Wedding couples of the late 1930s and early 1940s in rural northern Michigan braved hurdles that most modern couples have never faced. These brides and grooms survived the devastating economic and social challenges of The Great Depression only to witness the eve of a second world war. Unimaginable, yet these persevering couples endured and thrived. Rebecca Carlson narrates the Galla-Popa double wedding of July 1941, as part of her ongoing series on Leelanau farming families.
Patient, selfless, nurturers. The American farmer intrinsically understands these three words 365 days a year without complaint, without dedicated health benefits, and without guaranteed vacations, writes Rebecca Carlson in this feature on the Skeba family, part of her ongoing series on Leelanau farming families and their impacts on the County. The Skeba family farm began in 1877 which translates to 147 years of continuous, single-family management with lots of backbreaking, hard work, but ultimately resulting in a rewarding vocation and livelihood.
As part of her 12-part Leelanau Farming Family Series, Rebecca Carlson interviewed Jeff and Jaunita ‘Nita’ Send, whose ancestors bought the current family farmstead in 1918, 105 years ago. Longevity is one more point of communal connectivity among the farming families of Leelanau County.