Abandoned - Walnut Grove - Story 97

[Abandoned]

This story was originally posted July 31, 2023


Intro


  This is the 97th story in the Smallville Series.  Like many other stories, this one is about a group of young people who set off on their own to establish a settlement.  They did not go far northwest of their hometown of Cottage Grove (story 42) which is directly northwest of Smallville. Their parents did not want them to go because there was so much unrest and trouble in the area.   Although they did not go far from home, they wanted to be independent and self-reliant but their parents insisted they at least take plenty of supplies to get them started.  Those supplies included walnut tree seedlings from Cottage Grove's walnut grove.  The young settlers planned to plant a grove of their own so they chose to name their settlement Walnut Grove.  It was approximately year 85 SVT.






Map seed # 324277396        Valley One River,   Small,   Fair,   Disasters Off,  E8 DeerDuckBear


 
Mods activated for this map and load order are:

Map Changing and Starting Mods:   Banished UI Maps, Labor Window, RK Minimized Status, CC Light Rain, Lush & Green, override Map, Jinxie Natural Decorations, New Flora Edit, Wildlife Start

Tweak Mods:  Better Fields, Bigger Wheelbarrows, Fishing Dock +25%, Hunting, Hunting Season, Increased CC,  1:1 Alternative (Voeille), override Rural Clothes, Rock Respawn, Tiny Smoke

Major or Must Have Mods:    An Empty Square, Nomads (Kid), override Uneducated, Storage Crates, Jinxie Rabbit Hutch, Kid Abandoned Places SE, Kid Forest Outpost, Kid Native Village, Kid Settlers (update adds 3 more deco patchwork quilts), Kid Wooden Fort (update adds roof texture to match Forest Outpost), Kid WorkPlace

Supporting Mods:   Deco Sunflower, DS Fences & Decorations, Kid Deco Farm Animals, Kid Deco People, Kid Deco Plants, Kid Elf Girl, Kid Farmyards, Kid Ghost Flowers, Kid Hedgerow, Kid Jam & Wine, Kid Market Food, Kid Market Puzzle, Kid Washing Mod, Tiny Chopper, Training Camp Deco (Rk)



  Yes, weary traveler, you're safe here in Walnut Grove; the unrest in the area has all settled down now.  The troubles weren't as bad here as they were further south on the prairie but they were bad enough.  The ranchers had a problem with the farmers settling the land they grazed their cattle on and the farmers had a problem with the rancher's cattle ruining their crops.  The farmers put up fences and the ranchers couldn't get their cattle to water.  The Natives had a problem with both the farmers and the ranchers taking their land and destroying their hunting grounds.  For the same reasons, the Natives also had a problem with the railroad wanting to bring the iron horse through their territory.  Native tribes were fighting among themselves over what territory and hunting grounds remained.  We were part of the problem but also part of the solution.  I'll tell you all about it.

[Abandoned]

Chapter 1




  My name is Sierrat and my husband is Fren.  We had just been married in the church in our hometown of Cottage Grove when the soldiers came to town.  They had paid us a visit once before to warn us that a small family village northwest of us had been torched; there was nothing left of the village or the families. 



The attack was not believed to have been done by any local tribe but rather by a band of renegade braves who had been causing trouble in the northwest territories.  We needed to be alert.  We told the soldiers that a group of us were planning to head in that direction to settle.  They told us they were planning to build a fort.  They would name it Fort McCoy because they were here to keep the peace between the feuding farmers and ranchers and the natives and the settlers, whose feuding reminded them of the famous feuders back east, the Hatfields and McCoys.

That second visit from the soldiers was to inform us that part of that valley was now an Indian Reservation; a treaty had just been signed. They brought a map to show us where we would be allowed to settle and where a fort would be.  The fort would be north of a Native Village.  The valley we could settle was north of our hometown of Cottage Grove and across the river east of the fort.  The new Pinewood reservation, as it was being called, was north of both the fort and the land we could settle.





The small tribe that had been using the area as their summer hunting ground signed a treaty agreeing to make the area their permanent home with the government's help and accept other natives who were being displaced by progress.  We would need to sign an agreement to respect the Native's land and hunting grounds.  We signed the agreement and were soon on our way to our new settlement.




Chapter 2 


  There were 31 of us, 16 adults with 15 children, a few who were about to become adults.  Fren and I were the only couple with no children.  We had a lot of work to do.

