As the nation continues into the 21st century, technology gets faster, people across the globe are more connected than ever and saving time is of utmost concern.

But one thing remains the same: the importance of family.

For the Leggetts, work, church and home have all been intertwined with family.

In 1956, two brothers picked up their families and moved to a 180-acre farm in Beaufort County, nestled back on a dirt road, away from any traffic or distractions.

The family set up multiple lots — one for each of the brother’s families, one for their parents. They all worked on the farm together, raising hogs and cows, corn, tobacco and beans. School was held at the now-gone Old Ford School, and then, on that uncommon occasion when they were able to go into town, it was off to church.

“We went to a community church because that was the center of the community,” said Bonnie Leggett Cratch, the daughter of one of the brothers, H. Guilford Leggett Sr. — affectionately called “Daddy-O.”  “That was our social life, going to church.”

“We were just the typical farm family,” Guilford Leggett, who is a World War II veteran, said. Serving in the United States Army in Germany in 1944 gave him some of the appreciation for life and just plain discipline needed to run a farm.

For them, July 4 didn’t mean Independence Day. It meant the first day of harvesting tobacco. There were no phones or indoor plumbing.

“We lived a simple life,” Cratch said. “It was what it was, if that makes sense. We didn’t know any different.”

On the farm, the cows and hogs were used for milk and meat. There was one smokehouse that the family used on the property. Everyone pitched in to help in the fields.

And all the while, in the midst of curing tobacco, dripping sweat as the sun beat down on them, the family always managed to have fun with the work they did, according to Leggett.

“It used to be all hand work,” he said. “We had plenty to eat back then, and we had fun in what we did.”

“It’s a different world now.”

When the children and grandchildren grew up, they’d always come back to help, Leggett said. Most of the family still lives there on the farm, although now it’s rented to someone else.

But he said it doesn’t make him sad renting the land, especially since the family still lives there and he isn’t able to do any of the labor anymore at the age of 90. When Leggett’s brother died a few years ago the farm was divided in half, but the renter still raises crops.

It’s still about family, with five generations living in four homes on the same land, but Leggett said he misses how simple life used to be.

“Back then people were willing to help their neighbor. Now you don’t even know your neighbor,” he said. “It took us 20 years to pay for the farm. … That’s the reason it means as much to me.”

“Now you can’t even cross the road to go to the mailbox,” Cratch said in agreement. “So things have changed. Nothing stays the same.”

Cratch now has her own business with daughter Kim, specializing in stone statuaries. She said she has no plans to leave and keeps a close eye on her daddy.

Despite all the changes, the family remains close and looks out for one another.

“It’s good to have family nearby,” Leggett said. “Whatever we do, as a rule, we do as a family.”