Divorced women on the frontier
The Homestead Act of 1862 allowed “any person who is the head of a family, or who has arrived at the age of twenty-one years” to file for a homestead. By stating that “any person” was eligible, Congress included women in this landmark legislation. As USD Professor Hannah Haksgaard wrote in the Nebraska Law Review, the remainder of the […]
March is Women’s History Month
Women’s History Month started as Women’s History Week in 1982. But in 1987, Congress designated March as Women’s History Month. The month celebrates the contributions and recognizes the achievements women have made over the course of American history in a variety of fields. Proving Her Claim is based on the women pioneers who settled on the frontier. […]
What I learn from book clubs
I love book clubs. Just being around people who like to read is energizing. As a member, book clubs help me explore books that I might not choose to read otherwise. Most readers have genres that they prefer or even unconsciously select. But book clubs encourage exploration, both of authors and of genres. As an […]
Will ChatGPT upend human creativity?
In preparation for this post, I asked ChatGPT to write the blog. Unfortunately, the new artificial intelligence platform (is it a platform, a software or just a fad?) is maxed out. I received this message: ChatGPT is at capacity right now And then it proceeded to write a sonnet about its status. Here’s the first stanza:Amidst the […]
A conversation with readers
Part of publishing a book is going out and talking about the book. That’s where I am in my “publishing journey” as I refer to it. I must confess that I prefer to write words on paper than speak words to groups of people. So, I ask the audience if we can have a conversation about the […]
Obsessed with printing presses
The Printing Revolution started in Germany around 1440, when Johannes Gutenberg invented the moveable-type printing press. As a Journalism major, I spent hundreds of hours at the Printing and Journalism Building on the campus of South Dakota State University. Even the building name put “printing” before “journalism.” We toured the now-ancient press room, learned the basics […]
The prairie was their medicine cabinet
When we look at a field of prairie flowers or walk through a shaded forest, we see the beauty of nature. But before the advent of the corner drug store, our ancestors saw medicinal plants and other homeopathic remedies. In Proving Her Claim, the heroine and her Lakota neighbors use medicinal plants to treat wounds, reduce coughs and […]
Is reading fiction underrated?
Let’s start with two questions: Is reading fiction underrated? And, what do you read? If you read to learn or to gather information, you’re a non-fiction reader. If you read to understand another culture, to feel emotions or (yes, let’s say it) to time travel, then you’re reading fiction. From my auntie who gave me […]
Metis children connected two worlds
In an earlier blog, I wrote about the fur trappers who explored of the lands west of the Mississippi River. The voyageurs (“travelers” in French) worked for the fur trade companies to transport trade goods throughout the territories to rendezvous posts, connecting two worlds: the Native Peoples and the Europeans. These intrepid entrepreneurs were often the first […]
Here’s to the women
Traditions. This time of year is all about traditions. And who are the keepers of traditions? Women. It’s women who create and kindle the memories. Historically, it was the women who tamed the prairies. They built the church congregations. They were the school teachers, the midwives and the mothers who tended the children. Here’s to […]