It’s been 160 years since the Homestead Act of 1862 encouraged folks to head west for a chance at a new beginning. Thousands took advantage to claim the government’s offer of 160 acres. History tells us that while some succeeded, many failed due to inexperience, lack of money to buy equipment, and the environment. But…
This City Girl Turned Homesteader Is Teaching Thousands of People How to Live ‘Old Fashioned on Purpose’
February 19, 2023
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American EssenceBrightDigital MagazinesHomestead Act of 1862Jill WingerLifestyleThe Prairie Homestead
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What ‘How Not to Die’ Author Dr. Michael Greger Eats in a Day for a Longer, Healthier Life
Every time I dive into the peer-reviewed literature, I am learning alongside my readers, tweaking my diet here and there, optimizing it for disease prevention and longevity. I personally eat three meals a day. I do not eat after 5 p.m. When I am home and have control over my meals, I try to eat…
Early American Immigrants Celebrated Their New Homeland Through Music
February 16, 2023
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American EssenceAmerican ImmigrantArts & CultureBrightDigital MagazinesHistorymusicMy country 'tis of theeSamuel Francis Smith
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Early arrivals to America brought their cultural heritage, especially their religious music, to the new country. Now separated by an ocean from their oppressive homeland, immigrants brought a new spirit of freedom to their music of worship and ordinary life. The Pilgrim fathers, on their treacherous 66-day voyage across the Atlantic, said their prayers and…
A Cinematic View of the American West Through Bierstadt’s Brushstrokes.
“Bring me men to match my mountains, Bring me men to match my plains, Men with empires in their purpose, And new eras in their brains,” penned the American poet Sam Walter Foss in his poem, “The Coming American.” Relatively unchartered by man in the mid 1800’s, were the great western mountains of America. Far…
Why Hawaiian Chocolate Is Some of the Rarest in the Country
“Now, don’t just gobble it down all at once.” When Will Lydgate is introducing people to his Kauai chocolate, he suggests they melt it in their mouths first, to allow the flavor of the estate-grown cacao to reach full impact on their palates. Invariably, Lydgate Farms visitors exclaim over the light, mellow taste and the…
An Ingenious Mom Turned One Boring Summer Afternoon into a Day of Thousand Memories
When I was growing up in Mexia, Alabama, an unincorporated community in South Alabama’s Monroe County, summertime meant harvesting and canning vegetables from the garden. By late July, butter beans, corn, purple hull peas, okra, and tomatoes filled the chest freezer in the utility room—so overflowing that I often imagined Daddy would have to use…
Marvelous Adventure Story Recounts Forgotten 1919 Transcontinental Air Race
February 14, 2023
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American EssenceArts & Cultureaviation industrybooksBrightDigital MagazinesJohn LancasterThe Great Air Race
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In 1903, America led the world in aviation. By 1919, its aviation industry was lagging behind other nations. Europe was beginning commercial airlines, but in the much larger United States, aviation seemed limited to aerial entertainment. Americans appeared to be losing interest in aviation. “The Great Air Race: Glory, Tragedy, and the Dawn of American…
With a Pistol and Radio, the Comanche Code Talkers Were Vital to WWII
The bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, was a “day that will live in infamy,” as proclaimed by President Franklin Roosevelt. It marked the entry of America into the Second World War, and every American citizen was affected in some way. Even America’s most isolated minority, the Native Americans, was thrust into the…
Russian-American Pianist Ignat Solzhenitsyn is Carrying on the Legacy of His Nobel-Prize Winning Father
Ignat Solzhenitsyn is a man divided. And that’s a good thing. “I felt I was already split in two halves as both pianist and conductor. But now there is this other half,” said the 50-year-old musician. The “third half” of Solzhenitsyn’s life is his dedication to finishing the English translation of his father’s complete works….
James Madison’s Essays Became the Foundation for Separating Church and State.
Among the constitutional amendments, the First is the most sacred. Its guarantees of the freedoms of religion, speech, press, assembly, and the right to petition have made American shores a beacon for the world. The quiet and bookish man who first proposed it spent many years reflecting on its related issues in solitude—an uncommon pastime…
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