i think george ingalls wrote it
The frontiersman diary in the possession of a descendent of James Ingalls on the Burnett County, Wisconsin, rootsweb site, I mean. A lot of other people think George Ingalls wrote it, too; we were studying it again just today. And if you haven't seen the diary in question, I'll wait while you go find and read it. It will give you practice googling.

First of all, you've got George Ingalls, Laura Ingalls Wilder's Uncle George from Little House in the Big Woods, who did not serve in the Civil War, btw. Period. But that's another story. George lived on a very confining piece of property wedged between the lakes in southern Oakland Township near Bitter Creek. Hiram Ingalls, his brother, lived about a mile from him. Other men mentioned in the diary lived near George and Hiram, such as William Penney, Abner Davis, Chester Keezer, L.H. Spafford, and Alden Sawyer.

There's a definite familiarity between the writer and Hiram and Lib (Ingalls?), also with Ellen (Hiram's daughter) and Marion (Marion Keezer, husband of Ellen). The writer eats a good many meals at Hiram's and carries on a good many private conversations with Lib. At one point, the writer mentions dreaming about "Lafayette and the girls." George Ingalls and his cousin Lafayette Clough married sisters Julia and Hattie Bard. Julia and George were separated (divorced?) and George went back to being known as single. Maybe he was. At any rate, Julia Ingalls didn't die until after George, so he wasn't a widower.

The name "George Ingalls" is mentioned in one entry. The writer makes a comment about what someone else said about "Old Sutton and George Ingalls" - then, "ain't that grand? I will get my name up yet if I keep on smiling."

The writer seems to have been suffering from an illness during much of the writing (three months, January-March 1897). He writes: "I have coughed about 500 miles and still keep it up. I think that I will cough my liver out and get a wooden one." Btw, George Ingalls died February 15, 1901, at age 49. Julia Ingalls died nine years later.

Since the owner has a copy of the handwritten diary, it would be interesting to compare George Ingalls' signature to the writing of the name "George Ingalls" in the diary. George had a claim in Wisconsin, meaning there is a file containing his signature (and most likely other examples of his penmanship) at the National Archives.

I used to question why the Ingallses and Quiners signed the letters I've seen with their full name, also including their relationship to the person they were writing, such as "your affectionate sister," or "your loving brother." Now I know. Anonymous diaries are interesting, but I'd rather everyone else be as convinced as I am that George Ingalls wrote this one.
- posted by pioneergirl at 1:05 AM