We built one house and a well first thing.  Our houses would have dry grass roofs, we feared fire.  We could not help but think of the burned-out village the soldiers told us about.  The well would also help water the cow, sheep, and chickens in the animal shed across from it.  Next we built a market to store all the supplies we brought with us from home.  We gathered wild foods and herbs which we also stored in the market.  Another house with a farmyard was built on the other side of the well.  The family planted corn, potatoes, and berries; they would raise more chickens for eggs and they would cut a bit of firewood.  We all gathered branches from the forest.

Three of the men hunted deer and bear; they needed practice with the bow and arrow in case we needed to defend ourselves from renegades.  We saw no sign of natives, renegade or otherwise.  The men missed the bears but got a few deer adding venison and hides to our supplies.  We designated building sites for a seamstress and blacksmith, but we need more houses first.  By winter of that first year, 4 children became adults and 3 more were born.  Fren and I had our first child, a boy we named Dwig.



  We saw little of the soldiers; we were some distance from the river.  There were only a few soldiers patrolling the area, they had not even started building the fort yet.  They were waiting for reinforcements and their families.  They did build a bridge across the river to us and told us that at the first sign of any trouble we should send for them immediately.




Chapter 3


  By spring of year 2, we had 3 houses built by the hedgerow and a hutch for our rabbits. The hedgerow had an apple tree, strawberries, wild honey, wild oats, and rose hips.  We hoped our overall health would improve.





  While collecting wild foods and taking them to the new small barn at the edge of town, I spotted a row of elderberry bushes.  I remember my grandmother telling me about the elderberries in the old country, we had none in Cottage Grove.  I asked Fren if we couldn't build our house there by the elderberries.  He said he didn't see why we couldn't.  I had visions of a cottage garden when those elderberries began to bloom that summer.  By autumn I was harvesting the berries, and our 2nd child, a girl we named Amberely, was born.





   By autumn, land was being cleared for 2 crop fields next to our house.  A seamstress and blacksmith had been built by the market and a woodcutter was busy chopping firewood.  Back behind the blacksmith would be our walnut grove.  A planting shed and a small house were built there.  That was as close to the reservation as we would get. 





Chapter 4


  By early spring of year 3, we had a school built by the market.  Walnut Grove would soon have its first student; so many missed getting an education but they were good workers and would learn a lot from experience.





  The 2 crop fields were planted with corn and cabbage as soon as weather permitted.  The sun had the warmth of spring and the wind now came from the west instead of the cold north.  The sound of tree cutting and fort building carried on the wind. 



Fren and a few of the other men crossed the bridge to see if the soldiers needed any help before their reinforcements arrived.  They found one wall of the fort and 2 corner towers complete, and 2 other sides walls started.  There was a depot storage built into the completed wall.  There was also a bridge crossing the river to the reservation.





Our men helped clear more land and restock the forts stockpile.  More of the fort wall got built and a guard tower in the back would protect the soldier's horses from being stolen.  The reinforcements arrived in summer.  We provided tools and clothes for the newcomers.  There were 17 adults with 2 young children.  Small outpost housebuilding had begun.  Our men returned at harvest time; Fren was home in time for the birth of our 2nd daughter, Caylene.  Walnut Grove's newly planted walnut trees were doing fine.








Chapter 5


  We were concerned with the soldier's food supply with their reinforcements not having arrived until summer.  We wondered if they had enough food and firewood for the winter; they had been so busy building houses.  Fren said there was not much in their storage depot.   

  Before the first snowfall, we built a meeting hall across from the school; it had a room to keep town records.  We took an inventory of all our food and other supplies.  We wanted to see what we could spare to take to the fort families.  We had plenty of corn and fruits and vegetables.  Fren and I and a few others took what baskets we could carry over the bridge to Fort McCoy on a not-so-cold winter day.  We were amazed at how much the soldiers had accomplished.





  The fort was completely surrounded by sturdy walls and the horses' pasture out back was now completely fenced in.  Inside the fort walls there were 7 outpost houses for 2 families and 5 singles males.  There was a headquarters with the captain's log cabin behind it.  There was an outpost school; the captain's young daughter would be the first student very soon.  In front of the cabin was a table with weapons and elsewhere we saw wooden practice dummies and archery targets.  Fren said he thought he saw some rifles in the headquarters.  Along the wall behind the log cabin was a fort butcher making venison sausage.  There was venison roasting on a large spit and a fort brewer barrel making ale nearby.  Along the wall by the small houses the fort tool maker and coat maker were hard at work.







