Windmills of the West: rural America's most important invention
Full details
| Authors & editors | |
| Publisher | Stoecklein Photography and Publishing |
| Year of publication | 2009 |
| Languages | English (main text) |
| Medium | Book |
| Edition | 1 |
| ISBN | 1935269003 |
| Topics | |
| Tags | |
| Scope & content | A pictorial book of photographs of American windmills (wind engines and wind pumps). This book is a tribute to the pioneers of the West who built these structures to capture the power of the wind to pump water from underground wells. The windmill is an iconic feature of the western landscape and was just as vital as railroads and horses in the settlement of the West. The introductory chapter describes the construction and operation of these machines and there importance to the development of agriculture, the railroads and cattle ranching in the American West. He traces the important heritage of the windmill throughout the western states and old Mexico. For ranchers and farmers who had struggled to pump water manually from the ground, the windmill provided an abundance of clean, pure water by tapping effortlessly into the underground supply. This allowed ranchers more freedom in grazing their cattle and an improved quality of life. The highly coloured images are accompanied by a brief history of the mills, interspersed with poems, quotes, personal recollections about these iconic machines and life on the prairie. |
Copies held
Accession no. 229697
- Shelf location: I180.8-STO
- Donor: Michael Dufau Collection