Lee's Rural Sculptures               

This is our good neighbor, Lee.

He is an unsung American hero, a self-employed, hard working farmer who provides for the needs of his family.  He smiling in this picture because the envelope in his pocket is a payment for hay that I just gave him.

Besides being a farmer and a good neighbor, he is also an artisan.  He crafts these metal sculptures and carefully places them about the farm doing the  types of tasks appropriate for the season.  In the Spring, they are plowing. In the Summer, they are cultivating, and in the Fall, harvesting. Our visitors to look at and like to photograph Lee's sculptures.

Lee's festive holiday decorations.  We call it, "Spreading the Joy"

The old manure spreader serves as a base for this Christmas decoration.

Most of the sculptures start out as 500 gallon fuel oil tanks. Other bits and pieces collected on this 100-year old farm are added for details.

Here, you can see the milk can for the head and milker parts for the udder.

The barnyard cats made a path in grass, so the sign was changed from cattle crossing to cat crossing.

Horses were the main source of power before tractors became popular. This one is pulling a sled used to haul rocks or wood.

This horse is pulling a single blade plow.

This team of horses is pulling a wagon.

John Deere tractors are a favorite among farmers.

Note the treads on the wheels. These wheels were originally on farm implements where the turning of the wheel powered some operation on the implement.

Lee raises hogs for income as well as farming and milking dairy cows. This one doesn't require much attention and doesn't find holes in the fence to sneak out of.

Lee and his father have kept the old farm implements. On this fall day, they are lined up in the field like they would be in harvest.

The cast facing is from the wood burning furnace that was used for in the local church for 50 years. Lee still heats his house with wood.

The steam tractor also functions as the trash burner as you can see from the wisp of smoke coming from the smoke stack.

Another common task was to cut wood to lengths to make firewood. The power take-off from the tractor would drive a saw blade through a long leather belt.

This device removes ears of corn from the cob.