Farmer in the Sky - Heinlein Concordance

A Heinlein Concordance

created by M. E. Cowan

Robert A Heinlein

From the stories: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W XYZ
From the real world: a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w xyz

A Heinlein Concordance presented by the Heinlein Society

Farmer in the Sky

Aguinaldo

Name chosen by "C" deck Boy Scouts to signify their [Philippine] time zone.

(also in other stories)

Andrews (no first name)

Stewardess aboard the Bifrost.

(also in other stories)

Archibald (no first name)

(Doctor) Civilian ship's aide in the Mayflower who brought Noisy Edwards to Captain's Mast for disobeying orders during takeoff. He became Scoutmaster for "A" deck. He saved Bill Lermer's life when Bill was stricken with appendicitis.

(Mrs.) Wife of Dr. Archibald. She helped George Lermer locate his wife after they were separated upon landing on Ganymede.

Auslanders

Ganymede Scout patrol of which Bill Lermer became a member. Its members helped build the Lermers' farmhouse. [German Ausländer, foreigner]

Baden-Powell Troop

Name chosen for "A" deck's Boy Scouts, to signify their [English] time zone also in honor of the founder of the Boy Scouts. Other names were originally proposed, but rejected: Deep Space, St. George, St. Patrick, Sky High, Space Rats, Star Rovers.

Barnard's Planet

Miniscule moon orbiting about one diameter from Jupiter; site of a scientific research base.

Bifrost

Shuttle operating between Earth and the Moon, which Bill Lermer rode to the Mayflower.

(also in other stories)

Big Rock Candy Mountain

Mountain range northwest of Leda on Ganymede.

Boy Scouts of Ganymede

Boy Scout troops were organized aboard the Mayflower by Bill Lermer and Hank Jones. When they arrived at the Ganymede colony, they discovered there was already organized scouting there. After some tension between the two groups, eventually they united.

Bruhn (no first name)

Scoutmaster from the Mayflower, who negotiated with the Leda scouting organization to include the Mayflower Scouts in the Ganymede troops.

Peewee Brunn

Cub Scout in Bill Lermer's Scout troop in the Mayflower.

coelestat

Astrogation device explicitly described as a telescope joined to a periscope.

(also in other stories)

Colonial Commission

Organization that controlled emigration to Ganymede, and presumably other space colonies.

Cougar Patrol

Scout troop led by Mr. Kinski back on Earth.

Covered Wagon

[mentioned in passing] Colony transport ship, under construction when Bill Lermer and his family traveled to Ganymede.

Daedalus

Shuttle between the Earth and the Moon.

Daniel Boone Patrol

Scout troop on Ganymede led by Bill Lermer.

DeLongPre (no first name)

Captain of the Bifrost who allowed Hank Jones and Bill Lermer to tour the control room. They scoffed at his adventure stories, but later learned he was famous for breaking up a ring of hijackers.

Diego Borough

Bill Lermer's hometown on Earth.

Mrs. Dinsmore (no first name)

Wing nurse in Leda's hospital. She tended Bill Lermer after his appendectomy.

Paul du Maurier

Leader of one of the exploring parties in the planetary survey sent to choose sites for new settlements on Ganymede; he included Bill Lermer in the party. He was also an employee of the Colonial Commission and assistant scoutmaster of the Auslander Scout troop.

Earth

Earth is frequently called "Terra" in Heinlein stories. The planet is featured in every story (with the arguable exception of Orphans of the Sky); and is, geophysically at least, the same as the "real" Earth. In Farmer in the Sky, emigration to other planets was strongly encouraged because Earth was overcrowded to the point where it could barely sustain the population.

(also in other stories)

Johnny Edwards

See John Edward Forbes-Smith.

Noisy Edwards (no other first name)

Boy in Bill Lermer's bunkroom aboard the Mayflower who was brought before the Captain's Mast (official disciplinary procedure) for disobeying orders just after liftoff. He beat Bill up after Bill ordered him "stifled" during the panic following the meteor strike in the bunkroom.

