Every time I go hunting I think about how those guys had pretty much just one shot and a good knife, while I have a multi shot long gun, and a powerful handgun, not to mention g.p.s. phone , first aid kit. and a small survival kit , and much more. The amount of respect that I have for our ancestors not living but thriving with so little. Thank you and God Bless!
Imagine our ancestors surviving that just for this generation of kid's to be gender confused and not be able to fight their way out of a wet paper bag?
Being in the Army, the longest I ever went without a shower and "normal" food was a month. And that was in training. I just cant imagine how hardcore that lifestyle is, compared to the comforts we have today.
I'd love to see a video about how a farmer would aquire land, what they would grow, the tools theyd need the animals needed for food and work or just what your year would look like. I grow my own food as a hobby and its hard work even now. cant imagine the effort it would take to make it work. Thanks for another amazing video!
Farming on the frontier would be narly. First choose the land, build a shelter, clear the land, then plant, keep the critters at bay, grow to harvest, store, all the while hunting to survive with the threat of hostile natives, then survive the winter and do it all again. Not many of us could do that and survive. My hat’s off to my farming ancestors, amazing folks.
@@terryt.1643 I know can you imagine doing all that. Praying your crops would not fail from the absolute stack of problems that can befall them with a baby to feed and only 24 hours in a day. No wonder people used to be very religious!
Great suggestion. I'm originally from a very large farm in Alberta, Canada. Farming still fascinates me, and I'd like to know what farming was like in North America, in the 18th and 19th centuries. Cheers!
My ancestors migrated from Virginia to North Carolina, to Kentucky, then to Texas and Missouri. Our family traveled with other families and they can be found in censuses living near one another. They intermarried and built communities together. They knew not to travel alone.
That's really interesting. I'm a Boer. My family did the "Great Trek and landed in the Orange Free State. Our history is so similar in terms of challenges faced by our pioneering forefathers but thousands of miles apart on different continents.
My ancestors started out in Pennsylvania moved down along the Appalachia mountain then west to Georgia some of them got sick and settled in Georgia the rest headed to Texas and Arkansas
I can't recall now if I read this, or if it came up in a discussion with my grandfather (or even if we were discussing something I'd read)...but the observation itself has stuck with me for decades. "The people who have nowhere else to go, the people with nothing to lose, the wild-eyed misfits and the low-down crooks...those are the people who become pioneers, explorers, hunters. The people who need other people around, the people who can't stand to be unkind, they do better to stay home and safe." You're very right about a special mindset. The willingness to do whatever it takes - gross, brutal, tedious or back-breaking - in order to survive. I think that men who made a habit of brutalizing others didn't necessarily last long...if nothing else because they earned a reputation and they'd run afoul of each other sooner or later. That kind of non-cooperation weeds itself out over time, but it's still very dangerous even NOW. Your comment about folks sheltering in gigantic hollow trees made me think about the book "My Side of the Mountain." I think the kid's in upstate New York (and it's hardly the frontier) but he does make a kind of hollow in a tree, burns it (which creates a barrier against tree sap AND bugs), and lives in that for like two years. I remember thinking "no way" and then looking it up. As for surviving in that time... Well, the preparations would be the deciding factor. Am I tough enough, willing enough, to do the extremely hard work? I'd be incredibly miserable most all the time, but I could do it. I'd drop weight damn fast (and maybe be cured of diabetes in the process), I'd toughen up and get fit because the only other choice is to die. But without any of the tools and knowledge needed? Just BLAM, isekai'd into 1850s Tennessee? Nope, dead in about three days, maybe less if I get sick from bad water. I know enough to TRY to get water and I know vaguely how to test plants as food, but that's the limit of my "wild" knowledge and experience. And dirty water, or stagnant water, would give me a flux: dehydration would be MUCH quicker if I'm having that kind of problem. Humans only go three days without water before expiring and it's very unpleasant. I'm pretty happy with my modern times, my clean water and house with a good roof. Yeah there's a lot of bad stuff, not even counting the global worries that bring us all down. But I'm not starving, I'm not without shelter, I'm not wearing every stitch I own and praying I won't die of exposure. I'm not prospering by anyone's definition, but I'm surviving better than I would've done back then, and for that I will count my blessings.
This was about the most perfectly made video I have ever seen on TH-cam. All of the ones your team produces are quality. Please pass my compliments on to them. You guys have gotten me through my surgery recovery. Thank you.
Perfect response. I´m from Brazil, my grandfather is two generations away from an escaped slave and he lived in the countryside cultivating bananas. He had raised and butchered his own hogs and chickens, hunted (until it was turned illegal) and planted for pretty much 98% of his needs. My father barely knows how to hammer a nail or fry an egg, but he has his own business built from scratch. Completly different mindsets and situations. Still fun to think about it though!
Native American here. Even though my ancestors spent centuries surviving here I'm not sure if I could. Modern society just isn't built for that lifestyle anymore.
Half the same. If I went back along the native side I'd be fine. I wouldn't want to, though, lol. If I went down the other side, still wouldn't want to, and I sure wouldn't "pioneer". Even not knowing what I know now, it's just I wouldn't make a bold change like that.
depending on how you look, you could be adopted. Then you would have access to their medical knowledge. Granted, the way some clans styled their hair could be considered torture by us.
My native ancestors lived in a cosmopolitan theocratic republic but pulled an identity from the Chichimeca who did live like this. I dont know if I could survive either life, tbh. They then moved to northern settlements called Pueblos de Tlaxcala which might have been an easier period to survive due to communal reliance and social structures. During the 2 Mexican Revolutions, well maybe not so much.
I love when you do these videos. My ancestors lives on the frontier and there is no way that I would be able to endure what they did. It furthers my notion that I love studying history but I wouldn’t want to live in it with the creature comforts I take for granted today. Such an interesting topic.
My family that moved to Washington made a shack out of a hollowed out tree and the family stayed there while building the permanent home. We still have letters and written testimony from the family that came here in the early 1800.
