Free online books and articles, with descriptions: pioneer women in the west, frontier women, life on the frontier, anti-slavery movement in the Great Lakes, Women’s work in 19th century America, frontier living conditions.
Pioneer Women of the West
Ellet, E F.
New York: Scribner 1852
“In this interesting volume, we have 59 extended biographical sketches of wives and mothers who ventured into the western wilds, and bore their part in the struggles and labors of the early pioneers. Most of the biographies were prepared from private records, and are authentic in every respect; none had appeared previous to their publication in this work.”
– Peter G. Thomson, A Bibliography of the State of Ohio (1880)
Woman on the American Frontier; a valuable and authentic history of the heroism …
adventures, privations, captivities, trials, and noble lives and deaths of the “pioneer mothers of the Republic”
Fowler, William W.
Williamstown, Mass: Corner House 1878
Numerous brief stories of heroism and hardship on many frontiers throughout American history. Some of the chapter headings are:
– Woman as a Pioneer – Woman’s Work in Floods and Storms – Woman’s Adventures and Heroism – On the Indian Trail – Captive Scouts – Patriot Women of the Revolution – Home Life in the Backwoods – Encounters with Wild Beasts – Courage and Daring
– Woman as a Missionary to the Indians – Woman in the Army – The Comforter and Guardian – Woman as an Educator on the Frontier.
For memoirs and biographies of life on the frontier in the Old Northwest, see:
Biographies & Memoirs in Ohio History;
Biographies & Memoirs in Indiana History;
Biographies & Memoirs in Illinois History;
Biographies & Memoirs in Michigan History;
Biographies & Memoirs in Wisconsin History
With Poor Immigrants to America
Graham, Stephen
NY: Macmillan 1914
The author traveled with poor Russians who migrated from Russia to America in 1912, chronicling their voyage, arrival in New York, and onward travel through the Great Lakes region. Photos included. The book was published in Russian in Russia before it appeared in English.
Letters from the West: containing sketches of scenery, manners, and customs …
and anecdotes connected with the first settlements of the western sections of the United States
Hall, James
London 1828
“Like all the writings of this gentleman, these letters are unusually interesting. James Hall (1793-1868) served in the War of 1812, was a lawyer and then a judge at Shawneetown, Illinois, and served a term as State Treasurer. He was also a writer and editor.”
– Peter G. Thomson, A Bibliography of the State of Ohio (1880)
See the “Great Lakes Fiction” page on this website for more of James Hall’s work.
Books about Michigan ethnic groups
The American Home Missionary Society in Relation to the Antislavery Controversy in the Old Northwest
Kuhns, Frederick Irving
Billings: 1959
The Employments of Women: A Cyclopaedia of Woman’s Work
Penny, Virginia
Boston: Walker, Wise 1863
The author, Virginia Penny, dedicated this book, “To Worthy and Industrious Women in the United States, striving to earn a livelihood”.
In the preface she explained that she researched and wrote this book to help women to earn a respectable livelihood. She said that, “the few employments that have been open to women are more than full. To withdraw a number from the few markets of female labor already crowded to excess, by directing them to avenues where they are wanted, would thereby benefit both parties.” The book was written during the Civil War, and she wrote that, “a million of men are on the battle field, and thousands of women, formerly dependent on them, have lost or may lose their only support.” But the need for jobs for women was not a temporary condition that would end with the war. She is intent in helping to open up to women occupations customarily closed to them. She also strongly advocates “… the plan of every female having a practical knowledge of some occupation by which to earn a livelihood.” “If a female is not taught some regular occupation by which to earn a living, what can she do, when friends die, and she is without means?”
The author collected the information in this volume in New York City from 1859 to 1961. She corresponded with or visited hundreds of workplaces, and talked to managers and employees. The work contains 533 articles; more than 500 of them descriptions of occupations in which women were or could be engaged, with descriptions of working conditions, effects on the health, wage rates, a comparison of wages for men and women, time required to learn the business, and other information.
Also see: Campbell, Helen, Woman Wage-earners: their Past, their Present and their Future in Working Conditions – History of Labor Unions in the U.S.
– Van Vorst, Mrs. John (Bessie) and Van Vorst, Marie, The Woman Who Toils; Being the Experiences of Two Gentlewomen as Factory Girls in Working Conditions – History of Labor Unions in the U.S.
Planting Corn Belt Culture; The Impress of the Upland Southerner and Yankee in the Old Northwest
Power, Richard Lyle
Indianapolis: Indiana Historical Society 1953
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Incidents of Border Life: Illustrative of the Times and Condition of the First Settlements …
in Parts of the Middle and Western States, Comprising Narratives of Strange and Thrilling Adventure-Accounts of Battles-Skirmishes and Personal Encounters with the Indians-Descriptions of Their Manners, Customs, Modes of Warfare, Treatment of Prisoners, &c. &c. : Also, the History of Several Remarkable Captivities and Escapes : to Which Are Added Brief Historical Sketches of the War in the North-West, Embracing the Expeditions Under Generals Harmar, St. Clair and Wayne : with an Appendix and a Review
Pritts, Joseph
Lancaster, PA: Hills 1841
The Hive of “The Bee Hunter”, a Repository of Sketches, including peculiar American Character, Scenery, and Rural Sports
Thorpe, Thomas Bangs
NY: Appleton 1854
Chapter headings are:
– Wild Turkey Hunting – Summer Retreat in Arkansas – Tom Owen, the Bee-Hunter – Arrow-Fishing – The Big Bear of Arkansas – The Mississippi – Large and Small Steamers on the Mississippi – Familiar Scenes on the Mississippi – A Storm Scene on the Mississippi – Grizzly Bear Hunting – A Piano in Arkansas – Wild-Cat Hunting – Mike Fink, the Keel-Boatman – Alligator Killing – Buffalo Hunting – Scenes in Buffalo Hunting – Woodcock Fire-Hunting – The Water Craft of the Back-Woods – Place de La Croix – Opossum Hunting – A “Hoosier” in Search of Justice – Major Gasden’s Story – The Great Four-Mile Day – The Way that Americans go Down Hill