Abie Finkelstein

Topographer in the exploration and survey group that Bill Lermer joined.

Mrs. Fishbein (no first name)

The neighbor to whom Bill Lermer gave his pet bird before emigrating.

Florence Nightingale Troop

"A" deck Girl Scout troop in the Mayflower. Peggy Kenyon became a member.

John Edward Forbes-Smith

Boy who proposed "St. George Troop" for "A" deck, to reflect its time zone; an Irish boy promptly objected. He was less formally known as Johnny Edwards.

Ganymede

Jupiter's third moon, on which a farming colony was established. Its atmosphere, with a climate suitable for human habitation, was artificially established and maintained by power stations. It had only one settlement when Bill Lermer and his family emigrated to it. Outlying farms were created one by one by crushing the native rock and seeding it with Earth topsoil and organisms. After the Colonial Commission sent colonists in excess of what the colony could support, survey teams were sent out to find other suitable locations for settlement.

(also in other stories)

Ginsberg (no first name)

Scoutmaster from the Mayflower. He negotiated with the Ganymede organization to bring the Mayflower Scouts into the Ganymede troops.

"The Green Hills of Earth"

Song sung at the first meeting of the Mayflower Scouts. When Bill Lermer later played it for his family, it made him too homesick to finish.

(also in other stories)

Mrs. Grigsby (no first name)

Emigrant brought before the Captain's Mast just after the Mayflower's liftoff, for disobeying ship's rules. She was sentenced to wash dishes for the entire trip.

Happy Valley

Name given to the valley found by the planetary survey team of which Bill Lermer was a member.

(also in other stories)

Hard Rock Patrol

Ganymede Scout Patrol to which Hank Jones and Vic Schultz belonged. They helped build a farmhouse for Bill Lermer's family.

Harkness (no first name)

Captain of the Mayflower. He set up a Scout merit badge test for ballistics and astrogation.

(also in other stories)

Captain Hattie (no other name)

Pilot of the space-to-Ganymede shuttle Jitterbug.

Hooker (no first name)

Chief meteorologist on Ganymede.

Icarus

[mentioned in passing] Shuttle between Earth and the Moon.

"Imperial Valley"

Hydroponics shed on Ganymede, named for the types of food grown there.

"Iowa"

Hydroponics shed on Ganymede named after the types of food grown there (presumably corn).

Jitterbug

Small ship used to shuttle colonists from the Mayflower to Ganymede colony, and for suborbital travel around the moon. It was originally commissioned for use between Ganymede and Project Jove.

Hank Jones

A member of Bill Lermer's scout troop on Earth, who emigrated in the Mayflower. Although the two did not get along well on Earth, they slowly became good friends during the voyage.

Junior Council

Representative body in the Mayflower, chosen from emigrants under 18 years old. They had little influence on decisions aboard the ship, although they actively lobbied the Senior Council.

Junípero Serra Troop

Name chosen by "B" deck Scouts, to signify their (California) time zone.

Slats Keifer (no other first name)

Member of Bill Lermer's Scout troop on Earth.

Bud Kelly (no other first name)

Scout who suggested "St. Patrick Troop" as "A" deck's Scouting name; he got into a fight with the English Scout who had proposed St. George, and both ideas were rejected.

Molly Kenyon

George Lermer's draftsman on Earth, whom he married just before emigrating to Ganymede. (Emigration criteria favored married couples.)

Peggy Kenyon

Molly Kenyon's 12-year-old daughter. She became a member of the Junior Council aboard the Mayflower. Peggy could not adapt to the lower pressure of Ganymede's atmosphere, and lived in a sealed room in the Lermer house. She died shortly after the quake that decompressed her room and wrecked the colony's power plant.

Kinski (no first name)

Bill Lermer's scoutmaster on Earth.

