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copyright / permissions

Please do not plagiarize.

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Charles Philip Ingalls

Father of Laura Ingalls. He lived 1836-1902.

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tomahawk

War hatchet used by American Indians.

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William O’Connell

Fictional Bill O’Dowd.

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Pure Gold for the Sunday School

Hymnal owned by the Ingalls family.

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scones

“Mamabess is growing fat.”

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zebra

Part of Willie Oleson’s Noah’s Ark toy.

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twine

A strong twisted thread.

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“The Tides” / The moon is at its full

1860 William Cullen Bryant poem.

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chestnut / horse chestnut

A large nut, the fruit of a species of Æsculus.

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By the Shores of Silver Lake – the fictional story

The railroad comes to Dakota.

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De Smet today

Where I would like to be right now.

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bandana

Large handkerchief with white pattern on red or blue background.

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“Give us this day our daily bread”

“The City, a Mc Kee plain glassware pattern.

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twisting hay

Pioneer method by which dried grass is formed into compact...

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Charles Mead

Proprietor of the Exchange Hotel in De Smet, 1880-1882.

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“Lilly Dale” / “Lily Dale”

1852 song by H.S. Thomson.

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beet

Succulent root vegetable.

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wheelwright

One who makes wheels and carriages.

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Joseph Bouchie family

Fictional Brewster family in THGY.

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black bird / blackbird

Name given to various American birds.

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hardtack

Unleavened hard bread made from flour and water.

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“Pull for the Shore”

Sunshine for Sunday Schools hymn.

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Henry Hinz

Owner of first saloon in De Smet and boarder at the Ingallses’.

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The Missouri Ruralist

Twice monthly Missouri farm periodical.

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Little House in the Big Woods – historical perspective

Pepin Twp., Pepin Co. Wisconsin

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“It’s a Long, Long Way to Tipperary”

1912 Judge & Williams song.

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“Song of the Grass”

Song from Leslie and Randall’s The Conqueror, page 16.

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“Haste to the Wedding”

Traditional Irish fiddle tune.

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“When I Can Read My Title Clear”

1700s Isaac Watts hymn.

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Rev. Royal Gould Wilder

Almanzo’s uncle.

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“The Battle-Cry of Freedom”

We’ll Rally Round the Flag, Boys!

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Hattie Dorchester

Jake Zickrick’s skating partner.

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fascinator

Pretty, light head covering.

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killdeer

Small aquatic bird.

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St. Lawrence River

A streak of silver on the horizon.

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rags for paper

rag. A piece of cloth torn off; a tattered fragment; a shred; a...

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“I Wish I Was in Dixie’s Land”

1860 Daniel Decatur Emmett song.

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Pioneer Girl

Laura Ingalls Wilder’s memoir.

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Old Settler’s Day

De Smet annual reunion.

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blueing bag

Whiter whites.

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buck / buckskin

Male of the fallow deer, and leather made from its skin.

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yoke

Frame worn on the neck for lifting or drawing.

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Charles H. Tinkham

Early undertaker and owner of the first furniture store in De Smet.

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Supposed Speech of Regulus

From Independent Fifth Reader.

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ice-house

Stores ice blocks in warm weather.

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sulky / sulky plow

One-seated conveyance.

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“Buy a Broom”

O Du Leiber Augustin.

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The Story of Art Smith

1915 Rose Wilder Lane serial about an aviator.

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carved wooden bracket

Place for a china shepherdess.

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Thomas Quiner

Ma’s brother and Laura’s uncle

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“By Lo, Baby Bunting”

Mother Goose rhyme.

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Doxology

Old Hundred.

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“Bonny Doon”

1792 Robert Burns song.

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“Yankee Doodle”

Early song brought to America from Britain.

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swimming hole

Watch out for ankle grabbers!

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stone fences

Rock wall enclosure.

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le cadeau du cheval

2008 horse mural composed of smaller paintings of horses,...

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ash withe / ash-withe

A flexible, slender twig or branch used as a band for tying.

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checkers

Game played on a board of 64 squares.

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“Sweet By and By”

Pa’s favorite hymn.

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“My Jenny Jerusha Jane”

1868 A.G. Chase song.

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South Troy / Zumbro Falls during the Little House years

Ingallses lived here with Uncle Peter.

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Ella & Robert Boast

Friends of the Ingalls family in De Smet.