  The soldiers and families appreciated the fruits and vegetables and gave us some roast venison, sausages, and boar meat in return.  We would always be welcome at Fort McCoy.




Chapter 6




  By the following spring, the soldiers had built a fishing pier and trading post on the river by the east bridge.  Forts traditionally also serve as trading posts; we were welcome to bring trade goods to the river trading post.  We did have a lot of stone, from clearing land for the farm fields and from planting the walnut grove, that we could trade.  We suggested the soldiers build a small fruit and vegetable market just inside the gate on that side of the fort.  We would trade some of our fruits and vegetables for more of their fish, meats, and leather.  We were farmers, not hunters and fisherman. 

  The soldiers did as suggested and they soon had a small selection of fruits and vegetables we brought to market.  The captain said he would see that the natives on the reservation got some too.  It appeared they, like the soldiers, were eating little more than the game they hunted.  We decided we would increase our production of fruits and vegetables. 





  On the road from the bridge to home we found a hedgerow with a wild plum tree and wild honey.  There were quite a few rabbits in that hedgerow.  Further up the road by the small barn and cabin, a berry patch was planted.  There were a few types of summer berries to be had.  And further down the road, past the 2 farm fields, another farmyard was planted.  There would be more berries, cabbage, corn, potatoes, and eggs.



  In summer, Abrie, the general goods merchant came to the trading post.  We had asked the trader to order wheat seeds for us if a seed merchant came.  The general goods merchant would also have seeds so we hope our order got placed. 





Chapter 7


  A soldier came on horseback from Fort Rapids down to the southwest with news that a band of natives were on their way here to Pinewood Reservation.  It was believed that some of them, if not all, were relatives of the hunting party that was here.  We wondered if the soldiers expected trouble because they immediately began building fort walls on our back boundary line behind the walnut grove.  They said it was just a precautionary measure and they would post a soldier in the guard tower to keep watch.  We had just picked our first walnuts and built a gatherer's workplace just behind the grove forester.  The workers said they would feel safer.





  We built more building in town while the wall was being built.  Down the road from the meeting hall we build a chapel.  Across from it we cleared land for a town cemetery.  We planted small shrubbery around the chapel and cemetery to form a hedge just like we had done around my garden. From the hill behind my elderberry bushes you could see the chapel and cemetery just past the berry patch. 




  My cottage garden was doing beautifully and the elderberries were very productive.  Fren set up a brewer barrel to make elderberry wine, and a jam house was built next to my garden.  I began making elderberry jam just like grandma told me about.  It was a wonderful way to preserve the berries for winter use.  I would make sure some got delivered to the Fort McCoy's market.



  In late spring of year 5, the band of natives arrived at Fort McCoy wanting to live on the reservation. 

[Abandoned]

Story Note: 


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=caCvDB9ivOE


This depiction of reservation life in my story is in no way accurate, it is fiction.  There is no connection to the Cherokee Nation whose tribal territory was in the southeastern United States.  Thousands of them were forced to move from their land in the winter of 1838-39 to a territory to the west that would become Oklahoma.  Many died on that tragic trip that became known as the Trail of Tears.

  The location of the reservation in my story would more accurately be located in Oglala Lakota Sioux territory in South Dakota.  There is no connection between my Pinewood Reservation and South Dakota's Pine Ridge Reservation which is the poorest in the country.  I named my reservation Pinewood because it is located at the edge of my Winter Woodlands. 




Chapter 8





  The band of 13 natives that came to Fort McCoy that late spring of year 5 consisted of 3 families and 2 young braves.  They were tired and hungry and cold, and some were ill from the long journey on foot.  They still had farther to go to reach the settlement on the reservation.  The captain showed them a copy of the treaty agreement and a revised map of the one he showed us.  The map now showed Fort McCoy and Walnut Grove.  Pinewood Reservation's settlement was a long way from the Fort and from Walnut Grove.  We could barely see it from our wall the soldiers built for us.



  The newcomers were each given a choice of new clothes.  The fort coat maker was making warm clothes from furs, and our town seamstress was making warm clothes from wool and flax from the flax patch across from her shop. The fur coats were the popular choice.  Each adult was given a new tool but there were no tomahawks, bows, or knives.  They were not happy but a hot meal of roast meat help some.  They were given some blankets, quilts, and other supplies before being escorted by the soldiers to their settlement.