(also in other stories)

Kneiper's Ridge

Land formation on Ganymede west of Leda; the Lermer farm was located past it.

Laguna Serenidad

Lake southwest of Leda. [Spanish, "lagoon [of] serenity"]

Hotel Lancaster

Hotel where Bill Lermer's family booked a room to stay the night before emigrating.

Leda

Colony town on Ganymede.

Anne Lermer

Bill Lermer's late mother.

Bill Lermer

Eagle Scout who emigrated to Ganymede with his father, stepmother, and stepsister. He helped organize scouting on the colony ship Mayflower, but on arriving at the colony he learned that organized scouting had preceded them; after some mutual resentment he joined a Ganymede troop. He worked as a farmhand for Johann Schultz while waiting for his own farm to be prepared from bare rock, then built the family farmhouse and fields with help from the Schultzes and fellow Scouts. He survived the quake that damaged the colony's power plant, and joined a survey team to find locations for new settlements. While on the expedition, he found nonhuman artifacts. Although after the quake and the death of his stepsister his parents were ready to return to Earth, he decided he belonged in the colony and would stay no matter what. (During the survey, for which he worked as cook, he earned the nickname "Doctor Slop".)

George Lermer

Bill Lermer's father, an engineer. After arriving on Ganymede and learning that the original colonists were woefully unprepared to accept the influx of new settlers, he took a job in Leda to support the family while Bill prepared the farm.

Mabel

Milk cow purchased by the Lermers for their homestead on Ganymede. She was named by Peggy Kenyon. She died in the aftermath of the quake that wrecked the atmosphere plant, and was replaced with Mabel II.

(also in other stories)

Mamie

Milk cow purchased by the Bill Lermer's family after they rebuilt their farm following the quake. She was broken to the yoke.

Marge

Cow purchased by Bill Lermer's family after they rebuilt their farm following the quake. She was broken to the yoke.

Sam Mayes

Junior officer in the Bifrost control room. At the Captain's behest he allowed Hank Jones and Bill Lermer to observe operations.

Mayflower

Space ship originally intended for long-range exploration, but converted to a colony ship when more advanced models were designed for exploring. Bill Lermer and his family emigrated to Ganymede in it.

(also in other stories)

"M-G"

"Mutation-Ganymede", the label for terrestrial plants genetically adapted to Ganymede conditions.

Duck Miller (no other first name)

Bill Lermer's best friend on Earth. He wanted to emigrate when Bill did but was dissuaded by his father.

Mojave Space Port

Launching site of the emigrants going to Ganymede aboard the Mayflower.

Jack Montague

Chemist with the Ganymede survey team of which Bill Lermer was a member.

"Millimetre" Muntz (no other first name)

Scout from "Troop Ninety-Six, New Jersey", who questioned the authority to organize Scouting in the Mayflower; he was overruled and disallowed from the meeting.

mutations

Earth plants were genetically altered to better survive the conditions in extraterrestrial colonies.

(also in other stories)

Ned (no last name)

Collaborator in a test of Bill Lermer's psychological fitness to be a colonist. Bill was needled and subjected to various annoyances to determine is self-control and "flash point."

(also in other stories)

New Ark

Colony ship traveling between Earth and Ganymede.

N.T.

"Normal Terrestrial": The tag for unmutated plants grown in the Ganymede hydroponics sheds.

Oahu

Hydroponics shed on Ganymede where tropical foods were grown.

O'Farrell (no first name)

Immigrant family who decided to return to Earth after learning what Ganymede conditions were really like.

(also in other stories)

Douglas MacArthur Okajima

Eagle Scout assigned to "A" deck in the Mayflower. With Hank Jones and Bill Lermer he helped organize scouting in the ship.

Ortega (no first name)

Engineer in the Mayflower who gave students tours of the ship and set up a test for a Scout merit badge in spaceship engineering.

