So what makes a homesteader? :)

Hi all! This is my first (introductory) post so I thought I'd start by asking what you all think makes a homesteader? Are there certain boxes you have to tick(i.e. garden, no full time job, homeschool etc)? What do you think?

I myself (Beth, by the way ) work, hubby works, I make and sell pottery on line www.etsy.com/shop/theaspiringpotter . We live on a small farm in Wisconsin with horses, cows, ducks, chickens and an alpaca. That's my basic-quick-intro.

[emdeengee]

I guess there are many definitions of a homesteader and homesteading. The original definition was someone who settles lawfully on government land with the intent to acquire title to it. But those days are long gone in most parts of the world.

I looked up a modern definition and this is what I found : Broadly defined, homesteading is a lifestyle of self-sufficiency. It is characterized by subsistence agriculture, home preservation of foodstuffs, and it may or may not also involve the small scale production of textiles, clothing, and craftwork for household use or sale.

Pursued in different ways around the world — and in different historical eras — homesteading is generally differentiated from rural village or commune living by isolation (either socially or physically) of the homestead. Use of the term in the USA dates back to the Homestead Act (1862) and before. In sub-Sahara African, particularly in nations formerly controlled by the British Empire, a homestead is the household compound for a single extended family. In the UK, the term 'smallholder' is the rough equivalent of 'homesteader'.

I think today it involves any one who is trying to be more self sufficient and independent. You can be doing it all or any part of it and it can be done in the country or the city but to different degrees.

So hello Beth the Homesteader.

[JLMissouri]

I think emdeengee summed it up well.

[BigHenTinyBrain]

I think there is one box and only one box to be ticked- do you think of yourself as a homesteader or desire to pursue what you feel is a homesteading lifestyle? Then congrats, you fit the bill!