The West Virginia Homesteader
The West Virginia Homesteader

Author: Barrett Williams

Publisher: Barrett Williams

Published: 2024-04-29

Total Pages: 93

ISBN-13:

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Embark on a transformative journey into the heart of America's Mountain State with “The West Virginia Homesteader”—your comprehensive guide to building a self-sufficient life in West Virginia's enchanting wilderness. This resource is more than just a manual; it is an invitation to embrace a way of living that harmonizes with nature’s rhythms and the state's unique culture. In this guide, you’ll be introduced to the essence of West Virginian self-sufficiency, uncovering how the state’s lush landscapes and resilient spirit provide the perfect backdrop for your homesteading dreams. Delve deep into the local climate, geography, and the compelling reasons behind choosing a life of independence and resourcefulness. Navigate the legal intricacies of homesteading with ease, through focused chapters on laws, rights, local regulations, and essential zoning considerations. Explore chapters dedicated to choosing your ideal homestead, where you’ll learn what to consider in land selection and be equipped with practical steps for acquiring the perfect patch of paradise. Design your homestead with intention, as chapters on planning reveal how to establish harmony with the ecosystem and ensure your infrastructure is resilient against the elements. Discover the secrets to creating a cozy West Virginian-adapted home, utilizing local materials and learning insulation tactics to combat the chilly months. Water and energy are the lifeblood of any homestead, and you'll uncover innovative solutions for collection, purification, and off-grid power options including solar, wind, and hydro power, guaranteeing a sustainable way of life whatever the conditions. Transform the land with your own hands, employing farming techniques adapted to the state's microclimates. Chapters on vegetable gardening, fruit trees, and berry bushes share knowledge on cultivating bountiful harvests, pest control, and storage for year-round abundance. The guide further delves into the rearing of livestock, home dairying, cheesemaking, beekeeping, and the rich heritage of hunting and fishing, offering insight into sustainable practices that allow you to live in sync with the earth. West Virginian homesteading isn't just about the essentials; it's also about the soul. Immerse yourself in traditional crafts, natural remedies, and sumptuous recipes tied to the local terroir. Build a life entwined with community, where cooperation, education, and celebrations are an integral part of everyday existence. Designed to support both the seasoned homesteader and the curious newcomer, “The West Virginia Homesteader” is more than simply a guide—it’s the key to unlocking the door to a life steeped in the beauty and vigor of rural West Virginia. Unlock the power of living a life connected to the land, and join a community valuing sustainability, self-reliance, and the trappings of a simpler time. Dare to transform your vision into reality with “The West Virginia Homesteader”—where every turn furthers your journey towards a life crafted by your own hands, under West Virginia's boundless skies.

Hippie Homesteaders
Hippie Homesteaders

Author: Carter Taylor Seaton

Publisher:

Published: 2014

Total Pages: 281

ISBN-13: 9781938228902

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It's the 1960s. The Vietnam War is raging and protests are erupting across the United States. In many quarters, young people are dropping out of society, leaving their urban homes behind in an attempt to find a safe place to live on their own terms, to grow their own food, and to avoid a war they passionately decry. During this time, West Virginia becomes a haven for thousands of these homesteaders--or back-to-the-landers, as they are termed by some. Others call them hippies. When the going got rough, many left. But a significant number remain to this day. Some were artisans when they arrived, while others adopted a craft that provided them with the cash necessary to survive. Hippie Homesteaders tells the story of this movement from the viewpoint of forty artisans and musicians who came to the state, lived on the land, and created successful careers with their craft. There's the couple that made baskets coveted by the Smithsonian Institution's Renwick Gallery. There's the draft-dodger that fled to Canada and then became a premier furniture maker. There's the Boston-born VISTA worker who started a quilting cooperative. And, there's the immigrant Chinese potter who lived on a commune. Along with these stories, Hippie Homesteaders examines the serendipitous timing of this influx and the community and economic support these crafters received from residents and state agencies in West Virginia. Without these young transplants, it's possible there would be no Tamarack: The Best of West Virginia, the first statewide collection of fine arts and handcrafts in the nation, and no Mountain Stage, the weekly live musical program broadcast worldwide on National Public Radio since 1983. Forget what you know about West Virginia. Hippie Homesteaders isn't about coal or hillbillies or moonshine or poverty. It is the story of why West Virginia was--and still is--a kind of heaven to so many.

The WPA Guide to West Virginia
The WPA Guide to West Virginia

Author: Federal Writers' Project

Publisher: Trinity University Press

Published: 2013-10-31

Total Pages: 673

ISBN-13: 159534246X

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During the 1930s in the United States, the Works Progress Administration developed the Federal Writers’ Project to support writers and artists while making a national effort to document the country’s shared history and culture. The American Guide series consists of individual guides to each of the states. Little-known authors—many of whom would later become celebrated literary figures—were commissioned to write these important books. John Steinbeck, Saul Bellow, Zora Neale Hurston, and Ralph Ellison are among the more than 6,000 writers, editors, historians, and researchers who documented this celebration of local histories. Photographs, drawings, driving tours, detailed descriptions of towns, and rich cultural details exhibit each state’s unique flavor. The beautiful landscape as well as the significant role of the coal mining industry are both detailed in the WPA Guide to West Virginia. The essay “Country Folk and Country Ways” gives the reader an idea of how rural life was in the Mountain State in the early 20th century and the descriptions of Charleston, Clarksburg, and other cities are complete with stunning photographs of classic Southern architecture.