(also in other stories)

Pauline Peaks

Name given to mountains south of the valley surveyed by the exploration team of which Bill Lermer was a member; they were named after team leader Paul du Maurier.

pay dirt

Earth soil completely sterilized and then reinfected with organisms necessary for plant growth. It was combined with crushed Ganymede rock to create farms.

The Pilgrims

Name proposed and rejected for "A" deck Scouts in the Mayflower.

Pilots' Association

Professional organization based in Luna City.

Planet

Leda's daily newspaper.

Pride Peak

Mountain near Leda, site of the Ganymede colony's power station.

Project Jove

Scientific project from which George Lermer salvaged parts for Peggy Kenyon's pressurized stretcher.

Rafe (no last name)

Ganymedean who made fun of the incoming Mayflower colonists.

"Noisy" Rhysling (no other first name)

Poet known to Bill Lermer, tentatively credited for the line, "I have lived and worked with men." Bill also knew "The Green Hills of Earth".

(also in other stories)

Marushka Roskov

Colonist who helped feed the workers during the houseraising for Bill Lermer's family.

Sergei Roskov

Earth-born Ganymede colonist. He was a senior patrol leader in the original Boy Scouts of Ganymede, and Marushka Roskov's brother.

Saunders (no first name)

Colonist on the Mayflower who was continually in trouble for "trying to live his own life, wild and free, no matter what it did to the rest of us." He was equally troublesome after they reached Ganymede.

(also in other stories)

Johann Schultz

Ganymedean colonist who worked the farm neighboring that of Bill Lermer's family. He gave much help and useful advice to Bill, as well as hiring him while the Lermers waited to have their farm readied for production. Johann had the only tree in the colony, and earned the nickname "Johnny Appleseed"by distributing seeds to everyone who would take them. He was frequently called "Papa Schultz", and his wife was known to everyone as "Mama". Their children included

Anna
Gretchen, about Bill Lermer's age
Hugo, a Cub Scout
Johann Jr. (called Yo), a 20-year-old who worked for the chief engineer in Leda
Kathy, an artist who'd painted the tiles on the family stove
Peter, a Cub Scout
Sam, a Boy Scout
Vic, an Eagle Scout

Vic Schultz

Neighbor of Bill Lermer on Ganymede and Eagle Scout in the Hard Rock Patrol.

"The Scouting Trail"

[mentioned in passing] Song sung at the first meeting of the Mayflower Scouts.

Senior Council

Governing body in the Mayflower, chosen from the colonists. The Captain reviewed all their decisions as legal head of the ship, but never overruled them.

Seymour (no first name)

Agronomist with the Ganymede survey team of which Bill Lermer was a member.

Shorty

Insulting name used on Bill Lermer as part of a test of his psychological fitness for colonization.

(also in other stories)

Ellsworth Smith

[mentioned in passing] Author of A Tour of Earth's Colonies.

Star Rover

Interstellar ship that was under construction when Bill Lermer emigrated to Ganymede. It was actually the Star Rover III. The first was lost; the second was obsolete before it was finished and so was converted to a colony ship, the Mayflower.

(also in other stories)

Supra-New York

Space station in Earth orbit.

(also in other stories)

Mrs. Tarbutton (no first name)

Woman who complained about travelling conditions and just about everything else aboard the Bifrost. She ultimately decided not to board the Mayflower. Her husband Joseph is also mentioned.

Tolley (no first name)

Chairman of the common council on Ganymede, who had to deal with the new immigrants' complaints.

A Tour of Earth's Colonies

Book by Ellsworth Smith, read by Bill and George Lermer as they prepared to emigrate to Ganymede.

Phoebe van Metre

Molly Kenyon's sister, to whom Molly suggested Peggy be sent when she couldn't adapt to the Ganymede atmosphere.

Villa (no first name)

Mineralogist in the Ganymede planetary survey team of which Bill Lermer was a member.

Yucca Patrol

Bill Lermer's Scout troop on Earth; he was patrol leader.

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