My family was the Mccalister family. Moved to Washington state pre 1830 from the Midwest area. Arrived near the coast of Oregon and Washington by the Colombian river where they were invited by local tribes to live to live in what was described as oasis in the puget sound with game to hunt and crops to grow. They lived in proximity to the Nisqually tribe, whose leader (chief leschi) invited them to stay. Upon arrival the only suitable home was a hollowed tree stump where they made their first home. A lot of controversy still exists to this day around the relationship between Leschi and the Mccalisters relationship. To this day we still have the Nisqually river and right next to it is Mccalister creek, near I5 and the sound. To this day
My ancestors had to share shoes, pants l, chewin' tobacco, and wives. They'd have to take shifts with the wife to get married at the church, and then the rest of the family would attend each wedding in shifts cause they didn't have enough shoes to go round. For efficiency, each person would wear one shoe and hop around on one foot. Thems the breaks.
@@timothyrussell1179Ya'll had feet to wear shoes with? Bruh my ancestors didn't even have feet, to this day my family crawls on the ground. It is what it is.
I enjoy challenging myself. I'm older now but up to a few years ago I regularly went on what I called survival adventures, usually along a waterway and away from civilization. Sometimes by myself, sometimes with a kid and sometimes with a grandkid or two for up to a week with only a little rice, a pot and what would fit in a small pack. It was very educational and sometimes tough. I know how to survive but not sure at my age I could do it and the longer you're out the harder it is.
Most people think of western United States when talking about wild west but at this time heading west to territories like Kentucky was the wild west back them.
@@chrisquinn394 Благодаря вам я понял что Дикий Запад это не место. Это время, люди, история. Это огромная эпоха. Очень интересно смотреть. Спасибо вам еще раз.
One of my forefathers was Roger Dyer, a frontiersman, who traveled from his home in PA into the wilderness. He and several other families built Fort Seybert in Pendleton County, [West] Virginia. When some of these early settlers were away one afternoon, some Shawnee and Delaware Indians attacked the Fort and slaughtered them -- 1758. They were killed and their fort was burned. I have visited the location and there are no visible remains of the fort. (My 5th great grandmother and several others were away during the attack, otherwise I would not have existed.)
Thank you so much for saying Appalachian mountain correctly!! Thank you. Also I was mostly raised living of the land and do it mostly as an adult. Definitely helps to study and experience at the same time
i moved to wyoming from ny and few times hiking with my dogs i was cought in rain and hail. you could defenitaly die from hypothermia in the middle of summer if you get wet then have to spend the night withought fire. your only hope would be to keep moving and stay warm just dont stop is your best chance
I'm certain that very few could survive today like they did back then, even with modern equipment. It's not so much about us, but about the world as it is today. Animals shy away from humans and with few humans back then chancing upon a game animal to eat every day or two was almost certain- but not today. Edible plants were also more abundant then. On the human question they knew every plant that was edible, what was medicinal, where it grew, and how to identify it in every season. Then also knew how to preserve that supply with nearly nothing and how to make the best use of it. The last time this kind of knowledge was exhibited was during the Great Depression, and nearly none of those people are around now plus much of what they knew has been forgotten. Without our modern world around us less than one percent of humanity would survive in the wilderness today, and I know I'm not one of them.
@@P_RO_ lol I live on a homestead in upstate Vermont... I raise rabbits, chicken, turkey, and ducks. I've had pigs and goats in the past... I also have two wells and a wood burning kitchen stove.. I burn my own wood for heating...I have a garden that has more square feet than my house... I forage and hunt every year... And I have yet to run out of growing things around my house. I don't even own a tractor. The biggest piece of power equipment I have is a push mower.... Trust me, people still live this way...
@@Theggman83 Yes but very few. You're the one percent I spoke of. I'm better than the average city slicker but not by much, and my age and health problems means I can't make it without society's support.
They remind me of the long haul truck drivers. It takes a special kind of person or one who has little choice to sign up for long hours behind the wheel. You see beautiful scenery and meet interesting people but it is dangerous and hard mentally. You are often alone with your thoughts which is why for years truckers used c.b. radios to keep each other company. You work in all weather, any time of the day or night and depending on the load you haul you might even have physically demanding labor. Injuries are dangerous and the "natives" (passenger vehicles) are hostile.
The Appalachian Trail has been said to be deceptively dangerous at times, even with all our modern gear. What frontiersmen did was extraordinary. They faced life and death on a daily basis. High risk.
It was usually a dozen to 100 men at a time working the trails and moving along the trails, it wasn't just two people going on a weekend hike getting lost. They were smart to go in groups, they also had a rule not to go wandering off in the dark or even during the daytime without their gear. The foreman in charge of all them had to know where every man was going to be at any given time so they wouldn't lose someone.
This is such a wonderful channel! I have so much respect for your love of place and period, and the quality of your work. Kudos to the entire Townsends crew, some in front of (and most behind) the cameras.
I go "camping" for my youtube channel and always think about how easy it is to be outside these days. I often look at my surroundings and wonder what it would have been like to have been the first or second person to ever have seen the area I'm in.
Your question is interesting, Jon! Could we survive? If we went back in a time machine, it would be difficult. The right guide would be key, just as it was to the people of the time. Any skills you could develop would be of assistance, but as you point out, someone who was raised in a town then may not have the skills either. Growing up in the period would provide somewhat of an advantage. Your mindset would be key to the length of your survival on the frontier. Understanding the Native Americans in the area or those who you encounter would be a constantly changing game. Your point in this episode about each tribe being different should not be underestimated. I would think that most Native Americans preferrred that you were not there, and your presence could be in violation of a treaty they made with someone else. Learning to live with the indigenous people would be another key to survival. The odds were certainly against you, because accidents caused through no fault of your own could suddenly turn deadly. Being alone with God in the big woods can be a most peaceful experience, and it could be a most diffuclt experience. As you pointed out in the past, surival on the frontier is a young man's venture. Age provides experience but tends to limit your mobility in the woods and ability to tolerate extreme conditions, which dampens your desire to put yourself in that environment. Could we survive? Yes. If you venture out prepared in good company, you could. Would the odds be in your favor? That's doubtful. Especially the first time out. The people who venture out today will have the best chance. Those who tend to avoid God's country today would find survival difficult. Thanks for the diverson.
