I suppose I should have explained the reason for creating this blog on the first post, but I did not. So, I will explain now. I am a senior at BYU majoring in Family History. This blog is required for one of my classes. I was amazed at how easy it was to creat a blog and how enjoyable it is to share the love I have for my third great grand father, Abraham Newkirk. I hope you have enjoyed the past blogs and will continue to enjoy future posts. In addition to this blog post, I have also added a pod cast about the Kansas dust storms that occured in the 1930s. Abraham was no longer living at this time, but his two brothers, Richard and James, and his son Richard were. They would have experienced these terrible dust storms caused by soil errosion due to poor farming techniques, which resulted in loosened soil, allowing the wind to pick it up and carry it away. In a family history written by Abraham's daughter, Estella, she mentioned how hard it was for her father to farm in Kansas due to drought, grasshoppers, and dust storms. [1] I admire these adventerous, brave, and diligent pioneers, and I am proud they are my ancestors.
If you are interested in seeing pictures of these devastating dust storms, please visit the following web site. I was not aware of how huge these dust storms were until I saw the pictures. They look like a pyroclasitc blast from a volcano. Many people chose to leave after these devastating dust storms. My ancestors stayed in Kansas.
[1] Abraham Newkirk family history, Hand written letter by daughter, Estella Eldora Newkirk Turner, Life at Roscoe, Graham, Kansas Page 5, on-line <http://Ancestry.com>.
No comments:
Post a Comment