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Sod House Research Paper

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Sod houses had many advantages. Their thick walls made them easy to heat in the winter and kept them cool in the summer. Strong winds could not blow them over. They would not burn down under any conditions. All of the sod needed for a house could be taken from a half acre of land. Neighbors often got together to help each other build these homes in “building bees” (Porterfield 39). Sod houses also had their flaws. They were impossible to keep clean. Some settlers hung cheesecloths from the rafters to catch the silt that fell down from the ceiling. During rainstorms, the roof leaked and sometimes collapsed. Even though the settlers sealed the walls, unwelcomed visitors such as mice, snakes and insects always found their way inside. Some homesteaders grew to love their “soddies,” but most were thankful when they could finally afford to buy lumber to build a frame house (Porterfield 39). Finding water was problematic for most homesteaders on the dry plains. Some settlers could depend on nearby creeks or rivers. Others collected rainwater in barrels and cisterns but most dug wells, sometimes digging more than 200 feet by hand before hitting water. One solution to the water shortage was dry farming. Farmers preserved moisture in the soil by plowing after the …show more content…

They were hoping to acquire free land and then sell it to someone else for profit. Families frequently lied about their children’s ages, so they could file additional claims to increase the families’ land holdings. The General Land Office was underfunded and unable to hire a sufficient number of investigators for its widely scattered offices. Overworked and underpaid investigators were often prone to bribery. As a result, countless dishonest people got away with filing fraudulent claims (Potter, Schamel

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