Another exceptional class with Professor Jon at Townsend University. Fantastic historic insight, stunning cinematography, marvelous editing. Brilliant as always!
When I was twenty, hell yeah no sweat! Aged forty-two, yeah I’d probably have been a goner already. MAD respect to all frontiersmen and indigenous folks of every country staving off disease and death in the ways that they knew how for as long as they could . . .
This was a good video especially for these times. The most important thing you spoke of was the mental fortitude of those people back then. People think that in a certain scenario that they're going to grab their go bag and run out to the Wilderness and survive. While those who have the fortitude mental and spiritual strength Will Survive others will not. While having spent more than a few weeks in the Ouachita National Forest of Arkansas with just my Flintlock knife and Tomahawk with a few provisions I can tell you it is not an easy task.
Thanks for sharing with us Jon, truer words were never spoken. They lived because they wanted too. Stay safe and keep up the good work and videos. Fred.
Hunting/fishing no season no limit no regulations at all. Not polluted or destroyed yet; chestnut trees and clean water. In that era though, I'd have stayed by the shore anyway though.
All “exciting” dangers, when really things like typhus/Rocky Mountain spotted fever etc. were huge killers and once you got them it was often a death sentence
I’d like to think I would survive even with all my bushcraft skills from the military, I know I’m tripping over in horse poop and hitting my head, getting and infected and die
@@revelationperception5370that's when you dab your thumb with honey take a bit of cloth and wrap your thumb with it, and let the honey do its thing as a natural antibiotic.
I know I wouldn’t have but not for any of the reasons listed here. I’m indigenous and just got to travel back through my people’s original pre-Removal homeland for the first time. It was a beautiful and spiritual experience and had I been born two centuries earlier I’d have died before getting sent West.
If we were transported back in time, communication would be a thing to consider. Our terminology for things is different now and you could find yourself in a situation if you used the wrong word when asking for help/bartering.
I live in the same area as my forefathers here in the Missouri Ozarks. Young Nathaniel traveled with his family from Eastern Tennessee over 200 years ago and settled on the Niangua River. 600 miles of wilderness, heat and ticks. He must have had a good reason.
Such an interesting video this. Im a boer. My family did the " The Great Trek "to escape Brotish rule and settled in the interior of the country. We were called Voortrekkers which means fore runners ( pioneers ). Faced so many challenges. Wars with Xhosa, Zulu etc. Faced disease never encountered before, face harsh environmental conditions, starvation, wild animals etc and then settled on a plateau of land that was not privy to farm but we managed to do so anyway. The English couldn't care less until we dug deep and started finding gold. Thats when the Boer Wars kicked off. So many parallels to American pioneers. We must be grateful for their sacrifices today
In my hometown of London, KY is the Levi Jackson state park. In the park is the site of McNitt's defeat. The tradition is that one of the survivors is a young lady that hid in a large tree. Some versions say she gave birth in the tree.
Speaking for my MRS & myself: yes! In our younger years, we did live in near similar conditions (sans hostiles). We still have our gear (including long rifle) from back then. Lived in tents, build cabins. I still hunt/fish/trap........
Amazing to think that people that backpack bring their items of survival and most of the time stay on established trails. These of the frontier and explorers made their own trails; following the contour of the land or small path that some made before. Like you said some stayed and some went forward.
Love the channel...My last name may speak to whether the "we" in my life, " could survive the frontier, " I still won't carry, have, or ever want a cell phone...I think I would be fine and the family has done well up to this point....LOL!!! Always great to see one of your videos...
I feel like I would have a better chance than the people who have lived their entire lives growing up in the city. My dad taught me how to hunt/catch and clean hogs,deer,rabbit,raccoons and many other animals. I feel like hunting wouldn’t be a problem and I’ve roughed it camping for days on end and having a particular interest in having basic survival skills would set me on a path of at least surviving the experience. Growing up in Texas with a dad who taught me many aspects of basic survival skills.
The descriptions of the trials and dangers associated with that time, the natives, the weather, the environment.... It all reminds me of a day trip to Cleveland. :D
I always felt I could do it when I was younger, I grew up in the mountains...then I think of not going anywhere without my asthma inhaler. That smacks me in the face with reality.
If those who lived long in the past could trade places with us now…they’d do so in a heartbeat, if they could enjoy what we’ve progressed to, as far as being comfortable and well-fed, not dying at 30 from disease, etc.
I sure as shit couldn't. I'm a good bushcrafter and mountaineer when I have all my fancy tools and gear. I could probably last until my tents, solostoves etc broke. Then i would have NO idea how to make new tools.
Bison had heards of 1/2 million, deer & turkey were plentiful.. Indians survived with bows and arrows. Daniel Boone got rich from the fir trade and was friends with the Indians.
If I could go back in time, I would love to have been with Lewis and Clark...what an adventure. My paternal ancestors left Virginia and came to East Tennessee just before the Revolution. What little information we have is that they were educated, ambitious, and tough.
im going to confidently say "NO". Although i developed great cooking and butchering skills from being a cook for years, the amount of disease, lack of drinkable water and the need to hunt are just too much of variable risks. The reason why you die 2 min into Oregan Trail is because that's exactly what happened.
even given the spirit, we in our society today are just way tooo softened and pampered to be able to truly put up with those harships, struggles and perils .....
I had an infected tooth requiring a root canal at age 12, so I’m aware I probably wouldn’t have survived to see 13. If I had, then the blood poisoning from a rusty knife I sliced my thumb with when I was expecting my second child at 31 would have killed me and my daughter for sure. So no, I’d be totally screwed.
@@purplespeckledappleeater8738 I hear you. It was a tiny cut that I treated with hydrogen peroxide, put a bandaid on, then went to bed. The next morning my thumb was painful and throbbing. By the time I got to work a red streak was working its way higher on my arm. Needless to say, I rushed to the ER. For years afterwards, every time I got even a small hangnail, blood poisoning would develop and I’d be on a new round of antibiotics. It wasn’t until I insisted to a doctor that I needed a tetanus shot that the episodes of blood poisoning stopped. So, totally screwed in the old west. Don’t know why all of that kept happening.
