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Weblog for HIST 431: The North American PlainsSunday, November 30, 2008
Lecture 11
In lecture 11 "It looks so awful black" we watched two movies about the dust bowl. The first one was the plow that broke the plains and the second was the Rain for the plains. They both were about the dust bowl but had different endings. They talked about how hard it was during the times of the dust bowl. The movies were made for the U.S. department of Agriculture. I thought that they were horrible movies but it had allot of information even though they did not say to much. the way they showed how hard it was to farm the land and how hard it was for the people make a living during this time. Some things I found interesting was that people had to cover there whole houses with sheets to keep the dust out. Another interesting thing was at supper time or meal time, when they set the table they set the plates and bowls upside down to keep the dust off the plates while the food was still cooking because the dust would still get in the house. A couple more things that we talked about that was interesting was that you could not see your hands in front of your face, when you were in the dust storm, and that the dust storms kill crops. I knew that the dust bowls killed the crops but I did not know it was by static electricity. the movies showed allot of people pack up and leave the plains. Some stuck it out and fought the storm of. They ran out of water so they had to go up to 6 miles to get some. I found it cool that when they did get water, when they spilled it helped out the small prairie birds that were living on the plains. The movies both showed how the farmers adapted to the conditions that the plains threw at them in order to survive and make a living. At the end of the movies we discussed the difference between the end of the movies. They are different because the plow that broke the plains showed that they needed help and it was implying that they need to get out of the plains and go to government camps to help them out. The other movie Rain for the plains its ending implied that they were going to stick it out because things were going to get better and they need a little charity help. This lecture really showed me how hard it really must have been during this time. I remember hearing story's and just hearing it in general how bad it was, but after this lecture I saw that it was worse than I thought it was.
Matthew Lee
Matthew Lee
LR 12
Several community events were shown on slide shows. The events were the Grandin Smelt Fry, Corpus Christi Mass, Goat Game, Candles at Canaan, and the Lindaas Barn Dance. These events all demonstrated how communities, whether rural or urban, come together. The topic of organization/settlement of communities was raised. Railroads and businesses are big factors for urban settlement. Churches are big factors for rural settlement. Consolidation regarding farms and intitutions on the prarie was also a topic for this lecture. Many farms have went from small family owned operations to larger scale operations. This makes it harder for those small family farms to make a decent living. Micropoli was the last topic. Some examples of towns considered Micropoli are Jamestown, Minot, Devils Lake, etc. One version was Carl Kraenzel's vision. He used two descriptions- yonland and sutland to demonstrate the Micropoli. Regarding ND, the sutland is considered towns on I-94 while those on Highway 2 were regarded as yonland.
Isern had asked in class for examples of community activities that we have experienced. It took me awhile to think back, but my church used to do something similar to the Corpus Christi mass. We used to do a mass with two other rural churches. We would all get together on the lawn at the Balta Dam and celebrate mass. It was different because many people know eachother because the churches are all less than 15 miles away, but the members don't see eachother that often. This gave everyone an opportunity to meet up. Since my highschool years, two of the three rural churches have closed, and the third is being discussed whether or not to keep it open. When the quesiton was raised on how communities were organized. I thought about my community. Almost all of the people in my rural community are Germans and Catholic. I think certain areas were settled by people of the same ethnic groups.~Chris Schmaltz
Isern had asked in class for examples of community activities that we have experienced. It took me awhile to think back, but my church used to do something similar to the Corpus Christi mass. We used to do a mass with two other rural churches. We would all get together on the lawn at the Balta Dam and celebrate mass. It was different because many people know eachother because the churches are all less than 15 miles away, but the members don't see eachother that often. This gave everyone an opportunity to meet up. Since my highschool years, two of the three rural churches have closed, and the third is being discussed whether or not to keep it open. When the quesiton was raised on how communities were organized. I thought about my community. Almost all of the people in my rural community are Germans and Catholic. I think certain areas were settled by people of the same ethnic groups.~Chris Schmaltz
Lecture 12: The Continuity of Progress
Lecture 12 was all about how the Prairie towns and the surrounding countryside were tied together. Isern started off by relating stories of different events around the area in which towns and countrysides gathered together to help each other out in some way or another. From the Grandin Smelt fry where people came together to support the local volunteer fire department in a town where there is no business district, to the Adoration of Corpus Christi at the St. Mary's Catholic Church in Dazey where people came back to celebrate together some coming from thousands of miles where they had moved to.
After this Isern reviewed the basic history of the Prairie towns and how the communities came to be this way. When these towns were established the towns and the farms were separate. The Towns were populated mostly by Yankees who ran the businesses. The men folk's social lives were organized by memberships in lodges while the women were involved in church based organizations. The farms, on the other hand were populated mostly by immigrant families. In contrast to the townsfolk, the social scenes for both farm men and women were run by the church. Ministers discouraged, and in some instances forbade, involvement in lodges. The only interaction between the townsfolk and the farmers were through business.
In later years, however, as families began to come into town to trade goods there evolved a greater mixing. While the women traded goods in the stores, the men went off to the bars, feed stores, and barbershops, and the children went to the movie theatres. When World War II broke out it brought a change to the Plains. The young men went off to war while the young women went out west to find work. By the 1950s, the young folk moved back, married, and had lots of babies making the towns boom once again. When their kids grew up, however, they too moved away, but this time for good. Those that stayed had fewer children meaning less children to take over the family farms. By the 20th century all life on the Plains ran through the towns.
All of this was familiar to me. When I heard Isern mention the Goat Game, before he explained just what it meant, in one town it brought back memories of the donkey basketball games that were held in my town. In St. Charles, the FFA kids sponsored basketball games where kids, teachers, businesses, and FFA alumni formed teams and played basketball in the high school from the backs of miniature donkeys. Also, even though St. Charles isn't exactly on the Plains, we are also facing farm consolidation. Our own farm is facing the problem of needing to expand in order to stay afloat but with my grandfather coming close to retirement there is only one child in my generation who wants to farm, my brother. We are left wondering what will happen to the farm when Grandpa retires, or dies, and my dad and my uncle finally decide that they can no longer stand to work together.
After this Isern reviewed the basic history of the Prairie towns and how the communities came to be this way. When these towns were established the towns and the farms were separate. The Towns were populated mostly by Yankees who ran the businesses. The men folk's social lives were organized by memberships in lodges while the women were involved in church based organizations. The farms, on the other hand were populated mostly by immigrant families. In contrast to the townsfolk, the social scenes for both farm men and women were run by the church. Ministers discouraged, and in some instances forbade, involvement in lodges. The only interaction between the townsfolk and the farmers were through business.
In later years, however, as families began to come into town to trade goods there evolved a greater mixing. While the women traded goods in the stores, the men went off to the bars, feed stores, and barbershops, and the children went to the movie theatres. When World War II broke out it brought a change to the Plains. The young men went off to war while the young women went out west to find work. By the 1950s, the young folk moved back, married, and had lots of babies making the towns boom once again. When their kids grew up, however, they too moved away, but this time for good. Those that stayed had fewer children meaning less children to take over the family farms. By the 20th century all life on the Plains ran through the towns.
All of this was familiar to me. When I heard Isern mention the Goat Game, before he explained just what it meant, in one town it brought back memories of the donkey basketball games that were held in my town. In St. Charles, the FFA kids sponsored basketball games where kids, teachers, businesses, and FFA alumni formed teams and played basketball in the high school from the backs of miniature donkeys. Also, even though St. Charles isn't exactly on the Plains, we are also facing farm consolidation. Our own farm is facing the problem of needing to expand in order to stay afloat but with my grandfather coming close to retirement there is only one child in my generation who wants to farm, my brother. We are left wondering what will happen to the farm when Grandpa retires, or dies, and my dad and my uncle finally decide that they can no longer stand to work together.
History Colloquium: Charles Vollan
On Friday the 21st, my roommate and I chose to attend the history colloquium featuring Charles Vollan of SDSU. After a rough start involving a missing computer and a very unhelpful Union staff, we got the talk underway. Mr. Vollan it seems was working on his thesis involving the railroads and the people that came with them. He stated that many people had studied the people that worked the railroads themselves and the towns that were established after the rails had gone through, but no one had bothered to study the people that came before or with the railroads. Vollan decided to do just that along with the boom and bust towns that established along the railroad trying to figure out where the train would stop next.
Vollan decided to study just what type of people were establishing these so called rough and tumble towns. The rumors said that they were cities of sin where a man died every night. But what he found was that this was simply not true. Many of the people that established these tent towns were regular business folk just trying to make a living. Business people and families looking to support themselves. Because these towns seemed to be born over night, and sometimes died just as quickly, many towns didn't even bother to build proper buildings. Businesses simply ran out of tents; sometimes there would be a wooden facade to create the illusion of an established business, but when it came time to move on down the tracks, they were simple to dismantle. Not all the people left the rail side towns when the railroad moved on. Many people decided to stay on and try to keep the town alive.
Contrary to the rumors that theses were rough cities full of gun fights and outlaws, these were mostly peaceful towns. Laws were established soon after towns were established and the death toll was far below the rumored one man a night. Vollan pointed out that the towns were advertising out east for people to settle there, they wouldn't want rough, lawless people but families and businesses. Judging by the old newspapers, these rail towns were nothing to sneeze at with picnics and dances happening often enough to keep the social scene whirling.
I was very interested to learn about these railroad towns. The only previous knowledge that I had was from reading old western novels. They seemed to fall into the same old stereotype where there were ruffians and gunfights all the time. A man had to wear a six shooter and know how to draw quickly in order to survive. It was interesting to see that this wasn't the case.
Vollan decided to study just what type of people were establishing these so called rough and tumble towns. The rumors said that they were cities of sin where a man died every night. But what he found was that this was simply not true. Many of the people that established these tent towns were regular business folk just trying to make a living. Business people and families looking to support themselves. Because these towns seemed to be born over night, and sometimes died just as quickly, many towns didn't even bother to build proper buildings. Businesses simply ran out of tents; sometimes there would be a wooden facade to create the illusion of an established business, but when it came time to move on down the tracks, they were simple to dismantle. Not all the people left the rail side towns when the railroad moved on. Many people decided to stay on and try to keep the town alive.
Contrary to the rumors that theses were rough cities full of gun fights and outlaws, these were mostly peaceful towns. Laws were established soon after towns were established and the death toll was far below the rumored one man a night. Vollan pointed out that the towns were advertising out east for people to settle there, they wouldn't want rough, lawless people but families and businesses. Judging by the old newspapers, these rail towns were nothing to sneeze at with picnics and dances happening often enough to keep the social scene whirling.
I was very interested to learn about these railroad towns. The only previous knowledge that I had was from reading old western novels. They seemed to fall into the same old stereotype where there were ruffians and gunfights all the time. A man had to wear a six shooter and know how to draw quickly in order to survive. It was interesting to see that this wasn't the case.
BR-Passage Through the Garden: Lewis and Clark and the Image of the American Northwest. By John L. Allen. Urbana: U. of Illinois Press, 1975
The Passage through the Garden is a book written about the history of the Lewis and Clark adventure. The book introduces the history behind the drive to find a passage to India. Thomas Jefferson, from a very young age, was very passionate about finding this passage via the river system. Many tales were told of a navigable waterway, but no one knew for sure where it was at. Jefferson was rejected at first when he approached William Clark’s brother to find this route. He then asked Lewis to take the task of finding a way to the Pacific. Lewis agreed, and he and Jefferson spent three years researching maps trying to find the best routes to take. Lewis asked Clark to be a captain with him, and they both put together a team of explorers called the Corps of Discovery. It took a long time for the party to actually depart onto the river because Lewis was in St. Louis trying to find more useful maps. The impatient Clark departed with the team early. Much of the book has quotes from journals of either Clark or Lewis describing the weather, river conditions, food situation, etc. The team constructed Fort Mandan a few miles away from the Mandan and Minatari tribes during their first winter in 1803. They received very useful information from the natives that both helped and confused the party. Some of the information was misinterpreted, and this is discussed later in the book. The party was very satisfied with the conditions on the plains. They eventually became accustomed to the hard winter, and there was always an abundant food supply. In the spring when the ice thawed, they carried on with their adventure. Charbonneau along with his wife Sacagawea, a Shoshoni Native, convinced Lewis to take them along as she would be useful in communicating with the Shoshoni tribe who they would need supplies from. The party endured hardships in the Rockies and Cascades. There was a limited food supply, and weather conditions were not ideal. They finally made it to the West Coast though they were disappointed because they realized there was no passage to India. They set up their second camp to wait out the winter there with rainy, cold weather and little food. They were eager to leave the coast in the spring. There were more dramatic encounters with natives on their way back then on their way to the coast. Clark’s medicine skills were very handy to the team. Much trading was done, and the party eventually made it back. The last chapter in the book discusses revisions made to the maps the Lewis and Clark made. It also discusses the importance of Lewis and Clarks discoveries.
I know I am going over the limit for words, but it is very difficult to summarize a 400 page book into 300 words. I was very bored with the book until half-way through. Most of the first couple of chapters discussed rivers, and differences in people's maps. I got the point that little was known about the west before Lewis and Clark. Most of the maps were composed based off of information received from traders, trappers, and natives. I was very impressed with the ability of those people to construct maps based off of astronomy. It was pretty amazing when the explorers used exact lines like 50th parallel to label rivers. Many errors were made in creating these maps, but I was astonished with the accuracy for the most part. I also found it interesting that Jefferson had such a passion to find this passage to India. It was my understanding before reading this book that he just basically asked a group of guys to go explore the west. They actually researched for three years prior to departing on the expedition. Jefferson owned a library of books that helped Lewis prepare for the trip. Sacagawea was mentioned very little in the book. Being from ND, I learned more about her than I did Lewis and Clark. The author’s focus was largely on the geography of the adventure, and very little was focused on the qualities of the people. Many excerpts were taken from journals to give the reader insight on what the team was experiencing. I was surprised with the poor spelling of those people! I am way over the limit so I will conclude with saying this book was boring in that so much of it was focused on geography. I would like to have read more about the experiences like encounters with the natives, characters of the people in the party, etc. It was, however, pretty neat to learn about all of the history of the land, and all of the detail that went into the expedition.~Chris Schmaltz
I know I am going over the limit for words, but it is very difficult to summarize a 400 page book into 300 words. I was very bored with the book until half-way through. Most of the first couple of chapters discussed rivers, and differences in people's maps. I got the point that little was known about the west before Lewis and Clark. Most of the maps were composed based off of information received from traders, trappers, and natives. I was very impressed with the ability of those people to construct maps based off of astronomy. It was pretty amazing when the explorers used exact lines like 50th parallel to label rivers. Many errors were made in creating these maps, but I was astonished with the accuracy for the most part. I also found it interesting that Jefferson had such a passion to find this passage to India. It was my understanding before reading this book that he just basically asked a group of guys to go explore the west. They actually researched for three years prior to departing on the expedition. Jefferson owned a library of books that helped Lewis prepare for the trip. Sacagawea was mentioned very little in the book. Being from ND, I learned more about her than I did Lewis and Clark. The author’s focus was largely on the geography of the adventure, and very little was focused on the qualities of the people. Many excerpts were taken from journals to give the reader insight on what the team was experiencing. I was surprised with the poor spelling of those people! I am way over the limit so I will conclude with saying this book was boring in that so much of it was focused on geography. I would like to have read more about the experiences like encounters with the natives, characters of the people in the party, etc. It was, however, pretty neat to learn about all of the history of the land, and all of the detail that went into the expedition.~Chris Schmaltz
RP: Lecture 12
Lecture 12, "The Continuity of Progress", is was about community life on the Plains. We discussed some images of community life on the Plains such as the Goat Game between Lisbon and Enderlin's basketball teams and the Lindaas barn dance. We also discussed how the settlers organized themselves into communities in the past and how they organized themselves into communities today. In the past communities were organized along railroads. There was the idea of T-towns that were usually "Yankee" dominant. The social organizations in town for men were generally lodges and for women church organizations. The countryside was mostly organized by immigrants and the church was the dominant social center for both men and women. In town communities men and women had separate social agendas, but in the countryside it was more of a mixed social setting. Saturday nights became the time when town and country life would mix together. There would be a lot of trading and buying at stores and a lot of socializing while people waited for their family members. WWII showed a shift in population in Plains communities. The populations shrunk because men went off to fight and women left to work. In the 1950s Plains communities were kid dominated. Once these kids graduated from high school they left these communities. In the 1970s people started having smaller families so the Plains became demographically different. One reason for the decline in farms was the demographic changes that were happening. We also discussed the idea of micropolis on the Plains. These are small towns such as Jamestown or Minot that have all the services that a small town wouldn't have.
I can relate to this lecture because we discussed the idea that people will come back for certain community traditions every year. In my hometown, people always come back for the Fourth of July. There are a lot of traditions that happen like the Fourth of July parade, rodeo, Johnny Holm dance, rodeo fireworks, Art in the Park, and all-class reunion. If I ever move away, I will always come back for the Fourth of July.
I can relate to this lecture because we discussed the idea that people will come back for certain community traditions every year. In my hometown, people always come back for the Fourth of July. There are a lot of traditions that happen like the Fourth of July parade, rodeo, Johnny Holm dance, rodeo fireworks, Art in the Park, and all-class reunion. If I ever move away, I will always come back for the Fourth of July.
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Lecture 11 Response
The "Dust Bowl" lecture was an interesting and new way to look at the outcomes and lessons learned from the horrific event. New settlers of the Great Plains saw it as the "end of the world" and compared it to the book of Revelations in the Bible. One must take into consideration however that along with the environmental catastrophe, the nation’s economy was plummeting faster than the amount of rainfall in the plains. This screwed up the people’s livelihood and some consider as the most important reason for changing people attitude towards no change.
We watched two films, both put out during the Great Depression. "The Plow that Broke the Plains" was put into production by the U.S. government directed towards farmers to pack up and settle elsewhere. It was part of Roosevelt's "New Deal." This was nothing more in my opinion but the government trying to apologize without saying it and fix their created problem. Many settlers on the plains were extremely upset at the revealing of this film. They had made a life for themselves there and to pick up and leave sounded silly.
"The Plow that Broke the Plains" was pulled out of theaters and a new one was put into production. "Rain for the Earth" hit the topic of the "Dust Bowl" from a completely opposite side of the spectrum. It preached that this was just a rough patch and the settlers just needed help, and then they’d be okay to carry on. It tried to convince others to be sympathetic toward the settlers of the Great Plains and lend a helping hand. Production of the film was never finished because of the Second World War.
This topic raises the interesting question of what should be done with the plains. Is it best to reform it back to native? Many compelling thoughts have been brought forward, but none have managed to make a big enough impact to drastically change anything. Earlier travelers recorded dust bowls throughout the Great Plains, so there have always been dust storms even before the plow. I feel it is another adaptation to settling the Great Plains. Some things we have done have possibly messed with the ecosystem, but I do know that we need to continue to manage the plains. We need to learn from hard lessons learned in the past, and incorporate all our knowledge to become one with the plains.
We watched two films, both put out during the Great Depression. "The Plow that Broke the Plains" was put into production by the U.S. government directed towards farmers to pack up and settle elsewhere. It was part of Roosevelt's "New Deal." This was nothing more in my opinion but the government trying to apologize without saying it and fix their created problem. Many settlers on the plains were extremely upset at the revealing of this film. They had made a life for themselves there and to pick up and leave sounded silly.
"The Plow that Broke the Plains" was pulled out of theaters and a new one was put into production. "Rain for the Earth" hit the topic of the "Dust Bowl" from a completely opposite side of the spectrum. It preached that this was just a rough patch and the settlers just needed help, and then they’d be okay to carry on. It tried to convince others to be sympathetic toward the settlers of the Great Plains and lend a helping hand. Production of the film was never finished because of the Second World War.
This topic raises the interesting question of what should be done with the plains. Is it best to reform it back to native? Many compelling thoughts have been brought forward, but none have managed to make a big enough impact to drastically change anything. Earlier travelers recorded dust bowls throughout the Great Plains, so there have always been dust storms even before the plow. I feel it is another adaptation to settling the Great Plains. Some things we have done have possibly messed with the ecosystem, but I do know that we need to continue to manage the plains. We need to learn from hard lessons learned in the past, and incorporate all our knowledge to become one with the plains.
Heritage Site Phelps Mill
On November 28th I visited a heritage site known as Phelps Mill. Phelps Mill is located in Maine Township near Fergus Falls, Minnesota on the Otter Tail River, it was built in 1988 by William E. Thomas and an addition was added in 1895. At the time of its construction the mill's equipment was state of the art. The mill was used to grind up 60-75 barrels of flour a day originally and after the addition ot the mill buckwheat and rye were also ground. Business at the mill slowed by the turn of the century, but the mill still continued some form of grain production under different owners until 1939. After being shut down the mill was unused until 1965 when it was bought by Otter Tail County in 1965 and was turned into a historical site and park. In 1975 Phelps Mill was added to the National Register of of Historic Places. Currently the mill is open for tours during the summer and the park is open year round. Also every summer the Phelps Mill Festival is held in a July, the two day festival is an arts and crafts gathering showcasing local artists. Also included with the festival is live entertainment and a variety of different ethnic foods are available. Phelps Mill also used to be a popular diving spot albeit an illegal one, people would get up on the roof of the mill (a good 30-40ft off the ground) and jump off into the river. The roof has since been closed off to the public.
Friday, November 28, 2008
Lecture #12 Response
The topic for lecture 12 is community on the Plains. We saw images of different community events that are traditions on the Great Plains including the Grandin Smelt Fry, the Goat Game, and Lindaas Barn Dance. It was interesting learning about the different traditions and made me think about some of the traditions from my community. Until the past few years, Golva would always have a big fireworks show and street dance on the Fourth of July. Another tradition is having a huge rummage sale at the Catholic Church twice a year. People from all over come to the rummage sale.
We also talked about urban communities and rural communities on the Plains. For quite some time, these two communities didn't really have any social connections. Their connections were economic. The two communities really began to interact when "Saturday Nights" started. The women would go into town to trade. The men started to go with them, often getting hair cuts. Pretty soon, the couples would bring the kids with and the whole family would socialize on Saturday Nights. I live in the country and cannot imagine not interacting with the "urban community." Like we talked about in class, I went to school in town, my mom worked in town, and we went to church in town. I was in town at least six days a week. We also went to the closest micropolis quite often. I would consider Dickinson the closest micropolis to us and we went there several times a month. Community life on the Great Plains is truly unique. When I think about my hometown, I realize there isn't much there and not much to do, but it is home and so I love it there. I am always excited to go back and visit.
We also talked about urban communities and rural communities on the Plains. For quite some time, these two communities didn't really have any social connections. Their connections were economic. The two communities really began to interact when "Saturday Nights" started. The women would go into town to trade. The men started to go with them, often getting hair cuts. Pretty soon, the couples would bring the kids with and the whole family would socialize on Saturday Nights. I live in the country and cannot imagine not interacting with the "urban community." Like we talked about in class, I went to school in town, my mom worked in town, and we went to church in town. I was in town at least six days a week. We also went to the closest micropolis quite often. I would consider Dickinson the closest micropolis to us and we went there several times a month. Community life on the Great Plains is truly unique. When I think about my hometown, I realize there isn't much there and not much to do, but it is home and so I love it there. I am always excited to go back and visit.
LR 10- The Dust Bowl
This lecture was based off of two videos that had slightly different views regarding the Dust Bowl. The first video, titled "The Plow that Broke the Plains," began with information regarding the last frontier. The buffalo and natives were cleared from the land by the 1880s. Images were shown of vast grasslands. The phrase "a lot of grass with wind and sun, no trees, streams, and little rain" was repeated multiple times to give the impression of a wasteland. The horse-drawn plow was a breakthrough in tilling up the land. It enabled more efficient means of breaking up the land to provide a living on the plains. The onset of World War I sent wheat prices soaring, and it was a boom in the economy of the plains area. "Wheat will win the war!" was also repeated as farmers were encouraged to make a living on the plains. The old tractors were a huge breakthrough as much more land could be farmed. With the tractor came other new equipment like the threshing machine. The video took a dramatic turn when the drought and wind brought about a story of loss of hope. People had to move to find livings, and depended on the government to pull them through. The second video, titled "Rain for the Earth," was the same information but a different perspective. It showed some of the history of the area- the pioneers, industrial revolutions, war, and the Great Depression. The second video also showed more images of sheep, and the dependence on the animal through difficult times. This video, however, had more of a happy ending. Although the land was troubled, the people could not be shaken. The inhabitants stuck it out, and seemed more optimistic about the situation.
I had no idea the situation was that bad. When I thought of dust bowl, I thought of the top soil blowing off of the fields. The images showed no vegetation at all. This is a very difficult concept for me to grasp. I lived through a drought at the end of the 1990s, but could not imagine my parents' farm with everything dead and dust engulfing the land. The question "Why did the government of the US make the film?" I did some research on the videos, and found that they came out around the time the New Deal was being proposed. These videos were more than likely used as propaganda to win votes in establishing farm plans and conservation practices. The first video had the theme of taking advantage of what the government was offering (propaganda to pass new programs?). The second video may have been used to counteract the programs that were being proposed because it had more of a theme "People can make it on their own if they stick it out."~Chris Schmaltz
I had no idea the situation was that bad. When I thought of dust bowl, I thought of the top soil blowing off of the fields. The images showed no vegetation at all. This is a very difficult concept for me to grasp. I lived through a drought at the end of the 1990s, but could not imagine my parents' farm with everything dead and dust engulfing the land. The question "Why did the government of the US make the film?" I did some research on the videos, and found that they came out around the time the New Deal was being proposed. These videos were more than likely used as propaganda to win votes in establishing farm plans and conservation practices. The first video had the theme of taking advantage of what the government was offering (propaganda to pass new programs?). The second video may have been used to counteract the programs that were being proposed because it had more of a theme "People can make it on their own if they stick it out."~Chris Schmaltz
Thursday, November 27, 2008
RP: 11 Dust Bowl
For the 11th lecture we watched two videos covering the Dust Bowl on the Great Plains, The Plow that Broke the Great Plains and Rain for the Earth. Each video took a very different approach explaining how people dealt with the issues surrounding the Dust Bowl. “The Plow that Broke the Great Plains” was the first video we watched it had a darker feel to it and covered the group of people who decided to move out further west to try to find work. It portrayed the Great Plains as almost uninhabitable during the Dust Bowl, showing people abandoning their homes and actually encouraged people to go west to get help from government camps. The second film that we watched was “Rain for the Earth” and it showed the Dust Bowl from a slightly more optimistic perspective. “Rain on the Earth” focused on what people from the Great Plains were doing to survive through the tough times. Things such as shifting from commercial farming to raising animals and planting small gardens. Although these were profitable the changes allowed for many family to fight their way through the bad times. After watching the two videos I have greater respect for the people who managed to fight through the Dust Bowl and pick themselves up after the Dust Bowl. I knew that it was a tough era, but I don't think that before I quite knew the total devastation that the drought caused. On a side note I find it very interesting that both films exist today in their either shortened or unfinished forms, I wonder what the exact reasons for this are.
Film Review - Friday Night Lights
This film relives the season of the 1988 Permian-Odessa Panthers. It also demonstrates the significance that football plays in small town Texas communities. This community for example consists of former Permian-Odessa players that now have had children and have raised them in this community by making them grow through football; with hopes that they will live a successful life someday, but always have the memories of their football years. This film illustrates how intense these communities are about their boys and their team. The first thing I realized about the environmental landscape of this region was that this large desert of prairie, full of Russian thistle and oil rigs, is dotted with these spectacular football stadiums. These people in Texas take their football so seriously that they spend more on the football stadium than they do their school, for they feel that their kids will receive more reward on the football field than in the class room. A great family is formed between these players and coaches; and regardless of the critiques of many of the community, they always have each other, similar too many of the early inhabitants of the Great Plains. Those who ventured west stuck together and shared a common bond in able to survive in the world at the time, just as these young men in the film are forced to survive in their own way.
I saw many signs of racial tensions, such as between the coaches and the officials. Also, I felt that the way the tie breaker coin toss was decided and held in a local town truck-stop that that symbolized the local community social center as we talked about coffee klatches in class. The team had extremely high expectations to fill and even after a key injury of their star tailback, they came together and went further than anyone thought they would. In the end they lose the state championship by several inches, but the community still manages to stay together and accept failure through the hard times and in the next season they win state.
I saw many signs of racial tensions, such as between the coaches and the officials. Also, I felt that the way the tie breaker coin toss was decided and held in a local town truck-stop that that symbolized the local community social center as we talked about coffee klatches in class. The team had extremely high expectations to fill and even after a key injury of their star tailback, they came together and went further than anyone thought they would. In the end they lose the state championship by several inches, but the community still manages to stay together and accept failure through the hard times and in the next season they win state.
RP: Lecture 12
Lecture 12 was titled he Continuity of Progress. The lecture started off by showing pictures of some of the Great Plains traditions that some towns have. These included the firefighters of Grandin that have a yearly smelt fry and the Corpus Christi tradition of St. Mary's. I was also interested to see the pictures of the Church in Canaan. They had a candle ritual each year at Christmas. The church looked like it was real nice and would be a cool place to see. Dr. Isern also talked about how a rural community can stretch over thousands of miles, because people always come back home for these traditions from wherever they have moved.
Dr. Isern also talked about the interaction between townspeople and farmers on the Great Plains. One thing that stuck out to me was when he talked about how Saturday nights were busy in the town because of all the farmers coming in for supplies. He talked about how the barbers would stay open late these nights. I thought this was interesting because I found a book when I was doing my research for the Big Thing that specifically mentioned how the barber in Rothsay MN would stay open until midnight on Saturdays because of all the haircuts needed. It said he stayed open late but didn't say why Saturdays were so busy, so it was nice to learn why.
Dr. Isern also talked about Carl Krenzel and the idea of the Micropolis. This was an interesting idea and really made sense to me. The idea of the Sutland and Yonland worked for North Dakota and the rest of the plains. This lecture showed us how people on the plains keep traditions for a long time and how people interact.
Mitch Tommerdahl
Dr. Isern also talked about the interaction between townspeople and farmers on the Great Plains. One thing that stuck out to me was when he talked about how Saturday nights were busy in the town because of all the farmers coming in for supplies. He talked about how the barbers would stay open late these nights. I thought this was interesting because I found a book when I was doing my research for the Big Thing that specifically mentioned how the barber in Rothsay MN would stay open until midnight on Saturdays because of all the haircuts needed. It said he stayed open late but didn't say why Saturdays were so busy, so it was nice to learn why.
Dr. Isern also talked about Carl Krenzel and the idea of the Micropolis. This was an interesting idea and really made sense to me. The idea of the Sutland and Yonland worked for North Dakota and the rest of the plains. This lecture showed us how people on the plains keep traditions for a long time and how people interact.
Mitch Tommerdahl
RP: "Hell on Wheels" Colloquium
On Friday, Dr. Charles Vollan who is a professor at SDSU gave a lecture titled "Hell on Wheels: Urban History along the Union Pacific Railroad, 1865-69." Dr. Vollan took at closer look at these "boom and bust" towns that developed along the railroad as it was being built. The Union Pacific started from the east and the Central Pacific started from the west. These two were to meet and connect the nation. As these railroads were built, towns began popping up all over. They sometimes grew too fast for their own good. There was a bad reputation of these towns as being wild, lawless places where people are killed everyday. Dr. Vollan makes the argument that these towns were not as violent, lawless, and wild as believed. There were respectable people, and they made up the heart of these towns.
I'd have to say that I really enjoyed this lecture, and I am glad I attended. There is a reputation of these wild frontier towns even today. People still say the "wild west" and TV/movies play into this belief (like the show "Deadwood"). They say these cities were full of prostitutes, gunslingers, thieves, and any other low lives imaginable. Dr. Vollan made a very compelling case that these towns were not that bad. There were many cases of "you should have seen what happened last week." There were very few instances of witness accounts to violent acts. These towns received these bad reputations because there was a focus on the exciting, lawless deeds. Even today, the media focuses more on the bad or "exciting" side of things. Dr. Vollan even said in the about 2- year development and association of the railroad of the town Cheyenne, there were only 22 acts of violence, and that included everything and anything.
I'd have to say that I really enjoyed this lecture, and I am glad I attended. There is a reputation of these wild frontier towns even today. People still say the "wild west" and TV/movies play into this belief (like the show "Deadwood"). They say these cities were full of prostitutes, gunslingers, thieves, and any other low lives imaginable. Dr. Vollan made a very compelling case that these towns were not that bad. There were many cases of "you should have seen what happened last week." There were very few instances of witness accounts to violent acts. These towns received these bad reputations because there was a focus on the exciting, lawless deeds. Even today, the media focuses more on the bad or "exciting" side of things. Dr. Vollan even said in the about 2- year development and association of the railroad of the town Cheyenne, there were only 22 acts of violence, and that included everything and anything.
Film Review - The Alamo
They year was 1936. The place was a 1718 abandoned Spanish mission, outside of San Antonio. Within this mission was the appraised knife-fighter Jim Bowie, the infamous legend from Tennessee Davy Crockett, the somewhat fearless leader Lt. Colonel William (Buck) Travis, and up to roughly 250 settlers and 'soldiers'. As the Mexican army led by Santa Anna surrounding the Spanish mission known as the Alamo, Lt. Colonel Travis sent couriers out in order to reach General Sam Houston and his 'army' that was suppose to be assembling to come to the Alamo's aid. Houston wasn't ready with his army and at that point the Alamo was left to defend itself and hope to cripple the Mexican Army to by time for Houston's army. Many letters were sent out of the Alamo by settlers and soldiers describing the wonderful endless sun-touched land of Texas and through chain letters across the country, those who were in the Alamo encouraged all they knew to come to the vast prairie of Texas, which has an endless supply of timber, water, land and cattle.
While holding strong through nightly cannonball volleys; the Texans at the Alamo began to reflect on the stories that had brought them together in this common cause. There was a great deal of collective consciousness with these men as they were willing to die for Texas. As we talk about stories shaping the plains' culture, the men at the Alamo all had heard the legends of Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie and now having them with them showed the legends of the plains first hand. This film shows the idea that Manifest Destiny was still lingering at this time, where these Americans felt that whatever they wanted (Texas) they could have. While the Alamo was taken over by the Mexicans within eleven days, this enabled General Houston to declare Texas a republic free of Mexico, and to assemble an army to defeat the Mexicans once and for all. It was at that battle where the cry of "Remember the Alamo!" is echoed still day.
While holding strong through nightly cannonball volleys; the Texans at the Alamo began to reflect on the stories that had brought them together in this common cause. There was a great deal of collective consciousness with these men as they were willing to die for Texas. As we talk about stories shaping the plains' culture, the men at the Alamo all had heard the legends of Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie and now having them with them showed the legends of the plains first hand. This film shows the idea that Manifest Destiny was still lingering at this time, where these Americans felt that whatever they wanted (Texas) they could have. While the Alamo was taken over by the Mexicans within eleven days, this enabled General Houston to declare Texas a republic free of Mexico, and to assemble an army to defeat the Mexicans once and for all. It was at that battle where the cry of "Remember the Alamo!" is echoed still day.
RP: Lecture 11
We once again talked how not only does the environment and culture form a region, but it's the stories from the past that also play a very pivotal role. Stories of the past can be scene in films. For example, The Plow that Broke the Plains was filmed in 1936 in the midst of the Dust Bowl on the Great Plains. I found it truly amazing that this period of high winds and heat blew over 400,000,000 acres of topsoil off of the landscape. This film's theme was based on "high winds and sun, a country without rivers and little rain," this was the grassland region of the plains that endured the Dust Bowl. Once the war hit, the plains were transformed into endless fields of plowed soil planted with wheat to help "win the war". This exhausted the land, and then came no moisture; finally the wind started to blow. In 1936, the Federal Government attempted to lure people back into the plains with the resettlement program, by re-educating them and giving them a new opportunity. The purpose of the film was based around the idea of capitalism spreading across the nation.
The second film answered my main question regarding the first film. Was there any use of underground water sources? Why didn’t people survive off of that? Obviously, with no precipitation and dry conditions the underground aquifers have difficulty re-charging, but were people on the plains attempting to dig their existing wells deeper to find that water? In the film, "Rain for the Earth", farmers were adapting to the environmental conditions via dams to savor the limited water. I found it very appropriate that the film mentioned how sheep (diversity) got the plains' folk through the hard times. They grazed about everything and used very little water. Finally, is there a future in my former prairie town? Probably not with the urbanization increase and the disappearance of small farms and small town elevators, the era of small town ND based around agriculture is diminishing.
The second film answered my main question regarding the first film. Was there any use of underground water sources? Why didn’t people survive off of that? Obviously, with no precipitation and dry conditions the underground aquifers have difficulty re-charging, but were people on the plains attempting to dig their existing wells deeper to find that water? In the film, "Rain for the Earth", farmers were adapting to the environmental conditions via dams to savor the limited water. I found it very appropriate that the film mentioned how sheep (diversity) got the plains' folk through the hard times. They grazed about everything and used very little water. Finally, is there a future in my former prairie town? Probably not with the urbanization increase and the disappearance of small farms and small town elevators, the era of small town ND based around agriculture is diminishing.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
RP: Lecture 11
Lecture 11 was conducted differently than the others. This lecture was about the Dust Bowl, and we watched to videos relating to this subject. The first film was "The Plow that Broke the Plains." It wasn't widely accepted on the Plains, and later the film was repealed and the last few minutes were deleted. The ending of the film showed the agenda of the movie. The agenda or meaning was the plains people needed help and the federal government would do the job to get them started over on the right foot again. It was basically a propaganda film. The second film was "Rain for the Earth." This film was more hopeful than the other movie. The film said farmers are struggling but unafraid. The overall message was hang in there, things will get better, and the rain will come.