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velvet

Silk or blend fabric with short shag surface.

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bastion

A part of a main enclosure which projects toward the exterior.

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composition

The act of forming a written piece.

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bacon

Hog’s flesh salted or pickled and dried, usually in smoke.

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John D. Peirson

Early De Smet liveryman.

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claim

The land to which one has a right.

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“What Shall the Harvest Be?”

1850 Emily Oakley poem.

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elevator

Warehouse for seed and grain.

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“Sing a Song of Sixpence”

Mother Goose rhyme.

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Grace Pearl Ingalls

Youngest sister of Laura Ingalls; she lived 1877-1941.

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“A Motto for Every Man”

1868 Harry Clifton song.

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album

Blank booklet for collecting autographs or photos.

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“My Sabbath Home”

Hymn #7, Pure Gold for the Sunday School.

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udder

Where the milk is before milking.

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Charlotte Holbrook

Laura’s “Aunt Lotty”

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“The Mulligan Guard” / “The Skidmore Guard”

Harrigan & Hart minstrel show.

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Hill-Billy

1926 Rose Wilder Lane book.

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button

who’s got one?

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“The Old Time”

Mr. Boast’s favorite song.

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apprentice

One who is legally bound to another to learn a trade or art.

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Noah’s ark toy

Willie’s toy boat with animals.

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cat’s cradle

Game played with string twisted on the fingers.

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links

Helps you find what you’re looking for.

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Burke / Malone during the Little House years

Almanzo Wilder birthplace.

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herd

A number of large beasts assembled together.

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Indian camps

Look! Beads!

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crocheted rag rug

Crocheted floor covering made of strips of cloth.

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poultice

Applied to sores to help them heal.

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President James Madison

4th President of the U.S.

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cupola

Dome-like vault on a public building.

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spider

Legged cooking vessel.

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Silas Rood

Rude by name & nature?

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Spat them Out

Clapping (and kissing) game.

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whip

A lash tied to a handle.

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These Happy Golden Years – historical perspective

De Smet, D.T., 1883-1885.

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geranium

Winter windowsill flowers.

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“Pop! Goes the Weasel”

Traditional American song.

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Charleton Fuller / Gerald Fuller

Hardware store owner, partnered with his brother Gerald.

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Horace Woodworth family

Family of first depot agent in De Smet.

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Farmer Boy – historical perspective

1860s Burke / Malone NY.

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“De Boatmen’s Dance”

Away Down the RIver on the O-hi-o.

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black-berry / blackberry

The berry of the bramble, Rubus fruticosous.

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“I Wish I Was Single Again”

1871 J.C. Beckel song.

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harvest moon

Full moon nearest autumnal equinox

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Albert Quiner

Laura’s cousin.

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Gather ye rosebuds while ye may…

From Robert Herrick poem.

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Frank Schaub

Early harness maker in De Smet.

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“When Johnny Comes Marching Home”

1863 Louis Lambert song.

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dovekie

Arctic aquatic bird, Alle alle.

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snowplow

Clears the tracks.

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Old English letters

Variety of printing type.

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“Ben Bolt”

1842 Thomas Dunn English song.

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whiffle-tree / whiffletree

Bar to attach traces to.

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cannon

Military engine used for throwing balls and other instruments of death by the force of gunpowder.

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patent / title

official property ownership document

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needle grass

Ouch! Something bit me!

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buckwheat pancakes

Seeds of the flowering plant Eriogonum used as a grain.

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primer

Used to teach someone to read.

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Margaret Garland family / Cap Garland

Family living behind the Ingallses in De Smet.

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Great American Desert

Varying area of North America, believed at times to be uninhabitable by civilized man.

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mustache

Hair above the lip.

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hulled corn

Hominy.

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Mr. Clancy / Chauncey Clayson

Drygoods store owner, Chauncey Clayson

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Delos Perry family

The Perry School was on his homestead.

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churn

Cream agitator.

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fanning-mill

Machine for winnowing.

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“Nellie was a Lady”

Pa would play some of the old songs, ‘to go to sleep...

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“Merry, Merry Christmas”

Hymn Number 150 in Pure Gold for Sunday Schools.

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“A Life on the Ocean Wave”

1847 Epes Sargent poem put to music.

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Freddy Ingalls

Laura’s brother (1875-1876)

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shoe pegs

A small, pointed piece of wood, used in fastening.