Fun fact, the heartwood of the tree (middle part) is not needed for the tree to survive.... and also it tends to always be bone dry, so you can easily find dry wood inside the tree you are now living in...
@@upscaleshack you do realize some trees (old growth) used to be multiple grown men in width? They would have a whole family in one tree. No joke, still photos go look them up. Whole house, in a tree.
@@EC-dz4bq I'm a certified US Forest Service tree climber who has worked in the last remaining old growth forests in the US. Yes, I do understand how big trees can be. Thanks for the boomersplaining though.
I had parents that were raised the way and so, yes I could and actually Id prefer earlier times over todays times as things were harder and more appreciated. Simpler and required family and friends to be committed to each other. It was what the country was built on.
I didn't make a 2 hour trip down the Delaware River...capsized and had to be rescued by a lifeguard that looked like the paper boy. So embarrassing! I'm a quick no on wilderness survival.
My grandparents lived that way, and as children so did my aunts and uncles. Ive lived several years out in the deep forest by myself without many modern amenities and did just fine. I actually prefer it. Im 52 now and have diabetes and high blood pressure so if i could survive long enough to become healthy and best those afflictions then i believe i could do it still. But i wouldnt want to try and find out. Lol im a survivor but im also a realist. Most people wouldnt survive. I might not either. Then again its not like they had great life expectancies back then. So they didnt always survive long themselves. Life was tougher and so were people. A bear back then was the same as a bear now though lol
If you own any amount of land, you should own a shovel, a pick, an axe and a saw. This is what was known as a pioneering kit and is still issued by the military. In modern times, I would throw in a sledge and a crowbar. With those tools, you could do much to help yourself. If you don't own them, you probably pay someone else to use them on your behalf. That's fine but you are missing the chance to build that mindset Jon was talking about. Apartment dwellers and car owners can adapt as much of the kit as possible.
So as usual the humans are the ones we have to worry most about. Human history really is just a repeating slideshow with different characters. Informative vid. Thanks.
We take our modern amenities for granted. In North America, even in the 1950s, there were people living in rural areas that didn't have power. Persevering is what helped these people survive. This was another great episode. Cheers!
as someone who has lived in a 1800s log cabin and spent more time in the wilderness than many, nope. Exactly all points hit. We have weather reports, medicine, firearms, soled shoes, etc., we are not being hunted by large game, not crossing into hostile lands... If you go down in the backcountry you can hit the SoS button and be good. I do think it would be fun to teleport for a week
I bought a hunting frock (nutmeg colour of course) and gaiters from your shop a while back. Great clothes! Thanks Townsends. And could I survive on the American frontier?? Probably not...
I used to know someone who really liked this channel. She referred to the uploader as "Keebler elf man," because she was halfway convinced that he was a very tiny person who was in a very tiny log house, because all the kitchenware looked modeled and tiny.
Every time I go hunting I think about how those guys had pretty much just one shot and a good knife, while I have a multi shot long gun, and a powerful handgun, not to mention g.p.s. phone , first aid kit. and a small survival kit , and much more. The amount of respect that I have for our ancestors not living but thriving with so little. Thank you and God Bless!
The shower when you get home, and knowing that you have that in your future while hunting cold and/or wet, is also pretty nice.
@@AdamtheRed- And if you come up empty, you can go to a grocery store instead of starve.
Imagine our ancestors surviving that just for this generation of kid's to be gender confused and not be able to fight their way out of a wet paper bag?
Usetube sucks so bad now. 90% of my replies don't even make it
My original reply was "imagine our ancestors surviving all that just to have a generation that believes they're a cat or gender fluid?"
Being in the Army, the longest I ever went without a shower and "normal" food was a month. And that was in training. I just cant imagine how hardcore that lifestyle is, compared to the comforts we have today.
I'd love to see a video about how a farmer would aquire land, what they would grow, the tools theyd need the animals needed for food and work or just what your year would look like. I grow my own food as a hobby and its hard work even now. cant imagine the effort it would take to make it work. Thanks for another amazing video!
Also I'd last about 2 days if i was super lucky😅😅😅
Farming on the frontier would be narly. First choose the land, build a shelter, clear the land, then plant, keep the critters at bay, grow to harvest, store, all the while hunting to survive with the threat of hostile natives, then survive the winter and do it all again. Not many of us could do that and survive. My hat’s off to my farming ancestors, amazing folks.
@@terryt.1643 I know can you imagine doing all that. Praying your crops would not fail from the absolute stack of problems that can befall them with a baby to feed and only 24 hours in a day. No wonder people used to be very religious!
Thank you for your support and suggestions!
Great suggestion. I'm originally from a very large farm in Alberta, Canada. Farming still fascinates me, and I'd like to know what farming was like in North America, in the 18th and 19th centuries. Cheers!
My ancestors migrated from Virginia to North Carolina, to Kentucky, then to Texas and Missouri. Our family traveled with other families and they can be found in censuses living near one another. They intermarried and built communities together. They knew not to travel alone.
Mine did the same from sc down to ga and into fl when it was the frontier. The other side came to fl with the Spanish.
That's really interesting. I'm a Boer. My family did the "Great Trek and landed in the Orange Free State. Our history is so similar in terms of challenges faced by our pioneering forefathers but thousands of miles apart on different continents.
And they kill the Natives.
My ancestors started out in Pennsylvania moved down along the Appalachia mountain then west to Georgia some of them got sick and settled in Georgia the rest headed to Texas and Arkansas
I can't recall now if I read this, or if it came up in a discussion with my grandfather (or even if we were discussing something I'd read)...but the observation itself has stuck with me for decades. "The people who have nowhere else to go, the people with nothing to lose, the wild-eyed misfits and the low-down crooks...those are the people who become pioneers, explorers, hunters. The people who need other people around, the people who can't stand to be unkind, they do better to stay home and safe."