One of the things I enjoyed about this lecture was the change in pace. We switched things around a bit, and we still learned about the Dust Bowl. It was interesting to watch these films and study them because they were made during the Depression and the Dust Bowl. This way you can become familiar with what people thought at the time and what messages were being presented. We learned in class that every documentary was some sort of agenda behind it, and this was true in these two films. There were a lot of hidden things in these films. "The Plow that Broke the Plains" has a meaning in the title. It's the plow that broke (or ruined, destroyed) the plains. There has also a minor theme of capitalism being a cause of the hard times. The second film had a biblical metaphor by using sheep to say farmers were the "good shepards" who take care of the animals.
One of the things I enjoyed about this lecture was the change in pace. We switched things around a bit, and we still learned about the Dust Bowl. It was interesting to watch these films and study them because they were made during the Depression and the Dust Bowl. This way you can become familiar with what people thought at the time and what messages were being presented. We learned in class that every documentary was some sort of agenda behind it, and this was true in these two films. There were a lot of hidden things in these films. "The Plow that Broke the Plains" has a meaning in the title. It's the plow that broke (or ruined, destroyed) the plains. There has also a minor theme of capitalism being a cause of the hard times. The second film had a biblical metaphor by using sheep to say farmers were the "good shepards" who take care of the animals.
LR- Lecture 11
We watched two movies describing the effects of the dust bowl on Great Plains farmers. “The Plow that Broke the Plains” described the cattle industry on the plains and the boom of people moving into the plains. People soon put up fences which ended free grazing. They also developed new plowing techniques. Then the rain stopped. This film seemed intent on encouraging people out onto the plains regardless of the suffering that the dust bowl caused. The movie, “Rain for the Earth” central theme was that the rain will come. We need to adapt but it will come. It describes the raising of sheep because there were heartier than cattle plus provided meat and wool. I really enjoyed watching these movies because they show the struggles plains people faced, as well as how strong, brave, and resilient these residents were. The plains people have faced their shares of struggles and the dust bowl was one of the most difficult yet. I can’t imagine not being able to see my hand in front of my face. Talk about dust.
LR- Professor Vallum
Professor Vollum titled his presentation “Hell on Wheels Towns”. He describes the effect of the railroad boom on the towns that sprang up around them. It all started with the development of two railroad companies, the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific. In order for these railroads to build tracks across the United States they needed to form supply lines and towns along these routes. Because progress was so quick these towns had to be built in a matter of weeks. These towns were literally thrown together. A town of 50-100 people could be 5,000 in a matter of months. This of course caused chaos because there was no time for careful consideration and planning in the town development. It was also difficult to keep up with the law enforcement, due to the immense amount of railroad workers. Many of us have heard stories about how violent and lawless these towns were. Professor Vallum’s main argument was that these towns were not as lawless and crazy as we believe. Rather than a murder every night, there may be one or two in a whole month. Many of these stories have been exaggerated in books and movies and over exaggerated by word of mouth. These towns still had normal citizens that made normal lives there. I thought the colloquium was very interesting and informative and gave me a different perspective of railroad towns.
Response to Chris Votava's Lecture 11 RP
I agree with Chris Votava's lecture 11 response. "Rain for the Earth" gave a more hopeful message and is therefore more likely to improve the spirits of America than "The Plow that Broke the Plains." Not only does this film cheer up the people still living on the plains, but is also a better attempt to get help for these people. The film portrays the plains people as hard working, hopeful, strong individuals whom will do anything to take care of the livestock they have left. "Rain for the Earth" makes the people that left the plains look like they simply gave up while there are people of "stronger stuff" still trying to make it work on the plains. If I was well off during the great depression I would probably be more likely to give my money to the people on the plains who stuck it out than the people that left. After all, "The Plow that Broke the Plains" already tells the public that the families that left are being taken care of in California. In my opinion a better way to take care of the people forced to leave their homes would have been to send relief crews to provide help directly to these people. Most of these families already didn't have enough money to provide food for their families, much less travel all the way to California from places like Kansas and Oklahoma.
lecture 11
For lecture twelve we watched two movies pertaining to the Dust Bowl. "The Plow that Broke the Plains" describes the plains as having high winds and sun, no rivers, and no streams. This film seems to propose that the demise of the plains resulted from overworked land. As the film continues, images of people forced to leave their farms are displayed. In the missing three minutes of the film the narrator explains to the audience how all of these people are being taken care of in California. In addition to this, the narrator also mentions that other folks should leave the plains and settle in California. This film is most likely a propaganda film and promotes federal farm policies.
"Rain for the Earth" is the second film we watched in class and has a completely different message. This film shows images of people working and continuing everyday life even though times are hard. There are also images of sheep farmers hauling water for their sheep and feeding their livestock. This reference to sheep is most likely a way of telling the audience how good these people are. The farmers that stayed are "taking care of nature." When the farmers water their sheep, the spillage is utilized by birds, thus these must be good people who deserve help to get them through hard times. This film is most likely an attempt to get help for the people that stayed on the plains and are "toughing it out."
Both of these films contain images intended to get the attention of the audience. I thought watching these movies was a good way to get an idea of what the Dust Bowl was like and how it affected the people of the plains. I found it ironic that the government was advertising aid in California in "The Plow that Broke the Plains." From what I remember from previous history classes, it was hard for people to find work once they had left the plains. I like the message in the second film better than the message from the first film. I found the message of the second film to be more convincing and persuasive than the first film.
"Rain for the Earth" is the second film we watched in class and has a completely different message. This film shows images of people working and continuing everyday life even though times are hard. There are also images of sheep farmers hauling water for their sheep and feeding their livestock. This reference to sheep is most likely a way of telling the audience how good these people are. The farmers that stayed are "taking care of nature." When the farmers water their sheep, the spillage is utilized by birds, thus these must be good people who deserve help to get them through hard times. This film is most likely an attempt to get help for the people that stayed on the plains and are "toughing it out."
Both of these films contain images intended to get the attention of the audience. I thought watching these movies was a good way to get an idea of what the Dust Bowl was like and how it affected the people of the plains. I found it ironic that the government was advertising aid in California in "The Plow that Broke the Plains." From what I remember from previous history classes, it was hard for people to find work once they had left the plains. I like the message in the second film better than the message from the first film. I found the message of the second film to be more convincing and persuasive than the first film.
Fall Colloquium RP
Last Friday I went to the fall colloquium of Professor Chuck Vollan. He is a professor at SDSU, and gave a lecture about “Hell on Wheels Towns” of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads as they were being built towards each other. These towns popped up along the railroads wherever the crews stopped for winter or for a few weeks. They were built so quickly that there was no time to separate different businesses into separate districts, so you could have a barber shop, a brothel, and a law office all in a row. These towns, like Cheyenne, Wyoming, grew from 100 people to over 5,000 in just a few months, so it’s pretty awesome that they could build a functioning town in that short amount of time. Professor Vollan spent a lot of time talking about how these towns weren’t really as violent or rowdy as much as people usually think. He said that instead of one person dying every night, it was actually closer to maybe one a month. Most of the people who actually settled these towns and stayed there were respectable citizens trying to keep things going. Most of the violence that was caused was when the railroad crew was still there trying to have fun times. I think that this lecture was very interesting, I never really thought how violent these towns would have been, and I think it's neat that Professor Vollan has looked into this and has learned what actually went on during this time.
Lecture 11 RP
Lecture 11, It Looked So Awful Black , was about the Dust Bowl during the 1930's. Mr. Isern started the lecture out with some terms that people who experienced the Dust Bowl used, such as "It looked like Revelations," or "it was darker than dark." After the topic was introduced, we watched two films about the Dust Bowl. The first one,, titled The Plow That Broke the Plains showed the progress of farmers spreading over the Plains, and how a drought could dramatically change that. The film made it look like farmers were overambitious and plowed too much land, and that they should have known better. It does however show that all of the people leaving the Plains for the West Coast needed help, and it was trying to convince everyone to leave and start fresh somewhere else. The second film, Rain for the Earth had a much more positive and hopeful view about farmers on the Plains. It still shows how terrible the Dust Bowl was, noting that there was barely enough food for even grasshoppers. The thing I found most interesting about this film was the importance of sheep. I had never known how important they could actually be in a time like that, since you can use both the meat and their wool. Both of these films showed how terrible the Dust Bowl was, but I think Rain for the Earth didn't make the farmers think it was their fault for plowing up too much land. It had a more hopeful outlook and could cheer up the whole country, not make it more depressed.
Lecture 11
Lecture 11 was made up of two films on the Dust Bowl. I have to say that I thought it was interesting when Mr. Isern stated the quotes of people who lived through the Dust Bowl. One of the quotes was, "We thought it was Judgment Day." These are very powerful words! They add a lot of drama to the history of the plains. Yet, after watching the two films, I gained an even more dramatic picture of the Dust Bowl and the affects it had on plains people and their way of life. The two films had different perspectives of the Dust Bowl on the plains.
The first film that we watched was called "The Plow that Broke the Plains." The theory of farming techniques "breaking" the plains is very interesting to me. It’s almost as if mother earth chose a specific time to strike at humanity. I say this because during the time of the Dust Bowl, the great depression was taking place. This film had a very pessimistic message as well, due to the fact that it displayed people leaving the plains is despair. Of course, it's understandable that people would do such a thing. If I didn't know anything about the history of this region, this film would give me the impression that this dust storm was the end of the world.
The second film, "Rain for the Earth," had a message of optimism which therefore pushed for people to embrace the plains. I feel that this film was more optimistic because it showed people living their lives, instead of collapsing in despair. For example, it showed people socializing and whole families working together to make ends meet. If anything, this film displayed hope for the plains. Also, this film raised the theory that the plains were meant for animals, not crops. Ironically, this film showed more animals than the first film, yet again displaying more life on the plains.
Yes, the Dust Bowl proved to be a very hard time for the plains. These two films showed two different perspectives of the situation. The first film showed the dark side and the second film showed that there was a possibility of recovery. Personally, I liked the second film more. - Dain Sullivan
The first film that we watched was called "The Plow that Broke the Plains." The theory of farming techniques "breaking" the plains is very interesting to me. It’s almost as if mother earth chose a specific time to strike at humanity. I say this because during the time of the Dust Bowl, the great depression was taking place. This film had a very pessimistic message as well, due to the fact that it displayed people leaving the plains is despair. Of course, it's understandable that people would do such a thing. If I didn't know anything about the history of this region, this film would give me the impression that this dust storm was the end of the world.
The second film, "Rain for the Earth," had a message of optimism which therefore pushed for people to embrace the plains. I feel that this film was more optimistic because it showed people living their lives, instead of collapsing in despair. For example, it showed people socializing and whole families working together to make ends meet. If anything, this film displayed hope for the plains. Also, this film raised the theory that the plains were meant for animals, not crops. Ironically, this film showed more animals than the first film, yet again displaying more life on the plains.
Yes, the Dust Bowl proved to be a very hard time for the plains. These two films showed two different perspectives of the situation. The first film showed the dark side and the second film showed that there was a possibility of recovery. Personally, I liked the second film more. - Dain Sullivan
Lecture 10 Response
Lecture 10, "Fire on the Ice," discussed the politics of the Great Plains. The current 2008 election was discussed as well as the history of politics on the Plains. Party selection from the people throughout the area is very interesting. I have never been known to analyze politics much. However I can realize there is a difference of opinion throughout the plains in comparison to the rest of the country. In the recent election much of the plains went Republican. Isern made a point that throughout time elections can be analyzed and plains people sending the Democrats to Washington and keeping the Republicans in the state. This can be looked at in many different ways. It could be the Republican voters trying to influence the rest of the state by spoiling them with Democrats. In earlier times there has been a history of radical views throughout the Great Plains. A Farmer's Alliance was created named the "National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry" with a sort of socialist view on things with radical ideas. A man by the last name of Kraenzel, stated that there was dependency on the plains to the local metropolis. Isern's prediction is that politics will remain split and random. People seem to have a "chip on their shoulders" for a continuous disadvantage on the plains. I see this in everyday life. However it is not always learned by personal experience, it is learned by the people whom surround us and influence our ideas subconsciously.
RP: Lecture 12
This was the second straight lecture where more media was used to explain the ideas behind the lecture. We watched some slide shows and even a video of a barn dance to see some examples of a community gathering together in some form or another. The main topics of this lecture were pointed out in three questions of "how did the settlers organize?", "what happened to those communities?" and "how are they organized today?". He also pointed out the idea of "Micropoli" on the Plains, a smaller town performing metropolis functions. This idea is based on Carl Kraenzel's vison through his book "Great Plains in Transition".
One of the things that I thought was very interesting was the "Goat Game", the basketball game between the Enderlin Eagles and the Lisbon Broncos. It includes the transfer of the trophy of a goat called "red knob", because he has a red reflective knob on his forehead. It didn't dawn on me until later on but I actually know someone from Enderlin. I had to fill her in on the fact that her home town is a topic in my history class and she loved it.
We spent a solid 30 minutes with her recapping the traditions and the relation between the two towns. She pointed out that although it is a trophy game, the towns are so close together in distance that most of them are friends and it isn't a big rivalry where the two towns hate each other. She also said that the sheet that the goat wears over its back is an important part of the tradition. She said that whichever team wins gets the goat, then the losing team's school name and colors are displayed on the sheet as a way of saying that the goat was taken by the winning team from the losing team.
One of the things that I thought was very interesting was the "Goat Game", the basketball game between the Enderlin Eagles and the Lisbon Broncos. It includes the transfer of the trophy of a goat called "red knob", because he has a red reflective knob on his forehead. It didn't dawn on me until later on but I actually know someone from Enderlin. I had to fill her in on the fact that her home town is a topic in my history class and she loved it.
We spent a solid 30 minutes with her recapping the traditions and the relation between the two towns. She pointed out that although it is a trophy game, the towns are so close together in distance that most of them are friends and it isn't a big rivalry where the two towns hate each other. She also said that the sheet that the goat wears over its back is an important part of the tradition. She said that whichever team wins gets the goat, then the losing team's school name and colors are displayed on the sheet as a way of saying that the goat was taken by the winning team from the losing team.
Lecture 11
Lecture 11 was about the dust bowl. We watched two different movies about the dust bowl and one more was how even though it was a war cause to plant more wheat cause wheat would win the war. Well then once the war was over and the dust bowl happened it seemed like it was all the farmers fault for plowing up so much ground so they had to live with the dust bowl. But then the other movie that we watched depicted the farmers as it wasn't their fault it was just a fact of mother nature and that we need to help the farmers out because they were just stuck in a sticky situation and that once it was over that they would be the pit of our economy again. When I was in high school I remember reading a book about the dust bowl and after watching these movies it put it into more of a perspective of how the sand came in every nook and cranny and that as you had to go on with your daily chores the sand smarted your face. It reminds me now a days when its really windy at our place and we just ended up getting done with the digging of our Fields then the sand just whips around the barn yard and hits you in the face and you get all dirty and gritty feeling. But I know its nothing to what the dust bowl was back then but it gives you a little taste.
Lecture 10
Lecture 10 was about the politics pertaining to the Great Plains. Different land acts or even homesteading acts where a part of the politics. Its interesting to see how the politics of the country changed after the great plains became more pronounced. In a way it was harder to get the facts strait in this lecture since we dint have a PowerPoint to show us some of the main points but it was more interesting to listen to how some of our different laws differed from Canada and what different things Canada did when the Plains became more distinct. Also we talked about different groups like the Farm Bureau that are even still going today. I like to hear how they got started because you listen on the radio and you can hear about this group even today. Even though this wasn't really talk about in the lecture it got me thinking about the politics dealing with the laws of the Native Americans that lived on the North American Plains and how they changed the lives of the Native Americans on how they lived where they lived. Some of the politics are hard to get the just of because it pertains to so many different aspects.
RP #10 "Fire on the Ice"
Lecture number ten was entitled “Fire on the Ice”. It covered the role that politics have played on the Great Plains, such things as voting patterns, different parties that have gained and lost popularity and even some unique forms of protest. There were a couple of things that I found interesting about the lecture, the first one is how people from North Dakota change their preferred party depending on the level of government. When you start to question why you can really see how it is to the benefit of the people in the state. With the mixing of the different parties on the different levels it allows the people to pay less taxes overall, but at the same time get more national funding. The thing that I found the most interesting though is the thought of there being an measurable amount of support for the socialist party on the Great Plains. I find this interesting because now days people seem to instantly attach that label in a negative way to any politician that strays to far to the left wing side of politics. It's weird thinking about it because it wasn't all that long ago that the Socialist party had more support than current alternative parties have. I guess the last thing that I will touch on in this response is the story of Gordon Kahl. I find it interesting that many times when a famous or notable person dies there always seems to be some people jumping into the news claiming the whole thing is a conspiracy theory, like Jimmy Hoffa is buried at the Meadowlands or the Grassy Knoll. You have to figure odds are at least a couple of them are true no matter how far fetched some of them seem and it doesn't matter if you believe any of them or not. You have to at least respect the staying power of many of them.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
RP: Lecture 11
Lecture 11 was our truncated lesson about the Dust Bowl. Mainly the lecture consisted of watching 2 movies, "Rain for the Earth" and "The Plow that Broke the Plains"
"The Plow that Broke the Plains" movie was supposedly trying to show people the severity of the Dust Bowl but it seemed more like it was blaming the people on the plains for its problems. The film had a great Looney Tunes musical score and it did shed some light on the Dust Bowl with its visuals but the main point of the film seemed to be get out while the getting is good. In sharp contrast to "The Plow that Broke the Plains" was "Rain for the Earth" although it was only part 1 of 2 and seemed to end abruptly it made more of an arguement of struggling and hanging-on until the rain comes and makes the world right again. "Rain for the Earth" seemed to have a lower production value but it was in my opinion a much better and optimistic movie. It made a point that life on the plains during the Dust Bowl was very difficult but if you can just stick it out for awhile the dust bowl will end and life will be good again on the plains.
I recently caught on The History Channel a show titled Black Blizzard was on my mind while watching both of these movies and while both in class movies were decent the History Channel show was very good. I am a History Channel nut regardless but Black Blizzard was one of the best shows I have seen on it in quite awhile. I am looking forward to seeing my 100 year old great grandma over Thanksgiving to discuss her memories of the Dust Bowl.
Sutton Goodman
"The Plow that Broke the Plains" movie was supposedly trying to show people the severity of the Dust Bowl but it seemed more like it was blaming the people on the plains for its problems. The film had a great Looney Tunes musical score and it did shed some light on the Dust Bowl with its visuals but the main point of the film seemed to be get out while the getting is good. In sharp contrast to "The Plow that Broke the Plains" was "Rain for the Earth" although it was only part 1 of 2 and seemed to end abruptly it made more of an arguement of struggling and hanging-on until the rain comes and makes the world right again. "Rain for the Earth" seemed to have a lower production value but it was in my opinion a much better and optimistic movie. It made a point that life on the plains during the Dust Bowl was very difficult but if you can just stick it out for awhile the dust bowl will end and life will be good again on the plains.
I recently caught on The History Channel a show titled Black Blizzard was on my mind while watching both of these movies and while both in class movies were decent the History Channel show was very good. I am a History Channel nut regardless but Black Blizzard was one of the best shows I have seen on it in quite awhile. I am looking forward to seeing my 100 year old great grandma over Thanksgiving to discuss her memories of the Dust Bowl.
Sutton Goodman
Film Review-Red River
Red River is a film starring John Wayne as Thomas Dunson. The movie begins with Dunson crossing the Red River into Texas with his trail hand, Groot Nadine. He claims the land and begins the Red River D ranch with only a couple head of cattle. Dunson and Groot happen upon an orphaned boy, Matthew Garth. Dunson adopts him and promises to add an M to his brand once Matt earns it. After fourteen years, Dunson's herd has grown to well over 1000 cattle, but he found himself broke as a result of the Civil War. Dunson decides that cattle prices in Texas are not good enough so he will drive his herd to Missouri. He and his men encounter many hardships including a stampede and long patches with no water. Dunson's stubbornness and unsympathetic attitude begin to affect the cowboys and even Matt rebels. Matt took control of the drive and changed the destination to Abilene. He had heard that the route to Abilene was safer and just as profitable. Dunson is obviously furious and vows to murder Matt. On the way to Abilene, the crew comes upon an Indian attack, which they take care of and Matt falls in love with Tess Millay, a woman whom they had saved. Finally, upon reaching Abilene, Matt finds that there are people there waiting for the arrival of a herd. Matt accepts a generous offer for the cattle. Dunson arrived in Abilene shortly after to kill Matt. As the two men fought, Tess breaks in and demands that they realize how much they love each other. They realize their mistakes and forgive each other. The movie ends with Dunson telling Matt that he will incorporate the M into the brand.
The film illustrates the romance of the cowboy that is so often seen on the Great Plains. It also shows how the downturn of the cattle industry in Texas influences other areas of the Great Plains north of Texas. While this film wasn't 100% historically accurate, it was still interesting to see a literary take on a cattle drive from Texas. It was also the first John Wayne movie I had ever seen.
The film illustrates the romance of the cowboy that is so often seen on the Great Plains. It also shows how the downturn of the cattle industry in Texas influences other areas of the Great Plains north of Texas. While this film wasn't 100% historically accurate, it was still interesting to see a literary take on a cattle drive from Texas. It was also the first John Wayne movie I had ever seen.
RP: lecture 10
Lecture 10 was titled Fire on the Ice and the main thesis was politics on the plains. As a class we decided that the plains were mainly "Red" states, or conservative in the current sense of politics but as Dr. Isern the plains have do have socialist tendency running through it. Some of the more socialist institutions on the plains are the Bank of North Dakota, the North Dakota state Mill and Elevator, Nebraska's state power company, but the main bastoon of socialism on the plains is our neighbor to the north, Alberta where Tommy Douglas from the Progressive Party introduced the model that Canada's socialized medicine system is based on. Locally we discussed how North Dakota likes to send Democrats to Washington DC to raise taxes to benefit North Dakota by bringing in federal tax dollars while we send Republicans to Bismarck to keep our state taxes low. After we layed the ground work and idea that North Dakota and the plains in general might not be as "Red" as we think it is we started to discuss some of the political organizations that were active or formed on the plains. We started off by looking at National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry which was one of the first. Started in the 1860s as a cooperative for buying and in the 1870s started a foray into politics. Next we learned of Farmers Alliance which begans as a social ogranization and coop during the 1880s and the following decade also got into politics with the Peoples Party/Populace Party which called for the federal government to take over control of the railroads. Another organization we looked at was the Non-Partisan League beginning in the 1910s when they infiltrated the North Dakota republican party that led them to start the Bank of North Dakota and the State Mill and Elevator, which were socialist type programs being started by so called republicans. We also looked at the Progressive Party of Alberta, the American Agriculture Movement and Farmer's Union. Most of these political organizations faded away after a decade or two and never became very large outside of the plain states.
I found the most interesting part of the lecture to be Gordon Kahl and Posse Commitatus. Growing up during the mid 80s like I did I remember it seemed like everyone in my small town were talking about him. Upham is a small farming community and the farm crisis of the 1980's hit it hard, there were alot of farmers that were sympathetic to Gordon Kahl and it seemed like he was a strange sort of folk hero to alot of the pissed off farmer back then.
Sutton Goodman
I found the most interesting part of the lecture to be Gordon Kahl and Posse Commitatus. Growing up during the mid 80s like I did I remember it seemed like everyone in my small town were talking about him. Upham is a small farming community and the farm crisis of the 1980's hit it hard, there were alot of farmers that were sympathetic to Gordon Kahl and it seemed like he was a strange sort of folk hero to alot of the pissed off farmer back then.
Sutton Goodman
RP: Lecture 11
Lecture 11 was on the Dust Bowl. It is easy to understand how living through a time like that could have a lasting impression on people. Dr. Isern talked about how people from that era talked about it in a biblical sense. They would say things like they thought it was the end of the world. I don't know what I would think if I saw a wave of dust rolling towards me. It must have been a nervous time for the farmers.
The first video we watched was originally intended to get people to move west. It was titled "The plow That Broke the plains". this title was meant to say that the farming techniques had broken the planes. Some people thought that the plains would not be a viable place for a long time so they thought it best for people to move out. The video made it look like a desert. There were sand dunes and equipment buried under piles of dust. The last three minutes of this film was missing and that is the section that told people to move west.
The second film was titled "Rain for the Earth". This one was telling people to hold on in the plains. this one also said that the plains were best meant for animals instead of crops. Sheep were shown in this particular film.
Both of these films showed a different theory for the plains. The Dust Bowl was a difficult time for the plains and it came during the depression so it was extra tough. The farmers eventually got through it and it has stuck with the people who lived through it.
Mitch Tommerdahl
The first video we watched was originally intended to get people to move west. It was titled "The plow That Broke the plains". this title was meant to say that the farming techniques had broken the planes. Some people thought that the plains would not be a viable place for a long time so they thought it best for people to move out. The video made it look like a desert. There were sand dunes and equipment buried under piles of dust. The last three minutes of this film was missing and that is the section that told people to move west.
The second film was titled "Rain for the Earth". This one was telling people to hold on in the plains. this one also said that the plains were best meant for animals instead of crops. Sheep were shown in this particular film.
Both of these films showed a different theory for the plains. The Dust Bowl was a difficult time for the plains and it came during the depression so it was extra tough. The farmers eventually got through it and it has stuck with the people who lived through it.
Mitch Tommerdahl
LR 11
Bad farming practices caused a great disaster for a while in the United States. It occur ed on the plains and affected many people. This is what we learned about in lecture 11. The two movies we watched we a bit dry (no pun intended) but interesting at the same time. One places blame on the farmers, saying it was their fault and the second was more or less that the farmers could make it through.
The first movie "The Plow that Broke the Plains" was depressing. All the footage shown was sad and depressing. animals dying and such. This disaster brought out the worst in the plains. Grasshoppers consumed anything that was left, and jackrabbits took over. People left the plains to seek jobs elsewhere. At the same time the depression was happening and unemployment was at +25%. No matter where they went there was no money.
In the second movie they showed hope. They explained that people could wait it out they just had to work harder. Some of the farmers started up animal husbandry. The people had to go farther for water and such but they were still making some money. Some bought cattle, or sheep. Then they would sell the animals they didn't need and kept the good breeding stock. Eventually the rains came and the plains were growing again. I liked this movie better because it was more hopeful. It showed how hardy the plains people were and that they could make it through such a hard time.
In school we never really learned much about the Dust Bowl. It's a pretty important part of the U.S. history. It should be taught more and in depth.
The first movie "The Plow that Broke the Plains" was depressing. All the footage shown was sad and depressing. animals dying and such. This disaster brought out the worst in the plains. Grasshoppers consumed anything that was left, and jackrabbits took over. People left the plains to seek jobs elsewhere. At the same time the depression was happening and unemployment was at +25%. No matter where they went there was no money.
In the second movie they showed hope. They explained that people could wait it out they just had to work harder. Some of the farmers started up animal husbandry. The people had to go farther for water and such but they were still making some money. Some bought cattle, or sheep. Then they would sell the animals they didn't need and kept the good breeding stock. Eventually the rains came and the plains were growing again. I liked this movie better because it was more hopeful. It showed how hardy the plains people were and that they could make it through such a hard time.
In school we never really learned much about the Dust Bowl. It's a pretty important part of the U.S. history. It should be taught more and in depth.
LR 12
In lecture twelve we learned about the community aspect of the plains people. In the beginning of the lecture we learned about some different community organizations, including the Grandin Smelt Fry put on by the local fire department, Corpus Christi, The Goat Game, Candles at Canaan and the Lindaas Barn Dance. Then we learned about the urban and rural communities, then the consolidation of the farms and lastly the Micropolis. In the communities people started to form different legions and lodges; however to the farmer they could not join these groups. Their loyalty was to there church and they could not pledge their loyalty to anyone other than their church. Then as the times changed so did the people. Now days these same people are joining the lodges and organizations. This might be due to the consolidation of the farms. Families are smaller now days therefore there may be no one to pass the family farm onto, so someone buys the farm and then another and another. Lastly we learned about the Micropolis. These are towns that have everything one needs to survive.
I thought that this lecture was very interesting and it answered some questions that I have had about my own family. I now see that small towns aren’t boring and that there is always something going on in them. You just have to know where to look. My grandfather is one of those guys that are always making the run in to town even though he lives in town just on the edge. Every morning he gets up to meet the rest of his gang for breakfast at the local diner, and then back to the house to do chores and maintain the house. Now when he goes in to town he is just going downtown. He makes a trip downtown to get parts and just any random thing that he may need. Of course he doesn’t just make one trip but at least three a day. This lecture was really fun to learn about and it helped me understand my grandpa a little better.
I thought that this lecture was very interesting and it answered some questions that I have had about my own family. I now see that small towns aren’t boring and that there is always something going on in them. You just have to know where to look. My grandfather is one of those guys that are always making the run in to town even though he lives in town just on the edge. Every morning he gets up to meet the rest of his gang for breakfast at the local diner, and then back to the house to do chores and maintain the house. Now when he goes in to town he is just going downtown. He makes a trip downtown to get parts and just any random thing that he may need. Of course he doesn’t just make one trip but at least three a day. This lecture was really fun to learn about and it helped me understand my grandpa a little better.
LR 11
In lecture eleven we learned about the dust storms and the dust bowl. We learned about the event by lecture and by watching two videos. In the first video “The Plow that Broke the Plains” the image was that the people were told to go and plow the land and make it profitable. Then the land turned and became un-workable. The dust storms came and the people were told to move away and abandon there farms. In the second movie “Rain for the Earth” the thought was that the animals could survive and last. The people were also told to stay and wait out the dust storms and keep working. They were told that the land would turn around. Then in lecture we were set straight. We learned that people did not move off the land like the first movie showed; however they stayed like the second movie showed.
I think this lecture was very interesting. I knew of the dust storms before the lecture but it was still fun learning about them again. I thought it was neat seeing the two views of the different movies. I also think that it was interesting how the first video made the people look like the bad guys. In the beginning the people were told to plow the land and then were told that they did wrong in plowing the land and that they were the cause of the problem. It just seems a little strange. Over all this was a fun lecture.
I think this lecture was very interesting. I knew of the dust storms before the lecture but it was still fun learning about them again. I thought it was neat seeing the two views of the different movies. I also think that it was interesting how the first video made the people look like the bad guys. In the beginning the people were told to plow the land and then were told that they did wrong in plowing the land and that they were the cause of the problem. It just seems a little strange. Over all this was a fun lecture.
LR 10 "Fire on the Ice"
Political views were discussed as they pertain to the plains. The plains are typically socially conservative. However, North Dakota has some interesting contradictions. The state typically votes Republicans for the State Government, but sends Democrats to Washington. An interesting point was brought up that Republicans usually keep property taxes down, and Democrats make sure everyone in the US gets taxed. The purpose of this would be to keep property taxes low, but distribute money to the plains states. Another contradiction that was discussed was the relationship between the two provinces- Alberta and Saskatchewan. Alberta was regarded as the "Texas of the North" while Saskatchewan is arguably the most social province in Canada. The idea of radical ideas was supported by some of the organizations/cooperatives. The National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry was a cooperative that purchased bulks of machinery to make it cheaper for individuals. This coop was broken up due to political differences. They did have some legislative control when they were at their peak. The Farmer's Alliance was another coop that formed the People's Party. This group had some socialistic views. These socialistic/nonpartisan views had some role in the establishment of the Bank of ND. National Healthcare was discussed based on Tony Douglas's views. Last of the discussed coops were the AAM and Farmer's Union. Famous individuals like Parrington, Hofstadler, and Kraenzel were debated. These three were all liberals that came from or supported the radical views of the plains.
This lecture had some interesting point of views. I have wondered myself why we are not necessarily straight-ticket voters in ND. These perspectives made sense. I agreed with one suggestion that was brought up- if the people of this state think they did a good job, we vote them into office again. That was my thought when I, a Republican, voted for Pomery. I think he has done a good job in office so I re-elected him. I am a little leery about the radical views. They do have some truth to them, but I still think the plains are very conservative. I found the American Agriculture Movement fascinating. I vividly remember hearing about them taking tractors to DC. One doesn’t want to tick off a farmer/rancher with a tractor or rifle in their possession!~Chris Schmaltz
This lecture had some interesting point of views. I have wondered myself why we are not necessarily straight-ticket voters in ND. These perspectives made sense. I agreed with one suggestion that was brought up- if the people of this state think they did a good job, we vote them into office again. That was my thought when I, a Republican, voted for Pomery. I think he has done a good job in office so I re-elected him. I am a little leery about the radical views. They do have some truth to them, but I still think the plains are very conservative. I found the American Agriculture Movement fascinating. I vividly remember hearing about them taking tractors to DC. One doesn’t want to tick off a farmer/rancher with a tractor or rifle in their possession!~Chris Schmaltz
MR: Wooly Boys
Wooly Boys is about two sheep ranchers in western North Dakota named Stoney and Shuck. Stoney is an older guy that makes the trek to Minneapolis after the birthday card he was expecting from his daughter doesn't arrive. When he gets to Minneapolis, he realizes that it was a trick to get him to see a doctor. Stoney was admitted to the hospital and his daughter goes on a business trip and leaves her son Charlie to check on him. When Shuck finds out that Stoney had gone to Minneapolis, he heads out there to bring him back to their ranch. He busts Stoney out of the hospital and kidnaps Charlie and they head back to North Dakota. When they get to the ranch Stoney teaches Charlie a few things about ranch life. The FBI takes on the case of Shuck breaking Stoney out of the hospital and they follow them to the ranch. Stoney is dying and he wants to be buried at "Hidden Springs" so Charlie, Stoney, and Shuck head there before the police can catch them. Stoney's daughter makes her way to the ranch, too. Charlie outsmarts the FBI agent and Stoney's daughter makes it to him before he passes away. At first, Charlie is upset because they couldn't make it to Hidden Springs before Stoney died, but it turned out that they were there all along.
This movie is interesting because it shows the western North Dakota landscape. It also shows some of the things we talked about in class like people moving from their small towns or farms on the Plains to big cities and eventually returning. I think it's pretty cool that actors like Peter Fonda and Kris Kristofferson made a movie about North Dakota. I went to this in theaters when it first came out, and it was a big deal to the people in the community. Every show was sold out, and I think that people really enjoyed what they saw in the movie.
This movie is interesting because it shows the western North Dakota landscape. It also shows some of the things we talked about in class like people moving from their small towns or farms on the Plains to big cities and eventually returning. I think it's pretty cool that actors like Peter Fonda and Kris Kristofferson made a movie about North Dakota. I went to this in theaters when it first came out, and it was a big deal to the people in the community. Every show was sold out, and I think that people really enjoyed what they saw in the movie.
Lecture 10 Response
Lecture 10, "Fire on the Ice" discussed the history of politics on the Plains. In the beginning of the lecture 10 we talked about how on the Plains we tend to be conservative. I think this was proven in the recent election when most of the Plains states were shown red or republican. We most often elect a republican into state offices and then Democrats into national offices. Mr. Isern explained this with the state level republicans would avoid heavy taxing in the state and the Democrats in the national offices would keep money coming into the state. Here on the Plains we seem to have it figured out in such a way to benefit the Plains- we are pretty smart.
We then discussed the National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry, Farmer's Alliance and Social and Nonpartisan League which had traits of socialist.
Mr. Isern then told the class about Gordon Call. Call didn't pay his taxes and broke laws. He always seemed to escape the law. Isern, told of the shoot- out Call had with the Federal Marshall's. I found this story to be extremely funny- one man could escape the law so many times and for so long.
I found Lecture 10 to be extremely interesting, especially with the recent presidential election.
We then discussed the National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry, Farmer's Alliance and Social and Nonpartisan League which had traits of socialist.
Mr. Isern then told the class about Gordon Call. Call didn't pay his taxes and broke laws. He always seemed to escape the law. Isern, told of the shoot- out Call had with the Federal Marshall's. I found this story to be extremely funny- one man could escape the law so many times and for so long.
I found Lecture 10 to be extremely interesting, especially with the recent presidential election.
Lecture 9 Response
Lecture 9, "Wir Sehen Uns Nimmer Mehr" is about ethnicity on the Plains. In lecture 9 we discussed the different immigrants on the Plains; who they were, where they came from and what they brought to the Plains. Immigrants from Russia, Germany, Poland and even people from Mexico and the Ukraine settled all along the Plains often in ethnic groups. We defined what a German from Russia was and learned a little bit about each ethnic group. I found the patterns of landholding extremely interesting. The reason behind the lay out of a town or homestead isn't often thought about- the Mennonite Strassendorf, Volga German Villages, and the dispersed homesteads. Isern, also, discussed the African- Americans who were barbers for the white men in the community and the Asians that ran the laundry mats. I had never realized how often this had taken place. The lecture on Ethnicity made me realize how small towns often are all made of Germans or Russians- everyone has very similar backgrounds.
RP: Lecture 10
In lecture ten we discussed the history of politics on the Great Plains. First of all we talked about how many Republican Conservatives reside in the plains region. Many do this because traditionally a republican president will benefit farmers more than a democratic president would overall. Typically North Dakotan's want to secure their state and local House and Senate with Republican representatives so they ensure that the money goes to the benefit of the farmer and that things stay consistent. North Dakota then normally chooses to send a Democratic representative to Washington DC so that they can bring back the most possible amount of federal funding in order to save the local economy (farming). The Great Plains was also home to many organizations that challenged the federal government. For example, The Grange, Farmer's Alliance, and the Posse Comitatus. The Canadian side of the Plains shows a socialist political system with a single health care provider policy; this system tends to get most of its radical political ideas come from the plains region.
