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Plains Folk, a commentary devoted to life on the great plains of North America, is now a special weekly feature on Hear It Now. Written by Tom Isern of West Fargo, North Dakota, and read in newspapers across the region for years, Plains Folk venerates fall suppers and barn dances and reminds us that “more important to our thoughts than lines on a map are the essential characteristics of the region–the things that tell what the plains are, not just where they are.” You can hear Plains Folk once a week during Hear It Now, weekdays at 3 pm CT with a repeat at 7 pm CT.

To read more Plains Folk commentaries, click on the “archives” link.

Recent Shows

• Keeping the Faith in the Coteau

  Last week I told the story of some hard times in the Missouri Coteau, the grassland region of central North Dakota. Such times were the subject of an exhibit panel I took out to the research day at the Central Grasslands Research Extension Center, near Streeter. Besides the ghastly business of liquidating cowherds in the [...]

• Hard Times in the Coteau

  Last week it was my privilege to participate in the research day at the Central Grasslands Research Extension Center, near Streeter, North Dakota. The Central Grasslands Center is a branch station devoted to, well, the central grasslands of North Dakota, which are pretty much defined by the region known as the Missouri Coteau. To lovers [...]

• The Plains I Love

  Every year it appears, mysterious as to origins, no authorship or credit given. It’s the Farmers Union Camp Songbook, the official catalog of songs to be sung by Farmers Union campers. I have a new copy courtesy of my friend Jared, a camp counselor. I don’t know if he can sing a note, he never [...]

• Big Things

  They may be hokey, but they stand as landmarks and as symbols of identity. They may not be things of beauty, but we defend them as a point of honor. They are: the big things.
  I’m using the Australian term, because we in America haven’t come up with a better one to describe the phenomenon-giant statues, [...]

• Gopher Tales

  Now and then I talk about historical, and sometimes personal, experience with agricultural pests on the prairies. Although some of this material may turn the stomachs of the uninitiated, it is nonetheless intriguing, because the odd battles humankind wages with pests tell us much about our relationship with the land.
  I recall a winter afternoon years [...]