You're very right about a special mindset. The willingness to do whatever it takes - gross, brutal, tedious or back-breaking - in order to survive. I think that men who made a habit of brutalizing others didn't necessarily last long...if nothing else because they earned a reputation and they'd run afoul of each other sooner or later. That kind of non-cooperation weeds itself out over time, but it's still very dangerous even NOW.
Your comment about folks sheltering in gigantic hollow trees made me think about the book "My Side of the Mountain." I think the kid's in upstate New York (and it's hardly the frontier) but he does make a kind of hollow in a tree, burns it (which creates a barrier against tree sap AND bugs), and lives in that for like two years. I remember thinking "no way" and then looking it up.
As for surviving in that time... Well, the preparations would be the deciding factor. Am I tough enough, willing enough, to do the extremely hard work? I'd be incredibly miserable most all the time, but I could do it. I'd drop weight damn fast (and maybe be cured of diabetes in the process), I'd toughen up and get fit because the only other choice is to die.
But without any of the tools and knowledge needed? Just BLAM, isekai'd into 1850s Tennessee? Nope, dead in about three days, maybe less if I get sick from bad water. I know enough to TRY to get water and I know vaguely how to test plants as food, but that's the limit of my "wild" knowledge and experience. And dirty water, or stagnant water, would give me a flux: dehydration would be MUCH quicker if I'm having that kind of problem. Humans only go three days without water before expiring and it's very unpleasant.
I'm pretty happy with my modern times, my clean water and house with a good roof. Yeah there's a lot of bad stuff, not even counting the global worries that bring us all down. But I'm not starving, I'm not without shelter, I'm not wearing every stitch I own and praying I won't die of exposure. I'm not prospering by anyone's definition, but I'm surviving better than I would've done back then, and for that I will count my blessings.
1:55 Kitty!
It's the aforementioned Wild Cat!
I didn't even notice that until you pointed it out, good eye.
Frontier Kitty
look out john! there's a cougar behind you!
I wonder what the cat thinks about this old style human settlement
I think our buddy Townsend probably would survive (even without nutmeg).
Nope. His body has developed a nutmeg dependency. He'd definitely be dead.
Survive perhaps but enjoy it, nope, not without his nutmeg, but I bet he keeps a grater and some nutmeg always handy, so maybe until he ran out…
Sans nutmeg...
Would he want to?
Nutmeg is the melange of John, he needs it to survive
He'd find nutmeg.
This was about the most perfectly made video I have ever seen on TH-cam. All of the ones your team produces are quality. Please pass my compliments on to them. You guys have gotten me through my surgery recovery. Thank you.
Ouuuuu sounds like some one has a little man crush 😍
@@Bridgeburnerrrrr what happens on the frontier stays on the frontier.
@@PoppabearsCave you're absolutely right 🤫
all the best health to you!!! these videos really do help in so many ways
@@Bridgeburnerrrrrif you don’t have a crush on Jon Townsends you are lying to yourself
What a video! The thought you put into your words in this one shows, I felt like every sentence I learned something new. Thank you for this!
Could we? If I was magically transported? No. If I was raised that way? Maybe.
We into I
exactly what i thought
@@EC-dz4bqWould you like him to speak for you?
Exactly
Perfect response. I´m from Brazil, my grandfather is two generations away from an escaped slave and he lived in the countryside cultivating bananas. He had raised and butchered his own hogs and chickens, hunted (until it was turned illegal) and planted for pretty much 98% of his needs. My father barely knows how to hammer a nail or fry an egg, but he has his own business built from scratch. Completly different mindsets and situations. Still fun to think about it though!
Native American here. Even though my ancestors spent centuries surviving here I'm not sure if I could. Modern society just isn't built for that lifestyle anymore.
Yes, so true!
That's because of a person's frame of mind. If a person puts there mind to it they can pretty much go back to those times in alot of ways .
Half the same. If I went back along the native side I'd be fine. I wouldn't want to, though, lol. If I went down the other side, still wouldn't want to, and I sure wouldn't "pioneer". Even not knowing what I know now, it's just I wouldn't make a bold change like that.
depending on how you look, you could be adopted. Then you would have access to their medical knowledge. Granted, the way some clans styled their hair could be considered torture by us.
My native ancestors lived in a cosmopolitan theocratic republic but pulled an identity from the Chichimeca who did live like this. I dont know if I could survive either life, tbh.
They then moved to northern settlements called Pueblos de Tlaxcala which might have been an easier period to survive due to communal reliance and social structures. During the 2 Mexican Revolutions, well maybe not so much.
I love when you do these videos. My ancestors lives on the frontier and there is no way that I would be able to endure what they did. It furthers my notion that I love studying history but I wouldn’t want to live in it with the creature comforts I take for granted today. Such an interesting topic.
*I love your videos, you make us all happy 🥰🥰🥰*
My family that moved to Washington made a shack out of a hollowed out tree and the family stayed there while building the permanent home. We still have letters and written testimony from the family that came here in the early 1800.
My family was the Mccalister family. Moved to Washington state pre 1830 from the Midwest area. Arrived near the coast of Oregon and Washington by the Colombian river where they were invited by local tribes to live to live in what was described as oasis in the puget sound with game to hunt and crops to grow. They lived in proximity to the Nisqually tribe, whose leader (chief leschi) invited them to stay. Upon arrival the only suitable home was a hollowed tree stump where they made their first home.
A lot of controversy still exists to this day around the relationship between Leschi and the Mccalisters relationship.
To this day we still have the Nisqually river and right next to it is Mccalister creek, near I5 and the sound.
To this day
To this day?
This is one of your best presentations due to the variety of familiar 'suspects' you show and the information you include.
My ancestors had to share shoes. They went to church in shifts because there were not enough to go around. That's poverty.
My family went barefoot. Shoes were a luxury.
@@AltimaNEO What are shoes?
My ancestors had to share shoes, pants l, chewin' tobacco, and wives. They'd have to take shifts with the wife to get married at the church, and then the rest of the family would attend each wedding in shifts cause they didn't have enough shoes to go round. For efficiency, each person would wear one shoe and hop around on one foot. Thems the breaks.