North Dakota has its own national anti-political standoff that it was famous for. This was the Gordon Kahl incident near Medina, ND in February of 1983. He refused to pay federal income tax and was anti-gun control. I found it very interesting that North Dakotans tend to send a democratic representative to Washington, while still remaining a republican-controlled state. Lastly, in answer to our discussion in class, I feel that ND and the plains region were founded under Protestant views and have had a great sense of helping towards a common cause. This region also in a way is a very dependent region, dependent on the metropolis area for agricultural markets, and they are dependent on this region for its production. I believe that in time this region will become even more self-sufficient and not so dependent, due to it having almost every resource.
North Dakota has its own national anti-political standoff that it was famous for. This was the Gordon Kahl incident near Medina, ND in February of 1983. He refused to pay federal income tax and was anti-gun control. I found it very interesting that North Dakotans tend to send a democratic representative to Washington, while still remaining a republican-controlled state. Lastly, in answer to our discussion in class, I feel that ND and the plains region were founded under Protestant views and have had a great sense of helping towards a common cause. This region also in a way is a very dependent region, dependent on the metropolis area for agricultural markets, and they are dependent on this region for its production. I believe that in time this region will become even more self-sufficient and not so dependent, due to it having almost every resource.
Lecture 10 RP
Lecture 10, titled Fire and Ice, focused on the political culture of the Great Plains. To begin with, we discussed how the definition of the word "liberal" has changed through time from limiting government and maximizing individual liberties to what we see today. Our government in the U.S. is liberal as a whole, so the definition got changed a little bit. We talked a little bit about Socialism and how the Plains show a few aspects that reflect this idea. Some examples are North Dakota's state bank and mill, Nebraska's state power cooperative, and Saskatchewan being the most Socialist state or province on the Plains. I found that strange at first how Alberta, which is right next to Saskatchewan, is very right-wing. One thing that I have always found a bit confusing was how in North Dakota we elect Republicans to the State House, yet we elect Democrats to the national House. I never really stopped to think about it until Mr. Isern told us that it's so we don't get taxed on the state level, and when the Democrats spend money at the national level a lot of it comes back to us in North Dakota, so we elect whoever will help our situation. We then talked a bit about the history of radicalism on the Plains, whether it is from the left or right. The National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry, Farmer's Alliance, The Nonpartisan League, and the Progressive Party were some of the groups we talked about. They all had some interesting ideas about what should be done with things like the nationalization of railroads. Parrington thought that radical groups like these were good and that people were looking towards the future, but Hofstudter disagreed and said that people were just trying to go back to what the past was like.
lecture 10
Lecture 10 discussed the political nature of the plains. The lecture begins with political contradictions on the plains. We discussed how in the plains region we tend to be conservative in nature and elect republicans to state level offices but when it comes to national office we tend to elect Democrats. It was explained that by electing republicans to state offices we avoid being heavily taxed within the state and in return by sending Democrats to Washington we are able to bring tax money back to the state. This creates somewhat of a balancing act that seems to benefit the plains region greatly especially in the form of much needed farm aid and other programs like it. Without these forms of aid that our nationally elected officials get us I feel it is reasonable to believe that we may have seen the end of the family farm years ago instead of just a slow decline in it. The lecture shows another contradiction to our conservative values by pointing out the socialist type institutions on the plains. Organizations like the Grange, the Farmers Alliance, the populist party, the non-partisan league, and institutions in Canada like the cooperative commonwealth federation all go against conservatism but seem to be needed in order to survive in such a tough landscape. These organizations created institutions like the Bank of North Dakota, economic cooperative purchasing in the U.S. that benefit farmers greatly and helps allow their survival on a smaller level and in Canada these type of socialist organizations created state and eventually national health care which benefits all. I believe that these types of socialist institutions evolved on the plains because it seems that we need the governments help and the help of our neighbors, especially with regards to farming, just to survive here. What I wonder is since we do have some socialist tendencies here on the plains might plains states be the first to come up with some sort of state health care like our neighbors to the north before it ever occurs on a national level? The lecture then ends primarily with reactionary elements on the plains like Gordon Call and goes into detail about that whole ordeal and the standoff in Medina. What I found very interesting about this lecture was the socialist institutions that have been created here on the plains over the years, I never really realized they were in place before but it all makes sense now that they would exist. Although our values are conservative at heart and without the mentioned socialist institutions and movements here we probably would not be able to survive and the make up of the plains would probably look much differently without them.
Lecture 9 RP
Lecture 9's title was Wir Sehen Uns Nimmer Mehr and during this lecture we focused on immigration and ethnicity on the Great Plains. We talked about the different groups that spread into the area during the late 1800s and early 1900s, including the Russians, Germans, and the Polish. I found it very interesting when we were talking about niche populations on the frontier, explaining why Lebanese seemed to be the farm to farm peddlers, and why black men were the usual barbers in small towns. I had not noticed this before in my life, and it still amazes me how something like that can fall into place. Later in the lecture we talked about the German-Russian Diaspora. We first discussed who the German-Russians were, learning that they were ethnic Germans who colonized in Russia before eventually coming to the Plains of the United States. There were many reasons they moved to the States, but the most interesting thing about this topic to me is how they set up their towns. The Mennonite Strassendorf in particular I found to be strange, but it makes sense for what they were trying to do. After this we talked about Mexicanos and how they started out by working for railroads and eventually their families came with. We also talked about beet-blocking immigrants and packinghouse migration. I thought it was cool how Mexican culture got somewhat renewed with this migration, and that Mr. Isern's botanical metaphor works and makes sense. I had never thought about how all of the small towns on the Plains aren't really that diverse, and maybe that is why so many aren't doing so well, they aren't getting any new ideas and everybody has the same way of thinking, but I'm curious to know for sure.
LR 10
Politics are always a big issue, because government is a big issue. Here on the plains the people are very opinionated and set in their ways. In this lecture we looked at the political views, voting history, and some of the political groups that have formed.
Here on the plains the history of voting shows to always be conservative republican. I can see this because the people of the plains are normally old fashion and have strong beliefs. The Red party tends to follow more strict religious values and have old fashion (yet current) beliefs. All my life that is how my family has voted, and since they are my family we share the same values and such. Another trend shown to us is that we tend to send democrats to congress. Mr. Isern stated we send Democrats to congress so if they happen to make a tax they will tax the whole nation and we send republicans to state senate so they don't tax the state. I don't know too much about this kind of stuff, so I trust him on this. When he mentioned that North Dakota got a lot of federal spending money it made me pretty happy. It's good to hear that we are taking advantage of money they are giving us. Every year they create so many programs and such that give out money but no one ever hears about them. Well I guess North Dakota is on top of things.
It's funny to think that farmers are radicals in their own way. In the lecture it was mentioned that the plains has a history of radicalism. It made me laugh when he started explaining some of the things that they have done. When I think about it, we aren't radical we just don't take no for an answer. Our methods are a little bit louder than others because no one thinks that plains people would ever do something radical.
We then went into some of the organizations that have been formed on the plains that became political. Some of them have made some good things happen in the government and then others either never got into the government or made some legislature that never worked. For being seen as dumb by other parts of the states, the people on the plains have it all together. History shows they are underestimated and shouldn't be taken light heartily.
Then there was Gordon Call. A man that never paid taxes, went to prison, got out on a condition and broke it. He escapes the long arm of the law and hides out. When they finally find him and go to get him they make huge mistakes. The Federal Marshals knew that he was always armed and he wasn't going to go willingly. But they stopped him on the middle of a road and of course he gets out shooting. His kid gets shot and Call leaves him on the side of the road and takes off. They track Call to Arkansas, in the process of smoking him out the blow up the house and Call. Funny how that works out. I think it's probably one of the funniest wild goose chases the federal government has done.
Here on the plains the history of voting shows to always be conservative republican. I can see this because the people of the plains are normally old fashion and have strong beliefs. The Red party tends to follow more strict religious values and have old fashion (yet current) beliefs. All my life that is how my family has voted, and since they are my family we share the same values and such. Another trend shown to us is that we tend to send democrats to congress. Mr. Isern stated we send Democrats to congress so if they happen to make a tax they will tax the whole nation and we send republicans to state senate so they don't tax the state. I don't know too much about this kind of stuff, so I trust him on this. When he mentioned that North Dakota got a lot of federal spending money it made me pretty happy. It's good to hear that we are taking advantage of money they are giving us. Every year they create so many programs and such that give out money but no one ever hears about them. Well I guess North Dakota is on top of things.
It's funny to think that farmers are radicals in their own way. In the lecture it was mentioned that the plains has a history of radicalism. It made me laugh when he started explaining some of the things that they have done. When I think about it, we aren't radical we just don't take no for an answer. Our methods are a little bit louder than others because no one thinks that plains people would ever do something radical.
We then went into some of the organizations that have been formed on the plains that became political. Some of them have made some good things happen in the government and then others either never got into the government or made some legislature that never worked. For being seen as dumb by other parts of the states, the people on the plains have it all together. History shows they are underestimated and shouldn't be taken light heartily.
Then there was Gordon Call. A man that never paid taxes, went to prison, got out on a condition and broke it. He escapes the long arm of the law and hides out. When they finally find him and go to get him they make huge mistakes. The Federal Marshals knew that he was always armed and he wasn't going to go willingly. But they stopped him on the middle of a road and of course he gets out shooting. His kid gets shot and Call leaves him on the side of the road and takes off. They track Call to Arkansas, in the process of smoking him out the blow up the house and Call. Funny how that works out. I think it's probably one of the funniest wild goose chases the federal government has done.
RP: Lecture #9
Lecture #9 focused on the migration of numerous ethnic groups to the Great Plains. In the 1800's as the plains were beginning to become settled, the promise of land and freedom to all cultures was the word in the USA. Waves of immigrants from Russia, Germany, Poland, the Ukraine, and more flocked to the Great Plains region from the 1880's-1910. As these people settled, most of them tended to settle in areas that were heavily populated with members of their same ethnic group. New settlers attracted family and friends back home through chain mail (chain migration) and encouraged them to come too. Many cultures were forced to assimilate the surrounding, new cultures; while others kept persistent. Most chose to practice acculturation, which meant they adopted the English language and other aspects but kept a close tie to their own traditions.
As much as immigrants became the minority of the plains region, there were even more minorities within these newly settled towns. I find it very interesting that I now know why the African American man in a white community, was the barber for the white man. As well as the second hotel chain in each town was normally operated by the Asian-Indian population. This shows that there was significant diversity and even discrimination within these new towns. I believe reason why prairie towns lacked diversity is because of the difficult conditions that an outsider from a different culture in a new town and country must have experienced. Finally, I have found that even today a road like the Kindred road separates what used to be Norwegians and German Moravian area, still holds true today with their descendants. Lastly, you have the old Episcopal churches that dot the prairie, as well as you still have ethnically dominated towns and politics between the various ethnic groups.
As much as immigrants became the minority of the plains region, there were even more minorities within these newly settled towns. I find it very interesting that I now know why the African American man in a white community, was the barber for the white man. As well as the second hotel chain in each town was normally operated by the Asian-Indian population. This shows that there was significant diversity and even discrimination within these new towns. I believe reason why prairie towns lacked diversity is because of the difficult conditions that an outsider from a different culture in a new town and country must have experienced. Finally, I have found that even today a road like the Kindred road separates what used to be Norwegians and German Moravian area, still holds true today with their descendants. Lastly, you have the old Episcopal churches that dot the prairie, as well as you still have ethnically dominated towns and politics between the various ethnic groups.
Lecture 10
In Lecture 10 "Fire on the Ice" we talked about politics. We started talking about how the great plains usually and recently vote towards, and that is mostly conservative. Like in the recent Presidential election the great plains was mostly conservative voting for McCain. Then we discussed why the great plains usually votes towards the conservative side, and that is because we are all about farming and agriculture. But the weird thing that we in North Dakota keep sending Democrats to Washington. That is because this guys understand the farming and agriculture needs. They also get us federal spending on Agriculture and military. North Dakota is number one in federal spending, this I found really cool because it really puts us on the map. When I usually take trips for baseball or hockey teams and we go down South or East it seems that most people never heard of Fargo let alone North Dakota. So, this federal spending thing actually puts use on the map and its something we should pride on. Well we went on talking about the 3rd parties and how one almost became the actually third party. If I remember right it was the socialism party, it really got me think, if they became popular how would the U.S. be today with 3 parties. In this lecture we also talked about the farmer's alliance, the American Agriculture movement, and the Farmer's Union. In this lecture we talked about how the politics changed and how they relate to the great plains.
Matthew Lee
Matthew Lee
LR 10
In lecture ten we learned about the politics of the plains states. In this lecture we learned a little about the different organizations that were created by farmers for farmers and their socialist traits, and we learned a little about some peoples theories on why the people of the plains are they way they are in political views. A few of the organizations we learned about were the National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry, The Farmers Alliance, Populous Party for the People and the Socialism and Non-Partism League. Most of these groups had socialist traits. Due to these groups there are state owned banks, grain mills and many other state owned or locally owned businesses. These groups also tried to set prices for the items sold at the market. This would mean that the price was the same where ever you went to sell or buy. Very socialist. Next we talked about some of the some of the writers that put in there thought on how politics affected the people of the plains. One of the writers thought that “farmers were ignorant. Especially political ones.” And another writer thought that people of the plains were suspicious and “have a chip on their shoulder.”
I think that the political groups formed were not a good idea. I believe in a free marked and free trade. I think that mills should be allowed to set there prices to what ever they want. If there were no competition, why would anyone want to start a business? The goal is to be more productive at a lower cost to the consumer; therefore you attract more costumers than your competition. Survival of the fittest is the name of the game when it comes to businesses. I also can agree with the writer who claimed that the plains people have a “chip on their shoulder” I think that not only the plains people have this mentality but so do a lot to people. I think that everyone is suspicious of something in there lives. And I think that everyone has been or is suspicious of our government at one point or another. For example the Iraq War. Now I am not saying that it was a good idea or bad idea to go to war, but the fact that there was a claim of weapons of mass-destruction. When no such things were found I think that everyone was a little suspicious. Maybe it was not about the weapons. In all I think that you have the right to the free market and the right to be suspicious of your government and other things at times. That is what makes the U.S.A a free country.
I think that the political groups formed were not a good idea. I believe in a free marked and free trade. I think that mills should be allowed to set there prices to what ever they want. If there were no competition, why would anyone want to start a business? The goal is to be more productive at a lower cost to the consumer; therefore you attract more costumers than your competition. Survival of the fittest is the name of the game when it comes to businesses. I also can agree with the writer who claimed that the plains people have a “chip on their shoulder” I think that not only the plains people have this mentality but so do a lot to people. I think that everyone is suspicious of something in there lives. And I think that everyone has been or is suspicious of our government at one point or another. For example the Iraq War. Now I am not saying that it was a good idea or bad idea to go to war, but the fact that there was a claim of weapons of mass-destruction. When no such things were found I think that everyone was a little suspicious. Maybe it was not about the weapons. In all I think that you have the right to the free market and the right to be suspicious of your government and other things at times. That is what makes the U.S.A a free country.
Monday, November 24, 2008
Lecture 9
In lecture 9 "Wir Sehen Uns Nimmer Mehr" Mr. Isern started out the lecture by signing a German song. The lecture was about ethnicity, about the immigrants on the plains and how they came. In the first wave of immigrants there were different types. They are the old immigrants, second stage, and the exodusters. The second wave consisted of the 20th century settlers, industrial settlers, and the black settlers. We also talked about the patterns on the plains involving the chain migration, group settlements, and diapered settlements. Probably the most interesting part of the lecture was the part on the Ethnic groups typically running and owning a certain business. My family is actually history doesn't really fall into the "typical" owning of a business since my grandfather actually came to America around the 1950's. It was still interesting to learn that my family could have came to the great plains sooner and maybe would have fallen into one of those ownerships of a certain business. We ended the lecture with a big talk on the German immigrants. It started out in Russia with Cathrin. She gave the Germans/Russians some land, so they could go there and not get drafted, religious views, and to farm. After that they came to the great plains. The Mennonites and Volga were Group Migrants, and the black sea were chain migrants. This lecture was very interesting probably my favorite because I was learning about my past and about fellow people from the same ethnicity. Also learned about other ethnicity's that came to the great plains. It was very interesting to learn about what and how the immigrants did to survive in the plains.
Matthew Lee
Matthew Lee
Lecture 9
Ethnicity on the plains was an interesting look at the ethnic groups that make-up the plains, and how these ethnic groups found their way to the plains. The first group of immigrants to the plains was mainly Germans and Norwegians. These immigrants came to the plains for many reasons; some sought escape from military service in their country, others came with hopes of a new great life, and many followed in what is known as chain migration. Chain migration brought in families who missed loved ones or were enticed by stories prosperity. Another group of early immigrants were the Exodusters or groups of African-Americans moving west. The second wave of immigrants is less thought of in this part of the country. These immigrants were from southern and eastern Europe. Each of these groups of immigrants found their own niche within society. These included African-Americans who were allowed to become barbers, Asians who were allowed to run the laundry, and Greeks who were likely to run restaurants.
This kind of separation of races by jobs or niches is very interesting. I understand that most of these jobs were labor and this separation was a type of continued racism, but it is interesting because what made it ok for African-Americans to be barbers or Asians to run laundries. Why do the Greeks run the restaurants? It's one of those interesting things about segregation and racism. Your good enough or we can accept you enough to do this, but you can't do that.
This kind of separation of races by jobs or niches is very interesting. I understand that most of these jobs were labor and this separation was a type of continued racism, but it is interesting because what made it ok for African-Americans to be barbers or Asians to run laundries. Why do the Greeks run the restaurants? It's one of those interesting things about segregation and racism. Your good enough or we can accept you enough to do this, but you can't do that.
Lecture 10 Response
In lecture 10, "Fire On Ice," we talked about different views of politics on the plains. We started off by discussing the fact that Plains states benefit from federal expenditures, due to the existence of redistribution. In addition to this, Mr. Isern commented by saying that federalism may be a great thing for the great plains. I thought it was interesting that this lecture took place during this year's presidential election. It felt good to be up to date on current and historical factors of politics which exist in the plains region and the country as a whole. The lecture went on to talk about political contradictions. Such contradictions included the fact that we are conservative, yet we have a strong history of being radical. Also, Mr. Isern introduced us to farm radicalism, which raises the question of whether farmers are radical or not. The discussion soon led into talk of The National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry. This was a secret society that started out as a social gathering. In the 1870s, it organized economically and later represented a focus on politics. We also talked about the People's/Populus Party which was a 3rd party that disappeared. It was also mentioned that the Socialism/Nonpartisan League pulled heavily in Oklahoma and Texas. Later, we went on to learn that Canada has possessed a progressive party/CCF. Also, Mr. Isern said, "A lot of the radical ideas came out in the prairie states in relation to the thought of red states." It was interesting to learn that the farmer's union is most prominent in North Dakota and South Dakota. In the lecture, we also talked about Parrington, the author who looked into the past and pointed out liberal individuals. Ultimately, towards the end of the lecture, we talked about Gordan Call, who hated the idea of income tax. Also, he was very fond of guns. He believed that authority should lie with the people. His actions resulted in him being sent to a federal prison because he failed to turn in income tax returns. All in all, I was able to notice that old fashioned liberal values have the potential to come into play today. - Dain Sullivan
Hjemkomst Interpretive Center Visit
I visited the Heritage Hjemkomst Interpretive Center in Moorhead on November 11. I arrived just in time for a guided tour of the Hopperstad Stave Church. The church is a replica of the Hopperstad Stave Church in Norway. The church was the dream of Guy Paulson of Fargo. He carved the church, which stretches 72 feet high and is made out of pine and redwood, with cedar shingles. Inside the church, there are huge, 27 foot pine columns. There is an alter but no pews because people always stood for church at that time. There is also a "drive-through window" as my tour guide called it. People with leprosy and other diseases would congregate around this little window so they could receive communion. It was cold in the church and the people surely huddled tightly together for warmth during the winter months.
Next I watched a video about the making of the Hjemkomst Viking Ship. Robert Asp of Moorhead modeled the ship after the Gokstad burial ship that was built around 800 a.d. Asp's dream was to build the ship and sail it to Norway. Construction began in 1972. By the summer of 1980, the ship was ready for a test sail on Lake Superior. Sadly, in December of 1980, Robert Asp died of leukemia. His children continued with their father's dream and carried on with preparations for a trip to Norway. With the help of Erik Rudstrom, an experienced Norwegian skipper, the Hjemkomst set sail in the summer of 1982. A tough trip awaited the crew, but they prevailed and reached the shores of Noway on July 19, 1982.
A common thread running through the Stave church and the Viking ship is people's connection to the past. Guy Paulson and Robert Asp dreamt of completing something that would connect them to their heritage. We talked about how a purpose of history is identity and these two projects illustrate that. I really enjoyed by visit because I had never heard of either the Stave church or the Viking ship before, so I learned a lot.
Next I watched a video about the making of the Hjemkomst Viking Ship. Robert Asp of Moorhead modeled the ship after the Gokstad burial ship that was built around 800 a.d. Asp's dream was to build the ship and sail it to Norway. Construction began in 1972. By the summer of 1980, the ship was ready for a test sail on Lake Superior. Sadly, in December of 1980, Robert Asp died of leukemia. His children continued with their father's dream and carried on with preparations for a trip to Norway. With the help of Erik Rudstrom, an experienced Norwegian skipper, the Hjemkomst set sail in the summer of 1982. A tough trip awaited the crew, but they prevailed and reached the shores of Noway on July 19, 1982.
A common thread running through the Stave church and the Viking ship is people's connection to the past. Guy Paulson and Robert Asp dreamt of completing something that would connect them to their heritage. We talked about how a purpose of history is identity and these two projects illustrate that. I really enjoyed by visit because I had never heard of either the Stave church or the Viking ship before, so I learned a lot.
Lecture 9 Response
In Lecture 9, we talked about ethnicity on the plains. During the first wave of immigration, there were different types of immigrants. There were old immigrants in areas of 19th- century settlement, second-stage immigrants in later settlements, and exodusters as domestic immigrants. During the second wave of immigration, there were different types as well. They included new immigrants in areas of 20th-century settlement, immigrants in industrial settings, and black immigration from the U.S. to Canada. The lecture went on to talk about such things as the Yankee Thread, which talked about such things as Yankees on the Kindred road and succession by ethnics. When talking about patterns on the prairie, we mentioned chain migration, group settlements, and dispersed settlements. We also went over terms of ethnicity, which included assimilation, acculturation, and cultural persistence. Two hypotheses included discouraging assimilation because of isolation and encouraging assimilation because of a need to cooperate. I thought it was interesting when we talked about diversity in diversity. Especially when Mr. Isern said that mostly black men were barbers up until the 1920s and laundromats and cafes were often run by Chinese individuals. I was also interested to learn that 1/3 of North Dakota is German-Russian. Following this fact, I learned about German-Russian Group colonization. This included the Mennonites of Central Kansas, the Volga Germans of Western Kansas, and the Mennonites of Manitoba. The Mennonite religion was also accompanied by Lutheranism and Roman Catholicism among the German-Russians. In the next part of the lecture, we talked about people of Mexican descent on the plains. Mr. Isern introduced us to the many titles that can be given to these people. Such titles include Hispanics, Latinos, Chicanos, and Mexicanos. Their quest was for agricultural and industrial employment. I was interested to learn about Railroad Colonias because they relate to the current day "Ghetto." Plus, the subject opened my eyes to the racial segregation that has existed among these people. In addition, the lecture also talked about packinghouse migration, which took place in Texas, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, and Minnesota. Ultimately, the discussion led to that of the Botanical Metaphor, which had to do with diversity in nature and diversity in society. Therefore, I left the discussion with the knowledge that ethnicity leaves visible and invisible marks in the world. - Dain Sullivan
RP: Lecture 11
Lecture 11, "It looked so awful black" was about the Dust Bowl era of plains history. As part of the lecture we watched the films; "The Plow that Broke the Plains" and "Rain for the Earth." The plow that broke the plains showed some of what the plains farmers had to go through during the dust bowl. At first glance this film seemed to be telling of the perserverance of the farmers and attempting to gain sympathy for them. However Dr. Isern explained that the last few minutes of the original film had been removed and that it was really a propaganda film blaming capitalism for the problems at the time. The film originally also was trying to convince people living on the plains at the time that they should leave and with the governments help settle somewhere else. It is hard to think of this film as propaganda without seeing the last few minutes of it, because it seems to glorify the farmers perserverance more than anything. However looking at in another perspective one could take it to show that farmers ruined the plains by way of plowing the land, this film could really be taken several ways. The second film, Rain for the earth, basically tryed to show that times will be better and that farmers can get through the hard time. It also showed that farmers are doing their part and the best they can and therefore are worthy of support. This film shows farmers taking care of animals instead of destroying the plains by way of the plow. It is certainly a more optimistic film than the other.
From watching these films I can't believe that anybody stayed on the plains. It looks like a horrible place with the large dust piles and abonded farms and equipment. I suppose that those who did stay were glad they did, since they at least didn't loose their land and probably had the chance to buy up the land of those who left. I found it amazing that some of the farmers in the second film actually had to haul water over five miles every day and they had to load and unload it all by hand, now that is amazing perserverance. I did have a question from the first film though, it showed only half of ND being on the plains, it appeared that most of the land east of the Missouri wasn't included. Why would this be, is it just this map that shows this, or is this actually where the cutoff technically is?
Fred Lassonde
From watching these films I can't believe that anybody stayed on the plains. It looks like a horrible place with the large dust piles and abonded farms and equipment. I suppose that those who did stay were glad they did, since they at least didn't loose their land and probably had the chance to buy up the land of those who left. I found it amazing that some of the farmers in the second film actually had to haul water over five miles every day and they had to load and unload it all by hand, now that is amazing perserverance. I did have a question from the first film though, it showed only half of ND being on the plains, it appeared that most of the land east of the Missouri wasn't included. Why would this be, is it just this map that shows this, or is this actually where the cutoff technically is?
Fred Lassonde
Labels: Fred Lassonde
RP: Lecture 10
Lecture #10, Fire on Ice, dealt with politics on the Plains over the years. One thing we learned about was "original liberalism" which was the idology of maximizing the power of the individual and minimizing the power of the government. Actually an historic liberal is considered a conservative now. It was interesting how Dr. Isern explained that it is common for the Plains states to elect Republicans to the State House, in order to keep taxes low. However, they often elect Democrats to Congress in order to obtain Federal tax dollar spending on the Plains. This seems to make a great deal of sense and I had never thought of this before. He also said that the plains states almost always make out the best for Federal funding (probably because of the Democrats in Congress). There are a number of reasons for this including, but not limited to; agriculture and the plains states having more miles of highway than other states.
We also learned of some social and political organizations through the years. These include the National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry, the Farmer's Aliance, the Socialist non-partisan league, the Progressive Party in Canada, the American Ag Movement, and the Farmers Union. I remember my dad talking about the Farmers Union a lot when I was a kid, he was a grain farmer for most of his life. It makes me wonder, is the Farmers Union still around? Any way the last thing we talked about in this lecture was the story of Gordon Call who had a shoot out with Federal Agents and killed two of them. Its hard to believe that this happened in North Dakota as it is usually so layed back here. Also its strange that a man who claimed to believe in the Bible would do something like this. Was the Posse Comatades actually based out of North Dakota or was it spread across several states?
Fred Lassonde
We also learned of some social and political organizations through the years. These include the National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry, the Farmer's Aliance, the Socialist non-partisan league, the Progressive Party in Canada, the American Ag Movement, and the Farmers Union. I remember my dad talking about the Farmers Union a lot when I was a kid, he was a grain farmer for most of his life. It makes me wonder, is the Farmers Union still around? Any way the last thing we talked about in this lecture was the story of Gordon Call who had a shoot out with Federal Agents and killed two of them. Its hard to believe that this happened in North Dakota as it is usually so layed back here. Also its strange that a man who claimed to believe in the Bible would do something like this. Was the Posse Comatades actually based out of North Dakota or was it spread across several states?
Fred Lassonde
Labels: Fred Lassonde
RP Lecture 11
Lecture number 11 was titled "It Looked So Awful Black" and dealt with the Dust Bowl era of the Great Plains. We watched two movies in class that showed different perspectives of the Dust Bowl and what life was like for those that lived it. The first video we watched was called "The Plow that Broke the Plains". It was a short film from 1936 that detailed the plains and why the Dust Bowl happened. The plains were described in this film as dry, treeless, uncharted oceans of grass, and having little to no rain, high winds, lots of sun, and no rivers. It was said to be great land for cattle grazing and soon the plow was introduced to the plains. As a class we discussed what the reasons for this film are. Some ideas we came up with were that it might have been for sympathy from the rest of the nation, to tell a story, or to encourage better conservations methods. Personally I thought it was to tell the story of the Dust Bowl. Dr. Isern explained how the last 3 minutes were cut off and this film was made to encourage people to get out of the plains with government help and resettle elsewhere. To be honest this never crossed my mind but it does make sense. It is interesting to think if the plow and humans really did cause the Dust Bowl or was it just an event in nature like many others we have seen?
The second video was "Rain for the Earth" and took a different perspective and encouraged the people of the plains to stay and wait for rain. One line of the movie that was the most telling was, "The lands are troubled, the people are not afraid." This shows the will power the people of the plains really had. The movie had many analogies about the Dust Bowl such as rolling seas of anger, drop burning dust, and dust that stung the nostrils of beast and man. These really gave the viewer a sense of what the Dust Bowl must have been like. It was sheep that really helped the people survive through these tough times. If the price of wool was low the farmers could sell the lamb meat and if lamb meat was low they could sell the wool.
Both of these movies were pretty good. I felt the second was to be more interesting because of the perspective it took and how it told of how much courage and strength the people on the plains during this time had to stay and push through. Not only did they have to survive the Dust Bowl but the Great Depression also. This was a very rough period of America's history but the people of the plains were able to overcome it.
The second video was "Rain for the Earth" and took a different perspective and encouraged the people of the plains to stay and wait for rain. One line of the movie that was the most telling was, "The lands are troubled, the people are not afraid." This shows the will power the people of the plains really had. The movie had many analogies about the Dust Bowl such as rolling seas of anger, drop burning dust, and dust that stung the nostrils of beast and man. These really gave the viewer a sense of what the Dust Bowl must have been like. It was sheep that really helped the people survive through these tough times. If the price of wool was low the farmers could sell the lamb meat and if lamb meat was low they could sell the wool.
Both of these movies were pretty good. I felt the second was to be more interesting because of the perspective it took and how it told of how much courage and strength the people on the plains during this time had to stay and push through. Not only did they have to survive the Dust Bowl but the Great Depression also. This was a very rough period of America's history but the people of the plains were able to overcome it.
RP Lecture 10
Lecture number 10 was titled "Fire on the Ice" and dealt with the politics of the plains. Dr. Isern first started the lecture talking about liberalism and how the definition has changed over time. In the old world, liberalism was about keeping government out of people's business for the most part and maximum individual liberty. In America that became what we know as conservatism. As a class we discussed the plains and how they tend to be "red" states. What I found the most interesting is how North Dakota votes Republican to avoid taxes and then sends Democrats to Washington. I didn't realize North Dakota was number one in the U.S. in the amount of federal spending that is receives. Dr. Isern mentioned that Democrats have gained power by out-Republicaning the Republicans, which I thought was pretty funny.
Although the plains tend to be more conservative leaning many radical ideas and organizations have orginated on the plains. Isern talked about groups such as he National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry which was radicalism that was made up of both parties, the Farmer's Alliance which became the Populist Party, and the American Agricultural Movement which was a group of farmer's from Colorado that used radical ideas to protest things such as high prices of wheat. I was surprised how the plains kind of contradicts itself in terms of politics. It seems like the plains are pretty smart when it comes to political ideas though. They don't just pick a party and totally disregard the other. They use both parties ideas and in the end do what is the smartest decision.
Although the plains tend to be more conservative leaning many radical ideas and organizations have orginated on the plains. Isern talked about groups such as he National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry which was radicalism that was made up of both parties, the Farmer's Alliance which became the Populist Party, and the American Agricultural Movement which was a group of farmer's from Colorado that used radical ideas to protest things such as high prices of wheat. I was surprised how the plains kind of contradicts itself in terms of politics. It seems like the plains are pretty smart when it comes to political ideas though. They don't just pick a party and totally disregard the other. They use both parties ideas and in the end do what is the smartest decision.
RP: Lecture 10
Lecture 10 "Fire on the Ice," was all about politics and radicalism on the plains. We began with the discussion of the definition of liberalism. Professor Isern explained that there is modern liberalism, meaning maximum individual and economic liberty, and historical liberalism, which would now be considered conservative in America. We talked about the Great Plains states always being seen as the "red" states, meaning that we vote Republican. I enjoyed the discussion that followed, mostly because I had never noticed, or even paid attention to the voting patterns of the Dakotas. Isern pointed out that the political demographic of the plains states depends on which level of government you happen to be talking about. States such as North Dakota have historically and continue to elect Republicans for our state administration, mainly so they will not tax us, and elect the Democrats to represent us in Washington to bring federal spending into our states. I think this is a very smart idea on our part!
We then continued on to talk about politics in Canada, and how Alberta and Saskatchewan have completely different political views even though they share an extensive border.
The next topic of lecture was radicalism on the Great Plains. We discussed many of the different radical groups such as the Grange, which still exists today as a sort of lodge organization. We also discussed the 1880s Farmers Alliance, which eventually turned into the Populist party of the plains, Socialism and the Nonpartisan League who made great strides with candidate Eugene Debbs in 1920. We went on to mention Canada's Progressive Party and Tommy Douglas who was basically the founder of Canada's nationalized health care policies, which has recently become a big topic in the U.S. as well.
One of the last sections of the lecture asked the question "Where does this all come from?" Isern mention the works of Parrington, who was an American liberal and wrote about the genealogy of American liberalism. He thought of the farm radicals as the good guys in history. We then looked at Hofstader, who thought the farm radicals were looking back and not at all forward looking as Parrington had said. Hofstader thought of the Great Plains people as angry biggots or a "bunch of hicks" as Professor Isern put it.
Lecture 10
The Plains states often votes conservative as they did again in this year's election; however, conservative does not mean the same thing it meant at one point in history. The traditional term of liberalism is maximizing human liberty, or in other words, the people had the power. Now days conservatism has replaced the liberalism term due to the fact that the U.S. has a democratic government, thus everyone is liberal. Another common aspect of plains politics is the number of state government owned institutions such as banks and energy companies.
Many of the decisions made in elections pertain to views on taxes as well as government funding. The plains states often elect republicans to state houses to prevent taxation in the plains states; however, plains states elect democrats to Washington because if the plains states are taxed, so is every other state. In addition plains states recieve large amounts of highway and university funding.
Although today the plains are considered a conservative region, there are many radical ideas that have come from the plains. Some examples of these are the Farmer's Alliance, Socialism/ Nonpartisan League, Progressive Party, the AAM and several other parties. Some of these organizations started as social organization for farmers but later went into politics.
This weekend I watched "Prairie Giant, the Tommy Douglas Story" and thought the movie fit well into this lecture. Tommy Douglas was a Canadian reverend who began to run for office in the Canadian government as a representative of the socialist CCF political organization when he began seeing the Canadian farmers and general people struggle during hard times. Tommy Douglas is known as the father of Medicare and started the programs necessary to provide free education and medical care to Canadian residents. This is a perfect example of a radical political organization that is plains based but in this case the party was successful, unlike many other third parties in history.
Many of the decisions made in elections pertain to views on taxes as well as government funding. The plains states often elect republicans to state houses to prevent taxation in the plains states; however, plains states elect democrats to Washington because if the plains states are taxed, so is every other state. In addition plains states recieve large amounts of highway and university funding.
Although today the plains are considered a conservative region, there are many radical ideas that have come from the plains. Some examples of these are the Farmer's Alliance, Socialism/ Nonpartisan League, Progressive Party, the AAM and several other parties. Some of these organizations started as social organization for farmers but later went into politics.
This weekend I watched "Prairie Giant, the Tommy Douglas Story" and thought the movie fit well into this lecture. Tommy Douglas was a Canadian reverend who began to run for office in the Canadian government as a representative of the socialist CCF political organization when he began seeing the Canadian farmers and general people struggle during hard times. Tommy Douglas is known as the father of Medicare and started the programs necessary to provide free education and medical care to Canadian residents. This is a perfect example of a radical political organization that is plains based but in this case the party was successful, unlike many other third parties in history.
Lecture 9
When discussing immigration to the Great Plains of America, different waves of immigration also brought a variance in culture and religious beliefs into the plains. The first wave of immigration to the plains occurred during the 1880's and mainly brought Scandinavian immigrants. One of the most talked about ethnic groups from the first immigration wave is the Germans from Russia. Many Germans moved Russia because they were offered land and an exemption from the Russian draft as well as religious tolerance. Even though they were living in Russia, they maintained their German culture, thus they were called the Germans from Russia when they arrived in North America. From the 1870's to the 1900's the Germans from Russia left Russia because they lost their exemption from the Russian draft and were no longer allowed religious and cultural freedom. These immigrants came to North America by chain immigration, group immigration, or dispersed immigration.
The second wave of immigration during the 20th century consisted of peoples from southern and eastern Europe. Mexicanos often worked on the railroad or as beet blockers while Asian Indians tended to operate hotels. Mexicanos whom worked on the railroad often formed colonias, or villages that maintained much of their cultural practices.
