2LaneCruzer
Super Member
My Granddad bought 160 acres in N.E. Oklahoma back in the late 30's, early 40's. I spent nearly every Summer at his place there, which he used as a Summer home after the wheat was all harvested. At that time, and I suppose it's still true today, there seemed to be a lot of what I call subsistence farmers. It seemed to me that there were a lot of folks there that lived on small plots, maybe a few acres (land could be bought there before the war for as low as $15 an acre; my grandad paid as low as $1.00 an acre), maybe 5 acres or less. It also occurred to me that the education level was very low, even for that time.
In any case, they seemed to be able to eek out a living by raising a few free range chickens, maybe a calf or a few goats, keeping a few hogs and raising a big garden. If you had a lot of kids, you gave them all fishing poles and a .22 rifle and you lived off the land. Lots of squirrels, rabbits, catfish, etc. Also, in that area, besides the hunting/fishing aspect, there was a lot of gathering. Blackberries, Strawberries, Hazelnuts, wild Possum grapes, hickory nuts, walnuts were there for the taking. Commercial orchards in the area would let you glean fruit after the crop was about done for a little of nothing. I suspect most of them burned wood, since electricity wasn't available everywhere up there...at least my Granddad didn't have electricity until the late 50's, so utilities were minimal.
My point being that folks learned to survive on these small "farms", but that was about it. The accommodations were primitive, the future for your kids wasn't too bright, and they had to take whatever jobs were available in the area. I know my Grandad hired a local to help him build his house and cabins at a pretty cheap rate. I haven't been back in many years, but I'm betting that things haven't changed much, although the area has developed tremendously, and is a haven for city folks who have cabins and Summer homes on Grand Lake.
In any case, they seemed to be able to eek out a living by raising a few free range chickens, maybe a calf or a few goats, keeping a few hogs and raising a big garden. If you had a lot of kids, you gave them all fishing poles and a .22 rifle and you lived off the land. Lots of squirrels, rabbits, catfish, etc. Also, in that area, besides the hunting/fishing aspect, there was a lot of gathering. Blackberries, Strawberries, Hazelnuts, wild Possum grapes, hickory nuts, walnuts were there for the taking. Commercial orchards in the area would let you glean fruit after the crop was about done for a little of nothing. I suspect most of them burned wood, since electricity wasn't available everywhere up there...at least my Granddad didn't have electricity until the late 50's, so utilities were minimal.
My point being that folks learned to survive on these small "farms", but that was about it. The accommodations were primitive, the future for your kids wasn't too bright, and they had to take whatever jobs were available in the area. I know my Grandad hired a local to help him build his house and cabins at a pretty cheap rate. I haven't been back in many years, but I'm betting that things haven't changed much, although the area has developed tremendously, and is a haven for city folks who have cabins and Summer homes on Grand Lake.