@@timothyrussell1179Ya'll had feet to wear shoes with? Bruh my ancestors didn't even have feet, to this day my family crawls on the ground. It is what it is.
The church dosn't have a floor bruh, just pull up with no shoes.
Janice in the choir been tryn to tell yall.
1:55 "It took a special kind of ...", especially one confident enough to bring Kitty along. ;-)
I enjoy challenging myself. I'm older now but up to a few years ago I regularly went on what I called survival adventures, usually along a waterway and away from civilization. Sometimes by myself, sometimes with a kid and sometimes with a grandkid or two for up to a week with only a little rice, a pot and what would fit in a small pack. It was very educational and sometimes tough. I know how to survive but not sure at my age I could do it and the longer you're out the harder it is.
Lucky kids and grandchildren!
Спасибо вам за ваши видео. Благодаря им я понял почему на Диком Западе строили именно так, хотя раньше считал что это некачественные строения.
Most people think of western United States when talking about wild west but at this time heading west to territories like Kentucky was the wild west back them.
@@chrisquinn394 Благодаря вам я понял что Дикий Запад это не место. Это время, люди, история. Это огромная эпоха. Очень интересно смотреть. Спасибо вам еще раз.
@@chrisquinn394 this is likely a chatbot
So grateful for this channel, and for you, Jon. Thank you for all of the wonderful and inspiring videos. ☮
One of my forefathers was Roger Dyer, a frontiersman, who traveled from his home in PA into the wilderness. He and several other families built Fort Seybert in Pendleton County, [West] Virginia. When some of these early settlers were away one afternoon, some Shawnee and Delaware Indians attacked the Fort and slaughtered them -- 1758. They were killed and their fort was burned. I have visited the location and there are no visible remains of the fort. (My 5th great grandmother and several others were away during the attack, otherwise I would not have existed.)
Those old skills are still used today. They really knew what they was doing. Awesome vid!
Thank you so much for saying Appalachian mountain correctly!! Thank you. Also I was mostly raised living of the land and do it mostly as an adult. Definitely helps to study and experience at the same time
To live the frontier life you have strong mind, body, and spirit. To be as part of nature a human can ever be
i moved to wyoming from ny and few times hiking with my dogs i was cought in rain and hail. you could defenitaly die from hypothermia in the middle of summer if you get wet then have to spend the night withought fire. your only hope would be to keep moving and stay warm just dont stop is your best chance
I live closer to the land than most these days. And I'm not even sure I could manage it...
I felt the exact same way watching this
Yah-I'd rather not.
I'm certain that very few could survive today like they did back then, even with modern equipment. It's not so much about us, but about the world as it is today. Animals shy away from humans and with few humans back then chancing upon a game animal to eat every day or two was almost certain- but not today. Edible plants were also more abundant then. On the human question they knew every plant that was edible, what was medicinal, where it grew, and how to identify it in every season. Then also knew how to preserve that supply with nearly nothing and how to make the best use of it. The last time this kind of knowledge was exhibited was during the Great Depression, and nearly none of those people are around now plus much of what they knew has been forgotten.
Without our modern world around us less than one percent of humanity would survive in the wilderness today, and I know I'm not one of them.
@@P_RO_ lol I live on a homestead in upstate Vermont... I raise rabbits, chicken, turkey, and ducks. I've had pigs and goats in the past... I also have two wells and a wood burning kitchen stove.. I burn my own wood for heating...I have a garden that has more square feet than my house... I forage and hunt every year... And I have yet to run out of growing things around my house.
I don't even own a tractor. The biggest piece of power equipment I have is a push mower....
Trust me, people still live this way...
@@Theggman83 Yes but very few. You're the one percent I spoke of. I'm better than the average city slicker but not by much, and my age and health problems means I can't make it without society's support.
They remind me of the long haul truck drivers. It takes a special kind of person or one who has little choice to sign up for long hours behind the wheel. You see beautiful scenery and meet interesting people but it is dangerous and hard mentally. You are often alone with your thoughts which is why for years truckers used c.b. radios to keep each other company. You work in all weather, any time of the day or night and depending on the load you haul you might even have physically demanding labor. Injuries are dangerous and the "natives" (passenger vehicles) are hostile.
The Appalachian Trail has been said to be deceptively dangerous at times, even with all our modern gear. What frontiersmen did was extraordinary. They faced life and death on a daily basis. High risk.
It was usually a dozen to 100 men at a time working the trails and moving along the trails, it wasn't just two people going on a weekend hike getting lost. They were smart to go in groups, they also had a rule not to go wandering off in the dark or even during the daytime without their gear. The foreman in charge of all them had to know where every man was going to be at any given time so they wouldn't lose someone.
Strongly recommend reading "The Frontiersmen: A Narrative" by Allen Eckart
Thank you! ❤ I love that you added, metaphorically, about moving forward today. Very important to draw strength from the past.
This is such a wonderful channel! I have so much respect for your love of place and period, and the quality of your work. Kudos to the entire Townsends crew, some in front of (and most behind) the cameras.
I go "camping" for my youtube channel and always think about how easy it is to be outside these days. I often look at my surroundings and wonder what it would have been like to have been the first or second person to ever have seen the area I'm in.
Your question is interesting, Jon! Could we survive? If we went back in a time machine, it would be difficult. The right guide would be key, just as it was to the people of the time. Any skills you could develop would be of assistance, but as you point out, someone who was raised in a town then may not have the skills either. Growing up in the period would provide somewhat of an advantage. Your mindset would be key to the length of your survival on the frontier. Understanding the Native Americans in the area or those who you encounter would be a constantly changing game. Your point in this episode about each tribe being different should not be underestimated. I would think that most Native Americans preferrred that you were not there, and your presence could be in violation of a treaty they made with someone else. Learning to live with the indigenous people would be another key to survival. The odds were certainly against you, because accidents caused through no fault of your own could suddenly turn deadly. Being alone with God in the big woods can be a most peaceful experience, and it could be a most diffuclt experience. As you pointed out in the past, surival on the frontier is a young man's venture. Age provides experience but tends to limit your mobility in the woods and ability to tolerate extreme conditions, which dampens your desire to put yourself in that environment. Could we survive? Yes. If you venture out prepared in good company, you could. Would the odds be in your favor? That's doubtful. Especially the first time out. The people who venture out today will have the best chance. Those who tend to avoid God's country today would find survival difficult. Thanks for the diverson.