I didn't realize just how many businesses were typically owned by certain ethnic groups until we discussed the topic in class. However, once we began talking about Asian Indian owned hotels and Greek owned cafes I started to think of other ethnic specific businesses. One example is Asian owned Nail salons. Not only are Asian owned nail salons seen in the movies, this trend holds true when visiting the local mall. I think this is an interesting way to make the move to America and believe it is an important method of immigration for many different ethnic groups
The second wave of immigration during the 20th century consisted of peoples from southern and eastern Europe. Mexicanos often worked on the railroad or as beet blockers while Asian Indians tended to operate hotels. Mexicanos whom worked on the railroad often formed colonias, or villages that maintained much of their cultural practices.
I didn't realize just how many businesses were typically owned by certain ethnic groups until we discussed the topic in class. However, once we began talking about Asian Indian owned hotels and Greek owned cafes I started to think of other ethnic specific businesses. One example is Asian owned Nail salons. Not only are Asian owned nail salons seen in the movies, this trend holds true when visiting the local mall. I think this is an interesting way to make the move to America and believe it is an important method of immigration for many different ethnic groups
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Alamo RP
The Alamo starring Billy Bob Thorton as David Crockett, and Dennis Quaid as Sam Houston. The Alamo depicts the historic battle of the Alamo in Texas between the Texans and Santa Ann's Mexican army. The Mexican Influence is forced out of Texas by the local Texans. In return Santa Anna returns with an army to defeat the Texans. They come to a place known as the Alamo where Texans are holding in the Alamo. Some famous hisrtoric characters that were positioned in the Alamo was David Crockett, and David Bowie (Invented the Bowie Knife). Both are known as true outdoorsman and frontiersman. I researched the Alamo battle to see how correct the film replicated the battle of the Alamo, and found some differences. The directors were trying to be historically correct but since it was a PG-13 movie they had to make it less intense. The movie doesn't make it a bloody battle like it really was. There were also some events that seemd to skew away from the true events. Like at the end when David Crockett wasn't killed until after the Alamo was reseized by Santa Anna. The movie showed him being executed after most of the Texans were killed, and I found thats not how it happened. The movie was historically accurate. The Alamo went through three skirmishes, the Texans defending the first two and falling to the third one, which they were overwhelmed by a night skirmish. After the Alamo fell Santa Anna separated his army and sent them looking for Sam Houston and his militia. Sam Houston was moving east looking for the perfect place to fight Santa Anna army and found an open pasture where he was going to fight. Santa Anna's army camped right where Sam Houston wanted him. In the last scenes of the movie, Sam Houston sent his Militia force right into the Mexican camp and defeated the Army in less than fifteen minutes. Capturing Santa Anna and in exchanghe of his life Santa Anna signed over Texas and gave Texas to Sam Houston and His people. It was a very good movie, I like these movie that tell about historic battles.
lecture 11
Lecture 11 were two short videos about the Dust Bowl in the 1930's. Both weere in black and white and produced in the 1930's. These were probably the two oldest videos I have ever seen. The First video shown was "Plow that broke the Plains". They talked about cattle and how important they were to the plains, but when I saw that, since every one was rushing to plow unders grasslands and open fields up for free reanging cattle that what kind of created the dust bowl. At first they were relying on cattle to pull the plows, the as technology advanced came the motorized tracter. A John Deere was one of the tracters that I noticed in the video. The Quote from the movie "Wheat will win the war", meant to me that this wheat that these farmers are growing are being sent over seas to U.S. soldiers in Europe and kept soldieers fed, so I believe that wheat did win the war. With out food how would you keep up morale and spirits of the soldiers. Some of thos videos seemed that this movie wasn't even filmed in this country, I would have never thought there would be dust storms that big in the U.S.. I would expect dust storms like that to be in Africa, like the Kalahari desert.
The second video was called "Rain for the Earth". This video was about keeping morale up in the plains, trying to convince farmers and ranchers to stay put and hold out for the rains to come. People were getting out of these regions of the dust bowl because their was no money in it. This video kept repeating, "The Rains will come". For th one that did stay they rains did come. The film made the folks that did stay on the plains look strong, and fearless of this disaster. Made the Plains people look like heroes almost. One thing the film pointed out and Isern elaborated on was that sheep kept these farm alive. The sheep were more tolerable to these desert conditions than cattle were.
I found these films very interesting, I know World War II got us out of the Depression, but I never thought how people survived on the plains during the depression and the dust bowl, and these visoes showed me how they survived.
The second video was called "Rain for the Earth". This video was about keeping morale up in the plains, trying to convince farmers and ranchers to stay put and hold out for the rains to come. People were getting out of these regions of the dust bowl because their was no money in it. This video kept repeating, "The Rains will come". For th one that did stay they rains did come. The film made the folks that did stay on the plains look strong, and fearless of this disaster. Made the Plains people look like heroes almost. One thing the film pointed out and Isern elaborated on was that sheep kept these farm alive. The sheep were more tolerable to these desert conditions than cattle were.
I found these films very interesting, I know World War II got us out of the Depression, but I never thought how people survived on the plains during the depression and the dust bowl, and these visoes showed me how they survived.
Fire on Ice lecture 10
Lecture 10 was about politics on the plains and the views of the residents of the plains . Isern point out that the plains were "red" which meant they were leaning on the conservative side of the teeter totter. Isern then pointed out what I found a little confusing in the recent election, that some states will vote republican for the state and democratic for Washington. I thought before Isern explained this, why would states vote for both sides. It all comes down to not wanting to pay higher taxes. Some groups that were mentioned by Isern were The National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry, Farmers Alliance, The Farmers Union, and their were a few others but I can't recall what they were. A good example of not paying taxes was Gordon Kahl who refused to pay in Federal Income Taxes, and was sentanced to prison, but his life ended in a shootout with U.S. Marshals. I found this lecture interesting, but hard for me to follow along because I am not into politics as much as other people.
LR: Lecture 10
Lecture 10 is titled Fire on the Ice. I thought this lecture was very interesting considering it was election time and an appropriate topic. I especially thought it was interesting when we were discussing Canada's national health care system and auto insurance system. Isern polled the class as asked who thought we should have a national health care system and I was one of the few people who raised my hand. Unfortunately, many college students have no idea about the real costs of life. Many are still included on their parents health insurance and mom and dad also pay their car insurance. My english teacher told me that her parents paid for her insurance until she was married. I believe this is a reason that many students did not raise their hands. They don't understand what it is like to try and pay for insurance, especially when it is not provided with a job. Unfortunately, I believe many people are like this. I also thought the discussion of all the "radical" organizations was very interesting. I also thought the discussion on whether or not the Great Plains was red was also interesting. Isern explained that we as a state receive a lot of federal money. That would explain why we vote republican but send a democrat to congress. We have to protect our "ASSets". I also believe that the railroad system should be nationalized to prevent the abuse of these very powerful railroad companies. I think it could have been utilized much better and more efficiently. Isern's explanation of Historical liberals now being today's conservatives entirely makes sense. Over time, what is different and what is out side the box changes into traditional and inside the box. Just look at the tattoo and piercing trends within the United States, what was considered absolite is now much more common if not entirely normal. Many things in life follow this pattern.
LR: Lecture 9
Lecture number 9 was titled Wir Sehen Uns Nimmer Mehr. If memory serves me correctly this is the lecture where Isern sang us that beautiful song in German. I really enjoyed the conversation about the diversity within diversity and how there are many scattered Niche populations throughout the Great Plains. Good friends of our family live nearby a local Amish community and this lecture reminded me of them. Sometimes I look around Fargo and I don't think we are very diverse, however, after learning how the Asian Americans used to run hotels up and down the Great Plains I have began to rethink my evaluation. Isern also talked about the Chinese and how they were popular for running laundry mats and how the Lebinize were door peddlers. Isern classifies these as "stereotypes" but explains that these are the niches we allowed them to fill. Also the discussion about Mexican Immigrants was very interesting. With the recent workers that are in the news for being illegal immigrants it draws more attention the immigration of foreigners. It was also interesting to learn how the railroads played such a big part in providing jobs and homes for these immigrants. This also affected the location of these immigrants. I also really enjoyed learning the background of the German-Americans and how they were displaced from their own country and then fled here after they were forced to enlist in the military.
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Professor Vollun lecture
I recently attended the fall colloquium for professor Chuck Vollun from SDSU. This two-hour block was divided into two different parts. In the first part Professor Vollun lectured about his Dissertation research and the second part of the colloquium was set aside for questions. The topic Professor Vollun researched for his PHD was "Hell On Wheels Towns". This name described most of the boom and bust towns of this era that grew along the railroads. It all started when congress decided to create two railroad company’s to connect the east and west coasts. These two railroads were the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railroad companies. The UP started in the eastern states and the CP started in the west to eventually meet in the middle. In order for workers to survive, supply lines and lifelines were set up along the railroad tracks. Most of these camps or stations ended up becoming towns. These towns typically were built to provide for the thousands of workers whom would be living in one area for the winter. These towns were filled with everything from brothels to barbers. You could go buy groceries, a prostitute or have a shot of whiskey all on the same block. They were set up a lot different than traditional eastern towns. This was because of how fast these towns grew. Cheyenne, Wyoming seemed to be the focus of his research and was the main city that he spoke of. Professor Vollun stated that the town of Cheyenne developed in a span of about 22 months. I think that is pretty amazing that you can have a town of 100 people turn into 5,ooo in a matter of a few months. This explained why these towns were so unique. These towns did not have time to plan and develop casually they were up in the blink of an eye. In my opinion this explains why these towns were so randomly put together. Next, Professor Vollun discussed his main argument; he believes these towns were less violent than perceived traditionally. Legends say that these were the roughest down low and dirty places to live. According to most people, you could not go to bed without hearing someone get shot outside of the local saloon. The truth was that instead of a murder a day, it's more like a murder or death a month. This argument of people exaggerating the danger related to the west seems to be pretty common whether its cattle towns or railroad towns. All of these places seemed to be more modest than the media and movies have shown them to be. Normal people lived in these towns and made up for most of their populations. I really enjoyed this speaker and especially the free biscotti.
To respond to Paul's post:
-Wheat will win the War-
I completely agree with Paul about how propaganda sometimes goes in the wrong direction.
The ndsu website has a poster sale for WW1, WW2
The poster that quotes "Do with Less so they'll have Enough" is a perfect example of good propaganda. It illustrates the importance of still producing important goods such as food and steel which will benefit the soldier Who needs the most support. War really defines a countries character because the people need to step up and support the cause. The "Wheat will win the War" is an effective quote but it doesn't have a personable approach. The poster affects every person because it shows a smiling soldier with a metal tin. My definition of propaganda is to spread a common message which can positively or negatively affect further action.
The poster speads a better message because it relates directly to every person and their stomach.
Adam Wolfe
Friday, November 21, 2008
RP: Lecture 10
Lecture 10 "Fire on the Ice" dealt with politics on the plains. The plains are considered "red country". This means the plains states tend to favor Republican leadership in government. However, it's not that simple. States like North Dakota want Democrats in Congress and Republicans as governor and president. We touched base on some political groups that have come and gone on the plains. These groups included the National Grange.., Farmer's Alliance, Non Partisan League, AAM, and the Farmers Union. These groups all have their differences, but they are also very similar. Most of these groups started small as a social group which later entered into politics. Most of these groups faded out but their legacy remains. There is a general theme that appears; on the plains there has been a strong history of radical ideas, beliefs, and politics from both the left and right end of the political spectrum.
I liked this lecture because I find politics interesting (sometimes). Politics are one of those topics that you love and hate at the same time. It's hard to discuss the subject without stepping on somebody's toes. I found it interesting that the plains has a history of radical politics. This is clearly seen when you look at all of the groups like we discussed in class. Even with this, there still are mixed view points about it. Parrington believed these radicals were progressive and the "good guys," but Hofstadter disagreed. Which is right? Well, maybe they both are partially right and part wrong. I also found it interesting that ND have Democrat Congressmen but vote Republican for the state house and the white house. This way they hope for lower taxes and at the same time good representation for farmers. It's a win-win... well maybe... it's just politics.
I liked this lecture because I find politics interesting (sometimes). Politics are one of those topics that you love and hate at the same time. It's hard to discuss the subject without stepping on somebody's toes. I found it interesting that the plains has a history of radical politics. This is clearly seen when you look at all of the groups like we discussed in class. Even with this, there still are mixed view points about it. Parrington believed these radicals were progressive and the "good guys," but Hofstadter disagreed. Which is right? Well, maybe they both are partially right and part wrong. I also found it interesting that ND have Democrat Congressmen but vote Republican for the state house and the white house. This way they hope for lower taxes and at the same time good representation for farmers. It's a win-win... well maybe... it's just politics.
LR:Lecture 11
Lecture 11 dealt with the dust bowl and we watched two movies describing the pressure that this event had on the farmers. We started by watching The Plow That Broke The Plains. This movie began with how cattle were the most important commatity on the plains during the beginning. It soon moved to a shot of people racing their carriages into the prairie to find land. When they found their land they put up fence, which ended the days of free-ranging or grazing of their animals or plants. The motorized trackter and renewed plow came to the plains and completely renovated the agriculture on the plains. I remember a line from the movie that said "wheat will win the war". Talk about propaganda. That line did sorta piss me off, making light of the fact that American boys were dying by the thousands but no it is wheat that will win the war. The government then invited people to the plains offering cheap or free land but soon the rain stopped. This marked the beginning of the dust bowl. I was trying to imagine what it was like when Dr. Isern said that you couldn't see your hand in front of you face. The pictures that movie showed were pretty drastic and reminded me of a desert with dunes. Soon farmers started packing up and movie out to the Pacific coast. This was truly the epitome of a propaganda film with the intent of making people move out the plains.
The next movie was called Rain For The Earth. This movie was made after the protest of The Plow That Broke The Plains. The movie many times said "rain will come" which was encouraging people to stay on the plains and almost mocking the people that they told earlier to leave. The point of the movie seemed to be uplifting talking about how the people who still live on the plains are strong, brave, and resilient. I really like that part that talked about how sheep saved the people on the plains during the dust bowl. Sheep offered to two options, meat and wool. They also were able to survive where cattle couldn't. I wonder why you don't see many sheep on the plains now?
I really like these movies and they really brought me into the time that these people lived in. I remember my grandma talking about the dust bowl but she never really experienced it. She would say how sorry she felt for the people that had to go through that. The images that the movies used were really good with a lot of drama.
The next movie was called Rain For The Earth. This movie was made after the protest of The Plow That Broke The Plains. The movie many times said "rain will come" which was encouraging people to stay on the plains and almost mocking the people that they told earlier to leave. The point of the movie seemed to be uplifting talking about how the people who still live on the plains are strong, brave, and resilient. I really like that part that talked about how sheep saved the people on the plains during the dust bowl. Sheep offered to two options, meat and wool. They also were able to survive where cattle couldn't. I wonder why you don't see many sheep on the plains now?
I really like these movies and they really brought me into the time that these people lived in. I remember my grandma talking about the dust bowl but she never really experienced it. She would say how sorry she felt for the people that had to go through that. The images that the movies used were really good with a lot of drama.
LR:Lecture 9
Lecture 9 was entitled Wir Sehen Uns Nimmer Mehr and was about the ethnicity on the plains. We began by discussing the first wave of immigration which came to America from northern and western Europe, peaking in the 1880s. Then came the second wave of immigration which came from southern and eastern Europe, peaking in the 1900s. The old immigrants (first wave) settled as domestic immigrants, new immigrants settled in industrial settings. Dr. Isern then talked about the patterns on the prairie including chain migration, group settlement, and dispersed settlement. Chain migration was when scouts and pioneers came to North America, sent letters back to Europe, then more immigrants came. Group settlement is when recruiting agents tried to get people from Europe to come to America, the people in Europe sent scouts and organizers to America, and immigrant settlers soon followed. Dispersed settlement saw individual immigrants come to America followed by immigrant families. The settlers who came here had a dilemma though, should they assimilate, acculturate, or keep their culture. If these immigrant groups were in isolation they kept their culture completely, but those who lived in the presence of other native people to the region they had to cooperate so they must assimilate. Dr. Isern then talked about the factors that help adapt a theory of ethnicity such as critical mass, homogeneity, the frying pan (environment), the affinity for certain environments, and the external pressures on ethnicity. We then talked about who the Germans from Russia are; these people were German colonist in Russia invited by Catherine and Potemkin and were mostly Lutherans, Catholics, Mennonites who settled on the Volga and Black Sea. They came to America because of conscription, Russification, land pressures, and internal cultural factors. Mennonites settled in Kansas, Volga Germans of western Kansas, and Mennonites of Manitoba. The immigrants who settled here were Black Sea Germans. Soon those assimilation pressures acted on the settlers but as we discussed we still see a lot of remaining culture today. Soon, Mexicanos came to the plains searching for work in agriculture or industry. Dr. Isern then talked about how railroad colonias became cultural time capsules and the beet-blocking immigrants.
Parts of the lecture that I found interesting was how difficult it must have been to leave your family back in the old country. You would hope that they would follow you but your friends you would never see again. To leave your whole life behind hoping for better times must have a been a horrible and great feeling at the same time. The one question I have for this lecture is where these immigrants prosecuted by the local people when the settled? You would think there must have been some but how extreme was it?
Parts of the lecture that I found interesting was how difficult it must have been to leave your family back in the old country. You would hope that they would follow you but your friends you would never see again. To leave your whole life behind hoping for better times must have a been a horrible and great feeling at the same time. The one question I have for this lecture is where these immigrants prosecuted by the local people when the settled? You would think there must have been some but how extreme was it?
RP: Lecture 9
Lecture 9 entitled "Wir Sehen Uns Nimmer Mehr" was all about ethnicity on the Great Plains. The lecture began with Professor Isern singing "Die Abres Vahn Riga," which told the story and trauma of the immigrant experience coming to this country. We talked about the promise that this land was supposed to hold for the people, and their tragedy of leaving their homes. Most left for reasons such as political upheaval, religous persecution, and lack of economic opportunity. They assumed that they would never be able to return home.
We talked about the "waves" of immigration. The first coming from northern and western Europe, and the second coming from south and east Europe. We then talked about the Yankees, who were usually of English or Scottish ancestry, and some settled here in Bonanza Farms along Kindred Road.
I found the "Patterns of the Prairie" section interesting. We talked about the different settlement patterns and ways the immigrants came to this area. From Chain Migration or Group Settlement, which both led to a homogeneous cultural area. to dispersed settlement, which was an area of very mixed heritage.
We went on to discussed Isern's Frying Pan theory, and that the Great Plains transforms those who settle upon it. It is not a melting pot or a salad bowl, like others have so deemed.
Next, we talked about the niche populations on the frontier, and that at different times throughout the century, there were certain groups that prevailed in areas on the plains. Like form the 1890-1940s there were Lebanese peddlers/salespersons on the plains, traveling around trying to sell things. And in the 1920s there was a wave of black barbers. And how in more present times (1970s to 90s) there are Indians running hotels in this region, which I assume most of us have come into contact with at one point or another.
The next part of the lecture talked about the German-Russia Diaspora, which eventual led to the group colonization of the Mennonites and Volga Germans on the Plains. These people had the smoothest transition because of the similar climate and environment of the plains to their home country.
We then discussed the Mexicans on the plains, who came on a quest for work, and found it in the railroad, beet farming, and packinghouses.
The last thing we talked about in this lecture was entitled "God's Country." Isern said that diversity in nature and diversity in society both lead to richness and resilience, and that ethnicity not only marks the landscape, but our identities and habits.
We talked about the "waves" of immigration. The first coming from northern and western Europe, and the second coming from south and east Europe. We then talked about the Yankees, who were usually of English or Scottish ancestry, and some settled here in Bonanza Farms along Kindred Road.
I found the "Patterns of the Prairie" section interesting. We talked about the different settlement patterns and ways the immigrants came to this area. From Chain Migration or Group Settlement, which both led to a homogeneous cultural area. to dispersed settlement, which was an area of very mixed heritage.
We went on to discussed Isern's Frying Pan theory, and that the Great Plains transforms those who settle upon it. It is not a melting pot or a salad bowl, like others have so deemed.
Next, we talked about the niche populations on the frontier, and that at different times throughout the century, there were certain groups that prevailed in areas on the plains. Like form the 1890-1940s there were Lebanese peddlers/salespersons on the plains, traveling around trying to sell things. And in the 1920s there was a wave of black barbers. And how in more present times (1970s to 90s) there are Indians running hotels in this region, which I assume most of us have come into contact with at one point or another.
The next part of the lecture talked about the German-Russia Diaspora, which eventual led to the group colonization of the Mennonites and Volga Germans on the Plains. These people had the smoothest transition because of the similar climate and environment of the plains to their home country.
We then discussed the Mexicans on the plains, who came on a quest for work, and found it in the railroad, beet farming, and packinghouses.
The last thing we talked about in this lecture was entitled "God's Country." Isern said that diversity in nature and diversity in society both lead to richness and resilience, and that ethnicity not only marks the landscape, but our identities and habits.
RP: Lecture 11
Lecture 11 was a nice twist on a lecture as we watched two films "The Plow That Broke The Plains" and "Rain For The Earth". They were both an interesting, firsthand take on the dustbowl and its effects on the farmers and people of the Great Plains but they had very different outlooks on how it should be handled and what the possibilities were. The best part for me was the actual footage of dust storms. You can always picture things in your head, but it makes things easier to understand and comprehend if you can see real-life images of those things.
"The Plow that Broke the Plains", an FSA film by Pare Lorentz in 1936, took a pretty bleak look at things. There was a strong emphasis on the words "high winds and sun, without rivers or streams and with little rain". There was even footage of a desert like area, covered in sand and nothing else in site. Prof. Isern also pointed out that a part that had been cut off from the film was about the government encouraging the people to move away to California and that the government would help them.
"Rain for the Earth" was a film with a better outlook. A line pointed out in class that kind of carried as the theme for the film was how the people were "troubled, but unafraid". The idea that although the dust bowl had hurt the people and the farmers, it would not be the knockout punch many saw it as. This was a down period, but the people just needed a little help until the rain came back and all would be great and prosperous from there. Prof. Isern mentioned that he couldn't find much information about the film, and I am sure he wants more reliable information, but I did find this website http://www.archive.org/details/Rainfort1937 . It says the film was made in 1937 by the U.S. Federal Works Agency, Work Projects Administration.
"The Plow that Broke the Plains", an FSA film by Pare Lorentz in 1936, took a pretty bleak look at things. There was a strong emphasis on the words "high winds and sun, without rivers or streams and with little rain". There was even footage of a desert like area, covered in sand and nothing else in site. Prof. Isern also pointed out that a part that had been cut off from the film was about the government encouraging the people to move away to California and that the government would help them.
"Rain for the Earth" was a film with a better outlook. A line pointed out in class that kind of carried as the theme for the film was how the people were "troubled, but unafraid". The idea that although the dust bowl had hurt the people and the farmers, it would not be the knockout punch many saw it as. This was a down period, but the people just needed a little help until the rain came back and all would be great and prosperous from there. Prof. Isern mentioned that he couldn't find much information about the film, and I am sure he wants more reliable information, but I did find this website http://www.archive.org/details/Rainfort1937 . It says the film was made in 1937 by the U.S. Federal Works Agency, Work Projects Administration.
Lecture #11 Response
Lecture 11's topic was the Dust Bowl. We viewed two different films in class that had two distinct purposes. The first film, "The Plow that Broke the Plains," was made by the FSA in 1936. It was a propaganda film that was meant to encourage people to get out of the Great Plains and take advantage of Roosevelt's New Deal programs elsewhere. Although the final three minutes of the film have been cut off, the theme is easy to pick up on throughout the film. The Great Plains folk were not impressed with "The Plow the Broke the Plains." Farmers were displayed as victims and also like they were solely responsible for the Dust Bowl. Because the government was telling people to get out, all businesses on the Plains were affected. The people who were trying to stay and stick it out protested. The second film, "Rain for the Earth" had a different theme. It was a little more optimistic and showed people sticking out the crisis. The film showed people not destroying the Plains, but taking care of their animals. The purpose of the film was to show that people were going through a rough patch, but they could survive if they got a little help. They wouldn't need help forever because life would get better when the rain came.
Both films were attempts to show you what to think about the Great Plains--get out now while you still can versus hang in there, life will get better. I enjoyed this lecture because it showed a different aspect of the Dust Bowl that I had never learned about. I guess I had never really thought about how the views of people on the Plains differed from the views of people elsewhere in America and the government.
Both films were attempts to show you what to think about the Great Plains--get out now while you still can versus hang in there, life will get better. I enjoyed this lecture because it showed a different aspect of the Dust Bowl that I had never learned about. I guess I had never really thought about how the views of people on the Plains differed from the views of people elsewhere in America and the government.
Lecture #10 Response
Lecture 10 dealt with politics on the Plains. The first thing we discussed was that a historical liberal is seen as a conservative in America. All Americans were seen as liberals to those in the old country. After all, America was founded on principles that "liberals" promoted in Europe. The character of politics on the Plains is filled with some apparent contradictions. The first contradiction is that, traditionally, North Dakota and other Plains states send Republicans to state congress and elect Republican governors, but elect Democrats to national congress. This trend makes sense. The Republicans of the state government give tax cuts so that citizens of the state can keep more of their money. On the other hand, the national government, with the Democrats in congress, imposes higher taxes. Not only does North Dakota get taxed, but the rest of the country does as well. North Dakota and other Plains states are often beneficiaries of the redistributed tax dollars. Another Great Plains politics contradiction is in Canada. Saskatchewan is the most socialist province in Canada, but Albert, is the most right-winged province. It is strange that these two extremes neighbor one another. A number of different groups formed on the Plains and they often developed political interests. The National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry, the Farmer's Alliance, the Socialism/Non-partisan League, and Farmer's Union are some of the groups.
I enjoyed talking about the first contradiction of Plains politics. I have often thought that it was weird to usually elect Republican governors but also elect Democrat senators and representatives. I thought that by now, the best reason to reelect our congressmen is because they have so much experience and seniority. After our discussion, I see the other benefits too.
I enjoyed talking about the first contradiction of Plains politics. I have often thought that it was weird to usually elect Republican governors but also elect Democrat senators and representatives. I thought that by now, the best reason to reelect our congressmen is because they have so much experience and seniority. After our discussion, I see the other benefits too.
RP: Dakota Circle
I am going to mirror previous response papers on how this was the easiest read of the books. Not simply because of the length, but because of the writing styles. Prof. Isern was able to write as if he were talking, which makes for a book that is appealing and easier to get into and enjoy. Compare that to the other writers who were a little dry in their effort to get their point across, with little humor or anything that might connect with the reader in that way.
About the book itself, I caught onto a theme of having the question put out there if the place makes the people or if the people make the place. This seems to have been a common thread throughout the book, and also something that we have talked about in class throughout the semester, whether it is the environment (place) or the people that really shape the history. I have come to the conclusion that it is a little of both. People make the place but the place will shape the people, and this lays the foundation for life on the plains. People showed up and had to adjust to the environment, but in doing so applied what they were and their backgrounds to the area and its problems.
The book also seems to focus on the idea of identity, and what exactly creates or forms the identity of those on the plains. One example of this (and a chapter that made me hungry) was the chapter "Plum Butter". You can create an identity for an area or a people by something as simple as making a special dish. I personally can't wait for the day in class when we get to try some of those specialties.
About the book itself, I caught onto a theme of having the question put out there if the place makes the people or if the people make the place. This seems to have been a common thread throughout the book, and also something that we have talked about in class throughout the semester, whether it is the environment (place) or the people that really shape the history. I have come to the conclusion that it is a little of both. People make the place but the place will shape the people, and this lays the foundation for life on the plains. People showed up and had to adjust to the environment, but in doing so applied what they were and their backgrounds to the area and its problems.
The book also seems to focus on the idea of identity, and what exactly creates or forms the identity of those on the plains. One example of this (and a chapter that made me hungry) was the chapter "Plum Butter". You can create an identity for an area or a people by something as simple as making a special dish. I personally can't wait for the day in class when we get to try some of those specialties.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Lecture #9 Response
Lecture 9 dealt with immigration and ethnicity on the Great Plains. The first wave of immigration, peaking in the 1880s, brought people primarily from northern and western Europe. The second wave brought immigrants primarily from southern and eastern Europe and peaked in the early 1900s. Both groups took advantage of land opportunities available to them on the Plains. There are three different migration patterns on the Plains: chain migration, group settlement, and dispersed settlement. These distinct patterns led to unique cultural diversity and/or monotony on the Plains. Immigrants adapted to life in America in different ways. Some fully assimilated into American culture, changing their ways of life to fit Americans' ways of life. Others practiced acculturation where they didn't fully assimilate into American culture, but learned parts of it out of necessity. Still other immigrants practiced cultural persistence where they held on tightly to their old ways.
One of the most interesting parts of this lecture for me was the Mexican migration. When I lived in Nebraska, I saw the exact patterns that we discussed in class. There is a high Mexican population in Scottsbluff, and many Mexicans work in the beet fields. I also liked the metaphor of the Great Plains as a frying pan. It is true that the Great Plains region transforms whatever settles upon it, but because of the differences in people when they come to the Plains, they respond to the Plains differently and the outcome is unique. America is a land of culturally diverse people, and this diversity is well represented on the Great Plains.
One of the most interesting parts of this lecture for me was the Mexican migration. When I lived in Nebraska, I saw the exact patterns that we discussed in class. There is a high Mexican population in Scottsbluff, and many Mexicans work in the beet fields. I also liked the metaphor of the Great Plains as a frying pan. It is true that the Great Plains region transforms whatever settles upon it, but because of the differences in people when they come to the Plains, they respond to the Plains differently and the outcome is unique. America is a land of culturally diverse people, and this diversity is well represented on the Great Plains.
RP Heritage Site - Buffalo Historical Society
In the year 1878 the town of Buffalo, ND was established along the NP Railroad. In 1885 the Episcopal Church built a new church in Buffalo, which later would be referred to as the Old Stone Church. The Old Stone Church was later turned over the Buffalo Masonic Lodge Post #77 in 1936. The Masons boarded up all of the windows on the church to secure secrecy during their meetings, which is interesting because several years ago the Buffalo Historical Society discovered two original painted glass windows that had been boarded up by the Masons and now are on display. The Buffalo Historical Society was formed in 1983 due to a few strongly committed members of the community who wished to preserve some of their historical sites and heritage. The Historical Society acquired the church in 1985, the original Church Rectory in 1995 (which is now the home of the Margaret Fraase Public Library), and the original 1916 Buffalo High School in 1999.
My local roots brought me to these historical places on November 18, 2008. The Old Stone Church is equipped with original Masonic crosses and chairs, a two-tiered pump organ, the original Buffalo Catholic church's pulpit and much more. The interior of the church still has its initial plaster walls and concrete stone exterior walls. Today the church is used to display traveling exhibits. The Library has all of the town's history as well as internet access and many contemporary books. The society has hopes to redo the windows in the high school in the near future.
The Buffalo community and the Buffalo historical society jointly serve to form a certified local government, which is the smallest among all in the state. Also, the town of Buffalo may be the smallest community to have a public library in the state. The value of these preserved places in this community demonstrates a feeling of accomplishment to all who have put aside money to preserve the places that contain their own personal and local history. As one quote in the library read, "Our town on the Prairie." These historical places compliment the young and the old members of the community and those people just passing through.
My local roots brought me to these historical places on November 18, 2008. The Old Stone Church is equipped with original Masonic crosses and chairs, a two-tiered pump organ, the original Buffalo Catholic church's pulpit and much more. The interior of the church still has its initial plaster walls and concrete stone exterior walls. Today the church is used to display traveling exhibits. The Library has all of the town's history as well as internet access and many contemporary books. The society has hopes to redo the windows in the high school in the near future.
The Buffalo community and the Buffalo historical society jointly serve to form a certified local government, which is the smallest among all in the state. Also, the town of Buffalo may be the smallest community to have a public library in the state. The value of these preserved places in this community demonstrates a feeling of accomplishment to all who have put aside money to preserve the places that contain their own personal and local history. As one quote in the library read, "Our town on the Prairie." These historical places compliment the young and the old members of the community and those people just passing through.
Lecture 11
Lecture number 11 was titled "It Looked So Awful Black". The lecture began with Professor Isern talking about the impact the Dust Bowl had on people’s lives living on The Great Plains. He explained that this was a hard time and many people thought it was never going to end. Then Dr. Isern showed us two videos that were related to the topic at hand. First, we watched "The Plow That Broke The Plains". This film was a propaganda film shown in the late 1930's to get farmers to move westward in order to prevent further hardship for their families due to the situation. Pare Lorentz wrote and directed this interesting video. The video had a very negative feeling, but like all documentaries it had a message. The documentaries message was don't panic because the government would take care of you. I found that message very depressing and wondered why the government would do this. I quickly learned that it was all part of a new plan driven by FDR's New Deal and specifically a part of the Resettlement Act. He was trying to change everything that was traditional for the government and affected even the people in the Dakota's. I know you watched the movie so I am not going to reiterate the whole thing. The US government was going through a transition at this time. I think that they were trying to create change and help America's people even though it turned out being the wrong way to do it.
The second movie we watched was an attempt to redo the first video in a more positive manner. This movie was titled "Rain For The Earth". The video delivered a completely different message than the first one we watched. Instead of telling people to pack up and move west, it told them to stay rough it out. The movie showed people that by being conservative and diversifying their assets they could become successful. To be successful they would need to invest more capital in animal husbandry. This means they would start grazing more sheep and cattle. In conclusion I really liked both of these films and can hardly believe that Professor Isern actually watched these in school because he seems so young to me. In all of my studies the Dust Bowl is one subject that I honestly do not know a lot about. It seems like it gets brushed over a lot in history. It is always nice to learn information like this that I can use in my classes when I start teaching. Since I know my grandmas were alive during this time, I am going to go ask them if they remember any of these movies spoke of. I think it will guide me to a wealth of information that I will find extremely interesting.
Lecture 9 Response
Lecture 9, "Wir Sehen Uns Nimmer Mehr," addressed immigration into the Great Plains. Immigration came in two waves. Land was available through the government for immigrants on the plains. Many hardships were felt by newcomers to both America and the Great Plains. Songs were written and culture brought along.
The first wave of immigration took place roughly between the years 1870 and 1880 with another wave following in the early 1900's. Different types of immigration took place. Some families would send a so called "scout" to scope things out and the family would than later follow. Some recruiting agents were sent to Europe and brought back groups of families.
Mixed emotions seemed to set in with excitement for a new start in new land, but there was also sorrow in leaving behind a learned way of life and friends. Some families struggled more than others. Some found sympathy in hanging onto items from their culture of the home country. Some Churches traveled as a group of immigrants onto the Great Plains. This brought some easing of pain by bringing their culture with them. The story of a lady whom had a chest full of items from her home country is quite interesting, and I think can show a great deal too how some people dealt with the hardship of learning a new way of life. The lady in the story treasured her chest; she would often look to it as comfort. One day a preacher came by and told the family a church service would be conducted and her chest was going to be the podium. I think that turned a new page in her book, and she began to see things differently.
Mixed feelings were also found in how to go about the change. Some felt it was important to totally break away from all ties with their past life in order to assimilate with life in their new place. I can see many different ways of looking at this. Perhaps Webb was completely wrong and the plains people were developed solely on their past experiences and views on how to start over new. I think the environment and the past cultures were the main points in describing the evolution of the people of the plains. However, I do think that those are two main points with many sub points, some with equal importance.
The first wave of immigration took place roughly between the years 1870 and 1880 with another wave following in the early 1900's. Different types of immigration took place. Some families would send a so called "scout" to scope things out and the family would than later follow. Some recruiting agents were sent to Europe and brought back groups of families.
Mixed emotions seemed to set in with excitement for a new start in new land, but there was also sorrow in leaving behind a learned way of life and friends. Some families struggled more than others. Some found sympathy in hanging onto items from their culture of the home country. Some Churches traveled as a group of immigrants onto the Great Plains. This brought some easing of pain by bringing their culture with them. The story of a lady whom had a chest full of items from her home country is quite interesting, and I think can show a great deal too how some people dealt with the hardship of learning a new way of life. The lady in the story treasured her chest; she would often look to it as comfort. One day a preacher came by and told the family a church service would be conducted and her chest was going to be the podium. I think that turned a new page in her book, and she began to see things differently.
Mixed feelings were also found in how to go about the change. Some felt it was important to totally break away from all ties with their past life in order to assimilate with life in their new place. I can see many different ways of looking at this. Perhaps Webb was completely wrong and the plains people were developed solely on their past experiences and views on how to start over new. I think the environment and the past cultures were the main points in describing the evolution of the people of the plains. However, I do think that those are two main points with many sub points, some with equal importance.
Lecture 11: It Looked So Aweful Black
For lecture 11 we watch two propaganda documentaries from the dust bowl era. Both of these films have very different undertones even though they discuss the same events on the Plains.
The first was "The Plow that Broke the Earth". In this film the USDA assigned the Farm Security Association to create a documentary about how the Dust Bowl affected the people of the Plains. Through out the film there was definitely a negative undertone. The minimal poetic narrative was paired with a dramatic soundtrack full of climatic fanfare. The basic gist of the film was that the Prairie farmers bought into the media and propaganda hype about wheat with statements like "Wheat for the Allies!" and "Wheat will win the war!". With the ever dramatic clip montage of more and more combines and plows tearing up the earth the film broke with a desert scene of dust, broken machinery, and depressed people. Over and over the narrator described the Plains with its "high winds and sun" and "little rain". Then the film showed all the farmers leaving the Plains to move west setting up camp to work on farms along the highways. Isern explained that there was an extra three minutes removed from the end which called for the destitute farmers of the Plains to take up Roosevelt's New Deal offer of government help on the camps of California where they would be retrained and given new land to work. Overall there was a very negative connotation to the film which could have been meant to invoke sympathy for the farmers or warn others about conservation and the consequences of not doing so.
