Last month I joined Ethan's class on a field trip to Living History Farms in Des Moines. I remember going there when I was in 5th grade and enjoyed another trip 25 years later with my son. We had beautiful weather and learned a lot. I would recommend going if you have the chance. We only had time for a few of the many exhibits they have.
Ethan's fifth grade class.
Our first stop was the 1700's. At this time in history Native American's were living in Iowa in homes like this. It's made out of cat tail leaves which were stitched together. They had two homes, a winter one and summer one. The winter one ;'was tucked within the trees at the bottom of a hill to protect from cold weather. Their summer home was on top of a hill and more open to let a cool breeze in during the warm months. They mainly ate corn and beans which they dried and made soup out of for winter meals. They also hunted and gathered berries.
Next stop, fast forward 100 years to the 1800's. This picture is of a pig pen. It's basically a pit in the ground with a few logs as walls. A far cry from today's modern climate controlled sheds!
No offense, but these were the ugliest hogs I've ever seen! They were homely, long haired and looked like wild hogs.
This was a typical barn in the early 1800's unlike the Native Americans the pioneers kept livestock.
Next was 1850. (She was making fried green tomatoes). Settlers had small homes with a loft which doubled as the children's bedroom and storage room. Land in Iowa at that time cost around $1.75 per acre (if I remember correctly) and windows were $1.25 per pane. Now I realize why a glass window was such a big deal in an episode of Little House on the Prairie. :)
Next was the 1900 House. By this time they were canning fruits and vegetables to eat during the long winter months. I think this is the point in time that I could actually live in. Earlier in history where they just ate dried food all the time just wouldn't work for me. :)
Another picture of the 1900 farm. This is the chicken shed and windmill.
A small section of the big red barn had a shop in it. These were some of his tools.
Ethan and his friend checking out the hogs from the 1900 farm and comparing them to those of the 1800 farm. (They looked much better!)
Ethan riding Corey the Combine.
Our group, color coordinated in blaze orange.
We had a short time after lunch to visit the drug store and blacksmith. Above is a picture of the ingredients they kept on hand to make medicines. Every wall in the building was lined with rows of ingredients to make medicine.
This gal is showing the kids how they made pills.
Last stop was the blacksmith. He showed us how they used hot coals to heat the metal so it could be bent however in needed. Blacksmiths spent much of their time fixing plows and horse shoes.
We didn't make it to church, but I thought it was pretty so I took a picture.
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