Blogger's Prologue

As previously stated, I am striving (to the greatest degree possible) to transcribe the original document verbatim.  Scanning of the document is not possible, as the original was typed using one of the old cloth-tape typewriters (which frequently lint-fills the center of the 'e' and 'a', or loops of the 's'), and my copy is at least a second-generation reproduction, so any issues of quality are exacerbated.  I tried scanning one of the best pages of my copy and...well let's just say that typing from scratch saved time.

The "ligit" search feature on the right-side of the page will allow searching posts for specific words.  I have found the tool to be inconsistent.  But, in general, very useful when searching for all entries that contain a specific family name.

You will encounter apparent errors in spelling, grammar, and potentially even facts.  It is my opinion that such 'flaws' need to be retained in order to convey the flavor of the original document.  The archaic spelling "drouth" occurs frequently instead of the more modern "drought".  Colloquialisms are common.  And, in the first month of posting, I had one comment that a family genealogy is incorrect.  But, I hope that readers will overlook these 'flaws' and realize that many of the chapters were written in the form of letters in response to requests from Madge Bischoff Dickerhoof.  And, were almost certainly written from memory, without scholarly research.  Lastly, that most of the anecdotes and information are unavailable anywhere else.

When necessary, I have changed some formatting of the original document.  The post on "Veterans" is the most significant example.  The original document used a column format that was simply not possible with the narrower format used by blogspot.  I hope the reader will forgive this deviation from my original intent and trust that only the formatting was changed.

In the course of this transcription, I have thought much more deeply about each chapter than I ever did when 'just reading' the original.  I find that I am more-than-impressed with the Kansas pioneers (and American pioneers in general).  They were not only survivors in the truest sense of the word.  They were visionaries and builders.  The first permanent settlers to the area arrived around 1869.  The first bridge across the river wasn't built until about 1887 (be sure to read the post about the Hutchins family and their Diphtheria-stricken father swimming the river to get to a doctor).  And yet, by about 1910, they had a very functional community.  This accomplishment, I find impressive.  They had none of the infrastructure that we take for granted; clean water, roads, emergency teams of any kind, or even an effective form of long-distance communication...it all had to be created.  In addition to dealing with the basics of food, water & shelter, they found time to coordinate efforts to build churches, schools, roads, and government.  The word "pioneer" does not seem strong enough to describe these amazingly tough and resilient people.

Some of the comments make me want to rethink the history we were taught.  For example, if one reads history books about the "Dust Bowl", they will likely see family farmers blamed for almost the entire event.  Usually blamed on 'unsustainable' farming methods.  But, if you read Roy Moore's comments in this document, you find that Republic County farmers were terracing their land to control erosion as early as 1900.  And, the 1901 publication "A History of Republic County Kansas" reports that "Artificial Forestry" (planting of trees) accounted for 2663 acres of trees (in one county).  Further that "Nearly every farm has its artificial grove".  Both of these efforts at soil preservation run counter to what we are taught about the dust bowl.  Further, there are references to "black blizzards" in the 1840s (long before cultivation in the area).  Lastly, the document being transcribed in this blog reports of deep layers of "Loess" discovered while digging wells, etc.  Loess is wind-blown sand that can be many feet thick and is a well-documented geological characteristic of Kansas.  And, it is evidence of past "dust bowl" type events in the plains.

I find the number of social clubs fascinating.  It appears that the population of Norway never got much above 400 people.  And the average populations is likely far lower.  So it seems likely that each person in the community knew almost every other person in the normal course of community activity (e.g. school, shopping).  Even so, we find several 'fraternal' organizations, and a sizable number of social clubs.  It would be interesting to learn what drove the creation of all these clubs.

The chapter on "jug houses" also fascinated me.  Whiskey was sold in much the same manner as we have seen with magazines, books and recordings.  That is, with the seller's objective being to send-a-new-one-every-month-until-the-day-you-die.  Seriously, who would think that such a business model could survive for so long...unless there really is consumer demand?  But that possibility is too depressing to consider.

I hope you will find this document interesting, and perhaps even entertaining.  I am thankful that I was inspired/motivated to get this information posted online.  And, I hope that it will remain available for a very long time to come.