The other film we watched was "Rain for the Earth". This film was stared after the remaining Plains farmers protested the "Plow" film. Again there was minimal poetic narration with a very noticeable soundtrack, but this time the music was flowy and light. Even though the film opened with pictures of thorny bushes, barren, tired looking land, there was a more positive connotation to the film. Throughout the short clip the narrator kept reiterating that the people took care of their animals. Even though the Dust Bowl made times tough, "life goes on" for these people. Even though ranchers sold off many of their cattle, they kept their base breeding stock. The message in this film was that the farmers weren't a black hole sucking out the people's tax money, they just needed a little helping hand to get through this rough patch.
The first was "The Plow that Broke the Earth". In this film the USDA assigned the Farm Security Association to create a documentary about how the Dust Bowl affected the people of the Plains. Through out the film there was definitely a negative undertone. The minimal poetic narrative was paired with a dramatic soundtrack full of climatic fanfare. The basic gist of the film was that the Prairie farmers bought into the media and propaganda hype about wheat with statements like "Wheat for the Allies!" and "Wheat will win the war!". With the ever dramatic clip montage of more and more combines and plows tearing up the earth the film broke with a desert scene of dust, broken machinery, and depressed people. Over and over the narrator described the Plains with its "high winds and sun" and "little rain". Then the film showed all the farmers leaving the Plains to move west setting up camp to work on farms along the highways. Isern explained that there was an extra three minutes removed from the end which called for the destitute farmers of the Plains to take up Roosevelt's New Deal offer of government help on the camps of California where they would be retrained and given new land to work. Overall there was a very negative connotation to the film which could have been meant to invoke sympathy for the farmers or warn others about conservation and the consequences of not doing so.
The other film we watched was "Rain for the Earth". This film was stared after the remaining Plains farmers protested the "Plow" film. Again there was minimal poetic narration with a very noticeable soundtrack, but this time the music was flowy and light. Even though the film opened with pictures of thorny bushes, barren, tired looking land, there was a more positive connotation to the film. Throughout the short clip the narrator kept reiterating that the people took care of their animals. Even though the Dust Bowl made times tough, "life goes on" for these people. Even though ranchers sold off many of their cattle, they kept their base breeding stock. The message in this film was that the farmers weren't a black hole sucking out the people's tax money, they just needed a little helping hand to get through this rough patch.
Film Review - Open Range
The film Open Range was set in a region in Montana in the year 1882. Within this region there are small settlements with ranchers that have begun to utilize the barbed wire fence in order to contain their cattle while domesticating the environmental landscape as well. On the other hand there are "free-grazers" we feel that there is no limits to where, what or how much of a resource or region they can use before they go on to the next region. The "free-grazers" utilize the open range for grazing and feel that nature is the only law and regulation that holds them back. The film opens with Boss Spearman (Robert Duvall) and Charley Waite (Kevin Costner) watching their free range cattle filter through the vast, endless valley ahead of them. This shot symbolizes the open rangeland that once existed in the Great Plains region and how the cattle and cowboys used to exploit all of the area and its resources like there was no boundaries or limits. As the film continues, local "free-grazer hater" Denton Baxter, who controls much of the local countryside and the community has his men attack one of Boss Spearman's men. Boss and Charley are forced to go to the town and see what has happened, and are quickly reminded as to why they aren't fond of towns, as Boss is quoted saying, "Man can get lost in this beautiful country, and forget there is a town and people that aren’t so simple." Boss and Charley elect to "fight for their right to live the way they want to live," even though they can see that things (open-range grazing) are changing. They, with the help of the town, defeat Baxter and his men in a very intense gun fight. The film gave a great example of the unsophisticated lifestyle of free-rangers; while it didn't include the rest of the journey that so many "free-grazers" take as they graze one spot to the next and eventually finish their cattle at a stockyard.
Lecture 10
Lecture number 10 was titled Fire and Ice. This lecture was interesting because it got into the politics and trends of the Great Plains. Personally, I really enjoy politics because they can be exciting and controversial at times. Professor Isern began with explaining the difference between Liberalism in the US and the rest of the world. Then we went into explaining how the Great Plains typically has a more radical view of politics than other parts of the country. Some would even say that it verges on the border of socialism. When I heard this I was shocked, but quickly I understood what he meant by that statement. For example, North Dakota had a time period where they decided to let in some socialist ideology into their government; they added a state mill, elevator and bank. I think the reason for this is smart but also socialistic. It was smart because North Dakota representatives met and decided we need to do something to help our state by increasing its revenue. Also, this action was socialistic because it increased the size of our government. Next, we discussed the phenomenon of why all Plains states tend to vote Republican on the ballots except for when they are voting for state representatives and or senators. I believe it is because we want the best of both worlds. We want our representatives to get us lots of money for the state, but we also want our state to take as little money back in taxes. This makes perfect sense in my opinion because of the lifestyle we live in the Northern Plains area (typically agrarian). Finally, we ended talking about some of the extreme radicalism that has taken place in North Dakota. The example discussed was Gordon Kahl. Gordon Kahl was a fugitive protestor who ended up getting into a shootout with federal marshals over his belief of not wanting to pay taxes. Overall I felt this was a very interesting lecture and it made me think about why North Dakotans have had to adopt such radical views? I think it is because the people who came here originally were not mellow laid back conservative people. Most of them either got kicked out of their countries or had been forced to move in search of a better life. When you have this freedom people tend to do what is best for himself or herself, not for everyone. Then once they arrived here and realized they cannot make it all by themselves, they were forced to ask the government for help. In my opinion, when the government gives you free money you are going to keep it and ask for more. Now generations have passed but we still want that money from the federal government. This is why I think that we still are a republican/democratic state.
Lecture 10
Lecture 10 discussed the politics of the north american plains. The concept "orginal liberalism"promotes both personal and economical liberties and the conservative outlook for building a new America. We discussed the viewpoints of Parrington and Hofstadter of whether the farmers should be reactive to the environment or progress to the future. We discussed how the Farmers Union was being affected by grain and elevator laws. The topic on reactionary and progressive is an interesting topic because they both have advantages for humanity and knowledge.
Adam Wolfe
- It poses a question on whether the United States should be progressive for future ideas in energy savings, producing, and recycling or just stick to the same routine of crude oil and try to locate more?
- Will we react to the energy crisis by inventing new technology or to stick with what we know about crude oil and try to maximize engine effeciency for oil only?
Adam Wolfe
Lecture 9
Lecture 9 discussed the immigration onto the North American plains. Chain migration occured after primarily north/west europeans arrived and were closely followed by the south/east europeans. This chain migration created the "frying pan effect" which is a mixture of different ethnicities. Tom Isern sang a german/russian song that looked very difficult to translate. Cultural factors shaped the destination, religious rituals, and employment aspirations of the immigrants. The lecture became more specific when we discussed mexicans, asians, lebanese, and german/russians as far as type of work and traditions.
The most interesting topic of this lecture was about each culture designated themselves a cultural identity and how they all brought a little piece of home along with to include in this new identity. My hometown of Coon Rapids is composed of primarily russian and german ancestry which correlates to why my german ancestery migrated to this region "(To follow the Mr & Mrs Jones)." Overall, lecture 9 was interesting because the migration of people in the plains are the roots for our current cultural identities, behavior, and religious traditions.
Adam Wolfe
The most interesting topic of this lecture was about each culture designated themselves a cultural identity and how they all brought a little piece of home along with to include in this new identity. My hometown of Coon Rapids is composed of primarily russian and german ancestry which correlates to why my german ancestery migrated to this region "(To follow the Mr & Mrs Jones)." Overall, lecture 9 was interesting because the migration of people in the plains are the roots for our current cultural identities, behavior, and religious traditions.
Adam Wolfe
LR 9
Lecture 9 was a discussion of immigration movements onto the plains. The discussion started with Dr. Isern singing an old German Russian song that had the theme that life isn't fair. People who moved out onto the plains were very happy to undergo new experiences, but sad to leave loved ones. There were two major waves of immigration. The first peaked in the 1880s and consisted of Northern & Western Europeans. The second peaked in the 1900s and consisted of Southern & Eastern Europeans. Chain migration occurred as groups followed each other to settlement. Assimilation was discussed as a sort of failure because of the isolation of groups that moved. The plains were to be a "frying pan" as it brought about a mixture of ethnic backgrounds. A discussion was held on people finding their niches on the frontier. For example, the peddlers were typically Lebanese salesmen. A good portion of time was spent on the Germans from Russia and the patterns of settlements. Pressure was being placed on the Germans in Russia to become like the Russians. This and other factors like conscription and internal cultural factors played a role in the German-Russians moving over to the States. The religions consisted mainly of Lutheran, Roman Catholic, and Mennonites. The immigration of Mexicans was large when employment opportunities were raised.
I enjoyed the history on the Germans from Russia as that is my ancestral background. It was neat to learn of the reasons for immigration along with some of the patterns they had. I know my ancestors moved over in the early 1900s, and I grew up in the same area where they settled. I can’t really relate to the diversity bit as the majority of the population in my area is Caucasian. However, my family does have one good friend who they met when he was working on the beet farms. Whenever I go to big cities, it is kind of an eye-opener because of the large diversity compared to where I grew up.~Chris Schmaltz
I enjoyed the history on the Germans from Russia as that is my ancestral background. It was neat to learn of the reasons for immigration along with some of the patterns they had. I know my ancestors moved over in the early 1900s, and I grew up in the same area where they settled. I can’t really relate to the diversity bit as the majority of the population in my area is Caucasian. However, my family does have one good friend who they met when he was working on the beet farms. Whenever I go to big cities, it is kind of an eye-opener because of the large diversity compared to where I grew up.~Chris Schmaltz
Lecture 9
I really liked this lecture because we talked alot about the German Russians and how they migrated to the plains. Well my family is decedents of the German Russians and my Great Grandpa had to swim across the river to flee from Russia so it was interesting to find out how other ethnicity's migrated to and settled on the great plains and were they settled and how they settled on the great plains. We also talked about different cultural backgrounds and how they adapted the great plains to fit them. For example people from India decent settled and built hotels and the funny thing is I have a few friends with the last name Patel and there family's own hotels so it would be interesting to see how long they have been in the hotel business. Also the lecture covered Mexican immigration to work at the railroads and how at first it was just men that would come and then go back home but then after a while families started coming as men where working the whole year at packing plants or other things like that. There is so much diverse culture in the great plains but each one brings something new either what we eat or how we dress or how even some of the towns where named as more and more people settled the great plains.
lecture 9
Lecture 9 was all about ethnicity on the plains. It discussed the many different cultures of the plains from the foreign born Europeans to the Yankees and Mexicans born in North America. The lecture starts by talking about how these people got to the plains with regards to the first and second waves of immigrants from Europe and discusses why they came in the first place. For the eastern and western Europeans it was primarily land opportunities that they did not have in their own respective countries. With land opportunities for immigrants came business opportunities bringing native born Yankees to the plains which would get the ball rolling in the further development of the plains which would take an isolated farming society far off the beaten path and connecting it to the rest of the country making it an integral part of Americas economy and well being. The lecture then discusses the different patterns of migration to the plains like chain migration, group settlement and dispersed settlement. The lecture also talks about how the immigrants cultures adapted to the plains with regards to assimilation, acculturation, and cultural persistence explaining why we still see the many ethnic traditions that exist on the plains till this very day. During this part of the lecture it also explains why things like assimilation and acculturation were vital for the survival of the immigrants on the plains. The lecture then goes deeper into discussion about specific groups on the plains like the German-Russians, Lebanese, Asians, and Mexicans and their particular reasons for coming here. Out of all these groups I find the Mexicans arrival on the plains to be the most interesting. I had always known that Mexicans came here to work in the fields seasonally because growing up in school we would always have a few Mexican kids in our classes in elementary and high school that would only be there for part of the year and then leave but I did not know that they originally came to the plains because of this work and how far back it went. I also found interesting with regards to the Mexicans the part in the lecture about them having their own little towns or communities within a bigger community that remained isolated for many years from the whites and found it hard to imagine that such a thing could exist. With migration on the plains seemingly ending with the Mexicans the question I have is whether or not we will see any more migration to the plains. With the economy in the condition that it is currently in and our ag based economy which is not really seeing the economic crunch as much as our urban counterparts might it not be possible that we see a new type of migration from the urban centers to the plains in search of a cheaper and lower standard of living then that of the large cities of the country?
RP: Lecture 10
Lecture ten was called Fire on the Ice and was about politics on the Great plains. I found the contradictions section of the lecture to be most interesting. I did not know that North Dakota was the only state that has a state owned bank. I also did not know that Nebraska had a state owned power company. It was strange to me to hear how a region like the plains would have these state owned institutes. I had always thought that it was strange that North Dakota had a republican gov. and state politicians but would send democratic congressmen to Washington. Now I can see why that is done.
It was also interesting to hear about the Socialist background that the region has. I would not have expected that Oklahoma would give 14% of the vote to a socialist Eugene Debs. The socialist background of North Dakota surprised me as well. The socialist moved into the republican party for a time in the early part of the century. This would help explain how the state ended up with a state owned bank. Politics on the plains was an interesting lecture and was informative. It is good to know about how politics formed in a region to understand how things happened.
Mitch Tommerdahl
It was also interesting to hear about the Socialist background that the region has. I would not have expected that Oklahoma would give 14% of the vote to a socialist Eugene Debs. The socialist background of North Dakota surprised me as well. The socialist moved into the republican party for a time in the early part of the century. This would help explain how the state ended up with a state owned bank. Politics on the plains was an interesting lecture and was informative. It is good to know about how politics formed in a region to understand how things happened.
Mitch Tommerdahl
Lecture 10: Fire on the Ice
Lecture 10 was all about politics on the Great Plains. As a whole the region tends to be conservative as well all know. However, this conservatism is actually historically liberal when we take into account Adam Smith and the fact that our country was established by liberals that wanted to do away with a monarchical government in favor of individual and economic liberties.
As a region, the Great Plains tends to elect Republicans to their state governments in order to lower state taxes, but they tend to send Democrats to Washington so that they will give money to the state through government programs. Since we are a very agricultural region and one with several military bases, we are golden for the government money. At the state level the only way for Democrats to win is to "out Republican the Republicans". Basically this means that they have to point out shifty over spendatures that the Republicans are doing and promise to fix it.
Even with this tendency towards Conservatism on the Great Plains we do have a history of radicalism. The National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry, for example, had it's hay day in the 1870s. Farmers got together to form an economic coop and even got involved in politics. They weren't very effective, however, because they elected people onto both sides where they got wrapped up in party politics. Their biggest push was to pass laws determining the rates for railroads and grain elevators. The Farmer's Alliance, or the Populous Party, in the 1890s called for the nationalization of the railroads. Later in the early 1900s, the socialist Non Partisan League captured control of the Republican party and set up state run organizations such as banks in North Dakota and grain elevators in the central plains.
As a whole this lecture didn't tell me a whole lot of new information. I had a lot of this drilled into me in my American Government class this semester before the elections. I was surprised to learn about all the radical things that the Plains have done. I tend to think of this region as being very conservative as a whole with us college students being the only liberals.
As a region, the Great Plains tends to elect Republicans to their state governments in order to lower state taxes, but they tend to send Democrats to Washington so that they will give money to the state through government programs. Since we are a very agricultural region and one with several military bases, we are golden for the government money. At the state level the only way for Democrats to win is to "out Republican the Republicans". Basically this means that they have to point out shifty over spendatures that the Republicans are doing and promise to fix it.
Even with this tendency towards Conservatism on the Great Plains we do have a history of radicalism. The National Grange of the Patrons of Husbandry, for example, had it's hay day in the 1870s. Farmers got together to form an economic coop and even got involved in politics. They weren't very effective, however, because they elected people onto both sides where they got wrapped up in party politics. Their biggest push was to pass laws determining the rates for railroads and grain elevators. The Farmer's Alliance, or the Populous Party, in the 1890s called for the nationalization of the railroads. Later in the early 1900s, the socialist Non Partisan League captured control of the Republican party and set up state run organizations such as banks in North Dakota and grain elevators in the central plains.
As a whole this lecture didn't tell me a whole lot of new information. I had a lot of this drilled into me in my American Government class this semester before the elections. I was surprised to learn about all the radical things that the Plains have done. I tend to think of this region as being very conservative as a whole with us college students being the only liberals.
Lecture 9: Wir Sehen Uns Nimmer Mehr
Lecture 9 was all about Ethnicity on the Plains. The title itself, Wir Sehen Uns Nimmer Mehr, meaning we will never see one another again, gives a clear insight to the tone of the immigrants leaving their families in their home countries in order to make new lives for themselves on the American Prairie. In every American history class we go over first and second wave immigration in the United States. The First wave of Old Immigrants coming over from Western Europe with the majority of them being Protestant. Followed by the second wave of New Immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe many of which were Catholic.
There were three main types of immigration onto the Plains; Chain migration, group settlement, and dispersed settlement. Chain migration involved someone coming over to the Plains, settling, then encouraging their family and friends to join them. Group settlement involved a representative coming over, buying a large chunk of land in order for the group to move together and stay together as a community. Lastly, dispersed settlement was more of a helter skelter way of settling with people coming out on their own and settling themselves and their own immediate families.
Once these groups of settlers got to the Prairies, they were faced with how to deal with America's culture. They could assimilate by letting go of their own cultures and joining the American way of life, which most Old Immigrants would prefer them to do. They could acculturate by keeping their own culture and traditions but also learning the American ways for when they had to interact with Old Immigrants. Their third choice was to try cultural persistence which was a way to learn to deal with the new American ways, and then pick and choose which ones to embrace.
One thing that struck me was when we learned about niche populations. As soon as Isern mentioned the Lebanese peddlers I was reminded of the musical Oklahoma! Except I think that character was Persian. Then of course I had the theme song stuck in my head for the rest of the day. I had never thought of certain ethnicities having tendencies towards certain jobs. I had noticed it certainly, but I never put two and two together to get niche populations.
There were three main types of immigration onto the Plains; Chain migration, group settlement, and dispersed settlement. Chain migration involved someone coming over to the Plains, settling, then encouraging their family and friends to join them. Group settlement involved a representative coming over, buying a large chunk of land in order for the group to move together and stay together as a community. Lastly, dispersed settlement was more of a helter skelter way of settling with people coming out on their own and settling themselves and their own immediate families.
Once these groups of settlers got to the Prairies, they were faced with how to deal with America's culture. They could assimilate by letting go of their own cultures and joining the American way of life, which most Old Immigrants would prefer them to do. They could acculturate by keeping their own culture and traditions but also learning the American ways for when they had to interact with Old Immigrants. Their third choice was to try cultural persistence which was a way to learn to deal with the new American ways, and then pick and choose which ones to embrace.
One thing that struck me was when we learned about niche populations. As soon as Isern mentioned the Lebanese peddlers I was reminded of the musical Oklahoma! Except I think that character was Persian. Then of course I had the theme song stuck in my head for the rest of the day. I had never thought of certain ethnicities having tendencies towards certain jobs. I had noticed it certainly, but I never put two and two together to get niche populations.
RP: Lecture 10
Lecture 10 was focused on politics, and how politics can be seen as a regional identity. It was interesting to see how our idea of conservative and liberal were changed from the original liberalism. Original liberalism means the promotion of individual liberties, both personal and economical. But along with American Revolution, comes the original liberal ideas as the construct of America, thus the conservative outlook, a reverse of common usage.
The majority of the lecture was based on such groups as the Farmers Union, and their political views and actions. Parrington embraced the farm radicals as a good thing, because they were the ideal of progress and trying to take control of the businesses. Hofstadter had the opposite view of Parrington. He thought that the farmer radicals need to focus on the future and not try to bring us back to the past, when farmers had control of the country. Prof. Isern points out that it is possible to be reactionary and progressive at the same time.
I thought it was an interesting story told about Gordon Kahl. As he told the story I thought I had remembered hearing something like this, but at the same time I couldn't get the thought out of my head that I had seen it in a movie or T.V. show. I am sure it is a little of both. I also thought it was funny that there are people out there who think that he is still alive. It seems that there is always some kind of a conspiracy theory with stories like this where the guy always fools the authorities. This kind of relates to the topic Prof. Isern touched on at the end of class when he talked about how the Great Plains were settled somewhat like a colony, and so our attitudes reflect the resistance against the power of "out East".
The majority of the lecture was based on such groups as the Farmers Union, and their political views and actions. Parrington embraced the farm radicals as a good thing, because they were the ideal of progress and trying to take control of the businesses. Hofstadter had the opposite view of Parrington. He thought that the farmer radicals need to focus on the future and not try to bring us back to the past, when farmers had control of the country. Prof. Isern points out that it is possible to be reactionary and progressive at the same time.
I thought it was an interesting story told about Gordon Kahl. As he told the story I thought I had remembered hearing something like this, but at the same time I couldn't get the thought out of my head that I had seen it in a movie or T.V. show. I am sure it is a little of both. I also thought it was funny that there are people out there who think that he is still alive. It seems that there is always some kind of a conspiracy theory with stories like this where the guy always fools the authorities. This kind of relates to the topic Prof. Isern touched on at the end of class when he talked about how the Great Plains were settled somewhat like a colony, and so our attitudes reflect the resistance against the power of "out East".
RP: Lecture 9
Lecture 9, Wir Sehen Uns Nimmer Mehr, was about some of the ethnic backgrounds and people that settled in the region of the Great Plains. The lecture started off with a song, and the point of that song was that as these people came to the new land in hope of a great future for their children there was still great tragedy. They knew that they would not be returning to their home land.
Next in the lecture were the waves of migration, the first being mostly from Northern and Western Europe and the second being from Southern and Eastern Europe. We touched also on the black migration habits into the U.S. and Canada. Prof. Isern also gave us a look at some different ways these peoples came to the land. The people usually chose either to use chain migration or group settlement, each with its advantages and disadvantages.
A big portion of the lecture was dedicated to the idea of the German-Russian. Prof. Isern touched on how they became known as German-Russian, and also how they came to go from Germany to Russia and eventually to America. I am 50% German, and my great-grandmother on my father's side spoke German and not a lick of English but I am not sure if I am German-Russian or just German. I will have to look into that.
Towards the end he also told of the Mexicanos journey into the Great Plains, why they came to America and some of the cultural aspects that they brought with them. They came for employment rather than religious or political reasons, mainly being involved in the railroads, beet-blocking and the packinghouses.
An interesting area to me was when we went over the terms of ethnicity. I really liked the analogy used with the frying pan, how as the different groups settled onto the plains they were transformed but that they didn't necessarily combine, much like if you cook eggs and bacon in a frying pan.
Next in the lecture were the waves of migration, the first being mostly from Northern and Western Europe and the second being from Southern and Eastern Europe. We touched also on the black migration habits into the U.S. and Canada. Prof. Isern also gave us a look at some different ways these peoples came to the land. The people usually chose either to use chain migration or group settlement, each with its advantages and disadvantages.
A big portion of the lecture was dedicated to the idea of the German-Russian. Prof. Isern touched on how they became known as German-Russian, and also how they came to go from Germany to Russia and eventually to America. I am 50% German, and my great-grandmother on my father's side spoke German and not a lick of English but I am not sure if I am German-Russian or just German. I will have to look into that.
Towards the end he also told of the Mexicanos journey into the Great Plains, why they came to America and some of the cultural aspects that they brought with them. They came for employment rather than religious or political reasons, mainly being involved in the railroads, beet-blocking and the packinghouses.
An interesting area to me was when we went over the terms of ethnicity. I really liked the analogy used with the frying pan, how as the different groups settled onto the plains they were transformed but that they didn't necessarily combine, much like if you cook eggs and bacon in a frying pan.
LR 9
In lecture 9 we talked about the ethnicity of the plains. In the 1880's the first wave of immigrants hit their peak in coming to America with the promise of endless opportunities. They set up homes and lives here. While at the same time African Americans were migrating to Canada to seek their own freedoms. We talked about the patterns in which people came to America. Some sent scouts from their home country here to see what it was like. If they thought it was a good place to settle they then sent letters back home and told more people to come over. Then the other method is that people from the U.S. sent recruiting agents talking about all the wealth and prosperity in America to get people to come here. You can still see the regional effects today of the pioneers settling on the plains. If you go to a little country town you can bet that all the people in the town generally go back to the same nationality. This is because they only wanted people like them with the same culture and beliefs to settle in the same area. This was partly to do with them wanting to keep a piece of home with them at all times. Then we went into what it meant to be German-Russian ( meaning some Germans moved to part of Russia back in the day). Generally they kept themselves to 3 religions: Lutheran, Roman Catholic, ands Mennonite. Here in the Dakota's the vast majority of German settlers came from the Black Sea region.
Then we moved onto Mexican immigrants. They did a lot of grunt work on the plains because they were willing to take and job offered to them. Mostly they worked in the agriculture field. Many of them came here to the Red River Valley to work on beet farms.
Last but not least we touched on the meat packing industry. The plants were straight up the heart of the plains due to the water resources and being in the middle of no where.
All in all I think ethnicity plays a big part anywhere you are. It's just more notable here on the plains because except for the bigger towns nothing really has changed. The people stay the same and the practices of the towns have too.
Then we moved onto Mexican immigrants. They did a lot of grunt work on the plains because they were willing to take and job offered to them. Mostly they worked in the agriculture field. Many of them came here to the Red River Valley to work on beet farms.
Last but not least we touched on the meat packing industry. The plants were straight up the heart of the plains due to the water resources and being in the middle of no where.
All in all I think ethnicity plays a big part anywhere you are. It's just more notable here on the plains because except for the bigger towns nothing really has changed. The people stay the same and the practices of the towns have too.
Lecture 7
Early farmers of the plains encountered many difficulties when they applied old techniques to a landscape that was far different then most settlers to the area had seen before. Spurred on by the Jeffersonian Agrarianism (the idea that the plains was a fertile environment and not a desert), the settlers of the plains began to see opportunity for a better life, maybe not for themselves but for their children. First, came the acquisition of land, which was a more difficult task than some had stories made it out to be. Most land was given already to the railroads, owed by private parties, or was set aside for government agencies such as schools. If you were able to acquire land through homesteading you often had to pay application fees or were required to erect something on your land. Most people bought land from railroads because it offered the convenience of being close to town. Once you had acquired your land there were many difficulties that you had yet to face in regards of the ability to harness the land. Many improvements were made to such as plows, and better kinds of wheat that were able to withstand the plains environments. Many of these improvements came from settlers who came from climates similar to the plains. These hardships created tough living conditions for plains folk.
This tough existence created a mythology of hardship that, I believe, keeps the plains unique. I find this most interesting about people on the plains. It’s probably more about who’s tougher. These stories sometimes seem like who can out due each other. A phase that comes to mind is one that a person of an older generation might say to a person of a younger generation. “We had it so bad we had to walk to school uphill both ways.” This is an example of how tough they thought they had it. I think it all boils down to humans and their need to show that they are tough and durable. We’re tougher than you because we had a rougher life.
This tough existence created a mythology of hardship that, I believe, keeps the plains unique. I find this most interesting about people on the plains. It’s probably more about who’s tougher. These stories sometimes seem like who can out due each other. A phase that comes to mind is one that a person of an older generation might say to a person of a younger generation. “We had it so bad we had to walk to school uphill both ways.” This is an example of how tough they thought they had it. I think it all boils down to humans and their need to show that they are tough and durable. We’re tougher than you because we had a rougher life.
LR 9
In lecture nine we learned about the different peoples and cultures. We first learned about the waves of immigrants and migration, the German-Russians and the Mexicans. There were two major waves. The first wave of immigrants came in the 19th century form southeastern Europe. The second wave of immigrants came in the 20th century and they came and settled in industrial settings. There were also black immigrants that came to the U.S. and Canada. Next we learned about the German-Russians. We talked about the three major German-Russian groups; the Mennonites in central Kansas, the Volga in western Kansas, and the Mennonites of Manitoba. We also learned how chain migration affected the population of the plains. Lastly about the German-Russians were the towns. There were the Mennonite Strassndorf and the Volga German villages, which were set up in a very communal way so that people had neighbors. Lastly we learned about the Mexican immigrants. The Mexicans came and worked the railroads and the factories. To this day they still come to work on the Great Plains.
I thought this lecture was very interesting. We really got to see how the immigrants and there culture effects the plains. Also due to the ways people migrated to the plains I know understand how in many small towns everyone is related to each other in one way or another. I now know why some people will work terrible job. They do it for there children. Life may suck for them but there children’s lives will be better.
I thought this lecture was very interesting. We really got to see how the immigrants and there culture effects the plains. Also due to the ways people migrated to the plains I know understand how in many small towns everyone is related to each other in one way or another. I now know why some people will work terrible job. They do it for there children. Life may suck for them but there children’s lives will be better.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
RP: Lecture 9
Lecture 9 was about immigration and ethnicity on the plains. We started out by talking about the types of migration onto the plains. These included chain migration, group settlement, and dispersed settlement. The idea of group settlement was the most interesting to me. It was interesting because people would select a couple of representatives to decide where an entire community would resettle.
I was also interested to hear about the Germans from Russia. It was good to learn more about how this population came to live on the plains. I also learned how the Germans originally ended up in Russia. This was something that I had not known before.
We also learned more about Mexican immigration onto the plains. I was interested to hear about how the Mexican people formed their own little cities inside the larger cities where they were working. This was an example of how a culture can survive even when it is not in its original country.
Immigration onto the plains was an informative lecture that helped me learn how the people of the plains came to be here. It is important to understand the cultures of the people who settle a certain area to know how things came to be.
Mitch Tommerdahl
I was also interested to hear about the Germans from Russia. It was good to learn more about how this population came to live on the plains. I also learned how the Germans originally ended up in Russia. This was something that I had not known before.
We also learned more about Mexican immigration onto the plains. I was interested to hear about how the Mexican people formed their own little cities inside the larger cities where they were working. This was an example of how a culture can survive even when it is not in its original country.
Immigration onto the plains was an informative lecture that helped me learn how the people of the plains came to be here. It is important to understand the cultures of the people who settle a certain area to know how things came to be.
Mitch Tommerdahl
RP: Lecture 9
Lecture 9 (Wir Sehen Uns Nimmer Mehr) was about immigration to the plains in the late 1800's to early 1900's. Dr. Isern spoke of two waves of immigration; First wave and Second wave. The first wave of immigrants were primarily from the North and Western portions of Europe, while the second wave was primarily from the South and Eastern portions. Also mentioned was the migration of many Black individuals from the U.S. to Canada, this is likely due to slavery recently being abolished and these freed people looking for a fresh start. We also learned of the three patterns of migration on the plains which include chain migration, group settlement, and dispersed settlement. Another interesting subject was that of the German-Russians, I never new exactly where these people came from and what the combination of ethnicities had to do with anything. I think that it is neat that many of them retained their language for as long as possible and tried to maintain their German heritage.
Towards the end of lecture Dr. Isern told of Mexicano immigration over the past century. I never knew that they began migrating to the Red River Valley as early as 1920 to work in the beet fields. Did they stay here through the winter? If so, they must have experienced some extreme weather shock, since they would've been more accustomed to the heat and most likely would be living in poor living quarters up here.
Fred Lassonde
Towards the end of lecture Dr. Isern told of Mexicano immigration over the past century. I never knew that they began migrating to the Red River Valley as early as 1920 to work in the beet fields. Did they stay here through the winter? If so, they must have experienced some extreme weather shock, since they would've been more accustomed to the heat and most likely would be living in poor living quarters up here.
Fred Lassonde
Just a question to all, I am having a hard time getting rid of the A things that show up after every sentence anyone have any pointers?
Lecture 9
Lecture number nine was titled Wir Sehen Uns Nimmer Mehr. The lecture started out with Professor Isern singing a beautiful song about two lovers getting kicked out of Russia by forces that were out of their control. Then we learned how the plains came to be populated. This first group of people who arrived in the plains were known as immigrants. They ended up leaving their home countries in Europe and filling the rich farmlands of the Great Plains. This first large migration peeked in the late 1800s. The countries they typically came from were Norway and Germany. The second group of immigrants, or as Mr. Isern called them new immigrants came in the 1900's. The second group of people were of an Italian, Greek, Polish, and or Czechoslovakian descent. Next we covered the pattern of migration these immigrants developed. Three different patterns arose; chain migration, group settlement and dispersed settlement. Chain migration is where one person comes to the US on his own and then slowly brings his family friends and relatives with him. Group settlement is where an entire group of people comes over to the US together. This was typically a church or organized community. Dispersed Settlement is where people would come to the US and live wherever they end up with no reason what so ever. We also talked about assimilation, acculturation and cultural persistence as related to ethnicity in the plains. All these stated is that some people want to assimilate and give in to the American culture, and some want to keep their culture and just live here. A good example of this is the people who lived and farmed the plains for years only speaking German. My Grandma still speaks good German. People on the plains tended to be, how do I say predictable. This came in many shapes and forms one way was in their businesses they opened. One example of this would be how the Chinese people usually opened laundry mats, or black men became barbers. The next piece of the lecture that really intrigued me was when Mr. Isern talked about the German Russians. The reason why it intrigued me was because I am German Russian. My family came from Russia and got kicked out once their severance was revoked after Catherine's death. I asked my Grandma if she knew any more information about this and she said should meet with my Great Grandma who is living in Driscoll. I haven't made it their yet but am excited to learn more of my heritage. When I look back I really do wish I knew more about my heritage and hope that I can dig up some good information in the days to come.
Lectures 9 and 10 Responses
Hello Everyone,
Since we didn't discover that lecture 9 was concluded until yesterday, we'll make the deadline for its response next Tuesday, 11-25. However, Lecture 10 was also concluded yesterday, so its response will also be due on the 25th.
Tom
Since we didn't discover that lecture 9 was concluded until yesterday, we'll make the deadline for its response next Tuesday, 11-25. However, Lecture 10 was also concluded yesterday, so its response will also be due on the 25th.
Tom
RP: Lecture 10
Lecture 10 was titled Fire on the Ice, and it was about politics on the Plains. We discussed the fact that Plains states are generally red states. These states usually vote Republican in state administration elections and the Presidential elections, but they send democrats to Washington. The reason for this is because they don't want to be taxed by their state governments, but they want the money that their democratic representatives can get them from Washington and the federal government. We also discussed Agrarian Radicalism on the Plains. One organization was The Grange. The Grange began as a social organization but eventually went into politics. The Farmer's Alliance went into politics and formed a new political party. They formed the Populist (People's Party). Their platform was to nationalize the ownership of railroads. We also discussed other organizations like the CCF in Canada, Farmer's Union, and American Agricultural Movement). We also discussed the fact that the Plains states would poll heavily for Socialist candidates, especially in the 1920s. Radical ideas seemed to come out of the Plains because of the number of farmers here.
I though the story about Gordon Kahl was really interesting. I think it's funny that a radical guy like Kahl would come from North Dakota. I also think it's funny that someone would stand up against paying taxes because it's something that I would never question.
I though the story about Gordon Kahl was really interesting. I think it's funny that a radical guy like Kahl would come from North Dakota. I also think it's funny that someone would stand up against paying taxes because it's something that I would never question.
RP: Lecture 9
Lecture 9 was titled Wir Sehen Uns Nimmer Mehr, and it was about immigration and ethnicity on the Plains. We discussed a few different motivations as to why people immigrated here. The first wave of immigrants were from northern and western Europe during the 1880's, and the second wave of immigrants came from southern and eastern Europe and peaked during the 1900's. We also discussed the concept of chain migration. In this process, scouts or pioneers would come to America and settle in an area and then send letters back to Europe that would draw new people to the area. Another idea was group settlement in which large groups would come to America and settle in an area. Dispersed immigration involved people coming to America and settling wherever there was available land. We also discussed the fact that a lot of German-Russians settled in this area.
I thought this lecture was interesting because I have German-Russian roots. My ancestors started in Strasburg, Germany. They migrated to Strasburg, Russia, and eventually settled around Strasburg, North Dakota. I think it's interesting how the German-Russian culture is still very strong here today. I doubt there are many places besides North Dakota where you can find kuchen or fleisch keuchle in a grocery store or on a menu. I also thought the slide titled "God’s Country" was interesting. A family friend came to North Dakota for the first time this year over the opening weekend for deer hunting. With his luck, there was a blizzard the day before he got here. He had never seen weather like that before. Although he thought it was really beautiful, he jokingly told me that "You better stop calling this God's country or people aren't going to want to go to heaven."
I thought this lecture was interesting because I have German-Russian roots. My ancestors started in Strasburg, Germany. They migrated to Strasburg, Russia, and eventually settled around Strasburg, North Dakota. I think it's interesting how the German-Russian culture is still very strong here today. I doubt there are many places besides North Dakota where you can find kuchen or fleisch keuchle in a grocery store or on a menu. I also thought the slide titled "God’s Country" was interesting. A family friend came to North Dakota for the first time this year over the opening weekend for deer hunting. With his luck, there was a blizzard the day before he got here. He had never seen weather like that before. Although he thought it was really beautiful, he jokingly told me that "You better stop calling this God's country or people aren't going to want to go to heaven."
RP: Lecture 9
Lecture 9 entitled "Wir Sehen Uns Nimmer Mehr" was about immigrants and ethnicity on the plains. There were many reasons for immigration to the plains: promise of land, to escape persecution of some sort, the chance to start over, etc. The immigrants came in patterns: chain migration, group settlement, and dispersed settlement. The first wave of immigrants was mainly from northern and western Europe, and the second wave was Europeans from south and east. When these peoples came to the plains, some assimilated into society while others held onto the old ways tightly. There were a great number of German-Russian immigrants that came in search of land, and Mexicans who came looking for work.
