The Taming of the Wilderness: Indiana's Transition from Indian Hunting Grounds to Hoosier Farmland 1800 to 1875

Rating:
Summary: With vivid, narrative style descriptions
Review: Accessibly written by Leon F. Hesser (an expert in Agricultural Economics who is also a direct descendant of pioneers who worked to transform Indiana's wilderness into commercial farmlands in the nineteenth century), The Taming Of The Wilderness: Indiana's Transition From Indian Hunting Grounds To Hoosier Farmland: 1800 To 1875 is an informed and informative account of how settlement reworked the landscape itself. Organized in three major sections: 1800-1825: Living with the Wilderness (subsistence living under primitive conditions); 1825-1850: Bridling the Wilderness (canals and steamboats facilitate trade); and 1850-1875: A Wilderness Vanquished (railroads dramatically change commerce and the environment), The Taming Of The Wilderness presents both original research enhanced by previously unpublished firsthand narratives of what pioneer farming life was like, and also presents a special attention to how Native Americans were removed from Indiana's land by brute force. The Taming Of The Wilderness is a welcome and very highly recommended contribution to Indiana state history reference shelves, as well as inherently absorbing study for non-specialist general readers because of Leon Hesser's obvious skills at providing vivid, narrative style descriptions.