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The temperatures in the summer would range above 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Drought, storms, and tornadoes were other obstacles thrown at them by Mother Nature. To top it all, there were times when swarms of grasshoppers would wipe out entire crops in just one day. It could cover your sod house and trap you there until the thaw in the spring. A steel beam rod-breaking plow is on display in the museum.
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To build a sod house, you needed the right kind of grass — grass that had densely packed roots that would hold the soil together. So, Nebraska settlers would search for fields of buffalo grass, little blue stem, wire grass, prairie cord grass, Indian grass, and wheat grass. They also produced and sold poultry, eggs, cheese, butter, and garden/orchard products. The main crops by acreage and value, however, were corn, cotton, and winter wheat. An acre was the amount of land tillable by one man behind one ox in one day.
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At one time, thousands of sod houses dotted the plains of North America. This two-room soddy, built by Marshal McCully in 1894, is the only remaining sod house Oklahoma that was built by a homesteader. McCully took part in the largest of Oklahoma’s land runs when the Cherokee Outlet opened for settlement at noon on September 16, 1893. McCully first lived in a one-room dugout, hollowed out of a ravine bank. He built the two-room sod house in August 1894 using blocks of the thick buffalo grass blanketing Oklahoma’s prairies. Sod was cut with a spade or a plow and then rudimentary bricks were created.
Ancient grass mat artifacts found in Kodiak - The cordova Times
Ancient grass mat artifacts found in Kodiak.
Posted: Fri, 25 Aug 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]
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The Homestead Act advanced that idea and 270 million acres of Western land was settled as a result. Homesteaders paid a filing fee and had to live on their section for five years, building a home and creating a farm. Only then could settlers "prove up" and claim their parcel officially. The requirements for fulfilling the terms of the claim agreement varied for different types of claims. A-G Sod Farms put down its roots in 1969 with four acres, a pick-up and a manual sod harvester.
History of Sod Houses VIDEO
Those who failed went "back home" or continued moving west. From backyards to ballfields, elite golf course greens to backyard putting greens, we offer the best possible selection of turfgrass varieties for California. Southland Sod Farms does not provide installation or landscaping services.
They were cool in the summer, warm in the winter and good shelter from the wild prairie weather. The fact that they were basically made of dirt made them virtually fireproof. Windows were the most expensive part of a sod house and were difficult to install. After setting the frame into the wall, the builder continued to lay rows of sod around it.
Living in a sod house
When it came to entertainment and relaxation, things were kept simple. A few handmade toys and dolls for the kids and a few special items for the grown-ups was all they had. It would brighten up the sod house and make it look like a real home.
Good land, the promise of a better life
Dugouts were small, dark spaces dug into the side of a hill that could be made quickly and were much warmer and drier than tents. Many people built a sod house right in front of the dugout and then used the dugout as another room. This was one of the most challenging parts of building the sod house. Adding the roof the right way required patience and experience, but also help from neighbors. They had to pay attention and ensure the roof slanted a bit so that it would not get soggy when it rained. Once the location of the sod house was picked you had to start with the first step in the actual building of the sod house.
It was done by cutting down into the earth about six to twelve inches, leveling the ground out. One would have to wet it and tamping it down with a post or any other flat and heavy object so that the dirt would compact. In laying the sod bricks, the builder placed them lengthwise, making a wall two feet thick. The process was reversed every few layers — the bricks were laid lengthwise and then crosswise to bind the walls, and to make them solid. Sod House Museum seeks to preserve Oklahoma’s only remaining sod house and interprets the early-day lifestyles of a pioneer, from the establishment of the Cherokee Outlet in 1893 to 1920. The museum encloses the original sod house which is the key exhibit.
Despite the primitive building materials, the thick walls of the home protected its owners from the heat and cold. Since wood wasn't usually available, for warmth settlers burned buffalo and cow chips — basically, dried manure — as well as hay twisted into bundles, said Travel South Dakota. Your sod goes directly from the farm to your home or business. This was the second required step for building the sod house. Once the floor was cut and the settlers decided on the dimensions of their new house. Cutting out the floor provided many advantages for the settlers.
Similar to what a stonemason or brickmason today might build a wall with heavy pavers or narrow cinder blocks. Wooden door frames were set in place as the wall construction began. Window frames of wood were positioned when the wall reached the proper height. Sod was laid around the sides and on top of boards placed above the window frame.
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