This lecture peaked my interest because my family (like a great majority of others) immigrated to the plains. Although I am of Norwegian descent, it was still interesting to learn about the Germans from Russia. They were Germans who were colonists in Russia. Later because of many reasons, many went to America. They brought with them a rich culture that can still be seen today if you know where to look. This can be said about any immigrant culture. I was also interested in the title of the lecture. I still have no idea how to pronounce it, but it's translated to "We will never see one another again." It was a verse in a sad song about people sailing off on a voyage. I also liked the diagrams of patterns on the prairie. There was chain migration, group settlement, and dispersed settlement. It's interesting to looking how some of these immigrants were convinced to settle the plains, and how they actually went about settling. One example I liked was the Mennonite "Strassendorf": the houses were close together with fields behind the homes.
This lecture peaked my interest because my family (like a great majority of others) immigrated to the plains. Although I am of Norwegian descent, it was still interesting to learn about the Germans from Russia. They were Germans who were colonists in Russia. Later because of many reasons, many went to America. They brought with them a rich culture that can still be seen today if you know where to look. This can be said about any immigrant culture. I was also interested in the title of the lecture. I still have no idea how to pronounce it, but it's translated to "We will never see one another again." It was a verse in a sad song about people sailing off on a voyage. I also liked the diagrams of patterns on the prairie. There was chain migration, group settlement, and dispersed settlement. It's interesting to looking how some of these immigrants were convinced to settle the plains, and how they actually went about settling. One example I liked was the Mennonite "Strassendorf": the houses were close together with fields behind the homes.
RP: Lecture 9
Lecture 9 dealt with the ethnicity of the plains people. We started off the lecture with Dr. Isern's serenading us with the lecture title song, quite good and brave if I do say so. We looked at how the plains were populated with immigrants and how they came to be here. The first wave of immigrants were from the north and western parts of Europe, these old immigrants reached a peak in the 1880's on the plains. The second wave of immigrants or new immigrants came from southern and eastern Europe and their numbers peaked in the 1900's. Next we looked at the Yankee thread, Yankees being Anglo-Americans from the east coast that came to the plains to make money, finally giving way to the immigrants.
Next we looked at the patterns of immigration, chain migration, group settlement, dispersed settlement. Chain migration was where scouts or pioneers would come to America from Europe and scout out an area to settle in, than send a letter back to their family and friends in Europe telling them of the area which would draw them to the plains. Group settlement is where recruiting agents would go to Europe and recruit groups of people to come to the plains to settle and the settlers would come out in one large or numerous smaller groups to the plains. Dispersed immigration was just that, individuals or families would come to America without many others and just settle anywhere there was available land.
We also talked about assimilation, acculturation and cultural persistence as related to ethnicity and 2 hypotheses of assimilation on the plains; assimilation encouraged because of cooperation and assimilation discouraged because of isolation.
We next looked at different ethnic groups and what niche they are filling on the plains. Dr. Isern talked about southeast Asian Indians getting into the motel business in the twentith-century as a sort of chain migration setup. The Chinese came to the plains and worked mainly in the laundry business in America and opened cafes in Canada. The Lebanese were door to door suppliers to rural farmsteads and African-American's were barbers upon the plains.
The next part of the lecture really fascinates me, we discussed the Germans from Russia. Germans from Russia were ethnic germans who colonised in Russia under Catherine the Great's reign where they were given religious freedom and exemptions from the Russian Army. There were 2 main colonies, the Volga River colonies and the Black Sea colonies. The diaspora of Germans from Russian coming to America ran from 1870 up to the 1900's because of conscription, Russification, land pressures and internal cultural factors. Germans from Russia were mainly Lutheran, Roman Catholics and Mennonites. The Mennonites settled in central Kansas and Manitoba, the Volga Germans settled in western Kansas and the Black Sea Germans settled in North and South Dakota.
We finished out the chapter with conversations with Mexicans on the plains and their later immigration here mainly for industrial or agricultural jobs and the segregation they faced, their role in beet-blocking in the central plains and the Red River valley, and their role in the packinghouse growth on the plains. We finished out the lecture with some cerebral thoughts such as the botanical metaphor; diversity in nature and society leads to richness and resilience, and the visible and invisible ethnic identity.
I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the Germans from Russia and although it was nice learning about them I wanted to learn more, in my opinion they play a very large role in the shaping of the plains and learning their back story more could possibly explain the present better.
Sutton Goodman
Next we looked at the patterns of immigration, chain migration, group settlement, dispersed settlement. Chain migration was where scouts or pioneers would come to America from Europe and scout out an area to settle in, than send a letter back to their family and friends in Europe telling them of the area which would draw them to the plains. Group settlement is where recruiting agents would go to Europe and recruit groups of people to come to the plains to settle and the settlers would come out in one large or numerous smaller groups to the plains. Dispersed immigration was just that, individuals or families would come to America without many others and just settle anywhere there was available land.
We also talked about assimilation, acculturation and cultural persistence as related to ethnicity and 2 hypotheses of assimilation on the plains; assimilation encouraged because of cooperation and assimilation discouraged because of isolation.
We next looked at different ethnic groups and what niche they are filling on the plains. Dr. Isern talked about southeast Asian Indians getting into the motel business in the twentith-century as a sort of chain migration setup. The Chinese came to the plains and worked mainly in the laundry business in America and opened cafes in Canada. The Lebanese were door to door suppliers to rural farmsteads and African-American's were barbers upon the plains.
The next part of the lecture really fascinates me, we discussed the Germans from Russia. Germans from Russia were ethnic germans who colonised in Russia under Catherine the Great's reign where they were given religious freedom and exemptions from the Russian Army. There were 2 main colonies, the Volga River colonies and the Black Sea colonies. The diaspora of Germans from Russian coming to America ran from 1870 up to the 1900's because of conscription, Russification, land pressures and internal cultural factors. Germans from Russia were mainly Lutheran, Roman Catholics and Mennonites. The Mennonites settled in central Kansas and Manitoba, the Volga Germans settled in western Kansas and the Black Sea Germans settled in North and South Dakota.
We finished out the chapter with conversations with Mexicans on the plains and their later immigration here mainly for industrial or agricultural jobs and the segregation they faced, their role in beet-blocking in the central plains and the Red River valley, and their role in the packinghouse growth on the plains. We finished out the lecture with some cerebral thoughts such as the botanical metaphor; diversity in nature and society leads to richness and resilience, and the visible and invisible ethnic identity.
I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the Germans from Russia and although it was nice learning about them I wanted to learn more, in my opinion they play a very large role in the shaping of the plains and learning their back story more could possibly explain the present better.
Sutton Goodman
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
lecture 9
"Wir Sehen Uns Nimmer Mehr" The title of lecture 9 meaning, "We will never see one another again" A song about a sailor who goes off on a voyage and sings this song to their lovers. This lecture talks about the immigration and the different culture that were brought with the people that immigrated over to the plains from different countries. The first wave of immigrants were old immigrants from northern and western europe, peaking in the 1880's. This was the settlement era on the plains-land and opportunities available to immigrants. The second wave of immigration was from southern and western Europe peaking in the 1900's. Isern described these immigrants as the new immigrants. These immigrants were correlated with the industrial settlements. Chain migration, a term used to describe the chain effect of migration from Europe. Europe would send scouts and pioneers to North America and then send letters to their relatives, in which more people from Europe would migrate to North America. Group settlments: Europe would send scouts and organizers to North America, which would send recruiting agant back to the old country to convince more to move to North America. Dispersed Settlers: Individual from Europe would migrate to North America. Assimilation is the drift of language and customs to the language and customs of where they relocated too. So the immigrants had to learn english and new customs of the this new world they moved to on the plains. Acculturation would be the immigrants learning english but kept their native ways in the house hold. Their were two hypothesis mention by Isern about Assimilation and environments on the plains: Assimmilation discouraged, because of isolation and the second was assimilation encouraged because of the need to cooperate. Both of these hypothesis are very believable and I wouldn't know which one to believe in. Some diversity in diversity talks about niche population for example peddlers. In the 20th centuryAfrican Americans had a niche in Berber shop businesses, they would only cut white peoples hair and would cut African Americans on their days off. Theirs been a lot of talk about German Russians in our class, asking who is of German Russian descent. The German Russians were Germans that migrated to Russia, then immigrated to North America. These German Russian were lutherns, catholics, and mennonites.
The mennonites were known in central Kansas and Manitoba. The Volga Germans settled in western Kansas. Isern then turned to Hispanics and Mexicanos on the plains. Looking for employment, agriculture, or industrial jobs. You still see that today, the Mexicans migrate up to the plains states during the harvesting season to work and when that is over they head back south to their homes.
The mennonites were known in central Kansas and Manitoba. The Volga Germans settled in western Kansas. Isern then turned to Hispanics and Mexicanos on the plains. Looking for employment, agriculture, or industrial jobs. You still see that today, the Mexicans migrate up to the plains states during the harvesting season to work and when that is over they head back south to their homes.
RP Lecture 9
Lecture nine was titled Wir Sehen Uns Nimmer Mehr which translates to english as "We see ourselves never more". This lecture dealt with immigration and ethnicity on the plains. The first wave of immigration onto the plains was in the 1880s from northern and western Europe. This was known as the settlement era on the plains and there was much land and opportunities available. The second wave of immigrants came from southern and eastern Europe in the early 1900s and this was a time of renewed settlement on the plains. During this time immigrants came to more industrial setting than the first wave. Dr. Isern talked to us about the Yankee Thread and succession by ethnics as well as the patterns on the prairies of chain migration, group settlement, and dispersed settlement. In order for the immigrants to be successful they first had to assimilate into the new cultures but many immigrants tried to keep their cultures from where they came from. There are many ways to look at this issue with hypothesis such that assimilation was discouraged because of isolation or on the other hand assimilation was encouraged because of an overall need to cooperate. German-Russion immigration was huge on the plains and Dr. Isern explained what exactly German-Russions are and how they came to be on the plains. Some of these reasons include conscription, Russiafication, land pressures, and cultural factors which are reasons why many different cultures came to the plains. There were a lot of different things that brought immigrants to the plains including agriculture, railroad, beef-blocking, packinghouse, among others. These industries brought new ethnic groups to the region such as Mexicanos looking for emloyment. We looked at the Botanical Metaphor and how diversity in nature and society brings richness and resilience which is excellent for a region to prosper and this shows on the plains.
Lecture nine was very interesting to me because we all immigrated here at some point and it is interesting to think what brought my particular family here. Was it the abundant farm land and agriculture, or was it because it offered good employment and stability? Or was it because they somehow had connections here from a different wave of immigration? The plains seem like a great place for anyone that is willing to work hard. If you work hard you can become successful here and that's what thousands and thousands of immigrants did and made the region what it is today.
Lecture nine was very interesting to me because we all immigrated here at some point and it is interesting to think what brought my particular family here. Was it the abundant farm land and agriculture, or was it because it offered good employment and stability? Or was it because they somehow had connections here from a different wave of immigration? The plains seem like a great place for anyone that is willing to work hard. If you work hard you can become successful here and that's what thousands and thousands of immigrants did and made the region what it is today.
lecture 7
Lecture number seven was really interesting. The lecture takes a look at agriculture on the Great Plains, and the innovations/technologies used to make it a successful lifestyle. Thomas Jefferson once said farmers are the most important people in the United States. I find that today this isn't as true but we will discuss in the following paragraph how that thought came to be. Now back to innovations, from what I could see most of the agricultural ideas and innovations have mainly been based on trial and error. The technology that Mr. Isern talked about that I found interesting was the center pivot irrigation system. I find it amazing how much time and labor that saved farmers once they started using this. They no longer had to spend all day watering crops. Now, they waited around till something broke so they could fix it. Agriculture on the plains is a lot like survival of the fittest. Nature gives no exceptions to farmers on the Great Plains. Farmers must continually adapt to be successful year in and out. After listening to this lecture I definitely learned something important and that is that the government really tries to help farmers. Since the homesteaders moved to the Dakota's up until now they continually try to help farmers any way they can. Since the number of farms is shrinking and the size of them is growing it is hard to get into farming. This makes me sad because now for me to be able to get a farm I have to marry a farm girl. I don't know if I can do that just yet but hey who knows right. Do you think that this is going to change in the future or is it always going to like this?
Sharp Reaction
Paul Sharp's Whoop Up Country was a very interesting book. This book examined the lives of people living on the northern section of the Great Plains near the Whoop Up Trail. This Trail was very important. The trail connected Montana and Alberta. This is important because it connected to countries with different governments and cultures. The book starts out by defining the geographical characteristics of the area. Then Sharp discusses how the people who lived in this area interacted with their environments and each other. Just as everyone would assume due to the importance of the fur trade the pioneers took advantage of the Indians, exchanging whiskey or tobacco for furs. If I were to compare the perspective Sharp had to Webb’s I would say Sharp makes them look more human and less savage. He shows them as people reacting to many new things rather than killing everything for no reason. Also, the trading that took place along the Whoop Up Trail was not always fair to the Indians. The traders would try to take advantage of these people and get as much as they could for as little as possible. Some of the items they were trading along this trail were guns, freight, whiskey and day-to-day items like blankets. This trail helped form the culture of this region and influenced many people who lived there. I really enjoyed this book and thought it was very interesting. It was harder to stare at a computer screen than a book but that is why we have eye drops, right. This text did a good analysis of the Great Plains by taking the one region explaining both sides. I do think I liked Webb’s book better but this was a good book and I really enjoyed it.
Revised Calendar
Monday, November 17, 2008
Lecture #7 Response
Lecture 7 focused on farming on the Plains. This lecture was of particular interest to me because I was raised on a farm. The transition of the Great Plains to a farming region changed many things on the Plains. The Plains went from a region of great herbivores to grazing species. The region also changed from prairie polycultures to crop monocultures. The Great American Desert became the garden of the world. The success of farming on the Plains was due largely to the development of dry farming. The goal of dry farming is to conserve water by deep plowing and tillage. Because of the semi-arid climate of the Plains, crops that grow in drier areas are needed. Immigrants brought with them varieties of wheat and durum that were successful on the Plains. Irrigation, especially the center pivot, changed what crops could successfully be raised on the Plains. Irrigation and the production of feed induced feedlots to the Plains. Packers entered the area, which led to more immigrants to work in the plants. This whole cycle led to interesting cultural dynamics on the Great Plains.
One of the interesting areas of this lecture for me was talking about the change in urban attitudes. We have talked about how the metropolis affects the Great Plains. Environmental concerns, animal rights and food safety will surely be issues in the future that will affect all farmers and ranchers on the Plains, including my family. I think that education will be vital in preventing big losses for farmers and ranchers. For example, if people understand how antibiotics work to improve beef, they won't be as freaked out and decide to eat only "all natural" beef. I also know that it is important for farmers and ranchers to consider the environmental effects of pesticides and herbicides, so it will be interesting to see how agriculture changes on the Plains over the next decade.
One of the interesting areas of this lecture for me was talking about the change in urban attitudes. We have talked about how the metropolis affects the Great Plains. Environmental concerns, animal rights and food safety will surely be issues in the future that will affect all farmers and ranchers on the Plains, including my family. I think that education will be vital in preventing big losses for farmers and ranchers. For example, if people understand how antibiotics work to improve beef, they won't be as freaked out and decide to eat only "all natural" beef. I also know that it is important for farmers and ranchers to consider the environmental effects of pesticides and herbicides, so it will be interesting to see how agriculture changes on the Plains over the next decade.
RP: Dakota Circle
Over the weekend I finished reading Dakota Circle and I must say that this is probably the best book that I've read all semester. I read the entire book in about six hours, it is easy reading that is very interesting. The book has so many interesting points, that its difficult to sum it up in a brief manner. However, what I took away from it, is that North Dakotans should take pride in the way they have been molded by the environment. In fact the book speaks of the impact of the Plains as a whole on life, but it seemed to emphasize North Dakota. Tom Isern, speaks of how ethnicity and religion have played a role in the lifestyles of many North Dakotans. I enjoyed how he claims to not like trees, its not to often that you find someone so into the open country that they go so far as to not like trees. I too have grown up on the plains all my life, but I must say that I do love trees and sometimes I wish there were more of them around here, but at the same time I do like the open fields and grass blowing in the wind. In this book Isern tells many interesting stories of the plains including such things as the "Dakota Heat" winter survival kit, the German-Russian tradition of Christkindl and the Belzenickel (a religious tradition), and the modern American legends.
Like I mentioned above, I really enjoyed this book, especially the stories of the big animal and human figures found throughout ND. Overall it is written very well, but there were a few instances where I became somewhat confused by the wording. This book really boosts ones desire to be a part of the plains life and get involved in exploring the land and being proud of it. My wife and brother heard me talking about the book and are both wanting to read it as well, so that is a good sign. I certainly would like to try some of the recipes mentioned in the book, especially the salsa. I'm also interested in the groundcherries, where does a guy find these little gems?
Fred Lassonde
Like I mentioned above, I really enjoyed this book, especially the stories of the big animal and human figures found throughout ND. Overall it is written very well, but there were a few instances where I became somewhat confused by the wording. This book really boosts ones desire to be a part of the plains life and get involved in exploring the land and being proud of it. My wife and brother heard me talking about the book and are both wanting to read it as well, so that is a good sign. I certainly would like to try some of the recipes mentioned in the book, especially the salsa. I'm also interested in the groundcherries, where does a guy find these little gems?
Fred Lassonde
Dakota Circle- response to Calli's post- (Dakota Circle- interesting statements)
I agree that trees are necessary for shelter belts and the prevention of soil erosion, but much beyond that point I start to dislike trees. Growing up in Central North Dakota, I am used to shelter belts and small patches of trees here and there but I would much prefer the ability to see the horizon than a wall of trees. When there are too many trees I become claustrophobic in a way. For example, some of the roads in Minnesota are so thick with trees on either side of the road that it is hard to see anything but trees. This closed in feeling is uncomfortable to me and also quite boring. In my opinion, a clear view of fields, rolling pastures, livestock, and the golden horizon at sunset is much more appealing than a dense, dark, forest or an endless supply of identical trees.
In addition, trees make it harder to farm. North Dakota is ideal for farming because of its fertile black top soil and relatively tree free landscape. Part of the reason the soil stays black and fertile is due to the lack of trees which would otherwise absorb a majority of the nutrients from the soil, making it harder for crops to obtain proper nutrients. Also if there are less trees in an area, there will be more available land for farming and grazing. I do believe that trees are important to prevent soil erosion and are a good place for wildlife to take cover, however; in my opinion, trees are only good in moderation and too many of them is a nuisance. Basically it all comes down to where you grew up. Most people that grew up on the plains obviously prefer treeless landscapes just as those that grew up in mountainous regions prefer deep valleys surrounded by forest and mountainous terrain. Therefore I can understand why Isern may dislike trees as well.
In addition, trees make it harder to farm. North Dakota is ideal for farming because of its fertile black top soil and relatively tree free landscape. Part of the reason the soil stays black and fertile is due to the lack of trees which would otherwise absorb a majority of the nutrients from the soil, making it harder for crops to obtain proper nutrients. Also if there are less trees in an area, there will be more available land for farming and grazing. I do believe that trees are important to prevent soil erosion and are a good place for wildlife to take cover, however; in my opinion, trees are only good in moderation and too many of them is a nuisance. Basically it all comes down to where you grew up. Most people that grew up on the plains obviously prefer treeless landscapes just as those that grew up in mountainous regions prefer deep valleys surrounded by forest and mountainous terrain. Therefore I can understand why Isern may dislike trees as well.
Hell on Wheels
That's the title of the presentation by Dr. Charles Vollan, SDSU, for our department colloquium coming up this Friday afternoon. Check out this poster. I'll talk about this in class, too - a chance for response paper points.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Dakota Circle- Interesting statements
Well, I am fully into Dakota Circle and I have to say it is really an interesting read. While some of it is a little confusing and worded a bit differently ( I have some questions on structure Isern) I still have enjoyed reading it. One aspect I was surprised about was Isern's claim to not like trees. For five years my mother was the Cass County Soil Conservation Technician. Through her job I have learned the importance of trees to our lives. While the plains may be lacking in an abundance of trees, without shelter belts and other wind barriers I would like to see farmers be productive. Trees are vital to our survival. Isern also claims to dislike the mountains. Perhaps you are not seeing them right. Haven grown up in the Bitterroot Valley, surrounded by the Rocky Mountains and the Bob Marshall Wilderness, I understand that mountain country is not all mountains. Beautiful, treeless, level areas are located deep in the valleys of these mountains. While it may not have the limitless view of nothing that the Plains offers, it provides a more diverse environment of both plants, wildlife and people. I love North Dakota, however, I will not be blinded by others opinions of this geography. Nothing is better than a house in the mountains looking down on a valley filled with beautiful horses and abundant hay crops. Any one that has visited Glacier National park will attest to the beauty and necessity of trees and mountains.
RP Heritage Museum: Clay County Historical Society
On November 15, 2008, I visited the Clay County Historical Society in Moorhead, MN. The Clay County Historical Society was formed in 1932 and contains thousands of artifacts, pictures, and documents that relate to the county's history. What I noticed right away when I entered the museum is that it dealt a lot with communication. There were displays set up that documented each method of communication and its history in both the world and how it was relevant to Clay county. The evolution of communication was well documented and went from tecnolohy such as telegraphs, morse code, typewriters, newspapers, postal and the post office, radio, television, and computers among others. There are lots of pictures for each and how they pertained to Clay county. For instance there are pictures of mailmen delivering mail on snowmobiles and horseback. Communication was a huge part of Clay county's history. In 1890, after Alexander Graham Bell's patent expired groups of farmers and small town entrepreneurs formed locally owned telephone companies. The first municipal owned telephone system in Minnesota was actually in Barnesville. One of the other great features of the museum is the section with actual news clippings of famous events. From the Moorhead Daily News you can view newspapers from World War II and famous events such as the Kennedy Assassination and the Watergate scandal. The museum has artifacts such as old time telegraphs, type casters to pound out newspaper headlines, and the first televisions and computers.
The Clay County Historical Society does justice to the history of the county and how communication played a part in shaping it. My favorite part of the museum is a picture of my great aunt Delores Ristvedt holding a hooped shaped bamboo staff for passing trains. The conductors would stick their arms out and grab the hoops to receive the trains orders. I thought is was really interesting since I know her well and the picture is of her as a child. After visiting the Clay County Historical Society I have a better understanding of the western Minnesota county and how communication shaped life in the Midwest.
The Clay County Historical Society does justice to the history of the county and how communication played a part in shaping it. My favorite part of the museum is a picture of my great aunt Delores Ristvedt holding a hooped shaped bamboo staff for passing trains. The conductors would stick their arms out and grab the hoops to receive the trains orders. I thought is was really interesting since I know her well and the picture is of her as a child. After visiting the Clay County Historical Society I have a better understanding of the western Minnesota county and how communication shaped life in the Midwest.
Heritage Event: Lefse!
On Sunday, November 9th, my Mother, Grandmother (my Dad's mom), and I made lefse at our family farmhouse in rural South Dakota.
Every year since I can remember, Grandma has come over around noon one Sunday in the fall to make lefse. We always use the kitchen in our house, where Grandma used to live, and where she raised my Dad. She says she remodeled it just for this specific ocasion, or at least that's what she tells me.
This event helps us observe and remember our family's Norwegian heritage; the recipe being passed down through many generations.
We begin with the potatoes; peeling, cutting, and grinding them to the right consistency. Then continue on to add the rest of the ingredients (butter, milk, water) to make the dough. The dough is then rolled into balls and set in the fridge. One person always rolls (usually my Grandma) and the other two flip the lefse on the lefse grill. The first pieces is always a disaster- usually burned or just hard as a rock. After that we're good to go and continue to make over 110 pieces of lefse every year. This year the count came to 108.
The first fresh lefse of the year is always the best. I like mine with butter and sugar, my Dad likes his with jelly, and my Grandpa eats his lefse with ANYTHING.
My family has been doing this since before I was born. They decided that this year was either the 25th or 26th year, they couldn't remember...
This event helps us celebrate our heritage with the making (and eating) of ethnic food. It is also a great time of family bonding, catching up but also remembering old times. Another reason we get together to do this is to make enough lefse for the holidays to serve and share with friends and family.
I think events such as this show the close knit families on the Great Plains. It also shows that many of us still celebrate our cultural heritage and still do things (such as use the same recipes)that our ancestors used many many years ago.
Every year since I can remember, Grandma has come over around noon one Sunday in the fall to make lefse. We always use the kitchen in our house, where Grandma used to live, and where she raised my Dad. She says she remodeled it just for this specific ocasion, or at least that's what she tells me.
This event helps us observe and remember our family's Norwegian heritage; the recipe being passed down through many generations.
We begin with the potatoes; peeling, cutting, and grinding them to the right consistency. Then continue on to add the rest of the ingredients (butter, milk, water) to make the dough. The dough is then rolled into balls and set in the fridge. One person always rolls (usually my Grandma) and the other two flip the lefse on the lefse grill. The first pieces is always a disaster- usually burned or just hard as a rock. After that we're good to go and continue to make over 110 pieces of lefse every year. This year the count came to 108.
The first fresh lefse of the year is always the best. I like mine with butter and sugar, my Dad likes his with jelly, and my Grandpa eats his lefse with ANYTHING.
My family has been doing this since before I was born. They decided that this year was either the 25th or 26th year, they couldn't remember...
This event helps us celebrate our heritage with the making (and eating) of ethnic food. It is also a great time of family bonding, catching up but also remembering old times. Another reason we get together to do this is to make enough lefse for the holidays to serve and share with friends and family.
I think events such as this show the close knit families on the Great Plains. It also shows that many of us still celebrate our cultural heritage and still do things (such as use the same recipes)that our ancestors used many many years ago.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
RP Heritage Site: Hjemkomst
On November 15, 2008, I visited the Hjemkomst Center in Moorhead, MN. The Hjemkomst is a ship that was built by Robert Asp in a potato cellar in the the nearby town of Hawley, MN. The ship, which was completed in 1980, is a replica of 9th century Viking ships and in particular the Gokstad Viking ship, a ship that was discovered in1880 by archaeologists digging near the town of Gokstad, Norway. The ship is 76.5 feet long and weighs 16 tons. The Viking ship was launched from Duluth on August 7, 1980 and made a voyage of 3,900 miles from the New York Harbor to the town of Bergen, Norway from June 14, 1982 to July 19, 1982. Along the way some of the things that were on board the ship was a tow generator which served as one of the ship's four power sources, a sea anchor (for deep water) and a danforth anchor (for shallow water), a bilge pump, fresh water, self-inflating life rafts in case the ship sunk, and a bucket that was used for a bathroom.
The museum does a really good job of telling the story of the Hjemkomst through both displays and hands on interaction. You are able to walk up stairs in order to get a good view of the enormous ship. It really shows what it was like to live and sail on a ship such as this. One thing I thought was interesting was a display that showed how to tie nautical knots and then you could try them yourself. There are several displays that show the building process of the ship like how the keel was laid and how Bob Asp went about building the ship. I think the Hjemkomst Center provides a great look into the story of the Hjemkomst and the town of Hawley that the ship has come to represent. Seeing the ship in person is really cool and it is amazing how big the ship really is. Before the voyage to Norway, Robert Asp passed away and the voyage became a tribute to his life.
The museum does a really good job of telling the story of the Hjemkomst through both displays and hands on interaction. You are able to walk up stairs in order to get a good view of the enormous ship. It really shows what it was like to live and sail on a ship such as this. One thing I thought was interesting was a display that showed how to tie nautical knots and then you could try them yourself. There are several displays that show the building process of the ship like how the keel was laid and how Bob Asp went about building the ship. I think the Hjemkomst Center provides a great look into the story of the Hjemkomst and the town of Hawley that the ship has come to represent. Seeing the ship in person is really cool and it is amazing how big the ship really is. Before the voyage to Norway, Robert Asp passed away and the voyage became a tribute to his life.
Friday, November 14, 2008
BR: The Last Picture Show by Larry McMurtry
The Last Picture Show is about Sonny Crawford and his life in Thalia, Texas. Sonny lives with his friend Duane in a rooming house. They are both seniors in high school, and they both play football. Thalia is a small town where everyone knows everyone else's business. Duane is dating Jacy. She is the daughter of one of the only rich families in town. Jacy is very aware of her reputation in town and always wants to shock her parents. Sam the Lion is an old man in town that Sonny looks to for advice. He runs the local pool hall, diner, and picture show. Sam takes in a boy named Billy who spends his time sweeping the sidewalks in front of the buildings Sam owns.
Throughout the novel, many relationships are the focus. Jacy never seems content with Duane. She is always trying to build a reputation as a wild girl. She breaks up with Duane when she finds a new boy that will help boost her untamed status. Sonny has an affair with his football/basketball coaches wife, Ruth. He neglects her to date Jacy after Duane leaves town. When Duane comes back to visit, he has a fight with Sonny over Jacy that leaves Sonny with only one useful eye. Jacy and Sonny run away to get married, only to be stopped by Jacy's parents. After Sam the Lion dies, Sonny starts taking care of Billy, and the book ends with the picture show closing and Billy being killed by getting hit by a truck while wearing Sonny's eyepatches.
I think a strong theme in the book is that everyone there feels like there is a lack of opportunity in Thalia. Most of the young characters talk about leaving. Boredom of small-town life is another theme. The boys are always trying to find something to do that usually ends up with them causing trouble. There is also the aspect that everyone in a small town knows the business of everyone that lives there. All the townspeople know that Ruth and Sonny are having an affair, but no one says anything about it (although, I'm sure they are gossiped about behind their backs). I think the strongest theme is that the town is decaying. There are no new opportunities. I think this theme is symbolized by the picture show closing in the end.
Throughout the novel, many relationships are the focus. Jacy never seems content with Duane. She is always trying to build a reputation as a wild girl. She breaks up with Duane when she finds a new boy that will help boost her untamed status. Sonny has an affair with his football/basketball coaches wife, Ruth. He neglects her to date Jacy after Duane leaves town. When Duane comes back to visit, he has a fight with Sonny over Jacy that leaves Sonny with only one useful eye. Jacy and Sonny run away to get married, only to be stopped by Jacy's parents. After Sam the Lion dies, Sonny starts taking care of Billy, and the book ends with the picture show closing and Billy being killed by getting hit by a truck while wearing Sonny's eyepatches.
I think a strong theme in the book is that everyone there feels like there is a lack of opportunity in Thalia. Most of the young characters talk about leaving. Boredom of small-town life is another theme. The boys are always trying to find something to do that usually ends up with them causing trouble. There is also the aspect that everyone in a small town knows the business of everyone that lives there. All the townspeople know that Ruth and Sonny are having an affair, but no one says anything about it (although, I'm sure they are gossiped about behind their backs). I think the strongest theme is that the town is decaying. There are no new opportunities. I think this theme is symbolized by the picture show closing in the end.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Lecture 7: Farming the Plains
Lecture 7 was about, just as the title would suggest, farming on the Plains. First Isern transitioned us from the previous lecture of the West with its cattle drives and ranches, which he termed settler colonists. After the settler colonists had set up shop on the Plains other bands of people began to move onto the Plains following the railroads and starting farms, extraction colonists. The main differences being that settler colonists intentionally change the land by bringing in new animals, cattle, and killing off any unwanted animals, wolves. Extraction colonists intentionally change the land by unknowingly deplete the water supplies and causing erosion.
The basic history of farming on the Plains is fairly simple and predictable when we look at it from our modern standpoint. Being from a farming background I am very familiar with the consolidation of family farms and conservation programs coming in, causing problems for the little farms trying to eek out a living. One thing I was not familiar with, being from Minnesota where we have plenty of water, was the need for irrigation. I had never paid attention to the various types of irrigation. The closest I'd seen any type of irrigation was flying over Nebraska and seeing the circles in the fields. I had never heard of artisan wells and had only a vague notion of surface irrigation. Where I'm from there are several underground pockets of water that the various farms draw their well water from so it was interesting to hear about how most of the state draws from the Ogalla and how the droughts caused the water levels to drop significantly.
Environmental issues such as this caused the uprising of environmental conservation groups like Conservation Reserve, Buffalo Commons, Nature Conservancy, and Ducks Unlimited. Groups that worked to stem or reverse the harmful effects of farming and other industries. With these new environmental groups came a new era of thinking. Suddenly urban people began to have less sympathy for farmers. They became more concerned for environmental concerns, animal rights, and food safety. This caused the laws that had been set to help farmers to be reevaluated and in many instances removed. I don't know if it's just because I come from a small family farm background but sometimes I think environmental groups do more harm than good. Take PETA for example; the thought behind the organization has its merits. I'm all for animal rights and against the unnecessary harm or torture to animals, but since its development the people who have come to run it have become fanatical. Now that they have the support of dumb rich people they are able to go about doing whatever they want without any thought to the logic of their actions. I've personally had members of PETA release some of our county fair livestock in the middle of a city. If they hadn't been caught in the act it could have become a very dangerous situation with a large group of un-animal-savy urbanites, loud noises, bright lights, and frightened animals. People like that just don't think before they do things like let domesticated animals loose.
The basic history of farming on the Plains is fairly simple and predictable when we look at it from our modern standpoint. Being from a farming background I am very familiar with the consolidation of family farms and conservation programs coming in, causing problems for the little farms trying to eek out a living. One thing I was not familiar with, being from Minnesota where we have plenty of water, was the need for irrigation. I had never paid attention to the various types of irrigation. The closest I'd seen any type of irrigation was flying over Nebraska and seeing the circles in the fields. I had never heard of artisan wells and had only a vague notion of surface irrigation. Where I'm from there are several underground pockets of water that the various farms draw their well water from so it was interesting to hear about how most of the state draws from the Ogalla and how the droughts caused the water levels to drop significantly.
Environmental issues such as this caused the uprising of environmental conservation groups like Conservation Reserve, Buffalo Commons, Nature Conservancy, and Ducks Unlimited. Groups that worked to stem or reverse the harmful effects of farming and other industries. With these new environmental groups came a new era of thinking. Suddenly urban people began to have less sympathy for farmers. They became more concerned for environmental concerns, animal rights, and food safety. This caused the laws that had been set to help farmers to be reevaluated and in many instances removed. I don't know if it's just because I come from a small family farm background but sometimes I think environmental groups do more harm than good. Take PETA for example; the thought behind the organization has its merits. I'm all for animal rights and against the unnecessary harm or torture to animals, but since its development the people who have come to run it have become fanatical. Now that they have the support of dumb rich people they are able to go about doing whatever they want without any thought to the logic of their actions. I've personally had members of PETA release some of our county fair livestock in the middle of a city. If they hadn't been caught in the act it could have become a very dangerous situation with a large group of un-animal-savy urbanites, loud noises, bright lights, and frightened animals. People like that just don't think before they do things like let domesticated animals loose.
RP: Lecture 7
In lecture 7 "Farming the Plains" we discussed farming and the importance of agriculture. The lecture dived right in with ecology. Crops, grasses, and plants have adapted to the plains over the years. With the introduction of new crops, it became more of a challenge, but they too eventually adapted. The Homestead Act and other means such as the Timber Culture Act, lottery, purchasing the land, etc. were all ways one could acquire land upon the plains. Each one of these played a huge role in bringing peoples to settle this land and it increased agriculture. Agriculture on the plains was booming, but then came the Dust Bowl which became a large set back. With this harsh lesson learned, farming techniques changed a bit: different tillage methods came about and there became an increase in conservation programs and technology. A rise in irrigation also appeared on the plains. With all of this in mind, agriculture can be seen as having huge impacts and having great importance to life, identity, and regional history upon the Plains.
One thing in this lecture that I would very interesting was the idea of "Rain Follows the Plow." It was a way of promoting people to get out there and plow that grassland and the rain will come because from plowing moisture is released and results in rain clouds. Now, I'm not so sure that I buy into this, but at the time it was believed. Land rushes were another appealing part of the lecture. People would line up and rush off to stake their claim, but first they had to beat everyone else there. This much have been complete chaos with people fighting each other over claims, and there were people who cheated and had already staked out there claim before the rush began.
One thing in this lecture that I would very interesting was the idea of "Rain Follows the Plow." It was a way of promoting people to get out there and plow that grassland and the rain will come because from plowing moisture is released and results in rain clouds. Now, I'm not so sure that I buy into this, but at the time it was believed. Land rushes were another appealing part of the lecture. People would line up and rush off to stake their claim, but first they had to beat everyone else there. This much have been complete chaos with people fighting each other over claims, and there were people who cheated and had already staked out there claim before the rush began.
RP Lecture 7
In Lecture 7 we talked about how farming and agriculture came to be important on the Great Plains. The two theses of the lecture were that the 4 point model applies and that agriculture is the topic of premier importance to regional history. We discussed agriculture and ecology, and looked at how the plains went from being a prairie with hundreds of species of grasses and other plants to a crop monoculture, with specific crops being grown. We also looked at how the buffalo were replaced with cattle and other grazing species. We talked a little bit about how grasslands ecology worked, and how there isn't really one set climax formation, since the environment is always changing. I thought this was very interesting, because I remember learning in junior high about climax formations and how nature tries to get back to that point. I also thought it was funny how people believed that rain would follow the plows as settlers moved into the area. It sounds unbelievable now, but that's how people thought they could survive out here. We then talked about the different land laws that the U.S. government passed to get people moving out here. We then talked a little bit about how farming evolved, and how different wheats like winter and spring wheat grew better in certain areas. We also talked about the Dust Bowl, and some of the legends associated with it. I found these to be very interesting, I've always thought it was amazing how something like that could have happened. We also talked about how modern agriculture has adapted to try to avoid future disasters like the Dust Bowl.