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“all’s well that ends well”

A proverb.

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“Uncle Sam’s Farm”

1848 Jesse Hutchinson, Jr. song.

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“Oh Boys, Carry Me Along”

Stephen Foster song.

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“Life Let Us Cherish”

1796 Swiss song translated to English.

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“All the Blue Bonnets are Over the Border”

1829 Sir Walter Scott air.

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“The Campbells are Coming”

Traditional Scottish jig.

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The Floweret

1842 book of verse by Anna Maria Wells.

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The Advance

Weekly family newspaper of the Congregational church.

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willow

Tree of the genus Salix.

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Uncle Sam

Figure symbolizing the United States.

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Little Town on the Prairie – the fictional story

Homesteading and town life.

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Wilkin School

April 20 – July 10, 1885.

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“Dakota Land”

1876 hymn, Beulah Land.

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reindeer

Why didn’t they fly over the creek?

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Walnut Grove during the Little House years

Village in Redwood County, Minnesota

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quinine

Medicine used to treat malaria, made from cinchona bark.

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huckleberry

Let’s have some pie!

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locust

Buy this book.

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Quaker meeting

Parlor game in which players try to remain silent.

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“The Swan’s Nest”

Elizabeth Barrett Browning poem.

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“Oh! Susanna”

Stephen Foster song.

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“Beware!”

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow poem.

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mosquito bar / netting

Woven cloth bug barrier.

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auk

Extinct sea bird used to describe dovekie found by Charles Ingalls.

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antelope

Antilocapra cervicapra of North America.

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Roman candle

Flaming stars and balls firework.

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Alfred Thomas

He was MARRIED, people!!

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popcorn

Heat makes it burst & it’s tasty.

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Martha Perry / Mrs. White

Laura helped her sew shirts.

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Nellie Oleson Meets Laura Ingalls

Heather Williams book.

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by jingo!

A corruption of St. Gengoulph.

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“Ta-ra-ra-Boom-de-Ay”

1891 Henry J. Sayers song.

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Hotel keeper’s family struck by lightning

E.P. LeSuer of Canby, Minnesota.

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ambition

Act of obtaining an object of desire.

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Charles Ely

Early lumber man in De Smet.

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Reverend Edwin H. Alden

Walnut Grove Congregational minister and missionary in Dakota.

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kerosene / kerosine

Oil used for lighting.

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South Troy / Zumbro Falls today

Little town along the Zumbro River.

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James Glover family

Students in the Wilkin School.

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ostrich tips / feathers

Short bobbing feather used for hat decoration.

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hogshead

100-140 gallon cask.

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cabin / log house

A small cottage; a hut or small house.

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“nervous as a witch”

restless

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wigwam

What Almanzo’s shocked oats looked like.

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Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Birthday

Happy Birthday, Laura!

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cradle scythe

Blade and handle used to cut oats.

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“Great is the Lord”

Singing school song from The Conqueror.

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handcar

Don’t be left behind!

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pasteboard / lambrequin

Paperboard used as base for decorative edging.

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nine-patch / Laura’s double nine-patch Irish chain quilt

Quilt block pattern.

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Laura’s Bible references

Laura Ingalls Wilder’s hand-written list of Bible verses to be read in times of trouble or stress.

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wintergreen

Aromatic, creeping evergreen, Gaultheria procumbens, having bright red berries.

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squirrel

Rodent mammal of the genus Sciurus.

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legal cap

legal document paper

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cameo

Aunt Docia’s pretty collar pin.

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“The Treadmill Song”

Oliver Wendell Holmes poem set to music.

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forfeits

Game in which items are deposited and redeemable by a sportive fine.

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Jacob Hopp

Printer and De Smet newspaper owner.

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Mary & Samuel Ray / Ellen & Amos Leonard

Sisters feuding over a lovely homeplace…and a man.

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On the Banks of Plum Creek – historical perspective

Walnut Grove in the 1870s.

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Laura’s Sorosis Club speech

“My Work”

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Timothy Johnson family

De Smet Wagon Shop.

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“Rock Me to Sleep”

Elizabeth Allen poem.

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William H. Steadman family

Proprietor of hotel in Burr Oak.

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copperplate

Variable-width handwriting script made with a flexible, pointed nib.

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certificate

Written testimony of fact.

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