprise it was taken less than two miles from my home here in the little community of Simmons. And that he had also operated a country store about a half a mile east of me. Now wasn’t that a fine thing to learn, as were some other details.  Details like him being a plow and wagon maker. 

But I will tell you what means more to me than everything I have shared thus far, and that being Fate Sigman, born in 1854, was born again in 1911 (John 3:3).  Converted and baptized at 57 years old, he passed on to his Heavenly Home at 85 years old in 1939, and is laid to rest at the Steely Chapel Cemetery in Elk Creek just southeast of here about five miles. 

That means I get to meet him one day (Rev. 21:4), and Lord willing, we are going to have a fine time discussing that photo and how hard it was to plow this rocky Ozark soil. 

Well, I reckon I will draw this story to a close, but with a recommendation if you would be so obliged. If you haven’t done so, please try to get your hands on that little book “Cabool’s Early Years,” and the three-volume set of “Texas County Heritage.” You will have to find them used, as last I knew they are both out of print.   

Much of our heritage, like so many counties in the Ozarks is a Christian heritage of tough character.  Christian folks just like James and Rachel Farris, who were said by the late historian Jack E. Johnson, to be the first to settle present day southeast Cabool in 1841; probably named “Cedar Bluff” by Mr. Farris himself. He and his wife built their pioneer log home and planted their first crop of corn with an ax. And it was an ax that carved the first log church house on the upper end of their farm in 1859, close to where Cedar Street now crosses the railroad tracks. 

Fate Sigman would have been only five years old. Yes, we should read about them folks, and then let it soak in, soak in real deep. For the writer of the Hebrews, recollecting God’s people who have went on before us, stated the following: “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.” (Hebrews 12:1) 

Lord willing, until next time. Michael Everett Jones is a Texas County native, old fashioned historian and purveyor of traditional Christian values. Email ozarksgrandpajones@gmail.com.