Children of the Western Plains
The Nineteenth-Century Experience
Checking Availibility...Description
On December 7, 1828, Lewis Bissell Dougherty was born at Cantonment Leavenworth, the military post of the Missouri River. For the rest of his life, Dougherty carried a footnote to his name: he was one of the first white children to be born in Kansas. These "first" children came to be celebrated as white America's first steps onto the Western frontier. In Children of the Western Plains, Marilyn Holt rescues the experience of children from the usual adult perspectives on Western history. Her book is the first in a new series that will emphasize the experience of children during different times and at different locales in the American past. The books will be abundantly illustrated with black-and-white photographs and drawings. They will take advantage of primary source materials, reminiscences, documents, and secondary works in telling the story of American children throughout the nation's history. In Ms. Holt's book, she explores what life was like for youngsters who lived on the Great Plains in nineteenth-century frontier life. She is especially interested in how they were raised, how they were influenced by their environment, and what sort of independence they experienced while growing up. Her chapters address a breadth of experiences and perceptions: why families came to the Great Plains and where they decided to settle; how families and communities were organized for education, work, and play; how health care, accidents, and mortality affected childhoods; and what children experienced outside the home. As much as possible, she lets the children speak for themselves. This is their story. With 25 black-and-white photographs.
About this Author
Marilyn Irvin Holt was born in southern Illinois, where her parents still maintain a farm. She studied at Eastern Illinois University and the University of Illinois at Springfield, and is a former editor for the Illinois State Historical Library and a former director of publications for the Kansas State Historical Society. She has also written Indian Orphanages; Linoleum, Better Babies and the Modern Farm Woman; and The Orphan Trains. She lives in Abilene, Kansas.
Reviews
This work is a welcome addition to the small but growing collection of scholarly books about children of the Western Frontier.
She continues to skillfully give readers valuable information on the roles played by children in the American West.
Thick with vivid details and personal accounts.
Well-researched...vivid.
...Meticulous, yet accessible...a terrific resource for research and curriculum support...
A deeply researched book. The book provides an abundance of information about 19th century children's experiences on the Great Plains that is a valuable addition to historical knowledge. Recommended.
She provides plenty of historical background information while zeroing in on the subject at hand--how children were affected.
You will be amazed at the depth of frontier hardship, freedom and joy.
Holt's account of child life on the Plains is well written and beautifully illustrated.
This type of cultural history provides a useful balance to the statistics and plans of academics and policy officials...
...Provides plenty of historical background while zeroing in on the subject at hand--how children were affected.
Every reader will find issues that resonate with his or her own experiences and interests.... A clear success.
Holt...creates a vivid picture of what life was like for the children of the first European and African-American immigrants.
...A worthwhile addition to the growing collection of literature about youngsters in the nineteenth-century American West.
By restoring children to the saga of the plains, Holt does indeed broaden the perspective of place.
Holt's work is a well-written and compact study of an important topic in Western history.
Holt carves out her own territory and brings her own insights...There is much to be commended in this book.
If the product is in stock at the store nearest you, we suggest you call ahead to have it set aside for you, or you may place an order online and choose in-store pickup.
