The pioneer-review. [volume] (Philip, Haakon County, S.D.) 1920-current, 1920-07-22
Philip Haakon County south Dakota Thursday July d. 1929
THE PASSING OF
a THE SOD HOUSE

1t is hard for us to recall that
less than fifteen years ago the
country for fifty miles in every
direction from Philip was dotted
with sod houses, the homes of our
first settlers, SO rapidly has the
architecture prairies changed. Yet
it is true. The sod houses were
numerous in this region as they
were in other parts of the, state
especially in the earlier day. Lun-
ber was comparatively cheap when
Haakon county was settled, and
while it was generally some dis
lance to a railroad station and a
lumber yard. it could be got. Boz
ildes this, tar paper had been i'm
vented as a building material. As
/ result the prevailing type of
home was the twelve by fourteen
shack, built of lumber and ter
paper.
Yet there were sod houses q
plenty. enough to give the name
of "soddy'' to the early settlers,
There are a number Of people ia
Philip who have spent many hap
py days living in sod houses, and
there is one candidate for office on
the Republican ticket in South
Dakota who is said to have been
born in such u house
But the sod house has passed III
this locality. A few of them arc
still used for hen houses and the
ike, but we would not know where
to go to find one the home of hui
man beings. They probably do ex-
list. however. a
Ii you want to see a. real sod
house, you will have to hurry.
Of the thousands which have dot
ted the, northwest the, last quarter
of a century the number dwindles
rapidly. Few new ones are being
built, as homesteading is so nearly
ended, with no more public domain
left.
Substantial farm buildings are
taking the place Of the sod house
lust as long ago they suprlanted
the log cabins Of Iowa and Illinois.
Ere long the very last will have
crumhled To the soil whence it
came and that form of arctitcc-
ture in America will live only in
history.
In American frontier life the
sod house has been thetype in the
northwest as the adobe has been
of the southwest and the log cabin
Of the east and middle west. The
treeless plains of the Dakotas,
Montana, western Kansas and Neb-
raslsa have offered the fronteirs-
man no material for residence
building except the virgin sod, and
with usual fontiersman resouceful-
aess, he has found a way of maxi
ing the material at hand serve his
purpose. And it happened the big
cakes of grass and earth when
niled on top of each other into
house walls have made homes we'll
suited to keep out the severe cold
Of the northwest winter and to
withstand the shock Of the prairie
winds.
Some homesteaders build rough
beard "shacks" and sod them IN
on the outside. The real soddY
however, has no lumber about it
except the door and window fra
mes and boards for the roof. In
place of shingles or roofing mat
lerial several inches Of dirt and
pebbles are laid on the roof
boards.
To secure sod for his new horne
u he hon1esteader pIows or breaks
frfound in 4 lSrge circle around
III sot whore the house is to be buailt.
& he turnedover sod provides the
rouse material, and the bare
strip Of ground left serves 4 very
necessary purpose. The homestead.
Ar viii tell You II is a Ere guard.
Should q prairie fire eonae his way
1t will find the breaking an eGec-
Itual barrier between ii and the
homes leaders, hcr1e. u 'la
Most of the sod houses were us
ed butla few years Some, however
remain the family home for quite
4 long time, even after frame
barn and other buildings have been
put up. q