Prairie Ghost town

 

Vona, Colorado

 

            Across the plains of eastern Colorado are many little burgs that are slowly settling in to dusty memories.  Early 1900 through the 1920’s these little towns were in their heyday.  Main street was a busy place with shops and stores in downtown.  Buggies and the new fangled horseless carriage shared the main avenue.  Then the great depression hit the country and life on the prairie would change for the depression ushered in the dust bowl.  What had once been prosperous land became pile of blowing dust.  No longer could folks pay their debts, banks foreclosed and people lost their livelihood. Life had evolved into a desperate situation of trying to survive. 

            Vona was located along the railroad line of the Rock Island.  When the homestead law changed, the little town of Vona was ready for the new settlers.  The railroad brought supplies and product was shipped via the railway.  Vona became a thriving farm town on the high plains.  A town government was formed and utilities were placed.  A school was built and into the 20^th century Vona moved. 

            After the dirty 30, dreams began to fade and with the drought of the 50’s many sold out and moved on.  The dream of a country town began to fade into the murky recess of dreams lost. 

            Today Vona is home to a few dozen residents, but most of the business have closed up and moved on.  The Post Office is still open as is town hall to manage the utilities and streets.  City park is across the street from town hall and is maintained. 

            During the 60’s, Interstate 70 was under construction it completely by passed the little town.  The building of the Interstate was the knell of demise.  On the old highway, the gas station hung on until the caretakers could no longer manage.  The grain elevator shuttered up a couple of years earlier.  Across the corner is the junk dealer in the gulley with appliances strewn about awaiting the fate to the scrap pile. 

            Mani street has a few buildings, most are empty and store a variety of stuff.  One of the empty buildings had goats in a pen beside it.  Mostly the winds of past times float across the roofs whistling. 

            On a knoll overlooking the town is the water tower.  One of the more unique towers and probably one of the smallest tanks ever.  Next to it is a large steel tank, possibly auxiliary supply and behind is the new replacement water tower.  The old water tower was designated a historic land mark because of its uniqueness. 

            There are the few who still live in Vona, it is a quiet village, where people still go about life.

Famine In Russia

Communist Famine

            Recently read a blog about the famine that struck Russia in 1918m during the communist revolution.   This made me pause and reflect back on other stories I read about, during that time period nod before.  1918 was the year of the Spanish Flu pandemic.  It was also the end of WWI.  For the beginning of this story one must go back to 1850’s. 

            In 1850, Russia was ruled by a monarchy, Katherine was the ruler at this time.  There were vast lands in Russia that were very arable.  Katherine’s envoys went to Germany and offered free land to German farmers if they would settle in this land and farm it.  The Germans agreed to the conditions, they would not be a part of Russian rule nor could they be conscripted into the military.  On these conditions the Germans emigrated to Russia and began farming.  The Germans became prosperous and had a great market for their products in Russia. 

            During the 1889’s the Czar’s came to power and deposed Queen Katherine.  With the queen gone, the agreement with the Germans was ignored by the Czar’s.  They began taxing them and conscripting their men as soldiers.  No longer was there protection, the Germans began fleeing their lands and returning to their homes in Germany and many continued on to the Americas.  The first great emigration from Russia had begun..

            As these Germans began arriving in the New World, they continued their faming in new lands, North America into South America.  In the United States, many little communities grew up around these new Russian/German settlers. 

            In Russia, the iron fists of the Czars were met with resistance by the Bolshevik’s.  A revolutionary group, which was intent on overthrowing the Czars.  Lenin and his communist minions joined the Bolsheviks’ and the communist revolution was underway. 

            During this upheaval in Russia, late 1800’s, early 1900’s, many young men were taken into the military to fight.  The Germans for the most part had quit farming in Russia, then the closing of the young men, even took more farmers off the land.  With farmers becoming scarce, foods became short supply.  The revolution had killed so many, that finding people to work had become rare. 

            During this time period, WWI was destroying farmland in Europe and the farmers were at war.  So food supplies for Russia in Europe had dried up.  Food in Europe was a rare commodity. 

            Demand for food was growing.  The price of wheat in the US was going skyrocket prices.  Suddenly farmers were making money like bankers.  With the high price of wheat, more ground was broken for farming and large mortgages were taken on the land for more equipment. 

            Lenin reached out to the US for help and met with some resistance, yet the DC politicians relented.  Using a caveat of condemnations of the communist Lenin and his practices, relief food supplies were sent to Russia. This pushed the price of wheat even higher.  By 1920, farming had begun again in Europe and Russia settled down.  Yet during the famine in Russia, millions of people died. 

            The politics of war, revolution and controlling dictatorships’, had left a giant scar on the land.    Farming that had been noble, suddenly was poverty flats.  The price of wheat in the United States, had hit barrel bottom.  No longer was there a market for wheat.  Piles of overproduced wheat and other crops were stacking up on the land and going to rot.  Many farmers were forced into bankruptcy and lost their farms. 

            The Germans that had fled Russia in the 1880’s were bitten by the Russians again, a few decades later. 

            It is amazing how interconnected, non related events can be.