The Sodbreakers

In “The Sodbreakers,” Edith Kohl writes of her exciting experiences as she helped countless homesteaders settle the frontier area around Lusk and Van Tassell, Wyoming in the early 1900s. As background, the Homestead Acts offered free ownership of 270 million acres of public land (10% of America) to people who settle the undeveloped lands west of the Mississippi River. 1.6 million homesteaders responded!In Edith Kohl’s own words, “It was a hodge-podge of humanity thrown into a topsy-turvy world in the making without method or experience, without finance or leadership. Band after band of settlers, one No-Man’s Land after another, cowboys and Indians, stockmen and homesteader, primitive and progress, all fighting for supremacy. Chaotic, exciting, or desolate and remote and as virgin as in the Beginning.”Edith Kohl recorded these historic events from personal experience because she was part of it - she lived it! Her craft of words paints vivid images of what she experienced as she describes the sights, sounds, people and events. She does this so well, it allows readers – generations later - to more fully understand and appreciate the harsh realities of how America's West was settled.This book is the second in Edith Kohl’s trilogy entitled, “Conquering the Wild West – Edith Kohl’s Trilogy.” The first book is “Land of the Burnt Thigh” followed by “The Sodbreakers” and then finally, “Woman of the Cavalcade.” Each book gives readers a unique “peek behind the curtain” as Edith describes the people and exciting, sometimes tragic, events as they unfolded. Reading her books is like hearing her voice tell us these remarkable true stories. In so doing, her books comprise an important literary treasure for all Americans who value the history of our country’s beginnings.Cliff Ammons, Edith Kohl's nephew, only recently discovered all three of Edith’s original, typed manuscripts in her old, “ratty-looking” suitcase that was left unopened for well over fifty years! Cliff now presents all of his aunt’s first-hand, historic accounts as she describes her remarkable experiences involved in the settling of America's undeveloped wild West. All three of her books are now available for the first time on Amazon.com in paperback and eBook formats. Readers are in for a treat!

Edith Eudora Ammons Kohl is the talented author who wrote "Land of the Burnt Thigh," "The Sodbreakers," "Woman of the Cavalcade." "Denver's Historic Mansions," and "Denver's First Christmas." Make no mistake about it ... Edith Kohl's writings are truly priceless, historic documents. Edith Kohl was a young, relatively small lady, slightly more than five feet tall. She was only 23, frail, and in poor health when she and her little sister, Ida Mary, set out by themselves to join other heroic men, women and children to help settle America's wild, unchartered West. What they expected to be a great, exciting adventure certainly was ... but what they encountered was much, much more than they could ever have imagined! They had no way of knowing the many, extreme hardships, challenges and dangers awaiting them and the other heroic homesteaders. That is what Edith Kohl writes about so skillfully for us in each of the three books she wrote. In addition to her writing achievements, Edith Kohl was quite an extraordinary individual who accomplished several other notable things in her life. She was a "Homesteader" herself; a feature writer for the Denver Post from 1929 until 1954; established a number of U.S. Post Offices; started several newspapers in Montana, South Dakota and Wyoming; was instrumental in negotiating and settling several serious disputes among cattlemen, farmers and American Indians; and more. In fact, Edith was under contract with MGM for the movie rights to her first book, "Land of the Burnt Thigh" which was originally published by Funk and Wagnalls in 1938. With Edith's death in 1959, no movie was made. As you can appreciate, Edith Eudora Ammons Kohl was quite a remarkable lady. She was highly-intelligent, courageous and hard-working, but it was her reputation for fairness and honesty that earned her the respect and admiration of all who encountered her ... including high-level government officials and politicians. Those who had the good fortune to meet Edith could never forget her ... and neither will you ... once you finish reading her books.