I was looking at the title of this section of the forum and it brought to mind all of the pioneers who homesteaded the US. I would love to be able to do something like that although I know the pioneers suffered a lot of hardships. I am an explorer and I love to go places I've never been before. I think homesteading would be right up my alley.
I was thinking the same thing when I saw this thread too, Roustabout. So I did a little research and I found that homesteading was still a viable way to acquire land in the states up until 1976. After that it could only be acquired in Alaska and that ended in 1986. I missed the boat on this one, as I was only 8 yrs. old in 1976.
I have to be honest and say that I'm glad it isn't the way it was back in the homesteading days. I don't want to have to fight for land and be afraid of animals and Indians. Ok so I am picturing Little house on the Prairie. Sure things were simpler back then, but I love my life now.
Yep, things were simpler back then. You got up and worked hard from daylight to dark just to have enough to eat, and sometimes even that wasn't enough.
If you think you're "working your tail off" now, think about building your own place without electricity and growing food without pesticides, herbicides. Hunting rabbits, deer, etc. as a necessity for food, not just in the fall during hunting season, mostly for recreation now. Probably got enough fertilizer from your "tractor", though (i.e. horse) LOL.Originally Posted by Meghan
I agree with Bird. Plus, life expectancy was probably half what it is now. You'd be lucky to make it to your 50's. And childbirth was a real death risk.
So you worked all day long and I mean WORKED, not sitting at a computer. Want to boil some water? Stoke the fireplace (or stove if you were lucky to have one) with firewood that YOU cut and chopped by hand, no chainsaw or log splitter. Go to the well (that YOU dug by hand) and fetch a bucket of water. Staples like salt, sugar, coffee were a luxury back then.
There is no doubt that a homesteader of yesteryear would trade places in a heartbeat with modern day farmers or ranchers.
I've thought the same thing Meghan. I wonder what would happen if there was a total collapse of society? It would be hard and you would certainly have to defend yourself, your family and your property from wandering bands from towns and cities. It would be hard but it's been done before and could be done again.
I still wish I had a time machine just to go back in time see where we all came from and what we have learned since then. Our lives are tons easier now than decades before but it seems sometimes we tend to forget that.
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