Back to the Land
Back to the Land

Author: C. J Maloney

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2011-02-23

Total Pages: 287

ISBN-13: 1118023579

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How New Deal economic policies played out in the small town of Arthurdale, West Virginia Today, the U.S. government is again moving to embrace New Deal-like economic policies. While much has been written about the New Deal from a macro perspective, little has been written about how New Deal programs played out on the ground. In Back to the Land, author CJ Maloney tells the true story of Arthurdale, West Virginia, a town created as a "pet project" of the Roosevelts. Designed to be (in the words of Eleanor Roosevelt) "a human experiment station", she was to create a "New American" citizen who would embrace a collectivist form of life. This book tells the story of what happened to the people resettled in Arthurdale and how the policies implemented there shaped America as we know it. Arthurdale was the foundation upon which modern America was built. Details economic history at the micro level, revealing the true effects of New Deal economic policies on everyday life Addresses the pros and cons of federal government economic policies Describes how good intentions and grand ideas can result in disastrous consequences, not only in purely materialistic terms but, most important, in respect for the rule of law Back to the Land is a valuable addition to economic and historical literature.

Homesteading
Homesteading

Author: Abigail Gehring

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2014-10-07

Total Pages: 1271

ISBN-13: 162914990X

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The companion to the bestseller Back to Basics for country, urban, and suburban folks—now fully updated! Who doesn’t want to shrink their carbon footprint, save money, and eat homegrown food whenever possible? Even readers who are very much on the grid will embrace this large, fully illustrated guide on the basics of living the good, clean life. It’s written with country lovers in mind—even those who currently live in the city. Whether you live in the city, the suburbs, or even the wilderness, there is plenty you can do to improve your life from a green perspective. Got sunlight? Start container gardening. With a few plants, fresh tomato sauce is a real option with your own homegrown fresh tomatoes. Reduce electricity use by eating dinner by candlelight (using homemade candles, of course). Learn to use rainwater to augment water supplies. Make your own soap and hand lotion. Consider keeping chickens for the eggs. From what to eat to supporting sustainable restaurants to avoiding dry cleaning, this book offers information on anything a homesteader needs—and more.

Southern West Virginia and the Struggle for Modernity
Southern West Virginia and the Struggle for Modernity

Author: Christopher Dorsey

Publisher: McFarland

Published: 2011-07-29

Total Pages: 230

ISBN-13: 0786485809

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This work addresses how southern West Virginia's complex and often chaotic history still impacts key aspects of modern-day life for Mountaineers. At its center are fundamental elements of late 19th and early 20th century Appalachian existence such as the predominance of subsistence farming, the coming of the Industrial Revolution, the rise of company towns, growing coal company influence, and the resultant expansion of political corruption. It examines how the region's Appalachian culture and identity have adapted to and been affected by these factors as well as how stereotypical perceptions held by those outside the region have created both opportunities and barriers to modernization for southern West Virginians.

Modern Homesteading
Modern Homesteading

Author: Living the Country Life

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2017-07-25

Total Pages: 82

ISBN-13: 1681882337

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Once upon a time, people had a real connection with the land. Instead of being mere consumers, they were producers and makers. Traditional skills were learned to eliminate a reliance on others, enabling the self-sufficiency that's at the heart of the Do-It-Yourself movement. And this artisanal wisdom was passed on to family and friends.

The Homesteader's Natural Chicken Keeping Handbook
The Homesteader's Natural Chicken Keeping Handbook

Author: Amy K. Fewell

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2019-05-01

Total Pages: 241

ISBN-13: 1493037404

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TheHomesteader’s Natural Chicken Keeping Handbook is the modern homesteader’s guide to raising, feeding, breeding, selling, and enjoying the noblest animal on the farm—the chicken. From the rooster’s crow in the morning, to the warm egg in the nesting box, chickens are the gateway livestock for almost every homesteader and backyard farm enthusiast. In this book, you’ll learn everything you need to know about raising chickens naturally. Fewell guides you in: understanding why chickens do what they do creating your very own poultry or egg business preventing and treating ailments with herbal remedies setting up your property, coop, and brooder hatching chicks purchasing chickens properly cooking delicious recipes with your farm fresh eggs and poultry. This is heritage chicken keeping skills 101, with a modern twist. Not only will you gain knowledge about naturally keeping chickens through every stage of their lives, but you’ll fully embrace the joy and ease of raising all-natural chickens on your homestead.

Shelter from the Machine
Shelter from the Machine

Author: Jason G. Strange

Publisher: University of Illinois Press

Published: 2020-03-23

Total Pages: 410

ISBN-13: 0252051890

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”You’re either buried with your crystals or your shotgun.” That laconic comment captures the hippies-versus-hicks conflict that divides, and in some ways defines, modern-day homesteaders. It also reveals that back to-the-landers, though they may seek lives off the grid, remain connected to the most pressing questions confronting the United States today. Jason Strange shows where homesteaders fit, and don't fit, within contemporary America. Blending history with personal stories, Strange visits pig roasts and bohemian work parties to find people engaged in a lifestyle that offers challenge and fulfillment for those in search of virtues like self-employment, frugality, contact with nature, and escape from the mainstream. He also lays bare the vast differences in education and opportunity that leave some homesteaders dispossessed while charting the tensions that arise when people seek refuge from the ills of modern society—only to find themselves indelibly marked by the system they dreamed of escaping.