Nebraska Trailblazer #5: Settlers Homes, Checkup answer sheet

1. List six materials used in building homes in Nebraska and explain how they were obtained or produced.
sod - used a grasshopper plow to cut sod into strips
mud - mixture of wet clay and straw put into mold and dried
wood - lumber shipped up the Missouri by steamboat and cut at local sawmills. Later, lumber was transported by railroad.
brick - press clay into desired shape and fired in a kiln
log - in Eastern Nebraska, the sides of logs were chopped off with a broadaxe to make them flat
stone - dug from the ground and carved into blocks

2. Using the resources of the land, what type of house would you build if you were living in a place with few trees?
Sod house

3. Using the resources of the land, what type of house would you build if you were living in an area with many trees or along a stream with timber?
Log house

4. What was the advantage of a frame house over a sod or log house?
a frame house was easier to keep clean

5. What was the advantage of a brick or stone house over a frame house?
a brick house needed little maintenance and was almost completely fireproof

6. Where is Arbor Lodge located?
Nebraska City

7. Where were the first Nebraska bricks made?
Fort Atkinson