Groffrey Soil and Finley Petticoats Author:Carol Huff The frontier was a vital part of the history of the United States. Well into the twentieth century, people sought the adventure of the Wild West. Jake and Mitch Groffrey were no different from hundreds of other young men in their pursuit of the American dream to own land and take beautiful women as wives. The brothers left the family farm in I... more »llinois and traveled to Oklahoma in hopes of fulfilling their dreams. Here they found what they never thought was possible. The land owner not only gave them free rein over the farming operations but also had five beautiful daughters of which two became their brides. Mitch settled in Oklahoma. However, Jake wanted the feel of Groffrey soil underfoot. The covered-wagon journey home across the plains held the adventure that Jake wanted but he had not counted on the lives of his wife and child to be hanging in the balance of the journey.« less