Another exceptional class with Professor Jon at Townsend University. Fantastic historic insight, stunning cinematography, marvelous editing. Brilliant as always!
Amazing video, great work. Thanks.
When I was twenty, hell yeah no sweat! Aged forty-two, yeah I’d probably have been a goner already. MAD respect to all frontiersmen and indigenous folks of every country staving off disease and death in the ways that they knew how for as long as they could . . .
This was a good video especially for these times. The most important thing you spoke of was the mental fortitude of those people back then. People think that in a certain scenario that they're going to grab their go bag and run out to the Wilderness and survive. While those who have the fortitude mental and spiritual strength Will Survive others will not. While having spent more than a few weeks in the Ouachita National Forest of Arkansas with just my Flintlock knife and Tomahawk with a few provisions I can tell you it is not an easy task.
Thanks for sharing with us Jon, truer words were never spoken. They lived because they wanted too. Stay safe and keep up the good work and videos. Fred.
I like to think that I could
I know that I wouldn't enjoy it
Hats off to these people, tough as nails
I’d die of exposure, food poisoning or disease almost instantly.
Lol
I feel like I'd die of exposure.
Don't be so hard on yourself. You might survive long enough to die of starvation.
You have died of Dysentery
Not that 'instant' those mentioned.
Given a broader choice, rather more quickly by the hand of some Indignant Indigini.
thanks for your work
Excellent video !!! 😊
Scoundrels 💯 thanks for your work and videos
Hunting/fishing no season no limit no regulations at all. Not polluted or destroyed yet; chestnut trees and clean water. In that era though, I'd have stayed by the shore anyway though.
I love the cooking videos but this one was even better! Love the history lessons, it inspires one to see more of this vast beautiful country in person
Thanks for meaningful and valuable video as always ❤❤❤
This gives me inspiration to do a fall camping/ fur trapping camp here in Minnesota this fall. Thank you
Nothing short of outstanding!! Very well done, and keep up this excellent work,
All “exciting” dangers, when really things like typhus/Rocky Mountain spotted fever etc. were huge killers and once you got them it was often a death sentence
I’d like to think I would survive even with all my bushcraft skills from the military, I know I’m tripping over in horse poop and hitting my head, getting and infected and die
Don't ill wish yourself. If you have bush craft skills you're more likely to be ok than most of us.
@@kellysouter4381 no, I’d get dead by something stupid
@@Alfiy_WolfGet staph cutting my thumb while whittling a tooth pick, is how I expect I would go out.
@@revelationperception5370that's when you dab your thumb with honey take a bit of cloth and wrap your thumb with it, and let the honey do its thing as a natural antibiotic.
I know I wouldn’t have but not for any of the reasons listed here. I’m indigenous and just got to travel back through my people’s original pre-Removal homeland for the first time. It was a beautiful and spiritual experience and had I been born two centuries earlier I’d have died before getting sent West.
If we were transported back in time, communication would be a thing to consider. Our terminology for things is different now and you could find yourself in a situation if you used the wrong word when asking for help/bartering.
Who we are is also who we are from and THANK YOU, it's so important to remember!
I live in the same area as my forefathers here in the Missouri Ozarks. Young Nathaniel traveled with his family from Eastern Tennessee over 200 years ago and settled on the Niangua River.
600 miles of wilderness, heat and ticks. He must have had a good reason.
Such an interesting video this. Im a boer. My family did the " The Great Trek "to escape Brotish rule and settled in the interior of the country. We were called Voortrekkers which means fore runners ( pioneers ). Faced so many challenges. Wars with Xhosa, Zulu etc. Faced disease never encountered before, face harsh environmental conditions, starvation, wild animals etc and then settled on a plateau of land that was not privy to farm but we managed to do so anyway. The English couldn't care less until we dug deep and started finding gold. Thats when the Boer Wars kicked off.
So many parallels to American pioneers.
We must be grateful for their sacrifices today
Jon, Thanks for the absolutely amazing video!
I rarely give out a subscribe off one video but looking at your channel alot can be learned here and i look forward to it. Thanks.
In my hometown of London, KY is the Levi Jackson state park. In the park is the site of McNitt's defeat. The tradition is that one of the survivors is a young lady that hid in a large tree. Some versions say she gave birth in the tree.
Great video, Jon! Thanks!
My idea of "roughing" it is- black & white television with no remote control. I wouldn't have made it 24 hrs. back in those days!
Speaking for my MRS & myself: yes!
In our younger years, we did live in near similar conditions (sans hostiles).
We still have our gear (including long rifle) from back then. Lived in tents, build cabins. I still hunt/fish/trap........
Amazing to think that people that backpack bring their items of survival and most of the time stay on established trails. These of the frontier and explorers made their own trails; following the contour of the land or small path that some made before.
Like you said some stayed and some went forward.
Love the channel...My last name may speak to whether the "we" in my life, " could survive the frontier, " I still won't carry, have, or ever want a cell phone...I think I would be fine and the family has done well up to this point....LOL!!! Always great to see one of your videos...
I feel like I would have a better chance than the people who have lived their entire lives growing up in the city. My dad taught me how to hunt/catch and clean hogs,deer,rabbit,raccoons and many other animals. I feel like hunting wouldn’t be a problem and I’ve roughed it camping for days on end and having a particular interest in having basic survival skills would set me on a path of at least surviving the experience. Growing up in Texas with a dad who taught me many aspects of basic survival skills.
That's awesome !
The descriptions of the trials and dangers associated with that time, the natives, the weather, the environment.... It all reminds me of a day trip to Cleveland. :D
I always felt I could do it when I was younger, I grew up in the mountains...then I think of not going anywhere without my asthma inhaler.
