Wednesday, September 26, 2012

The Women at the Well

 This photo is from the early 1900s
This well was in the backyard of Nels Johnson, located on the NE
corner of Main Street & Central Avenue.  You can see the back steps of
the house in the far left.

The Johnson's well was shared with others in Dalton who did not
have decent drinking water.   By 1910, the Johnson well showed
signed of "giving" out and water drawn from the well was limited.
It is interesting to note that these women are getting water, but they
are each carrying a cup rather than a bucket to bring some home
to other family members.

Does anyone from Dalton remember the well out in the
back yard of the Johnson place?

Dalton had a "town well" but the water was of inferior quality
and residents were advised to boil the water before using it.

It was also reported that the water in Dalton contained iron to 
an "astonishing degree."   One resident said,
"Give me whiskey, give me kerosene, water rusts my stomach!"
[from an article in the Fergus Journal]

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