Letters of a Woman Homesteader (Women of the West) - Softcover

Stewart, Elinore Pruitt

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0803251939 ISBN 13: 9780803251939

Publisher: Bison Books, 1990

Synopsis

Elinore Pruitt, a widow and mother who washed clothes for a living in Denver, planned to work as a housekeeper for some rancher while learning all she would need to know about homesteading a place for herself. In 1909 she went to work for Clyde Stewart, whose ranch was near Burnt Fork, Wyoming, and within six weeks she married him. "Ranch work seemed to require that we be married first and do our sparking afterward," she wrote Juliet Coney, her former employer. She maintained her independence by filing on a quarter section adjacent to her husband's land and proving it up herself. Her delightful letters, written from the time of her arrival until 1913, authentically depict an Old West that, as Jessamyn West notes in her foreword, has been "progressively obscured by those who portray it most often."

The critically acclaimed 1980 film Heartland was based on Elinore Pruitt Stewart's letters and journals.

About this title

Review

"Mrs. Stewart was a woman whose nineteenth-century pioneer spirit seems to have been laced with a strong dose of twentieth-century liberation. Equally impressive is her ability to characterize the people around her."--Ann Ronald, Western American Literature--Ann Ronald "Western American Literature "

"The letters show how important women were in frontier development. [Elinore Stewart's] energy, good works, sense of humor, courage, common sense, and humility win our admiration."--T. A./I>--T. A. Larson "Wyoming Horizons Magazine "

"Authentic records of Western ranch life--and more, for Mrs. Stewart had a born writer's talent."--New York Times Book Review--New York Times Book Review

Synopsis

'These letters 'are authentic records of Western ranch life - and more, for Mrs. Stewart had a born writer's talent' - "New York Times Book Review". 'Mrs. Stewart was a woman whose nineteenth-century pioneer spirit seems to have been laced with a strong dose of twentieth-century liberation. Equally impressive is her ability to characterize the people around her' - Ann Ronald, "Western American Literature". 'The letters show how important women were in frontier development. [Elinore Stewart's] energy, good works, sense of humor, courage, common sense, and humility win our admiration' - T. A. Larson, "Wyoming Horizons Magazine".Elinore Pruitt, a widow and mother who washed clothes for a living in Denver, planned to work as a housekeeper for some rancher while learning all she would need to know about home steading a place for herself. In 1909 she went to work for Clyde Stewart, whose ranch was near Burnt Fork, Wyoming, and within six weeks she married him. 'Ranch work seemed to require that we be married first and do our sparking afterward,' she wrote Juliet Coney, her former employer.

She maintained her independence by filing on a quarter section adjacent to her husband's land and proving it up herself. Her delightful letters, written from the time of her arrival until 1913, authentically depict an Old West that, as Jessamyn West notes in her foreword, has been 'progressively obscured by those who portray it most often.' The critically acclaimed 1980 film "Heartland" was based on Elinore Pruitt Stewart's letters and journals.

Edition details

• Publisher: Bison Books
• Publication date: 1990
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0803251939
• ISBN 13: 9780803251939
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 282