Letters From Tully: A Woman's Life on the Dakota Frontier

by Estella Bowen Culp

"Letters From A Woman's Life on the Dakota Frontier", by author Estella Bowen Culp. "Tully" was among the first white settlers on the Sioux Indian reservation in South Dakota in 1906. This book is a compilation of her letters, sent to a family member back East. It clearly details the follies and triumphs of an early frontiers-woman, and honors her truly remarkable life.

263 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2007

Reviews

[Avis Black · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-written and intriguing book about a couple who tried homesteading on a farm without realizing they had no talent for it and had chosen the wrong place, namely the dry climate of western South Dakota. Tully was a first-rate teacher but a poor farm wife, and her husband John was skilled with his hands but not in farm management. I should have found Tully's litany of disasters off-putting, but she writes so sparklingly and with just enough humor that I found her tale of woe to be gripping rather than discouraging.

Available from Open Library:
https://openlibrary.org/books/OL85747...

[Erika · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book consisting of letters from a pioneer woman in the early 1900s in South Dakota. Her memories of what life was like at that time. Not as insightful as some memoirs I have read, but interesting facts about the daily life and happenings of a small Western town on the frontier.

[Shantel Gardner · Rating 3 out of 5]

I purchased this book while in South Dakota. I love historical auto-biographies. This was good. The stories are great, but it felt flat. so it was boring during some parts. That didn't stop me from reading it in one day. it was fair-to-middlen.

[Marcia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up this book on our trip to South Dakota and enjoyed learning from a first hand account what life was like for those pioneers. While the writing was simple, the story was interesting.