This area was covered by yellow pine

  Visitors to Landmark Park Saturday, Oct. 26, caught a glimpse of just what that life was like during the park's annual Wiregrass Heritage Festival. The Wiregrass Farmstead was abuzz with activity as docents put their knowledge to work demonstrating how families survived before the advent of modern farm machinery and household appliances.Nothing was wasted on the farmstead. The scraps left over from making the family's clothing were used to make quilts to keep the family members warm in the winter time.It seems like we could no longer work together Short crosscut logs were split to make shingles for the roof of the family dwelling, the barn and other buildings often found on a Wiregrass farmstead. Even the drippings from food cook over an open hearth were put to use as the base for gravy for biscuits. Hair trimmed from farm animals were spun into thread to make sweaters, socks and scarves."The settlers had to be self-sufficient," said John Johnson as he picked up the tools he would use to demonstrate the skills needed to make roofing shingles. "This area was covered by yellow pine and wiregrass. It had a vast expanse of trees. This part of the state had not been settled except around the rivers.
 
   There were plenty of trees in this area to harvest for houses."Pine was used for the shingles, and only two simple tools were needed to turn a block of wood into shingles. Typically, this was done by the adults, but children could do it. In fact, boys would often do it."The tools you would use are a simple maul carved from good hardwood. It would be 10 inches in diameter. They would cut it to a convenient length and then use a hatchet to carve it out."With a maul ready for use, Johnson says the next piece needed was the froe."A froe is a flat piece of metal, double beveled," Johnson said as he described the tool that would be used to cut into the wood.The handle for the froe would include a metal ring forge-welded to the metal blade. The handle, inserted into the holder, would be a shaved piece of wood.With a round piece of wood positioned in front of him, Johnson took a seat on another piece of wood nearby. With the froe placed on the wood in front of him, Johnson used the maul to pound the froe into the wood.