Clark Presents at Northern Great Plains History Conference
Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008
Jessica Clark, Dakota Memories Oral History Project Coordinator, will present at the Northern Great Plains History Conference in Brandon, Manitoba, Canada on Friday, September 25.
The title of Clark’s paper is ‘Beauty on the Plains’: Germans from Russia Remember Growing up on the Northern Plains.
Abstract:
Growing up as a German-Russian near Streeter, North Dakota, Alice Ruth (Miller) Buck recalls “beauty on the plains.” She remembers the environment as both serene and terrifying. She has fond memories of “roaming the tops of hills” and exploring the fields during the 1930s and 1940s. Nevertheless, Alice also has terrifying memories of the environment, such as a prairie fire. She remembers her family digging a trench around the house, and watching as the fire approached. For a small child this was a scary experience. In other words, for the second- and third-generation Germans from Russia on the Northern Plains the environment served a dual-purpose. Not only did it provide children with enjoyment, but it also contributed to their identity preservation. The plains environment provided children with entertainment opportunities, such as roaming fields, climbing trees, picking berries, hunting deer, or trapping gophers. Then again, it was also harsh at times. Children experienced prairie fires, dust storms, grasshopper plagues, blizzards, extreme heat and cold, and much more. These memories of the environment – the tranquil memories, as well as the terrifying memories – allow these generations of Germans from Russia to maintain their identity – an identity of survivors.