  It wasn't long before there were 2 new teepees in the main part of the settlement, 1 by the hunting grounds, and 1 by the hunting lodge.  The hunting party had had no luck recently. There were large herds of deer in the area but they did not come near, neither did the bears.  The natives had no horses, there were no buffalo. The small hunting grounds had only small game, nuts, and berries.  The 2 new young braves were not happy, neither were the older ones.



  The first snow had already fallen before the 2 longhouses were erected for the 2 largest families that arrived.  The fort's captain was concerned that the natives would not have enough food for the winter; they had no storage facilities, only what they could store in their teepees and longhouses.  The soldiers helped built a storage covering and provided them with some crates, barrels, baskets, and sacks of corn.  We women went to help gather wild foods.  The captain said it was a good idea for us to be acquainted with our neighbors and they with us.  I discovered that one of the native women could speak a little of my language; she was not a native by birth but had been with the tribe since she was a little girl.  I think I made a friend.







Chapter 9


  The winter was fairly mild with a moderate amount of snow but we had another snowfall in early spring just as the fields were being planted.  The temperature rose and the snow turned to a cold rain but the crops got planted.





  The soldiers had been busy building a road from the Fort to the Pinewood native village.  They got permission from the natives to build the road and to remove the one ruin that was nearby; the reservation was now the native's land.  They gave permission for the road because it was part of the treaty that their children attend school at the Fort to learn our language.  The natives were not happy with that treaty provision but gave permission for the road for the children's sake.  I used that road to visit my new friend who lived in one of the longhouses.  Her daughter would be the first native student at the Fort school.



  I learned something about the natives' traditions and beliefs from the captain.  He had a lot of years of experience with the native people.  He told me of their legend of the 3 sisters and that they plant corn, squash, and beans together as a symbol of those sisters.  I had corn and bean seeds, and I managed to get some squash seeds from the general goods merchant.  He still did not manage to get our wheat seeds.  I took the road from the Fort to the village to give my friend the seeds.  She was very thankful and told me how the 3 plants helped each other.  She planted the seeds in front of her longhouse, and when next I visited, the small farmyard was doing well.  There was a bear roasting on a large spit; the hunting party had a good hunt; a group of bears came right past their hunting camp.  It was not difficult for the hunting party to provide enough meat for the small native village.







Chapter 10




  It was also not difficult for the natives to provide enough tools and clothes for their small group.  It left them with too much time on their hands to sit and brood over what was happening to their lands and to the whole Indian Nation.  The captain was even more concerned when the natives set up a tool maker hut near the stockpile that the soldiers filled with logs and iron while building the road.  The captain reminded them not to make weapons as per the treaty agreement.  Only those tools needed for hunting were allowed.

  The captain also suggested that they chose a new chief for their small tribe.  He reminded them that they now had new tribe elders and just because their children would attend the Fort School did not mean that they could not teach them the old ways.  The natives chose a new chief and built a chief's hut back past the roasting spit.  The entrance was marked with rare feathers attached to poles.



  The natives built a needleworker's hut next to the storage tent.  By autumn, they had a gatherer's hut set up not far from the storage tent where strips of meat were drying for winter use.  Corn was drying on racks by the 3 sisters farmyard.  They would have enough food and warm clothing for the coming winter. 





  Walnut Grove and Fort McCoy would also have enough clothes, tools, and food.  Our surpluses were good.  The first frost of the season in autumn of year 6 claimed a few cabbage plants but other than that the harvests, hunting, and gathering had been good.  Abrie, the general goods merchant, finally brought our ordered wheat seeds in late autumn.  Since we had plenty of corn in storage and the natives were now growing their own, we planned to plant wheat instead of corn the following spring.




Chapter 11

  It was a cold winter; there was a shortage of firewood.  The problem was that neither stockpile by the woodcutters had many logs.  The woodcutters had a long way to go in the cold and snow to get logs.  The fires in the roasting spits in the native village and the Fort were kept burning all winter long using a lot of firewood. The Fort set up an outpost forester just west of the Fort.  Another forester was assigned to the walnut grove.  We all gathered branches.



  The natives carved a totem pole by the tool maker.  It was on the road that led into the village.  They build a medicine hut by the small hunting ground, and back by the chief's hut, they built a wise elder's school.  Neither structure took a lot of wood, only saplings that bent easily to make the frames for the hides. 





