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Zabel shares rural farm life stories in book

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Harvey Zabel tells stories about rural Crawford County farm life in his new book, “What Happened on Famechon Ridge.” A book signing is set for Wednesday, Dec. 2, from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Prairie du Chien Memorial Library. (Photo by Correne Martin)

By Correne Martin

The farm life of yesteryear is the setting of the first non-fiction book, “What Happened on Famechon Ridge,” written by retired Prairie du Chien dairy farmer Harvey Zabel. A local book signing is planned at the Prairie du Chien Memorial Library on Wednesday, Dec. 2, from 5 to 7 p.m.

Filled with short stories and poems about his real-life shenanigans on the home farm, which has been in the family for 120 years (first under his dad’s uncle William Schultz), the book tells about various episodes of his lifetime, including a combine showdown, coon hunting, tractor pulls and tractor purchases, hybrid seed corn, swinging on a cottonwood tree limb, weather predictions, maple syrup and sorghum, the sawmill, rope making, mustard plaster, his kids, dogs and cats, snowstorms, and how Famechon Ridge got its name. A few old-time photographs are sprinkled in among the pages.

“It has two fiction stories (written for contests) in there, but everything else is as accurate as I can remember it,” Harvey said.

The tales in Harvey’s publication come from his typical, daily life on the farm in Crawford County. The rural neighborhood that is Famechon Ridge was named for Julius Famechon, who was a large real estate owner in the town of Eastman in the mid-1880s. The ridge now sits along County Highway N, but everyone familiar continues to refer to it by the name Famechon.

Times were much different when Harvey was growing up in the 1940s and ‘50s, compared to how they are now. “Those were the days before TVs. You had no choice but to go outside and play, otherwise you had to stay in the house and help mom with chores,” he recalled.

Harvey, 74, has also always been a self-proclaimed “gear head,” mostly when it comes to collecting Allis-Chalmers tractors and equipment. The “crawler” on the front cover is actually one he built personally. He had a sale three years ago in which he sold 24 tractors. “I’ve bought more than 100 tractors over the years,” he stated.

Harvey and his wife, Linda, were married in 1971 and raised four kids on the 36-acre farm, along with chickens, pigs and milking Holstein cows.

Harvey has been writing down memories throughout his life. As he states in his foreword, his “attempt to write a book started 40 years ago,” when he began composing some poetry and letters to the editor for some farm newspapers. These days, he’s a frequent contributor to The Country Today “Yarns of Yesteryear” page and he’s written two kids books for his grandkids.

In addition to the stories mentioned above, Harvey said everyone who can appreciate small-town and farm life must read his venison caper, tobacco weed, cheese factory gossip and cookie jar stories. His 165-page book was published in June by Howe Printing, of Prairie du Chien. He had 150 copies printed just in time for Father’s Day and sold “a lot” to his acquaintances in The Allis Connection club in Iowa, through which he’s participated in many tractor shows in the past 18 years. He was also the president of the club for 10 years and most recently a board member.

As of today, he doesn’t plan to publish a second run of the book, so don’t miss out on a copy.

Just in time for Christmas, “What Happened on Famechon Ridge” would make a good gift for anyone who has enjoyed the farm and rural life. Books may be purchased during the Dec. 2 book signing, through Harvey himself (326-2236) or at theallisconnection.com, where part of the proceeds go toward annual scholarships.

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