GMC Motor Home, Travel with Teri and Dan

Happy New Year's and Trains

What is the title all about? Yesterday's trivia question. Lots of folks got it correct in their emails to me. At least this is what I am told: Every 40 miles the old trains needed water. So, there were water tanks set up by the railroad. They had to have workers there so little towns sprang up at most of the water stations. I read this on the history of Duncan, Az. last year. Not sure it is true but sounds good to me. Why would folks want to create towns any closer out here? So dry and desolate and water is hard to get. We drive 40 miles to Safford. For 30 miles there are no houses or anything, just scrub on the mountain sides. Pretty much same from here to Lordsburg, NM. Lots of big ranches but see no homes or anything. It is like John Wayne might come riding up at any moment.
 This Duncan is a neat little town. It is what we call a "one horse town" for sure. Has a main street, Highway 70, and a few gravel streets leading south and up the mountain side. It is old and the houses show it. Some of the store buildings look over 100 years old but they are pretty well kept up. There are two little gas station/quick stops. We have the church of Christ building on the main drag. Also there is a 2nd hand store called Germain's.  There is a little grocery/hardware store and a laundry mat. A nice city park that is taken care of by the inmates from the state prison, over north of Solomon. I am sure it was a swinging place until I-10 failed to come through here. 70 goes pretty much straight from Lordsburg to Phoenix. We get lots of rvs coming through to save mileage. Looks like they wanted to tie Tucson and Phoenix together so I-10 went that way instead of through here. I can recall my uncle talking about his trip out here in the early 60's. They took 70. He always talked about Globe and the mountain west of Miami. Oh, Sandra Day O' Conner is from here. I guess she is famous.
There is a nice school system in Duncan. They have several NM. students also since it is right on the state line and it is so far down to Lordsburg. Our son in law is one of the principals and our daughter is a first grade teacher here. That makes it an outstanding school, ha.
My mother was an English teacher in high school. Maybe that is why I never use spell check. I try to keep my writings simple too. When I was hired by the Mo. Parole Board one of my tasks was to write reports on inmates in the system. The first month I was there they told me to keep the words simple and stop using big words. I laughed but hey, they were paying me, so I still use nickle words that everyone can read and understand. I wrote thousands of reports during my career. Often I felt like I was hired just to write and give my opinions on various folks.
As you can see today is slow. No pictures and nothing of any significance. Just wanted to wish everyone Happy New Year and to fill you in on a little history of Duncan, Az. Oh, there was a wild cat fight outside the GMC earlier but that was nothing new.
Dan

posted by Dan & Teri Gregg @ 11:42 AM