TIL fence posts used to be set with nothing but rocks and clay

I was reading an old farm manual from 1910 and found out they'd just wedge posts in with packed clay and field stones, no concrete at all. Shocked me since half my jobs now involve mixing bags of quick-set. Has anyone else run across weird old-school methods that still hold up?

3 comments

3 Comments

garcia.cameron21h ago

Makes me feel dumb for hauling all those bags of concrete around.

henryr4522h ago

Wait what... your grandpa's line from the 1940s is still standing? That's wild considering I've had concrete jobs fail in like five years... it honestly makes the old ways look pretty genius in hindsight.

casey3421d ago

Is it bad that part of me actually respects that old way more than the modern stuff? My grandpa's fence line from the 1940s still stands on a mix of clay and creek rock, no concrete whatsoever. Meanwhile I've got posts I set with quickcrete just four years ago that are already starting to wiggle. Makes you wonder if we overcomplicate things with all these special mixes when the old timers just used what was under their feet.