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The Prairie As settlers moved West, they traveled across the prairies of the mid-Western part of the United States. A prairie is a grassland. These grasslands were vast spaces where a lot of grass grew, but there was often little else. As you can see, trees and other plants are few and far between.
The Prairie This is another image of a prairie. In this picture you can see that in some areas there were more trees. These trees would have been used by settlers to build a log cabin.
The Prairie Here is another picture of the prairie. You can see a log cabin in the background. Survival on the prairie was very difficult. It was hard for settlers to farm and grow crops on this land. Many families struggled to meet their basic needs and were very poor. If you lived on the prairie you closest neighbor may be several miles away. Loneliness and depression were very common for families who settled on the prairie.
Sod Homes Since wood was often hard to find, many settlers who lived on the prairie built sod homes. These homes were made of “bricks” which were cut from the earth. These homes were actually made from blocks of soil cut from the ground. You can see that grass is even growing on the roof of this house. Windows and doors could be cut into the walls of a sod home.
Sod Homes Here is a picture of a family outside of their sod home in the Old West. One advantage of the sod home was that it was very warm in the winter and cool in the summer. As you can see, these homes were very small. They had no electricity, running water, or bathroom.
Sod Homes Sod homes required a lot of maintenance. Since they were made of dirt, they needed to be patched and repaired often. Especially when it rained. Do you think that you would like to live in a sod home? Why or why not?
Sod Homes This is the inside of a sod home. In most sod homes, everyone would share this living space. The ladder you see in this picture leads to a loft where people could sleep. The large jug that you see would have been filled with water heated over the fire for bathing.
Sod Homes This is another image of the inside of a sod home. This is the area where food was prepared. Since there was no oven, food was cooked over a fire. There was a hole in the roof, like a chimney to let smoke from the fire out of the house.
Log Cabin Another popular home for settlers was the log cabin. Once settlers found a place where they wanted to stay, building a home was a top priority and was essential to their survival. Log cabins could usually be built in just a few days.
Log Cabins Log cabins were also very small homes and were often only 1 room. That means an entire family would share this small space. Like the sod home, these structures had no electricity, running water or bathroom. Now that you know about homes in the Old West, how are these homes similar and different to the homes we live in today? Discuss your ideas with a partner.
Log Cabins This is the inside of a log cabin. Like the sod home, all family members shared a small space. This fireplace was used for heat and cooking. Smoke from the fire went out through the chimney.
Log Cabins Here is a bed and living area inside a log cabin. Notice that there are not that many items inside. People did not own many changes of clothing or extra things in the Old West.
New York City Homes Today Most people in New York City live in apartment buildings. Apartments are popular homes in areas where there is a high population. That means that there are a lot of people living in one area. Modern apartment buildings are made of bricks and cement. They have electricity, running water, heat, and often air conditioning. People live right next door to each other.
Brownstone One popular type of building in New York City is the brownstone. These homes are connected to each other but you can see they are actually separate spaces. These used to be single family homes. That means that 1 family lived in each home. Today, many of New York City’s brownstones have been renovated to be apartments. That means that there are several apartments in just one building. How are our modern New York City homes similar and different to homes in the Old West?
