Jerry Apps
Author
Pub. Date
2013.
Language
English
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Description
"As I think back to the days of my childhood, the frost-covered windows in my bedroom, the frigid walks to the country school, the excitement of a blizzard, and a hundred other memories, I realize that these experiences left an indelible mark on me and made me who I am today."—From the Introduction
Jerry Apps recalls winters growing up on a farm in central Wisconsin during the latter years of the Depression and through World War II.
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Language
English
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Description
In this new edition of his classic book, award-winning author Jerry Apps shares a unique perspective on the great barns of rural Wisconsin. Digging deep as both an enthusiast and a farmer, Apps reaps a story of change: from the earliest pioneer structures to the low steel buildings of modern dairy farms, barns have adapted to meet the needs of each generation. They've housed wheat, tobacco, potatoes, and dairy cows, and they display the optimism,...
3) When the white pine was king: a history of lumberjacks, log drives, and sawdust cities in Wisconsin
Author
Language
English
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Description
"This is the story of the logging era in Wisconsin, of lumberjacks and camp cooks, of log drives and log jams, of sawmills and lumber barons and the echo of the ax in the Northwoods as yet another white pine tree fell to the ground. Jerry also walks readers through the aftermath of the logging era, including efforts to farm the cutover, reforestation work, and the legacy of the state's lumber and wood products industry"-- Provided by publisher.
Author
Language
English
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Description
One of the Midwest's best-loved authors tells the story of his land, from the last great glacier that dug out its valleys and formed its hills to his own family's forty-year relationship with the beloved farm they call Roshara. The author chronicles his family's efforts to restore an old granary, develop a productive vegetable garden, manage the woodlots, reestablish a prairie, and enjoy nature's sounds and silences. Color photographs highlight the...
Author
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English
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Description
Limping through Life
A Farm Boy's Polio Memoir
Jerry Apps
"Families throughout the United States lived in fear of polio throughout the late 1940s and early 1950s, and now the disease had come to our farm. I can still remember that short winter day and the chilly night when I first showed symptoms. My life would never be the same."
—from the Introduction
Polio was epidemic in the United States starting in...
A Farm Boy's Polio Memoir
Jerry Apps
"Families throughout the United States lived in fear of polio throughout the late 1940s and early 1950s, and now the disease had come to our farm. I can still remember that short winter day and the chilly night when I first showed symptoms. My life would never be the same."
—from the Introduction
Polio was epidemic in the United States starting in...
Author
Language
English
Formats
Description
Jerry App's farm stories open the barn door to understanding life in the country.
"Even with the all the hard work, we had more time (perhaps we took more time) to enjoy what was all around us: nights filled with starlight, days with clear blue skies and puffy clouds. Wonderful smells everywhere—fresh mown hay, wildflowers, and apple blossoms. Interesting sounds—the rumble of distant thunder, an owl calling in the woods, a flock...
"Even with the all the hard work, we had more time (perhaps we took more time) to enjoy what was all around us: nights filled with starlight, days with clear blue skies and puffy clouds. Wonderful smells everywhere—fresh mown hay, wildflowers, and apple blossoms. Interesting sounds—the rumble of distant thunder, an owl calling in the woods, a flock...
Author
Language
English
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Description
Between 1933 and 1942, the Civilian Conservation Corps, a popular New Deal relief program, was at work across America. During the Great Depression, young men lived in rustic CCC camps planting trees, cutting trails, and reversing the effects of soil erosion. In his latest book, acclaimed environmental writer Jerry Apps presents the first comprehensive history of the CCC in Wisconsin. Apps guides readers around the state, from the Northwoods to the...
Author
Pub. Date
2015.
Language
English
Formats
Description
"I'm embarrassed to say I thought I knew anything substantial about Wisconsin agriculture or its history before I read this book. 'Wisconsin Agriculture' should be required reading in history classes from high school to the collegiate level. It makes me thankful that Jerry Apps has such a sense of commitment to Wisconsin's agricultural heritage—and to getting the story right." —Pam Jahnke, Farm Director, Wisconsin Farm Report Radio
Wisconsin
...Author
Series
Ames County novels volume 2
Language
English
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Description
"The year is 1955. Andy Meyer, a young farmer, manages the pickle factory in Link Lake, a rural town where the farms are small, the conversation is meandering, and the feeling is distinctly Midwestern. Workers sort, weigh, and dump cucumbers into huge vats where the pickles cure, providing a livelihood to local farmers. But the H.H. Harlow Pickle Company has appeared in town, using heavy-handed tactics to force family farmers to either farm the Harlow...
