"In and Near Adair County" (Newspaper?) debbiemurphy90added this on 11 Mar 2007 "I was born in Athens County, Ohio, Nov. 13, 1848 and at the age of seven years came with my parents, Albert and Dinah Selby and brothers to Adair County, Missouri. Our mode of travel was by covered wagon; a distance of 800 miles was made in three weeks. We settled one mile north of Gibbs which is at present the Winn Bregg farm. Later we purchased 80 acres which is now known as the M. S. Monroe farm and built a nice three-room cabin. After two years we returned to Ohio in order that we children might attend school as there was no school in Adair Co. near enough to attend. During that time a school was built near enough to our home for us to attend so we returned to Missouri. The school was know as the Union school and stood where the Union cemetery now is, near Gibbs. SOme of my first teachers were Mickleberry (Mick) Greenwood, Joe Moore and Isaac Morgan. The schoolhouse was made of logs and there were 33 scholars at that time. The district was made up of what is now known as Wilsontown, Gopher Hill, Gibbs and Prairie Bird. During my childhood, we children played along theIndian trails which crossed our farm. I remeber finding arrowheads and rocks in which the Indians had ground their meal. I remember when my father broke the prairie with tow yoke of oxen. We led the oxen until the first furrow was made, then the oxen followed the furrow by "gee" and "haw", orders from the driver. My father planted his corn in every third furrow and used an ax tomake the hole. Then he dropped the corn in the hole and then chopped a hole on the other side closing the first hole. In this way my father planted 20 acres. We always had a good crop and a fine yield. The crop was never tended until time to gather it. Of course the next year the crop would have to be cultivated. When I was older I made trips to Kirksville horseback a distance of 18 miles and at that time there were only three houses between there and our farm. We made these trips to town to get groceries. I heard the battle of Kirksville and recall that the troops passed by our house. I was married in 1866 to Richard Livingston, a Civil War veteran. My husband and I lived on a farm east of Gibbs in the Gopher Hill district. To our union one boy and six girls were born. Five are still living: E. E. Liviingston of Kewanee, Illinois; Mrs. J. I. Wilson of La Plata, Missouri; Mrs. Press Gillaspy of Leonard, Missouri; Mrs. Will Walters of Brashear, Missouri; and Mrs. T. E. Hall of Wapto, Washington. Alberta died at the age of eleven, and Mrs. Ella Brooks in recent years. My husband died at the age of 51, leaving 5 children at home. We raised our own flax and made our thread to sew with. We also wove the material with which we made our bed and table linenes and toweling and also wove all our woolen materials which the men's clothing was made from. All sewing was done by hand and we learned to sew so skillfully that it did not take long to make a garment. Although I am 83 years of age I enjoy quilting and reading. I hav been able to keep up with all the national news. I am glad that I have lived to see the change from oxen teams and wagons to cars, tractors, and airplanes. I have made my home in Gibbs for the last 28 years." Mrs. Mary Jane Livingston