My mom grew up in Appalachia, in the same time as Johnny Cash, dirt farmers in a "holler". No indoor electric, plumbing, or phone. Wood stove cooking and heat. A spring house for water. Baths every Saturday night. Their livelihood was completely dependant on growing food and lumber. I find it unimaginable. Technically I know how it worked, but it's completely alien. In one generation.
My father had a similar childhood. Grew up in a 3 bedroom cabin that his father built, shared a bedroom with his 3 brothers, and spent a lot of his childhood running around the woods with a rifle and trapping animals to sell furs. Despite having a very successful career, he refers to this time in his life as 'when we were wealthy'.
Same, my grandfather grew up the same way. Horses were their way of life, and the house was located in a spot where electricity and other utilities would never make it, and paving a road was unfeasible. The house was essentially abandoned once the kids were raised and the parents wanted to nice