That smacks me in the face with reality.
Of course we could Jon, as long as the last big order from the Townsend catalog arrives a day before all modern civilization crumbles.
Thanks for the video 👍
If those who lived long in the past could trade places with us now…they’d do so in a heartbeat, if they could enjoy what we’ve progressed to, as far as being comfortable and well-fed, not dying at 30 from disease, etc.
I sure as shit couldn't. I'm a good bushcrafter and mountaineer when I have all my fancy tools and gear. I could probably last until my tents, solostoves etc broke. Then i would have NO idea how to make new tools.
These videos are even more fun to watch when its cold out
Absolutely, thanks for sharing
Bison had heards of 1/2 million, deer & turkey were plentiful.. Indians survived with bows and arrows. Daniel Boone got rich from the fir trade and was friends with the Indians.
Love your videos Jon - great job!
Love your videos, they mean alot to me. ❤
If I could go back in time, I would love to have been with Lewis and Clark...what an adventure. My paternal ancestors left Virginia and came to East Tennessee just before the Revolution. What little information we have is that they were educated, ambitious, and tough.
im going to confidently say "NO".
Although i developed great cooking and butchering skills from being a cook for years, the amount of disease, lack of drinkable water and the need to hunt are just too much of variable risks.
The reason why you die 2 min into Oregan Trail is because that's exactly what happened.
Great video sir, thank you.
01:55 special kind of Frontier Kitty!
even given the spirit, we in our society today are just way tooo softened and pampered to be able to truly put up with those harships, struggles and perils .....
I had an infected tooth requiring a root canal at age 12, so I’m aware I probably wouldn’t have survived to see 13. If I had, then the blood poisoning from a rusty knife I sliced my thumb with when I was expecting my second child at 31 would have killed me and my daughter for sure. So no, I’d be totally screwed.
Salt in the wound is an idiom for a reason
A hot knife cauterizing the wound used to be the old version of stitches.
@@purplespeckledappleeater8738 I hear you. It was a tiny cut that I treated with hydrogen peroxide, put a bandaid on, then went to bed. The next morning my thumb was painful and throbbing. By the time I got to work a red streak was working its way higher on my arm. Needless to say, I rushed to the ER. For years afterwards, every time I got even a small hangnail, blood poisoning would develop and I’d be on a new round of antibiotics. It wasn’t until I insisted to a doctor that I needed a tetanus shot that the episodes of blood poisoning stopped. So, totally screwed in the old west. Don’t know why all of that kept happening.
I had a fever of 105.5 the day after my first child was born. I could have died without medicine back then.
Fun fact, the heartwood of the tree (middle part) is not needed for the tree to survive.... and also it tends to always be bone dry, so you can easily find dry wood inside the tree you are now living in...
Great if you're a Hobbit.
@@upscaleshack you do realize some trees (old growth) used to be multiple grown men in width? They would have a whole family in one tree. No joke, still photos go look them up. Whole house, in a tree.
@@EC-dz4bq I'm a certified US Forest Service tree climber who has worked in the last remaining old growth forests in the US. Yes, I do understand how big trees can be. Thanks for the boomersplaining though.
I really enjoyed this episode. Thanks.
I had parents that were raised the way and so, yes I could and actually Id prefer earlier times over todays times as things were harder and more appreciated. Simpler and required family and friends to be committed to each other. It was what the country was built on.
Excellent video!!!
I think maybe I could survive if I were younger, not now. Even if younger, would I want to, no, but as a reenactor it’s an enjoyable weekend activity…
In the wild, there's a lot of seasonal variation in the food supply. You need to have a solid plan to survive the hunger gaps.
That is why people who were heavier survived longer because they had the necessary body fat that could help sustain them over the hunger periods.
LOVE these episodes!!!
I didn't make a 2 hour trip down the Delaware River...capsized and had to be rescued by a lifeguard that looked like the paper boy. So embarrassing! I'm a quick no on wilderness survival.
My grandparents lived that way, and as children so did my aunts and uncles. Ive lived several years out in the deep forest by myself without many modern amenities and did just fine. I actually prefer it. Im 52 now and have diabetes and high blood pressure so if i could survive long enough to become healthy and best those afflictions then i believe i could do it still. But i wouldnt want to try and find out. Lol im a survivor but im also a realist. Most people wouldnt survive. I might not either. Then again its not like they had great life expectancies back then. So they didnt always survive long themselves. Life was tougher and so were people. A bear back then was the same as a bear now though lol
If you own any amount of land, you should own a shovel, a pick, an axe and a saw. This is what was known as a pioneering kit and is still issued by the military. In modern times, I would throw in a sledge and a crowbar. With those tools, you could do much to help yourself. If you don't own them, you probably pay someone else to use them on your behalf. That's fine but you are missing the chance to build that mindset Jon was talking about. Apartment dwellers and car owners can adapt as much of the kit as possible.
So as usual the humans are the ones we have to worry most about. Human history really is just a repeating slideshow with different characters. Informative vid. Thanks.
We take our modern amenities for granted. In North America, even in the 1950s, there were people living in rural areas that didn't have power. Persevering is what helped these people survive. This was another great episode. Cheers!
My Dad can remember the day they got electricity. One lightbulb with one plug in each room.
as someone who has lived in a 1800s log cabin and spent more time in the wilderness than many, nope. Exactly all points hit. We have weather reports, medicine, firearms, soled shoes, etc., we are not being hunted by large game, not crossing into hostile lands... If you go down in the backcountry you can hit the SoS button and be good. I do think it would be fun to teleport for a week
Fowling piece would be the most versatile firearm to have. Food was abundant, but life was hard and you had to have eyes in the back of your head.
Loved this video.
Great briefing.
I bought a hunting frock (nutmeg colour of course) and gaiters from your shop a while back. Great clothes! Thanks Townsends. And could I survive on the American frontier?? Probably not...
I used to know someone who really liked this channel. She referred to the uploader as "Keebler elf man," because she was halfway convinced that he was a very tiny person who was in a very tiny log house, because all the kitchenware looked modeled and tiny.