  In spring our wheat was planted and when the need for firewood lessened and there were more logs, we built a mill by our small storage barn and a bakery next to the berry patch.  There would be jelly buns made with those berries in late summer after the wheat was harvested and milled into flour.  Before then, Fren and I planned another visit to Cottage Grove with the children.  They loved going to see their grandmas and grandpas as we've been doing every summer.  Cottage Grove was just over the hills to the south and across the river.  We would be back in plenty of time to have some of the first jelly buns from the baker's ovens. 





Chapter 12



  We just made it back from Cottage Grove before another early snowfall.  More of the wheat and cabbage were lost this year than the previous one.  The first of the wheat harvest was already at the mill and the baker was heating the ovens.  We were again low on firewood.  What I had to tell the captain would have to wait until the crops were in and the branches were gathered.

  I learned from my parents that elves were making animal statues from pine wood to teach the children about animals.  Pine was a soft wood and easy to carve.  The statue making began out to the west in a town called Wildwood.  I thought this would be something that would interest the men in Pinewood.  The captain agreed when I told him.  He would speak to the chief; I went along with him.

  The chief was indeed interested; there was much the animals teach us. The natives and the elves have strong connections with nature and the animals.  He thought my people were wise to listen to the Elves.  The natives have great respect for the elves who protect the earth, the trees, and the animals.  The chief thought I must have native or elven blood or perhaps in a past life I was an elf or one of his people.  The captain gave permission for the native tool smith to make sturdy carving knives.  Our native tribe now had a purpose.



  By early spring of year 8, the native tool smith had carving tools made and worktables were set up near the stockpile.  The best pieces of pine wood were selected.   The first totem statue that was made was a gift to me; it was a statue of an elf girl. 







Chapter 13



  It was not long before the totem of the proud moose appeared near the carving station.  It was followed by an introspective bear and the loyal wolf.  The cunning fox and busy squirrel soon joined the group of totems.  The gentle deer and the prolific rabbit were there too.  It was an impressive group representing many native legends, and all the animals had lessons to teach young and old alike. 





  I took the children to see the animal totems and found the area was fenced in with a sturdy wall and there were benches to sit upon.  The wall was to prevent settler and fort children from wandering off into the forest and becoming lost.  I was surprised to see the elderberries growing in the totem garden.  When the natives delivered the elf statue they saw my elderberries.  They had not seen the berry for many moons; there were many growing wild when they were young and the land was theirs.  I dug out as many seedlings from my hedgerow as I could find to give as a thank-you gift to the native people for the elf statue.  They planted some of the elderberries in the totem garden.  We were told the elderberries now had a lesson to teach also, the lesson of friendship between settlers and natives.  There would be a new legend told how a native elf girl came from the past to bring the elderberries back to the people.  It was good.  Son Dwig, who was now seven and a student, said they did not teach such good lessons in his school.



  Elderberries were planted around the native village and by the gatherer's hut.  A totem of a squirrel was place there too as a reminder to be prepared for the future but not to take too much more than was needed.




Chapter 14






  The totem garden was a wonderful addition to Pinewood Reservation.  The Fort McCoy and Walnut Grove parents were happy to have their children learn from the natives how to care for the land and the animals.  Three of the smaller totems were waiting at the trading post.  They would be traded for food that was to be delivered to another reservation that was not doing as well as Pinewood was. 







  Pinewood was indeed doing well.  So was Fort McCoy and Walnut Grove. The fort often delivered fresh fish to the reservation and to our settlement.  The reservation provided us in Walnut Grove with fresh or roasted meat, and we provided them with flour and grain and occasionally some jelly buns, plus walnuts that keep well all winter long.  We provided the same to the fort plus fruits and vegetables and got more meat in exchange.  The fort guards were happy to have hunting to do; there was no feuding here in our valley to keep them occupied.  Everyone gets along; the children all play happily together; the native children learn our language and ours learn theirs.  We all have a lot to learn. 





Chapter 15


    Yes, weary traveler, Walnut Grove is a safe and very pleasant place to live.  We have everything we need and want for nothing.  If we are ever short of anything, we know we can rely on Fort McCoy or Pinewood Reservation; and they each know they can rely on the other two. 



  In the summer of year 8, which is year 93 SVT, together we have a population of 93, 49 adults, 12 students, and 32 young children.  Everyone is happy and healthy.  There is still a bit of summer left, weary traveler, go in peace.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_qFbNskjCI   



The End