Shane Jackson, better known to us as Shane the Crane Man, is a local contractor who helps move large objects with his crane for Rural Studio. He has assisted student teams on countless projects, including the Greenhouse, Lions Park, the Butterfly House, and most recently, the Bathhouse. Shane also performs metal fabrication for many Rural Studio projects. His welding skills are well-known and much appreciated by students and faculty.
Where are you originally from? Did you grow up in Hale County?
No, I did not grow up here. It was a lively place. I’m from Jefferson County. I left there because it became too much for me, too many people. I wanted further out.
What do you love about your job?
I’m not really a people person, but I do like people, and I do like talking. I talk a lot. Out here at Rural Studio—working with the people, working with the students—that’s what I like. I like doing jobs where people think, “That’s not gonna work,” but it does. Or I do something that everybody thinks can’t be done. That sorta makes me feel good.
But I do like coming up here and working with the students. Most every student—I guess all—have always been decent.
How did you get into fabrication work?
Starting out, work took me to Tuscaloosa. Me and other boys worked together, and we welded. I used to work on barges. When they started sinking, we would pump them out, get them back up, weld ‘em, fix ‘em up, or whatever had to be done. If there were repairs with propellers under water, we would have to dive and cut things out. We got all the jobs—it was often cold weather and nighttime.
What is it like to work on a Rural Studio project? How do they compare to other projects you work on?
They are weird—nothing normal about them! (laughs) It took me a long time to figure that out. I used to want to voice my opinion, like: why are we doing it like this? But—it took me a long time to figure out—you know,anyone can build a square box. You’re not here to learn how to build a square box. Y’all are here to design. Once I grasped that, the work sorta came to me better. Now it’s all more interesting to me.
What do you like most about Newbern/Hale County?
Ooh all the drama! (laughs) Nah, not really. I like Newbern because it’s so laid back, calm, When the Mercantile was open, it was just the little countriest place. You could go in there and they would cut you the bacon however thick you wanted to carry it home or cut you some bologna. And you know when you find a store like that, you can’t just go anywhere and find that, it’s just a little country store and a little country town. I like that. You know, it’s slow.
I love being out in the country. I don’t like big cities. I like being out. Where I live, I got my shop for my closest neighbor. You can look any direction and can’t see a house or nothing. And that’s what I like, you know? The further I am out, the better I am. I like the peace.
Where did the nickname Crane Shane come from?
That would be Andrew. [Andrew Freear, Rural Studio Director]
How many projects/teams have you worked with at Rural Studio over the years?
I have no idea! How long’s it been since the Butterfly House? I’ve been working with project teams since Mason’s Bend (1997).
Do you really have a dog named Dog?
Yes. (Laughs) I do have a dog named Dog. I raised her from a baby, had her momma and daddy. I used to raise and hunt with ‘em. Up until she was about a year old, she really wasn’t a pet. She was a kennel dog for hunting. Then, I got out of hunting and started carrying her with me. She didn’t have a name, so what do you call her? Dog.
Favorite tool.
Boom Truck. That’s a tool ain’t it? You can accomplish a lot with it and don’t have to work real hard doing it.
