and the home of the brave-the land of opportunity. The

dream was to live the way you wanted, to strike it rich and

retire early. This dream was always there, but many faced a

very rude awakening when the Great Depression struck first

the farmers, then the country, and soon after, the entire

Lois Phillips Hudson, in her novel, The Bones of

Plenty, wrote of the hardships of one small North Dakota

wheat farming family that occurred over a period of a little

over a year during the heart of the Great Depression.

Hudson pointed out that not all were beaten by this horrific

period of history, and many could get through it, but it was

how an individual handled the situation that made the

With a name like George Custer, he certainly lived up

to his name. General George Armstrong Custer had become

famous as a United States Army Officer and is best known

now for his role in the Battle of Little Bighorn on June

25, 1876 in what was then the Montana Territory. This

battle was also known as Custer’s Last Stand and was

referred to many times metaphorically in the novel

money subsidizing the hardware business do you? You don’t

than when he left. For not farming the land he could be

then you talk about how you haven’t got any subsidy. The

him.” (pg 60) He would always try to fight with Rachel over

control, so enraged that he even knocked out his own

tariff is the biggest cockeyed subsidy I ever heard of!’”

Some topics in this essay:
Zack Hoeffner, North Dakota, World War, Agent Hennipen, Hardship American, Custer’s Stand, West Coast, West Rose, Depression Hudson, Lucy George, george custer, business don’t, fight argue, final blow, pg 323, wheat farmer, head west, north dakota, bones plenty, loan money,