Author
Language
English
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Description
When Jerry Apps was growing up on a Wisconsin farm in the 1930s and 1940s, times were tough. Yet most folks living on farms had plenty to eat. Preparing food from scratch was just the way things were done, and people knew what was in their food and where it came from. Delicious meals were at the center of every family and social affair, whether it be a threshing-day dinner with all the neighbors, the end-of-school-year picnic, or just a hearty supper...
Author
Language
English
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Description
In these times of technological innovation and fast-paced electronic communication, we often take nature for granted—or even consider it a hindrance to our human endeavors. In Whispers and Shadows: A Naturalist's Memoir, Jerry Apps explores such topics as the human need for wilderness, rediscovering a sense of wonder, and his father's advice to "listen for the whispers" and "look in the shadows" to learn nature's deepest lessons.
Combining...
Combining...
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Series
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English
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This new addition to the Badger Biography series for young readers features the story of the young Ringling brothers of circus fame. The book tells the inspiring story of the seven sons of German and French immigrants who were guided by their dreams to escape poverty through hard work and ambition. These entrepreneurial brothers moved with their parents to Baraboo, Wisconsin where their fantastic circus adventure began. With no circus experience,...
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Series
Language
English
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Description
Have you ever wondered why Swiss cheese has holes? You'll find out in this story about a Swiss cheese maker named Casper Jaggi. Casper Jaggi was only six years old when his father taught him how to make cheese in the Swiss Alps. In 1913, Jaggi left Switzerland in search of new opportunities in the United States. Like many other Swiss, he settled in Green County, Wisconsin, where the rolling hills dotted with grazing cows reminded him of home. And...
Author
Series
Ames County novels volume 5
Language
English
Formats
Description
"When journalist Josh Wittmore moves from the Illinois bureau of Farm Country News to the newspaper's national office in Wisconsin, he encounters the biggest story of his young career--just as the paper's finances may lead to its closure. Josh's big story is that a corporation that plans to establish an enormous hog farm has bought a lot of land along the Tamarack River in bucolic Ames County. Some of the local residents and officials are excited...
Author
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English
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Description
Before tractors or steam engines arrived on the farm, horses did all the heavy work. From spring plowing to the fall harvest, the mighty draft horse powered farms across the Midwest. Relied upon to complete a multitude of tasks, including towing threshing machines and plows, hauling milk to the local cheese factory, and pulling the family buggy to church each Sunday, these animals were at the center of farm life, cementing the bond between human and...
Author
Pub. Date
2015.
Language
English
Formats
Description
"From 1791, when the first school was established in what is now Wisconsin, to the consolidation of rural school districts in the 1960s, the one-room school's history has been one of growth and change. In One-Room Country Schools, Jerry Apps relays this history through his own vivid recollections of attending Chain O'Lake School in Waushara County, along with the stories of countless students and teachers who populated small country schools across...
Author
Language
English
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Description
Growing up on the family farm, Jerry Apps learned from a young age that water was precious. The farm had no running water, a windmill pumped drinking water for the small herd of cattle, and Jerry and his brothers hauled bucket after bucket of water for the family's use. A weekly bath was considered sufficient. And when it rained, it was cause for celebration. Indeed, if ever the Apps boys complained about a rainy day spoiling their plans, their father...
Author
Series
Ames County novels volume 4
Language
English
Formats
Description
The fourth novel in Jerry Apps's Ames County series, Cranberry Red brings the story into the present, portraying the challenges of agriculture in the twenty-first century.
As the novel opens, Ben Wesley has lost his job as agricultural agent for Ames County. He is soon hired as a research application specialist for Osborne University, a for-profit institution that has developed "Cranberry Red," a new chemical that promises not only