Heritage Event Fall Supper
On Sunday the 26th of October around 12:00 in the afternoon, me and my parents went to Holy Spirit Catholic Church on 1420 7th St. N. Fargo. It was a fall festival to help raise money for the church, and to celebrate the Fall Harvest. There was of course the supper which consisted of turkey, potatoes and gravy, stuffing, corn, home made rolls, and many different pieces of pie and cake. They had pumpkin pie, apple pie, and a weird one that I had no idea what it was. The cakes included chocolate, white, and carrot. The food was very good and I like everything. For the beverage they had lemonade, water, and coffee. On the tables they had a vase full of fake wheat and cattails as seen in the picture above. I found it odd to have cattails in there with wheat, but I did some research and found out they are edible and used in many different ways. Also they are generally harvested in the fall. I also found out that my some of my family actually goes to this church and a found out most of this information from them. After we ate I joined my cousins and I watched them play a few games. They did the cake walk, football toss, baseball toss, hockey shooting, and basketball shooting game. There were also a few games that we did not come across. After that they went and got their faces painted and I joined back up with my parents. We went into the gym area were they had a silent auction with a lot of donated stuff, mostly Christmas and Thanksgiving things. There was also a craft, farmers market, and bake sale. There was a lot of vegetables and home made deserts donated. All the profits went to the Church besides the farmers market only some went to the church. The craft sale was a bunch of home made blankets and other cool items that people made and donated. After that we decided to leave and call it a day. The heritage that I think is celebrated is the Catholic Church and the Farmer of the Fall Harvest. The Church was full of many different back rounds unlike a small town church were you could say that most of they people are German, Anglo, or Norwegian.
Matthew Lee
Matthew Lee
LR 7
In lecture seven we learned about the farming aspect of the plains and how farming has changed over the years. We learned how the process of working the land has change over time, including going form grazing lands to crops and land conservation. As the plains changed so did the ways of farming. Some thought to continuously till the land where others thought to not till at all. People that tilled the land often thought it would change the climate and bring more rain. However this is most likely not true. Then in the nineteen thirties came the dust bowl. The land was over used and wind storms picked up the loose soil and sent it into the air. This really changed the way farmers tilled and worked the land. Also with agriculture came new equipment. The plows changed to maximize production in as little time as possible. The land is flatter therefore harvesters can larger and wider to harvest more. With all these changes also comes conservation. Now people are taking the land and letting it go back to nature.
In all I thought this lecture both supported Webb’s book and disproved his book. It helps his theory of adaptation to environment. When people settled on the plains they adapted to the area. They found ways to grow crops such as the wheat form the German Russians, larger harvesters and how to work the land. It also disproves his theory that we have tamed the plains. At the time he wrote the book there was no dust bowl. If we tamed the land how did the dust bowl occur? This leads to another question. Have we truly tamed the plains or have we just temporally tamed the land? Could this be an ever changing cycle? I think that the land may be tamed for a few generations but is always changing.
In all I thought this lecture both supported Webb’s book and disproved his book. It helps his theory of adaptation to environment. When people settled on the plains they adapted to the area. They found ways to grow crops such as the wheat form the German Russians, larger harvesters and how to work the land. It also disproves his theory that we have tamed the plains. At the time he wrote the book there was no dust bowl. If we tamed the land how did the dust bowl occur? This leads to another question. Have we truly tamed the plains or have we just temporally tamed the land? Could this be an ever changing cycle? I think that the land may be tamed for a few generations but is always changing.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Film Review- Friday Night Lights
Friday Night Lights is a movie that takes place in Texas. Right away, the importance of football is demonstrated by the young boys' hard training and determination. They film the board with all of the years of winning state championships. The movie focuses on a select group of boys trying to prove themselves. Only one of the five boys is portrayed as "educated" enough to go on to get secondary education. The other four seem to depend on football to establish an identity. It also seems that without that championship, they will be unable to live. They boys and coach support a tremendous amount of pressure from the community and their families. Tim McGraw's character shows that this isn't a recent pressure as he felt the same pressure when he was a child. It is eminent that this pressure plays a large role in their future as Tim's character also demonstrates. The expected undefeated season turns into a struggle to make it to playoffs. They make it to playoffs by a coin toss, but are beat out first round. The disappointing loss has a twisted ending because the boys' lives don’t seem to end. They all have a smile on their faces at the end of the movie.
This was a disturbing portrayal of the south, and how dependent they are on football. As stated in the beginning, the football coach gets paid more than the principal. This kind of raises a question on where the priorities are. It also raises a question on why the south has turned a sport into a "life or death" feeling for young kids. One possibility may be due to the tremendous pride towns on the plains have in their towns. Like water towers, this too may be something that can make a small town stand out from the rest.~Chris Schmaltz
This was a disturbing portrayal of the south, and how dependent they are on football. As stated in the beginning, the football coach gets paid more than the principal. This kind of raises a question on where the priorities are. It also raises a question on why the south has turned a sport into a "life or death" feeling for young kids. One possibility may be due to the tremendous pride towns on the plains have in their towns. Like water towers, this too may be something that can make a small town stand out from the rest.~Chris Schmaltz
Lecture 7
Agriculture that pretty much wraps it up for lecture 7. Either dealing with the ecology that revolves around agriculture or how agriculture progressed through the year. There were two main thesis 1. the four point model and 2. agriculture as the topic of premier importance to regional history. This lecture tells us so much how the Great Plains were shaped by agriculture and showed us how independent us as Americans can be. We can build our own houses with just the materials around us. We can farm the land to feed ourselves and we can adapt new crops from different countries that have the same type of atmosphere. For example a big one was wheat. They brought wheat over from Russia and it grew very well on the great plains cause it had same type of environment. Just like anything that you do there was environmental issues like stream flow and ground water adaption but throughout the years we have learned to try and fix these issues through environmental causes like Ducks Unlimited for one. Just like cattle ranching agriculture shaped the plains through the way we live and adapted to the countryside. Also because of us becoming self sufficient through agriculture and learning to do things on our own it helped us grow and establish ourselves as a growing independent country. Just like agriculture was important back then agriculture is still a big part of our country and if we didn't have agriculture on the great plains we may not have developed as the country that we have become today.
LR 6
Lecture six was about the ways of the ranchers and how the cattle kingdom came about. The lecture included the herd law, fencing, how the cattle got to the market, and how the market came to the cattle. The herd law came about to keep cattle from destroying other peoples property and keep cattle separate. Then came the railroad. Drivers would move the cattle northward to the railroads where they would get loaded up and sent back east. Then as the plains developed packing factories moved onto the plains. They were able to do this due to the underground aquifers. We also learned about the quality of the meat. There are now many standards that the meat has to meet to be produced and sold, such as, U.S.D.A approved and proper packaging.
I thought that this lecture was very interesting. In many ways it was a lot like Webb’s book and the chapter on the cattle kingdom. I also like learning how and why the herd law’s came to be. The herd laws really make sense when you think about it. Other farmers and ranchers did not want there herds to get a disease from other herds and they did not want there corps eaten or destroyed by the cattle. I think this lecture showed how the cattle and the ranchers shaped the plains.
I thought that this lecture was very interesting. In many ways it was a lot like Webb’s book and the chapter on the cattle kingdom. I also like learning how and why the herd law’s came to be. The herd laws really make sense when you think about it. Other farmers and ranchers did not want there herds to get a disease from other herds and they did not want there corps eaten or destroyed by the cattle. I think this lecture showed how the cattle and the ranchers shaped the plains.
LR 7
Lecture 7 was interesting. We get into the fact that without agriculture America wouldn't have survived. People started to get smarter about grazing and farming, acquiring new methods and ways of thinking. The Great American Desert theory ceased to be and homesteading became popular. Although it was hard work, for most it was worth it. They fulfilled the requirements of the homestead act and either stayed or went back to the city, but kept the land.
I love the exaggerations of the generations before us. " When I was your age I had to walk to school up-hill both ways.." was a common phrase every time I complained. Granted they did face much more struggle than I ever want to, but at the same time, life is still a continuous struggle, it's just over different things now day. The thing I notice most when talking to older people is they always think they had it worse. I find it amusing that they will fight with you about it forever and neither will get anywhere.
Technological advancements during this time help settling of the plains. Now instead of worrying about rainfall they could collect water from the ground and water the crops themselves. Wheat became a big crop because of the fact it grew so well on the plains. Thus inducing the popularity of grass crops on the plains. The dust bowl arose due to our poor farming practices and bit us in the butt. Issues with farming practices became more well known and people started to take account for what they were doing wrong. We didn't realize that we were poisoning ourselves with fertilizer and pesticides until people started getting sick in masses. They didn't know that it was running off the fields into their drinking water. Oil seed crops became more popular due to their value and ability to grow.
Every lecture to me seems to prove that without the Midwest and all of our accomplishments America would have failed, or taken a lot longer to become a leading nation. The Midwest established America in the fact that we don't have to depend on anyone other than ourselves to build houses or feed our people.
I love the exaggerations of the generations before us. " When I was your age I had to walk to school up-hill both ways.." was a common phrase every time I complained. Granted they did face much more struggle than I ever want to, but at the same time, life is still a continuous struggle, it's just over different things now day. The thing I notice most when talking to older people is they always think they had it worse. I find it amusing that they will fight with you about it forever and neither will get anywhere.
Technological advancements during this time help settling of the plains. Now instead of worrying about rainfall they could collect water from the ground and water the crops themselves. Wheat became a big crop because of the fact it grew so well on the plains. Thus inducing the popularity of grass crops on the plains. The dust bowl arose due to our poor farming practices and bit us in the butt. Issues with farming practices became more well known and people started to take account for what they were doing wrong. We didn't realize that we were poisoning ourselves with fertilizer and pesticides until people started getting sick in masses. They didn't know that it was running off the fields into their drinking water. Oil seed crops became more popular due to their value and ability to grow.
Every lecture to me seems to prove that without the Midwest and all of our accomplishments America would have failed, or taken a lot longer to become a leading nation. The Midwest established America in the fact that we don't have to depend on anyone other than ourselves to build houses or feed our people.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Lecture 7 Response
Lecture 7, "Farming the Plains," we discussed agriculture and ecology on the Plains. The lecture began and consisted of two thesis': 1. The Four Point Model Applies and 2. that agriculture is the topic of premier importance to regional history. The grassland ecology was then discussed; succession, climax formation, prairie diversity and stability, crops and monoculture. Dr. Isern discussed pioneer farming as Jeffersonian agrarianism- how the Plains went from "desert" to "garden." I found it interesting and amusing that the belief on the Plains was that rain follows the plow!
Homesteading was a large part of the development of the Plains into farming land. People began moving on to the Plains in wagon loads to make a home and farm. But homesteading wasn't what it was said to be: the government took land for schools, Indian reservations, and railroad grants and there was unexpected expenses in homesteading. Some of the laws and actions that followed Homesteaders were the Homesteading Act: 1862, Preemption, Timber Culture Act: 1873, Military Script, land rushes and lotteries. Dr. Isern, also, discussed and described the homestead shanties and sod houses. I can not imagine living a "house" that size- with my family! Or living in a shantie during the winter- how miserable!
Lecture 7 went on to discuss pastoralism, the wheats on the Plains, the Dust Bowl, the rise of irrigation and environmental issues. My favorite part of the discussion was the Dust Bowl and the Trunks. I can't imagine how frustrating and frightening living during the Dust Bowl would have been. "The Trunk" I found it interesting that it was their life and happiness in the Trunk. My mom has her great-great grandmothers trunk that carried all of her favorite and most important possessions. The trunk has been passed down and today it sits in my parents living room with all of my mom's most valued possessions and the women's before her.
Homesteading was a large part of the development of the Plains into farming land. People began moving on to the Plains in wagon loads to make a home and farm. But homesteading wasn't what it was said to be: the government took land for schools, Indian reservations, and railroad grants and there was unexpected expenses in homesteading. Some of the laws and actions that followed Homesteaders were the Homesteading Act: 1862, Preemption, Timber Culture Act: 1873, Military Script, land rushes and lotteries. Dr. Isern, also, discussed and described the homestead shanties and sod houses. I can not imagine living a "house" that size- with my family! Or living in a shantie during the winter- how miserable!
Lecture 7 went on to discuss pastoralism, the wheats on the Plains, the Dust Bowl, the rise of irrigation and environmental issues. My favorite part of the discussion was the Dust Bowl and the Trunks. I can't imagine how frustrating and frightening living during the Dust Bowl would have been. "The Trunk" I found it interesting that it was their life and happiness in the Trunk. My mom has her great-great grandmothers trunk that carried all of her favorite and most important possessions. The trunk has been passed down and today it sits in my parents living room with all of my mom's most valued possessions and the women's before her.
Lecture 7
In Lecture 7 "Farming on the Plains" we first started out talking about the 2 theses of this lecture. The first is the 4 point model applies and second agriculture as the topic of premier important to regional history. We went on and started talking about the U.S. laws for the plains. They are the homestead act, Pre-emption, and etc. What I didn't know and found interesting was that people got their farms from lotteries. It was interesting that all the people had to do to get a farm was make the land better and that a person came around to make sure but they didn't always unless a neighbor wanted the land and forced the person to come inspected the land. Hardy Webster Campbell started dry farming. You had to have good conservation of moisture meaning plowing deep and also a big thing was tillage. Then we talked about the legends of the dust bowl and it was interesting because I remember hearing stories about dust bowls and the depressions from my grandparents and great grandparents. Like all lectures it all ties in with adaptation. It plays a big part in farming with the change in seeds or the farm equipment or even just adapting to the land. Another discussion was we talked about who would take over the farm. It was interesting because when you think about it you would think that it the oldest son would take over the farm or a son. But now days it could be the son or daughter that takes over and that's pretty cool showing the change over the years.
Lecture #7
Lecture number seven “The Farmer is the Man” takes a look at agriculture on the Great Plains and the innovations used to make it a successful industry. I found some of the innovations a little comical knowing what we know now. From what I could see most of the agricultural ideas and innovations have been very trial and error, for every center pivot there's an idea like the rain will follow the plow. Agriculture on the plains is no exception to the general idea of the Great Plains that you must continually adapt to have a sustainable life. Also the ongoing theme of government assistance continues in this chapter more talk about the land lotteries and homesteading. One thing that I found particularity interesting in this lecture was the idea of the suitcase farmer, I hadn't heard about this being applied to farmers before. I know that quite a few cattle farmers use this method successfully, but I didn't think that it would be possible for a farmer to do this. This lecture also made me question the future of agriculture on the plains with the large reduction/consolidation that has occurred already on the Great Plains and in the United States as a whole. Obviously this has to stop and maybe even reverse course at some point, but I wonder what level it will drop to before this occurs and also will it be more difficult to break into the farming industry in the future or will that stay about the same?
RP: Lecture 7
Lecture #7 was all about farming on the plains. First we talked about replacement and displacement theories in respect to the the ecology of the plains land. We talked about how crop monocultures are efficient and how prairie polycultures are resilient.
Next we discussed the grasslands, Jeffersonian agrarianism, and the theory that the "rain follows the plow." This was very interesting to learn about how the people who settled on the plains in the 1890s thought they could transform the climate by turning the soil. This would then let out the moisture trapped beneath the sod and begin the rain cycle. It was interesting to learn that the settlers thought that if they planted trees, this would also add to the factor because they are electrical conductors and the storms and rain would be sure to come.
The lecture then went on to tell of homesteading on the plains and how it wasn't all it was cracked up to be. This idea was new to me as I have never studied the history of this area in any depth until this class. I had never thought about how many expenses the homesteaders had to incur such as the work of cultivation of grasslands, and building fences and buildings without trees.
The next part of the lecture discussed pastoralism and open range and the implementation of National Grasslands and Community Pasture. The we talked about Hardy Webster Campbell and his goal of conserving moisture through dry farming. We then talked about how the settlers had to adapted the crops to the land, like Mark Carleton bringing in wheat from Russia.
The last part of this lecture we discussed the adaptation to the plains in modern culture, irrigation, and policy issues.
Lastly Isern brought up the topic of the future of commercial farming and that the farm population is declining and the role of women on the farm. I would say that Isern got such a small response when asking who was going back to the farm, simply because of the fact that we are all at a university. If he would've asked the same question at a tech school or smaller college in the area, I think he would have returned better numbers. I think the reason most people are attending the university is probably because they have higher expectations or aspiration for themselves than returning to the family farm.
Next we discussed the grasslands, Jeffersonian agrarianism, and the theory that the "rain follows the plow." This was very interesting to learn about how the people who settled on the plains in the 1890s thought they could transform the climate by turning the soil. This would then let out the moisture trapped beneath the sod and begin the rain cycle. It was interesting to learn that the settlers thought that if they planted trees, this would also add to the factor because they are electrical conductors and the storms and rain would be sure to come.
The lecture then went on to tell of homesteading on the plains and how it wasn't all it was cracked up to be. This idea was new to me as I have never studied the history of this area in any depth until this class. I had never thought about how many expenses the homesteaders had to incur such as the work of cultivation of grasslands, and building fences and buildings without trees.
The next part of the lecture discussed pastoralism and open range and the implementation of National Grasslands and Community Pasture. The we talked about Hardy Webster Campbell and his goal of conserving moisture through dry farming. We then talked about how the settlers had to adapted the crops to the land, like Mark Carleton bringing in wheat from Russia.
The last part of this lecture we discussed the adaptation to the plains in modern culture, irrigation, and policy issues.
Lastly Isern brought up the topic of the future of commercial farming and that the farm population is declining and the role of women on the farm. I would say that Isern got such a small response when asking who was going back to the farm, simply because of the fact that we are all at a university. If he would've asked the same question at a tech school or smaller college in the area, I think he would have returned better numbers. I think the reason most people are attending the university is probably because they have higher expectations or aspiration for themselves than returning to the family farm.
Lecture 7
Two important parts to this lecture are the 4 point plan and the importance of agriculture of regional history. We discussed homesteading and the hardships that went with it. In addition to this we discussed the Homestead Act, the pre-emption process and other land laws on the plains. The first houses on the plains needed to be adapted to the area since there was no heating. Some of the first plains houses were houses covered with tar paper, sod houses, and dug outs, which are hole- like dwellings in the ground.
When farming the plains, adaptations had to be made in order to lessen the production of dust and loss of the fertile top soil. To prevent this problem, tree rows and shelter belts were built as well as deep plowing to conserve the moisture in the soil. Another adaptation farmers had to make was the types of crops they planted. Certain wheat crops grew well on the harsh plains. To adapt to the dry conditions on the plains, irrigation was also used. After adapting to the environment, farmers had to adapt to the increasing change in urban attitudes. Consumers became more concerned with animal rights and food safety, thus farmers had to accommodate to consumer needs.
I have lived in the country since I was little and have grown up around farming and tactics used to adapt to the land. There are several pine tree rows planted next to most of the cropland in the region. In addition to this most farmers have summer fallow fields so as to keep the moisture in the ground and to prevent soil erosion. There are not many irrigation systems in my area, but the wheat crops grown in the region seem to produce well without it. This lecture reminded me of the methods I have taken for granted and made me realize how many adaptations needed to be made just to grow crops on the plains.
When farming the plains, adaptations had to be made in order to lessen the production of dust and loss of the fertile top soil. To prevent this problem, tree rows and shelter belts were built as well as deep plowing to conserve the moisture in the soil. Another adaptation farmers had to make was the types of crops they planted. Certain wheat crops grew well on the harsh plains. To adapt to the dry conditions on the plains, irrigation was also used. After adapting to the environment, farmers had to adapt to the increasing change in urban attitudes. Consumers became more concerned with animal rights and food safety, thus farmers had to accommodate to consumer needs.
I have lived in the country since I was little and have grown up around farming and tactics used to adapt to the land. There are several pine tree rows planted next to most of the cropland in the region. In addition to this most farmers have summer fallow fields so as to keep the moisture in the ground and to prevent soil erosion. There are not many irrigation systems in my area, but the wheat crops grown in the region seem to produce well without it. This lecture reminded me of the methods I have taken for granted and made me realize how many adaptations needed to be made just to grow crops on the plains.
RP Lecture #7
Lecture 7 is about farming the plains. We started off discussing the agriculture and ecology replacement and displacement. This included the grazing species the crop monocultures, the grasses and the pets and weeds. All these things have a different effect on the plains and yet all are equally important to have. Then we went into the grassland ecology and discussed that this is the way the land WANTS to be--a prairie land.
We then moved on to pioneering farming and that Jefferson tried to get people to see that it was no longer the Great American Desert but a Garden of the World. But people would soon find that homesteading the plains wasn't all that great. Expenses of homesteading would lead to to US Land Laws for the plains such as: Homestead Act of 1862, Pre-emption, and Timber Culture Act of 1873. Those are just a few that we discussed. It was decided that to claim any land you had to have an 8"x10" house on that piece of land. Many would make earth sod houses that still stand today .
We also discussed some of the myths of the plains. I found this to be the most interesting part of the lecture because I can remember my grandparents talking about when they lived through the great depression. My great-grandpa was born in 1901 and passed away at age 98. I can't even imagine all of the events that he lived through.
We also discussed how people were adapting modern agriculture for the plains. Small farms were being consolidated into larger farms and conservation programs were being started to try to make the plains more stable. Yet it would be the rise of irrigation on the plains that introduced more people and business to the plains. This brought in feed lots which brought meat packers who brought immigrant workers. This created some diversity in the plains but also created enviromental issues. The stream flow and ground water depleted and so did the sympathy for farmers.
~Becky Peterson
We then moved on to pioneering farming and that Jefferson tried to get people to see that it was no longer the Great American Desert but a Garden of the World. But people would soon find that homesteading the plains wasn't all that great. Expenses of homesteading would lead to to US Land Laws for the plains such as: Homestead Act of 1862, Pre-emption, and Timber Culture Act of 1873. Those are just a few that we discussed. It was decided that to claim any land you had to have an 8"x10" house on that piece of land. Many would make earth sod houses that still stand today .
We also discussed some of the myths of the plains. I found this to be the most interesting part of the lecture because I can remember my grandparents talking about when they lived through the great depression. My great-grandpa was born in 1901 and passed away at age 98. I can't even imagine all of the events that he lived through.
We also discussed how people were adapting modern agriculture for the plains. Small farms were being consolidated into larger farms and conservation programs were being started to try to make the plains more stable. Yet it would be the rise of irrigation on the plains that introduced more people and business to the plains. This brought in feed lots which brought meat packers who brought immigrant workers. This created some diversity in the plains but also created enviromental issues. The stream flow and ground water depleted and so did the sympathy for farmers.
~Becky Peterson
LR: Lecture 7
Lecture 7 was titled Farming the Plains and dealt with just that. We began the lecture by talking about how and why agriculture was the premier importance to the plains regional history. During this discussion we talked about replacement and displacement with respect to the great herbivores, monocultures vs. polycultures, and the struggle against what now are called pests. Dr. Isern then discussed how succession and climax formations were always trying to bring the prairie back to a stable environment and how the farming of these lands always lead to an unstable environment (or complete lack of environment, in my opinion). We then talked about the pros and cons dealing with homesteading. Withdrawal of public lands for schools, colleges, Indian reservations, and most of all railroad land grants lead to the formation of many small pioneer towns which would soon become the "breadbasket" of the plains. Then we talked about the land laws that were set in place such as the Homestead Act, Timber Culture Act, and lotteries which mandated purchase and upkeep of land. We then jumped into the conservation of water, which was huge on the plains. This was accomplished by deep plowing, tillage, and how the danger of dust effected those farmers. Soon the advancement of different types of wheat lead to different ways of farming. Then we talked about how farms were consolidated into larger units which sometimes lead to bigger even less efficient farms. Soon, the irrigation problems were taken care of by making wells, windmills, aquifers and how rotary drilling rigs truly shaped the way water irrigation was brought to the plains. This rise in irrigation brought bigger businesses to the plains and with them came immigrant labor. This of course lead to a more diverse population on the plains bringing with it more history. Soon, conservation businesses were introduced and this lead to a drop in sympathy for the farmers. Urbanization soon followed and now only people who inherit farms were able to farm.
I really enjoyed this lecture because it truly tells us why we are here now. If it wasn't for the railroads and land grants there wouldn't be what we know as the great plains. The way in which farmers obtained their water needs and the technological advancements which helped this process were all interesting to me. My question for this lecture is why aren't more farmers raising lamb, sheep, and animals of that sort? It seems that the people are missing a huge opportunity to do something more than just wheat or corn.
I really enjoyed this lecture because it truly tells us why we are here now. If it wasn't for the railroads and land grants there wouldn't be what we know as the great plains. The way in which farmers obtained their water needs and the technological advancements which helped this process were all interesting to me. My question for this lecture is why aren't more farmers raising lamb, sheep, and animals of that sort? It seems that the people are missing a huge opportunity to do something more than just wheat or corn.
RP Lecture 7
Lecture 7 dealt with farming on the plains. Right away we discussed the two thesis' of the lecture that the four point models applies and how agriculture is the topic of premier importance to the regions history. I did not come from any farming background but I can see from my extended family how important farming really is to the peoples of the plains to sustain an entire region and small towns in particular. Dr. Isern discussed the ecology of the plains and how farmers changed the overall layout of by introducing new crops species to the region. The region was changed drastically and as Jefferson put it, it went from being the Great American Desert to the Garden of the World. Some of the reasons for this change were the planting of trees and the fact that rain follows the plow.
Dr. Isern then went into the topic of homesteading. He talked about how it wasn't all it was cracked up to be. It was hard to get good land because it was all being used for schools, colleges, Indian reservations, mineral reservations, and railroad land grants. It also had many expenses amd came with many hardships. Different U.S. land laws were established such as the Homestead Act of 1862, Timber Culture Act of 1873, and military scrip and lotteries, which were all ways to try and get people to move out onto the plains. We talked about pastorialism and how technology was adapted to provide success on the plains and different methods of farming such as dry farming where conservation of moisture was key. Wheat farming boomed in the early 1900s along with irrigation with the use of artesian wells, windmills, surface irrigation, and in 1948 Frank Zybach's invention of the center pivot. The irrigation-feedlot-packinghouse-immigration complex led more meat packers to the regions as well as immigrant labor and cultural diversity on the plains. Different issues were discussed such as environmental issues, health hazards, and the freedom to farm. All of this combined would lead to the return of the frontier.
The part of this lecture that was most interesting to me was the myths and legends of the times. Dr. Isern talked about how family's would talk about what the times were like with sayings such as "a grasshopper blackened sky" or regarding the dust bowl "you couldn't see you hand in front of your face". I talked with my grandpa about this and although he was very young during these times he remembers stories that his parents told and they were very similar. I think what defines the plains is the stories that are told down from generations.
Dr. Isern then went into the topic of homesteading. He talked about how it wasn't all it was cracked up to be. It was hard to get good land because it was all being used for schools, colleges, Indian reservations, mineral reservations, and railroad land grants. It also had many expenses amd came with many hardships. Different U.S. land laws were established such as the Homestead Act of 1862, Timber Culture Act of 1873, and military scrip and lotteries, which were all ways to try and get people to move out onto the plains. We talked about pastorialism and how technology was adapted to provide success on the plains and different methods of farming such as dry farming where conservation of moisture was key. Wheat farming boomed in the early 1900s along with irrigation with the use of artesian wells, windmills, surface irrigation, and in 1948 Frank Zybach's invention of the center pivot. The irrigation-feedlot-packinghouse-immigration complex led more meat packers to the regions as well as immigrant labor and cultural diversity on the plains. Different issues were discussed such as environmental issues, health hazards, and the freedom to farm. All of this combined would lead to the return of the frontier.
The part of this lecture that was most interesting to me was the myths and legends of the times. Dr. Isern talked about how family's would talk about what the times were like with sayings such as "a grasshopper blackened sky" or regarding the dust bowl "you couldn't see you hand in front of your face". I talked with my grandpa about this and although he was very young during these times he remembers stories that his parents told and they were very similar. I think what defines the plains is the stories that are told down from generations.
Monday, November 10, 2008
RP: Lecture 7
In lecture 7 we talked about farming on the plains. This lecture started by talking about the native plant life on the grasslands and the changes brought by farmers who removed those grasses and planted a single crop. This part was interesting because of how the introduction of new species of plants could change the ecology of a region. We also looked at a couple of the myths that were spread in order to get people to move to the plains. My favorite was the idea that rain follows the plow. The idea that there is a massive amount of moisture only inches below the surface and it can be released by plowing is kind of funny.
We than looked at some of the ways that people got farms on the plains. These ranged from homesteading to military veterans and lotteries. I was interested to hear about the land rushes because that is something I was curious about. I knew about them, but I was curious how they were managed. It sounds like there wasn't a whole lot of management at all with many disputes and sooners.
Another section that I found interesting was the section about the Dust Bowl. I can't imagine what that would have been like to have all that dust blowing around. I can understand why people felt the way they did when the sun got blocked out by all the dust.
We then looked at irrigation on the plains and how it made farming more productive. It allowed people to survive on land where the only water was underground or further away from the farm. The use of irrigation helped turn the Great American Desert into what some called the Garden of the World.
Mitch Tommerdahl
We than looked at some of the ways that people got farms on the plains. These ranged from homesteading to military veterans and lotteries. I was interested to hear about the land rushes because that is something I was curious about. I knew about them, but I was curious how they were managed. It sounds like there wasn't a whole lot of management at all with many disputes and sooners.
Another section that I found interesting was the section about the Dust Bowl. I can't imagine what that would have been like to have all that dust blowing around. I can understand why people felt the way they did when the sun got blocked out by all the dust.
We then looked at irrigation on the plains and how it made farming more productive. It allowed people to survive on land where the only water was underground or further away from the farm. The use of irrigation helped turn the Great American Desert into what some called the Garden of the World.
Mitch Tommerdahl
Film Review- The Alamo
The Alamo is a dramatic movie giving insight to the conflict between Santa Anna from Mexico and the soon-to-be Republic of Texas. The movie begins with Sam Houston trying to retain power and keep people cautious about the defeat of the Mexican army. He feels Mexico will return in larger numbers. Some of the military go down, and hold the vulnerable fort (The Alamo). The fort is a small unfinished structure that contains a church. The pride of the Alamo is their big cannon. Some big name heroes like David Crockett and Jim Bowie go down to help guard the mission. The Republic of Texas feels confident that it will take a long time before Mexico could gather an army and march them up to Texas. However, Santa Anna succeeds in organizing the impossible. The Mexican army lays siege to the fort, and mentally toys with those that are hostage. While under siege, a romantic story is told, and friendships between enemies are established. Heroic acts and speeches from William Travis are given to the men to keep up the spirits. As the Alamo falls, Sam Houston retreats and waits for Santa Anna to make a foolish decision. As predicted, the careless Mexican leader splits his army. Sam leads his men into victory at the Battle of San Jacinto with the famous line, "Remember the Alamo!"
I felt this was a little stretched from actual events that took place, but it is a movie. It gave me some insight as to some of the characters (if any of it was true). Crockett was portrayed in the movie as a high-spirited, cheerful, care-free individual. He provided comic-relief in the movie even when faced with his final moments of life. There was no doubt that these men took great pride in their country which wasn’t even a done deal at the time. This movie, though a little far-fetched, brought history to the viewer by making it educational and entertaining at the same time.
I felt this was a little stretched from actual events that took place, but it is a movie. It gave me some insight as to some of the characters (if any of it was true). Crockett was portrayed in the movie as a high-spirited, cheerful, care-free individual. He provided comic-relief in the movie even when faced with his final moments of life. There was no doubt that these men took great pride in their country which wasn’t even a done deal at the time. This movie, though a little far-fetched, brought history to the viewer by making it educational and entertaining at the same time.
RP: Lecture #7
Lecture #7 was primarily about farming on the plains and how it has been improved over the years. Dr. Isern spoke of the grasslands ecology; succession, climax formations, diversity, etc. He talked about how the plains went from a desert to a garden by way of rain following the plow and people planting trees, which I think made the biggest difference since trees help prevent the wind from blowing topsoil away. Also mentioned, were the Homestead Act of 1962 and the Timber Culture Act of 1873, both of which drew new settlers to the plains. The Timber Culture Act also caused the planting of many trees, which was a requirement in order for settlers in these locations to obtain land. Of course we also learned of dry farming, which consists of deep plowing to form a sort of dust mulch. This was advantages in areas with little moisture, but could result in huge dust storms.
I particularly enjoyed the pictures of the Homestead shanties, I just can't imagine people living in these little 8'x10' shacks. They must have been so cold in the winter. A few years ago, I helped a friend build an 8'x8' shack up in the Turtle Mountains. We built a small bunkbed in it and installed a wood stove. I stayed in there several times, including once or twice in the winter and it seemed like it was always really hot when the stove was going and then really cold when the stove died out in the night. It was fun to stay in for a night, but to live in there would be almost unbearable I would think. It was almost impossible to keep the draft out, even though we insulated it. All I can say is that I respect anyone who can live in a shack like that all winter long and not freeze to death.
Fred Lassonde
I particularly enjoyed the pictures of the Homestead shanties, I just can't imagine people living in these little 8'x10' shacks. They must have been so cold in the winter. A few years ago, I helped a friend build an 8'x8' shack up in the Turtle Mountains. We built a small bunkbed in it and installed a wood stove. I stayed in there several times, including once or twice in the winter and it seemed like it was always really hot when the stove was going and then really cold when the stove died out in the night. It was fun to stay in for a night, but to live in there would be almost unbearable I would think. It was almost impossible to keep the draft out, even though we insulated it. All I can say is that I respect anyone who can live in a shack like that all winter long and not freeze to death.
Fred Lassonde
LR 7 Farming the Plains
The two theses of the entire lecture were centered around: 1) The four point model applies, and 2) Agriculture as a topic of premier importance to regional history. Ag and Ecology were discussed along with replacement and displacement. Examples like grass and animals were discussed to support the replacement and displacement topic. Jeffersonian agrarianism was discussed, and the transformation of the view from "Great American Desert" to "Garden of the World." Homesteading was a large topic that arguably started the mass movement to the plains. As pioneers moved out, they found it wasn't as easy as they had heard. Their plows had a difficult time working up the land. Several laws like Homestead Act and Timber Culture Act were implemented to organize movement onto the plains. Many stories were passed along to give the perspective of the persistant pioneers who endured difficulties on their adventure. Different methods of tillage were tested to find the most efficient means of growing a crop. New wheats were introduced to the plains because they were found to be suitable for growing. Irrigation and wells brought about successful means of extracting water from the land. The introduction of meat packing plants affected the population as it brought about cultural diversity. Environmental Issues and Policies were addressed in an effort to conserve the land. With urbanization, these concerns became bigger factors. As farming continued, self-determination brought about more diversity like new crops, markets, operations, etc. Finally, more efficient methods of farming has lead to a decrease in the number of operations in the plains.
This was a long, but interesting lecture. I could relate to this lecture as I was raised on a farm. I found the transformation of views from desert to garden humerous because it was all about perception of the land and how well it could be utilized. I also found the ecology bit humerous when they believed they could plow the land and release moisture. I was able to draw a strong correlation of agriculture affecting the region. The immigrants working at meat packing plants brought diversity. The more efficient and economical methods of farming may have lead to more urbanization as it became more difficult to live off of farming. The only difficulty I had was interpreting the four point model and what, exactly, it applied to.~Chris Schmaltz
This was a long, but interesting lecture. I could relate to this lecture as I was raised on a farm. I found the transformation of views from desert to garden humerous because it was all about perception of the land and how well it could be utilized. I also found the ecology bit humerous when they believed they could plow the land and release moisture. I was able to draw a strong correlation of agriculture affecting the region. The immigrants working at meat packing plants brought diversity. The more efficient and economical methods of farming may have lead to more urbanization as it became more difficult to live off of farming. The only difficulty I had was interpreting the four point model and what, exactly, it applied to.~Chris Schmaltz
Lecture 6 Robert Meland
In this Lecture titled "The Ways and Habits of the West". We talked a lot about Cattle raising and ranching more specifically, free grazing and cattle herding. Free grazing and herding were very important during these times because they were how people raise their cattle. Free grazing is where ranchers would let cattle live graze freely. This seemed to work for a long time, but eventually it became a problem when people started fighting over calves and stray cattle. Also, people started snatching calves and branding them there self. Back in these times branding was how they kept track of whose cattle belonged to whom. Long cattle drives was typically how ranchers sold their cattle, but now because of variance in prices across the country they found it more cost effective to ship them on trains.
They call cattle from Texas Longhorns. These cattle are carriers of diseases that often kill other breeds of cattle around the country. At the end of the free-range era, cattle were fenced in with barbed wire instead of being free to roam the land. Once fences were put up they had to be maintained and fixed. This way of life is not easy; I have helped friends work cattle and cannot imagine how hard a life that is. My question is why do we still brand cattle if we do not free graze?
#5 That Pike Country Rose
Lecture number five talked about transportation and how it has affected the Great Plains. I found it interesting how much of the layout of the Great Plains was controlled by the government and the independent railroad companies. I can't recall any other region previously in history that had its infrastructure so greatly influenced by outside forces. Previously spots for settlement were determined by the local landscape. Towns and cities were located by navigable bodies of water or by large quantities of natural resources, but that doesn't seem to be a true on the Great Plains (although there are some exceptions). The building of the railroads really changed the rules and the influence of the railroads is still in place on the Great Plains. With the disappearing of many of the towns that were founded every eight miles along the tracks. As much as the railroads helped to found settlements on the plains now days it seems that it is hurting the plains because the current layout of industries cannot support all of the towns. It seems that scattered all over North Dakota you will find old ghost towns with little or no people left and numerous broken down buildings around town with the only identifiable piece left being the town name on the white and black sign next to the railroad. It seems that for the most part the towns that flourished or survived are located next to the major highways. I guess it just shows a shift in the types of transportation that are most widely used on the plains these days.
