Mother Earth News magazine, January 1970
Many of you already know The Mother Earth News. You probably see it sold at your local supermarket. Heck, you probably have a few issues lying about in your home. If you’ve given a chance to read the magazine, you’ll notice the magazine is all about living in the country, how to survive, grow your own food, how to live a more environmentally friendly lifestyle, and much more. Now let’s go back to that very first issue of the Mother Earth News, dated January 1970. If you’ve ever seen this first issue, you’ll noticed how different it was. For one thing, it wasn’t so flashy or even colorful (everything was black and white). They even had to take some articles from other magazines because there were only two people in charge of the magazine (John Shuttleworth and Jane Shuttleworth, although, of course, the staff will grow vastly in the coming years). What you’ll be really surprised is when you read an article of the Twin Oaks Farm in Virginia in this issue. You’ll learn how the commune was at the time. You’ll find out that where Twin Oaks was located was in a very conservative area of the state (it was even a bastion of the Ku Klux Klan at the time) so the inhabitants had to make sure not to create problems with the locals or the police. What’s also interesting is how Twin Oaks is still alive and well and thriving to this day. They even now have a website at:
They even mention another commune called the Morning Glory Farm in Ontario, Canada (near Killaloe, to be exact), another establishment still thriving to this day (and even the original people who founded the farm are still living there). But what was interesting was how the magazine had article on how you can make it and live out in the country for very little money. Also what’s shocking, was they even say how it’s fine to go hitckhiking and thumbing for a ride. It’s something no magazine these days (Mother Earth News, included) would ever encourage people to do (especially because it’s a much more dangerous world now than it was in 1970). But the one article that cracked me up was on the Plains Indian Tipi. While it had useful tips on how to make one and how to adjust it for various weather conditions, there were quotes from various people about tepees, from 16th century Spanish explorer, to a 1969 back to the land hippie. In fact, for the 1969 hippie, the magazine had him quoted literally as saying:
“It’s a whole new trip, man. It’s, like, living inside and outside both at once. During the day – even on dark days – a tipi has a mellow, even illumination that’s never been equalled in a house. When it rains, you’re right out in it… yet protected, you know? Like you’re right there, man, but warm and dry too. And at night… wow… It’s a groove to watch the fire making shadows on the wall and – later – maybe wake up to see the moon or some stars shining down through the poles in the smoke hole. Fantastic.”
“I once heard Buckminster Fuller tell how he wanted to build a double-walled geodesic dome house for movie director John Huston and Fuller’s basic ide was that living in the place would be a natural inside-outside thing. But it’s already been done, man. Like the Indians were ‘WAY ahead.'”
It’s strange that any magazine would print something like that, it’s something that not even The Mother Earth News would be caught dead printing these days, but I got a kick off it just the same. The only reason why I’m reviewing the very first issue of this magazine is there’s a chance that not too many of you still own a copy. It’s been getting more difficult to get a hold of. But while it’s not as flashy or colorful (as already mentioned) as later issues, it’s a wonderful, historical reference to how this magazine once was.