Sunday, November 9, 2008
LR #7
Lecture #7 is all about farming the plains. I am not from a farming family yet I do have a great appreciation for the people that live this way of life. It is a difficult life fraught with great risks and even bigger rewards. The two thesis of this lecture are that the four point model applies and also that agriculture is the topic of premier importance to regional history. Having lived in Fargo for the past ten years I have truly discovered the importance of agriculture to this region. When I decided to attend NDSU I knew that it was a primarily an agricultural school. I later learned that many of my classmates are also from farms or small towns where farming is the primary source of income. I now understand the importance of our location and environment in relation to our farming economy. I really enjoyed the discussion on pests and weeds as well as grasses, both native and exotic. Isern really defined a weed perfectly when he said "A weed is a plant out of place" and that really is all it is. After discussing the Dust Bowl and how the topsoil blew away from the crops I understand the importance of maintaining your land and rotating crops as well as introducing non-native species of plants that can help hold down the top soil. The dust bowl caused millions of dollars in damage and destroyed thousands of crop plants. To avoid that devastation again measures had to be taken and more control exerted over the people farming on the Great Plains. I also thought the discussion in class was very interesting regarding the use of chemicals in farming. I am a big opponent of Round-up ready crops. These crops are dangerous to our environment, unnatural, and definitely not the answer to our problems. The roundup ready soybeans are already showing signs that the weeds are developing resistance to the roundup. We need to work with the environment and for the environment not against the environment. Farming is still a large portion of the Great Plains however raising animals is also becoming a bigger industry.
LR #6
Lecture #6 focuses on the Ways and Habits of the West. It especially focuses on ranching on the Great Plains. The Long Drive is what is known as the traditional story of the open-range cattle ranching business. It traces back to it's Spanish origins then to the long drive and finally the northward expansion up the plains. There were many problems with raising and profiting from cattle. I especially found the section on "Texas Fever" to be very interesting. Imagine that you own cattle and some new neighbors move in. They bring with them their own cattle from down south. Well that's all fine and dandy until yours start to get sick. Their cattle seem unaffected and yours are dying in the fields. Something is not right! Well thanks to Joseph McCoy, who connects the supply and demand of the surplus southern cattle, he has brought bacterial blood disease carrying cattle up north and exposed them to northern cattle that are not immune. Imagine losing all of your cattle because they shipped the surplus cattle north from Texas. It would be quite devastating and also quite maddening. I can understand the frustration some ranchers expressed during this time. I never understood what "Texas Fever" was before but I certainly do now. I also found the section on fencing and non-fencing to be very interesting. I never realized it before but back when there was free grazing people were expected to put up fences to keep animals out. Now things are much different and people have to put fences up to keep there animals in. It is now completely backwards, although I couldn't imagine what free-grazing would be like. I know that they branded their cattle for identification but in the present day I don't believe people would be as trusting as that. Some one always seems to find a way to cheat the system. Without fences to tend though, it would be great. The explanations of the feedlot and the meatpacking industry also were very important to me. The pressures on beef that Isern discussed are very real. The meat industry became very disgusting and unregulated but after people began expressing interest as to what was in their meat and the freshness and handling practices of it things began to change. I loved the book SlaughterHouse Five which detailed the meat packing industry and the horrific practices that they did. Unless we continue to care about our meat and it's origins and quality, things could revert back to the way they were. I really enjoyed this lecture and plan on continuing my research into the meatpacking industry of the 1910's to the 1970's. The Great Plains is full of diverse economies and opportunities.
LR #5
For lecture #5 it was all about transportation on the plains. It focused on the various trails of transportation early plains settlers used to transport goods, animals, and themselves. Isern discussed the many different aspects of transportation that affected plains residents. I especially found the information on stagecoaches interesting. While I knew that the government was responsible for helping the railroad companies span across the United States, I did not realize that without a federal contract to carry mail the stagecoach would not have been a big mode of transportation or communication. The only way for stagecoaches to make any money was to have "guaranteed passengers" which would have been the mail. Then regardless of whether or not any human passengers bought transit, the coach would still have a reason to run and also sufficient money to do so. I also thought it was interesting that the telegraph put the Pony Express out of business. This may be due in part to the telegraph being government assisted. This would explain the interstate system and the paving of roads and highways. Less people used trains and began using vehicles for transportation, especially in short distance. Today each state is connected to at least two major interstates. These are also governmentally assisted. This made me wonder if the federal government provides funds for the interstate based on population. If that is the case, North Dakota would receive some of the lowest portions. Would this affect the quality of our interstates? I can't help but notice how terrible some of them are. Also in discussing how the railroad shaped the pattern of settlement in states across the Great Plains one needs to only look at a map of North Dakota and you can easily see that almost every large town is on the interstate and many small towns are not far outside these areas. Depending on the location of the interstates and railroads, we could be located in a very different place if we moved these. I also thought the information on t towns and the setup of the main street and courthouse and school to be very interesting. I wonder how many towns in North Dakota would fall under this description? Lecture 5 was a very informative section that helped me to understand the movement of people on the Great Plains through the different means of transportation they used. These very trails, railroads, and interstates continued to shape the Great Plains into what it is today.
Lecture 7 RP
Lecture 7, "Farming the Plains," as Isern said could be looked at from many different aspects. The lecture discussed the evolution of farming on the Great Plains. It pointed out the progress from the first farming ideas to the future of farming. When farming was first introduced as an idea to utilize the Great Plains, the plains went from the name "The Great American Desert" to "The Great World Garden," as Thomas Jefferson said. To convince people, stories were told of how moisture was trapped beneath the sod of the Great Plains, and it needed to be plowed to release the moisture and put it into the water cycle of the earth. Farmers were told to plant trees to attract lightning, therefore bringing storms with rain for the crops. America had an early idea of a need for change of the plains. Instead of adapting to the environment as Webb put, they needed to adapt the environment to their needs.
After the Great Plains were changed it was only a matter of time before something would happen. What happened was the dust bowl. All of the soil that was held together by sod, now was loose and caught the wind during a drought. The government thought they had messed up and created grasslands to reverse the progress of plowing up the plains. Technology evolved into new conservation of land and lower tillage farming practices. The need for water encouraged the discovery of aquifers underground. Soon well drilling was a new way of life. Feedlots were developed as a mean for better water management and better management of cattle. The use of feedlots needed packing plants to butcher and package meat for customers.
Attitudes of the customers soon changed. As they are today, more concentration was put on what was right, such as environmental concerns and food safety. These attitudes are still managing the farming industry today. In all of the progress and lessons learned from the history of farming on the plains, and interesting question has been raised. What is best for the Great Plains? And would’ve things been different with minor changes in management, such as women being mostly in charge of farming? The one thing to keep in mind however, is it just the environmental aspect that needs to be looked at or is it everything from the people on the plains to the need of change on the plains?
After the Great Plains were changed it was only a matter of time before something would happen. What happened was the dust bowl. All of the soil that was held together by sod, now was loose and caught the wind during a drought. The government thought they had messed up and created grasslands to reverse the progress of plowing up the plains. Technology evolved into new conservation of land and lower tillage farming practices. The need for water encouraged the discovery of aquifers underground. Soon well drilling was a new way of life. Feedlots were developed as a mean for better water management and better management of cattle. The use of feedlots needed packing plants to butcher and package meat for customers.
Attitudes of the customers soon changed. As they are today, more concentration was put on what was right, such as environmental concerns and food safety. These attitudes are still managing the farming industry today. In all of the progress and lessons learned from the history of farming on the plains, and interesting question has been raised. What is best for the Great Plains? And would’ve things been different with minor changes in management, such as women being mostly in charge of farming? The one thing to keep in mind however, is it just the environmental aspect that needs to be looked at or is it everything from the people on the plains to the need of change on the plains?
RP Lecture 7
Lecture 7 was farming on the plains. The lecture started off with two thesis; the 4 point model and agriculture as the topic of premier importance to regional history. We looked at agriculture, ecology and grassland ecology. We discussed homesteading and the US land laws for the plains such as the homestead act and the timber culture act, ways to get people out onto the plains and to start working the lands. Next we briefly discussed the mythology of hard times during the homesteading years up to the great depression and how people of those generations would tell stories of their time on the plains. After that discussion we moved away from the cerebral and into Farming methods on the plains such as dry farming, the wheat grown on the plains and their origins and adapting modern agriculture to the plains. We looked at the rise of irrigation on the plains, starting with artesian wells, windmills, surface irrigation and finally Frank Zybach's center pivot irrigation invention which revolutionized irrigation. Next topic was the irrigation-feedlot-packing house-immigration complex. With irrigation from the Ogallalla aquifer people on the plains were able to grow sorghum which was rich in protein and meant that cattle didn't have to be sent east to be finished on corn to then be slaughtered. The sorghum grown from irrigation was used in the feedlots on the plains, the feedlots then needed meat packing plants to process the beef which in turn "needed" immigrants to work in the packing plants. With these came environmental problems but also cultural diversity. We also discussed government farming policies such as Freedom to Farm, corporate farming and the government regulations on how much acreage a farmer could grow of what crops. We ended the lecture with changes in urban attitudes toward farmers and farmers attempts at self determination.
Two parts of the lecture stood out to me, one was the damage that is being done with chemical or no-till farming to the environment and to the population. I came across an article about Perham MN, it was about a man that drank from a well that was containminated with arsenic! The arsenic was left over from the 1930's when farmers in the area used a poison bait to get rid of grasshoppers, after the grasshoppers were gone the arsenic tainted bait was buried in a shallow trench, after 30 years in the ground the arsenic leached out of the bait into the surrounding ground water.
The other part that stood out was the immigrants working in meat packing plants. When I was attending Bismarck State College after high school I worked at the Cloverdale packing plant in Mandan in the packing room and worked with many immigrants. At the time most of the immigrants that worked there were refugees from the Bosnian War but there were quite a few immigrants from Africa there also and it was a culture shock. Most spoke very little english but there would be 1 or 2 people from each group that spoke pretty fluent english and would be the communicator for their groups. It was very hard to work in a fast paced environment like that when we had to speak through their "interpreter".
Sutton Goodman
Two parts of the lecture stood out to me, one was the damage that is being done with chemical or no-till farming to the environment and to the population. I came across an article about Perham MN, it was about a man that drank from a well that was containminated with arsenic! The arsenic was left over from the 1930's when farmers in the area used a poison bait to get rid of grasshoppers, after the grasshoppers were gone the arsenic tainted bait was buried in a shallow trench, after 30 years in the ground the arsenic leached out of the bait into the surrounding ground water.
The other part that stood out was the immigrants working in meat packing plants. When I was attending Bismarck State College after high school I worked at the Cloverdale packing plant in Mandan in the packing room and worked with many immigrants. At the time most of the immigrants that worked there were refugees from the Bosnian War but there were quite a few immigrants from Africa there also and it was a culture shock. Most spoke very little english but there would be 1 or 2 people from each group that spoke pretty fluent english and would be the communicator for their groups. It was very hard to work in a fast paced environment like that when we had to speak through their "interpreter".
Sutton Goodman
Friday, November 7, 2008
Lecture 7
L7: Farming The Plains
Lecture 7 discussed modern agriculture and ecology in the plains. This topic lead us into how the farmers adapted to changing crops, grasses, and pests. The idea of "Dry Farming" was introduced which is the process of conserving moisture on the farm land. Some new concepts and innovations lead to big changes in farming communities. For example, the state of North Dakota is composed of some larger cities (Minot, Jamestown, Bismark) which all have smaller twin cities (Surrey, Mandan) where the citizens work in the large town but farm and live in the smaller community. The "4-Point Model" describes environment, technology, heritage, and the metropolis affecting modern agriculture communities. The consolidation of farms was a new idea that helped distribute the farming land between families.
The most interesting topic that we talked about in lecture 7 was about farming consolidation. Farmers originally owned a large portion of land which they could develop into a prospering agriculture industry or a new construction site for new houses or buildings. They consolidate the land to make money (Bottom Line).
A new form of consolidation could be from developing and harnessing Wind Energy. Farmers looking for new opportunites to make money and cheaply utilize land; can set up wind mills on the flat land of North Dakota which would produce much needed energy for not only their community but neighboring communities + the whole state. After analyzing the 4 point model on new technology (Wind Energy), the metropolis and environment would be positively impacted.
Adam Wolfe
Lecture 7 discussed modern agriculture and ecology in the plains. This topic lead us into how the farmers adapted to changing crops, grasses, and pests. The idea of "Dry Farming" was introduced which is the process of conserving moisture on the farm land. Some new concepts and innovations lead to big changes in farming communities. For example, the state of North Dakota is composed of some larger cities (Minot, Jamestown, Bismark) which all have smaller twin cities (Surrey, Mandan) where the citizens work in the large town but farm and live in the smaller community. The "4-Point Model" describes environment, technology, heritage, and the metropolis affecting modern agriculture communities. The consolidation of farms was a new idea that helped distribute the farming land between families.
The most interesting topic that we talked about in lecture 7 was about farming consolidation. Farmers originally owned a large portion of land which they could develop into a prospering agriculture industry or a new construction site for new houses or buildings. They consolidate the land to make money (Bottom Line).
A new form of consolidation could be from developing and harnessing Wind Energy. Farmers looking for new opportunites to make money and cheaply utilize land; can set up wind mills on the flat land of North Dakota which would produce much needed energy for not only their community but neighboring communities + the whole state. After analyzing the 4 point model on new technology (Wind Energy), the metropolis and environment would be positively impacted.
Adam Wolfe
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Lecture 7 Response
In Lecture 7, "Farming the Plains," we discussed adaptation to modern agriculture on the plains. We noticed biases that are given to farmers of the area. One example would be, "farm boy." Thomas Jefferson once said, "Farming is a way of life." We went on to talk about academic training and how it relates to environmental determinism. Also, Mr. Isern introduced the 4-point model, which includes environment, technology, heritage, and metropolis. We also talked about agriculture and ecology in relation to great herbivores, crop monocultures, grasses, and pests/weeds.
It was interesting to learn that cattle are generally more domestic than bison. This is understandable because I've been around cattle my whole life and have managed great numbers of them with little effort.
Next, the lecture talked about grasslands ecology and how there's succession and climax formation. Mr. Isern quoted this idea as "The way the land wants to be." However, this concept covered the importance of prairie, diversity, and stability. Webb believed in adaptation to the plains, not stability. So, there's a little bit of disagreement. We talked about how this "desert" turned into a "garden." Mr. Isern simply said that this was caused by rain following the plow and the effort to plant trees. I found it interesting that people used to hire oxen owners to help plow land with century-year-old roots. I assumed that everyone did their own work back then.
U.S. land laws for the plains included the Homestead Act and Timber Culture Act. Also, we talked about the goal of moisture conservation, which would later lead to discussing irrigation. However, before we discussed irrigation, we recognized different wheat types, two of which included winter wheat and spring wheat. I thought that the "Legends of the Dust Bowl" was interesting. Phrases like "you couldn't see your hand in front of your face" and "We thought it was Judgment Day" are very intense.
When talking about adaptation of modern agriculture to the plains, we talked about how family farming has an advantage over other types of farming. Family members work together better.
Finally, we covered irrigation and its environmental issues, along with a change in urban attitudes. Irrigation methods include using artesian wells, windmills, and surface irrigation. Ultimately, there was a change in urban attitudes. This included a loss of sympathy for farmers, environmentalist concerns, animal rights, and food safety. These attitudes led to attempts at self-determination. - Dain Sullivan
It was interesting to learn that cattle are generally more domestic than bison. This is understandable because I've been around cattle my whole life and have managed great numbers of them with little effort.
Next, the lecture talked about grasslands ecology and how there's succession and climax formation. Mr. Isern quoted this idea as "The way the land wants to be." However, this concept covered the importance of prairie, diversity, and stability. Webb believed in adaptation to the plains, not stability. So, there's a little bit of disagreement. We talked about how this "desert" turned into a "garden." Mr. Isern simply said that this was caused by rain following the plow and the effort to plant trees. I found it interesting that people used to hire oxen owners to help plow land with century-year-old roots. I assumed that everyone did their own work back then.
U.S. land laws for the plains included the Homestead Act and Timber Culture Act. Also, we talked about the goal of moisture conservation, which would later lead to discussing irrigation. However, before we discussed irrigation, we recognized different wheat types, two of which included winter wheat and spring wheat. I thought that the "Legends of the Dust Bowl" was interesting. Phrases like "you couldn't see your hand in front of your face" and "We thought it was Judgment Day" are very intense.
When talking about adaptation of modern agriculture to the plains, we talked about how family farming has an advantage over other types of farming. Family members work together better.
Finally, we covered irrigation and its environmental issues, along with a change in urban attitudes. Irrigation methods include using artesian wells, windmills, and surface irrigation. Ultimately, there was a change in urban attitudes. This included a loss of sympathy for farmers, environmentalist concerns, animal rights, and food safety. These attitudes led to attempts at self-determination. - Dain Sullivan
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Lecture 7
Lecture 7 was about farming on the Plains. We discussed things such as grasslands ecology and other farming practices. We discussed homesteading and other land laws on the Plains such as pre-emption, timber culture, and military scrips. We also discussed the idea of dry farming. The goal of dry farming was conservation of moisture. Dry farming did lead to a problem with dust. As farms began adapting to modern agriculture, farms began to consolidate into larger units. There is a question of whether consolidation is more efficient and economical than smaller farms. Conservation programs and technologies were also factors in the adaptation of modern agriculture. Finally, we talked about irrigation on the Plains. Artesian wells, windmills, and surface irrigation were some practices used. With the invention of the center pivot, Frank Zybach revolutionized irrigation on farms. With new irrigation practices, feedlots moved onto the Plains. The feedlots induced meat packers to the region, and the meat packing plants brought immigrants into the area. Because of these factors, the Plains became a more culturally diverse place.
I thought the part of the lecture about rain following the plow was interesting. I think it's interesting that people thought opening up soil would help create precipitation. It would suck to move to the Plains, break a lot of ground for farming and find out that it doesn't actually create more precipitation.
I thought the part of the lecture about rain following the plow was interesting. I think it's interesting that people thought opening up soil would help create precipitation. It would suck to move to the Plains, break a lot of ground for farming and find out that it doesn't actually create more precipitation.
Friday Night Lights RP
Friday night lights was set in Odessa, Texas, which is located in Western Texas. Not to far from the New Mexico border. The Permian High School Panthers were supposed to be the power house footbal team this year. In the beggining Coach Gaines is being interviewed by sports writers about his team but is specially proud of his running back James Miles. Boobie was his nick-name, Boobie wass the star of the team. As you can see with his attitude toward every thing, he is the top dog, didn't lift with the team, always wanted the ball, and always wanted to be put in. Expectations were high for the Panthers this season. Overplaying Boobie, he is seriously injured tearing his ACL and not able to play for the rest of the season. With out the star runningback the team loses moral, and the town blames Coach Gaines for getting Boobie Miles injured. In this small town, football seemed to be what the town looked forward to every week. This is a town that seemed that everyone knew everybody. Businesses would close early on Friday just so they would go the game. Seemed to me that football was an escape from that small town mentality. The youth of the town saw the only way out of the town was through football. None of the youngsters wanted to stay in the town. This reminds me of the dying towns on the plains, the next generation not becoming interested in the farming and moving away to nearby metropolises. As a few games were being lost, the town were again blaiming the Coach Gains for driving the supposed to be power house football team into the ground. The quarterback Mike Winchell looked to be losing interest in football, he just never seemed to be excited to play. His mother wanted to get him out of Odessa, you can see that when that football scout is at their house and his mother is answering his questions for him. When the last regular seaon game is played their is a three-way tie, so the solution was to take the three coaches and have them flip a coin at a highway truck stop. The two coaches that flip the same side of the quarter get to go to the playoffs. The Panthers win the coin toss and make it to the Playoffs to play against Dallas-Carter High School. I am not sure if this is correct but as the movie showed the Dallas-Carter team thay seem to look like a proffessional NFL football team, they just seemed to be twice the size of the Panthers. The first quarter was brutal and almost embarrising. The Panthers were just getting their ass kicked pretty much. During half-time a pep talk from the Mike Winchell got the team fired up and came bacl in the second half to bring their last game of their lives close but not close enough. A last second play to win the game came short as Mike Winchell came up inches short on a drive for a touchdown, but was knocked down. At the end the senior players met at their fotball stadium to say goodbye to each other as they were going their separate plays. I really enjoyed this movie, But in relation to the great plains I don't see the correlation. The only thing I can get is the small town mentality their are in the small towns of the American plains and how much the High School football teams had an effect on the town.
RP: Lecture 7
Lecture 7 was titled Farming The Plains, and went into detail about the 4 point model of environment, heritage, technology and metropolis to explain and focus on each part of the farm on the plains. He mentioned the environment by talking about the grassland ecology, the heritage with some of the old "horror" stories of the dust bowl and grasshopper plagues, the technology with drilling rigs, turbine pumps and even limestone fences and he mentioned the metropolis effect with the portion on how many farms are losing their kids to the city, and having to consolidate with other farms to create larger and hopefully more efficient/economic farms.
I didn't grow up on a farm, but I grew up in an area with a quite a few farms and I have a personal story about the consolidation of farms. I had a classmate who worked/lived/grew up on a farm that his family had been running since his grandfather had moved into the area many years ago. The place used to be set up like a checkerboard with many different families farming their own land, but soon many farms couldn't handle it and had to sell their land. My friends family started buying up the land, but keeping on the other families to help farm the now larger farm. My friend said they started doing this when he was just starting to work a lot more on the farm at 12 and 13, and by the time he was 18 they had their first year out of the red ever. If you know anything about farming, this is a big deal. This means that not only did they make money, they made enough to pay off the banks of all loans, and the farm was no longer in debt!! This is just an example of how consolidating the farms worked out in favor of the buyer.
Also, I have always been curious about the idea of land rushes, which we touched on a little in class. I always thought that it was so impractical to see who could have what land. It is amazing that somewhere at sometime, someone thought it might be a good idea to line up a bunch of people and start a foot race across unsettled land to see who could get set up on a lot the fastest.
I didn't grow up on a farm, but I grew up in an area with a quite a few farms and I have a personal story about the consolidation of farms. I had a classmate who worked/lived/grew up on a farm that his family had been running since his grandfather had moved into the area many years ago. The place used to be set up like a checkerboard with many different families farming their own land, but soon many farms couldn't handle it and had to sell their land. My friends family started buying up the land, but keeping on the other families to help farm the now larger farm. My friend said they started doing this when he was just starting to work a lot more on the farm at 12 and 13, and by the time he was 18 they had their first year out of the red ever. If you know anything about farming, this is a big deal. This means that not only did they make money, they made enough to pay off the banks of all loans, and the farm was no longer in debt!! This is just an example of how consolidating the farms worked out in favor of the buyer.
Also, I have always been curious about the idea of land rushes, which we touched on a little in class. I always thought that it was so impractical to see who could have what land. It is amazing that somewhere at sometime, someone thought it might be a good idea to line up a bunch of people and start a foot race across unsettled land to see who could get set up on a lot the fastest.
Lecture 7
I found lecture 7 to be the most interesting to me so far, we talk about how farming came to be today as we know it. I came in the lecture talking about grassland ecology, which wants to preserve, diversify and stabilize the grasslands. I laughed when Isern said that the farmers would call the grassland ecologist prairie fairys. As grassland ecology started to evolve the great American desert was receeding. This desert was turning into a garden. As Isern mentioned rain follows the plows. Farmers were turning this desert into sections on farmland. People also planted trees to make this desert look some what less desert like. Homesteading meant returning back to the land to make a living, but as time went on, farmers were not the only ones looking for land, the state, federal government, and railroad giants were also looking to consume as much land as farmers were. Using that land for schools, colleges, Indian reservations,and many other things. Some land laws passed by the United State were the following: Homestead act of 1862, pre-emption, Timber Culture act 1873, military scrip, lotteries and land rushes. Pastoralism was a road that wasn't taken. As the open ranges weren't becoming more open but closing due to private lands. Hardy Webster Campbell was associated with dry farming. The goal was the conservation of moisture. Deep plowing and tillage was the heart of dry farming.
Winter and spring wheat, Isern explained the difference , and I know one is planted in the spring and the other before winter. I am a big waterfowl hunter and when I hunt in a harvested wheat stubble field, is that spring wheat or winter wheat? I can see why people thought that the dust bowl was our judgement day, Al Gore thinks the world is going to end in 7 years. Anyways I couldn't imagine not being able to see my hand in front of me because of dust storms.
People started to realize that the bigger the farm the better they are off making money, but their is so much you are able to farm. The rise of irrigation on the plains, artesian wells, wind mills, and surface irrigation are all examples of irrigation practices. Frank Zybach invented the center pivot in 1948. It was pretty much a huge sprinkler that went in a circle on the section of land it was watering. Some environmental issues was keeping the grasslands. Farmers were tilling up the grasslands to make more room for planting crops. The CRP progam began, nature conservancy, Ducks Unlimited and other programs were based on protecting these grasslands. Change in urban attitudes weren't positive toward farmers. A lot of environmentalists concern were road blocks for farmer, and animal rights group for cattle farmers.
Winter and spring wheat, Isern explained the difference , and I know one is planted in the spring and the other before winter. I am a big waterfowl hunter and when I hunt in a harvested wheat stubble field, is that spring wheat or winter wheat? I can see why people thought that the dust bowl was our judgement day, Al Gore thinks the world is going to end in 7 years. Anyways I couldn't imagine not being able to see my hand in front of me because of dust storms.
People started to realize that the bigger the farm the better they are off making money, but their is so much you are able to farm. The rise of irrigation on the plains, artesian wells, wind mills, and surface irrigation are all examples of irrigation practices. Frank Zybach invented the center pivot in 1948. It was pretty much a huge sprinkler that went in a circle on the section of land it was watering. Some environmental issues was keeping the grasslands. Farmers were tilling up the grasslands to make more room for planting crops. The CRP progam began, nature conservancy, Ducks Unlimited and other programs were based on protecting these grasslands. Change in urban attitudes weren't positive toward farmers. A lot of environmentalists concern were road blocks for farmer, and animal rights group for cattle farmers.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Lecture 6
Lecture 6 had to deal mostly with the cattle kingdoms. Either the trails, how they grazed, or how they cattle kingdom shaped the plains. Starting with the grazing cattle ranchers would move there cattle up and down the trail grazing there cattle then because of so many cattle the cattle towns started popping up. Of course once those towns got started they dint want the cattle ranches anymore so by certain laws they gradually moved them out. Gradually as the west was won the free range cattle was out the the more commercial ranching was in with the packing plants and the butchering plants all in one area made beef easier to ship to different parts of the U.S mostly the east. Because of so many cattle there became overstocking and environmental issues. Even with these problems the Cattle were a big starter to the plains and had many impacts on what some people called the wild west. Some of the big towns we know of today started out as just little cow poke towns. Webb talked about the cattle in his book Webb really liked this part of the west maybe because this is what he thought the west should be or that he liked the cowboys on horse back more. Cattle were a big importance to the not just the starting of the west but also the continence of it and it will remain that for years to come.
Lecture 6
Before the West was settled, free grazing and cattle herding were common ways of raising cattle. In those times fences were used to keep cattle out instead of in. When the prices for cattle were much better in different parts of the country, trains were used to ship cattle instead of driving them for long ranges which would be much harder due to bandits and forests to navigate around. Although the problem of hauling cattle over long distances was now solved, a new problem arose. Cattle from Texas were carriers of a disease that would kill other cattle breeds in other parts of the country. When free grazing, cowboys would have to round up the cattle each spring and would have to separate the cattle into each rancher’s herd. At this time calves would be branded. Any calves that were older and no longer on the cow would be branded as association cattle. At the end of the free range era, cattle were fenced in with barbed wire and many different chores emerged. Once put up, fences had to be maintained and fixed when broken. In addition hay had to be made to feed to cattle during the winter.
During the free range days, many cowboys would drive herds over long distances. Over these long hauls, deaths were not uncommon. A famous example of this is when Charles Goodnight brought the body of his friend back to Texas to be buried. The Goodnight- Loving trail is even named after Charles Goodnight’s journey back to Texas. This story is also in the movie “Lonesome Dove” when Woodrow F Call took his deceased friend Augustus McCrae back to Texas after they had herded cattle to Montana. I have seen “Lonesome Dove” many times and really like how the movie shows various hardships that could occur on a cattle drive as well as how life on the range is depicted.
During the free range days, many cowboys would drive herds over long distances. Over these long hauls, deaths were not uncommon. A famous example of this is when Charles Goodnight brought the body of his friend back to Texas to be buried. The Goodnight- Loving trail is even named after Charles Goodnight’s journey back to Texas. This story is also in the movie “Lonesome Dove” when Woodrow F Call took his deceased friend Augustus McCrae back to Texas after they had herded cattle to Montana. I have seen “Lonesome Dove” many times and really like how the movie shows various hardships that could occur on a cattle drive as well as how life on the range is depicted.
R.P. Lecture 6
In lecture 6 " The Ways and Habits of the West" we talked mainly about cattle and ranching. An interesting thing that I learned was that the Spanish Cattle came from North Africa along with the horses. We then talked about the expansion of cattle with the 2 mythic treatments. Also discussed the difference between the Canadian and American Ranching. Then we talked about the Blue winter of 1887 and hard winter of 1907. What I found interesting was that the winters were so harsh that the cattle being pretty good diggers in all could not get though the snow and ice to the grass, so they starved and died. Another thing we talked about was how the ranchers use to just let there cattle roam and they could not tell which ones were theirs unless they had a brand. That was until they put up barbed wire fencing that Webb talked about. What I found interesting was that the cattle would go to a special grazing lands to beef up, then they would go back to the feed lot. The adaption and the growth of the cattle and meat industry really change over time with different techniques and ways to ranch cattle with the different grazing lands and the different feeds.
Matthew
Matthew
Tombstone Robert Meland
Tombstone was a movie that I found extremely exciting and interesting at the same time. It starts out in present day Arizona, in 1879. Infamous law man Wyatt Earp, his wife Mattie and his two brothers moved to Tombstone to start a new life. Their original plan is to start a small business and settle down into the quiet life. Well, lets just say if that happened it wouldn’t have made for much of a movie. The city at this time is a lawless community taken astray by carousing locals known as Cowboys. These drunken renegades do nothing accepts make trouble. To make a long story short Wyatt Virgil and Morgan decide they have to do something. So they step in and try to confront these renegades’ head on. Accompanying them is Wyatt’s old time friend Mr. Doc Holliday. These 4 guys have a lot of nerve in my opinion, but that is why we still remember their names. The movie is amazing and filled with star actors like Val Kilmer and Bill Paxton. I really enjoyed it. Since, I don’t want to ruin the end lets just say it ends with a bang. One of the biggest shootouts I have ever seen in a movie. I think this movie is a defining moment in the Northern Plains. This movie depicted the transition that almost all townships went through to become civilized municipalities. It just took longer in places like Dodge City and Tombstone, but eventually these old cattle towns made that transition just like everyone else and the cowboy became more of a culturally defining fashion than a way of life.
Thunderheart Rob Meland
Val Kilmer plays Agent Ray Levoi who is a FBI agent whom buries his Native American heritage. Agent Levoi is a gung-ho federal agent who never questions the authority of the U.S. government. The movie starts out rather slow but gains intensity when Levoi finds himself in a real-life version of problem. The problem is that the FBI moves onto a South Dakota reservation to apprehend a fugitive. Once in the community, the agent uncovers a plot to frame American Indian activists that has nothing to do with his original assignment. At this point Agent Levoi has to decide if he wants to follow his heart or obey his crooked boss. With the help of an Indian sheriff he learns to accept a long-denied part of himself and to fight for his people. The movie is a good example of plains life on a reservation. I have been to a few reservations and for the most part it is a hard life. The misinterpretation of the hate of them bothers me though. In the movie if you are white it pretty much meant you did not like Indians. In my opinion it is not like that. The question that I have is, was it really that bad in the 1980s for racism to Natives or is it really exaggerated. I was born in 1983 so it was just something that I was curious about. In conclusion I thought the movie did a good job of what I think it was meant to do and that is give some attention to a problem. Hopefully this opened some eyes and helped some of the problems get fixed.
Monday, November 3, 2008
Lecture 5 Robert Meland
The main focus of lecture #5 was Transportation.
The next topic we covered in class was, Railroads and Stagecoaches. Railroads helped settlements grow and form new towns. The Union Pacific was the first railroad built on the plains. T -Towns are a direct result of the Railroad boom. Finally, we ended the lecture by discussing paving the plains. The Good Roads Movement was the first part of this era. In this movement the government built and named most of the US highways and interstates. Since the highway movement we mainly have been updating and reconstructing those same roads. My question is, will the highways be the last personal transportation movement or do we have something more advanced in our near future?
Lecture 3 Robert Meland
The Great American Desert, This is what the plaines was termed in the early part of the 18th century. It was called this because of Ralph C Morris. Mr. Morris was a man who spent along time in the plains living with the people. After his experience wrote a book called, "The Notion of the Great American Desert." The question that I came up with while listening to this lecture is why do we consider almost all of the past exploration romantic?
A common problem with European Historians is that they tend to only speak from a Euro-centric point of view. Once you recognize this though it is easy to find common ground between Historians. This is because of the fact that Explorers and Historians are affected by their cultures.
Next we talked about the Spanish conquistadors. These were explorers like Cortez whom came North of the border to search for wealth. There many explorers like Juan de Orate, Juan de Archueleta, Juan de Ulibarri, and Pedro de Villasur. These explorers traveled here during the early 1600s and late 1700s. Another culture whom affected the early americas was that of the French. They also sent explorers but their explorers were mainly interested in trading. The early French and Spanish did affect the ways people perceived America from an early date as you can see.
Lecture 4 Robert Meland
This lecture was entitled "Born Upon the Prairie". In this lecture there were 3 main groups, Savages, Victims, and People. One thing I enjoyed from listening to this lecture was hearing how Native American Tribes have several responsibilities. One example would be how they decide on qualifications for tribal rolls in the US. In Canada, they call Indians "First Nations" this is a fitting name in my opinion and I think it carries less controversy than Indian or Native American. The Metis are mixed blood people. They are mixed between the European and the local Native Indians. The Metis people settled on the Red River and spent their time hunting for Buffalo. They were mainly involved with the Fur Trade. The natives of this time period believed in Fatal Contact. This was the belief that Natives held explaining how as soon as the white men showed all the Indians immediately died because they were inferior to the whites. Actually, it was because Europeans carried hundreds of diseases that the Indians were not immune to. This explains why they thought once contact was made their people would die.
At the end of the chapter we were talking about a variety of different wars including Red Clouds War, The Colorado War, The Sioux War, and The River Wars. Also, Native Americans proved to be important during Vietnam. This was because of the new codes they set that couldn’t be broken. In the passed I have met some of these men and found them to be very interesting. Finally, the AIM (American Indian Movement) was very a very influential movement in the Indians political passed. This began during the Nixon Administration and dealt with Native Americans getting the rights to run Casinos in many different states. Casinos are very important because they bring in lots of money to a community. For my final question, I have to ask myself if we hadn’t gave The Plains Indians casinos would we have ever gave them anything?
Sunday, November 2, 2008
LR 6
The ways and habits of the west was about the classic west. It was about cattle, the people, and some things that portayed the west. At this time the cattle industry was booming. Men were moving cattle from the south to the north really for grazing and such. Not only were they affecting the land but they were affecting the towns. One thing we talked about was how they made towns. Where they would set up a shanty town and attract the cowboys while moving their cattle. They would come to town and stay, drink, and prostitution happened. There was no law and generally crime was everywhere. After that they would move in law and order, kicking the ranchers out of town. Then the next step would be for it to become a farming town. Another thing that started affecting the herders was the fencing laws. Instead of just letting the cattle loose while they were in town they now had to fence them in and if they got out they were liable for all the damages.
After all this we started to learn about the tragedy's of the plains. There was the Blue Winter of 1887 and the Hard Winter of 1907. These winters wiped out cattle populations due to starvation and the freezing temperatures. Many ranchers lost most if not all their cattle.
After all of this the cattle industry started to revolutionize with the start of feedlots. People now wanted better quality beef with more marbling. Along with this meat packers became a growing business. Instead of the meat being cut into chucks the packing plant would actually cut the meat up into its parts. This got rid of the need for some workers in grocery stores. Now that the meat came cut they didn't need anyone to do it for them.
This was a good lecture and I think it showed the evolution of the plains. At the beginning of the lecture the cowboys seem uncivilized and out of control. Then as we moved along we saw advances in the people and their ways of thinking along with business practices.
After all this we started to learn about the tragedy's of the plains. There was the Blue Winter of 1887 and the Hard Winter of 1907. These winters wiped out cattle populations due to starvation and the freezing temperatures. Many ranchers lost most if not all their cattle.
After all of this the cattle industry started to revolutionize with the start of feedlots. People now wanted better quality beef with more marbling. Along with this meat packers became a growing business. Instead of the meat being cut into chucks the packing plant would actually cut the meat up into its parts. This got rid of the need for some workers in grocery stores. Now that the meat came cut they didn't need anyone to do it for them.
This was a good lecture and I think it showed the evolution of the plains. At the beginning of the lecture the cowboys seem uncivilized and out of control. Then as we moved along we saw advances in the people and their ways of thinking along with business practices.
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