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“nervous as a witch”

restless

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Have you seen the comet?

Tebbutt’s Great Comet of 1881.

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ambition

Act of obtaining an object of desire.

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“Love’s Old Sweet Song”

1884 song by Bingham & Malloy.

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Come Into the Garden, Maud

1855 poem by Alfred, Lord Tennyson.

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“The Burial of Sir John Moore”

1817 poem by Charles Wolfe.

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The Missouri Ruralist

Twice monthly Missouri farm periodical.

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patent / title

official property ownership document

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“De Boatmen’s Dance”

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

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ante-over / anti-over / anteover

Game in which a ball is thrown over a structure.

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“Yankee Doodle”

Early song brought to America from Britain.

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“Bo-peep has lost her sheep”

Game of hiding and surprise to amuse a small child.

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Wilder feed store

Shhh. There’s wheat in the wall!

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quinine

Medicine used to treat malaria, made from cinchona bark.

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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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“Golden Years are Passing By”

1879 Will Thompson song.

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fascinator

Pretty, light head covering.

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“The Silver Moon”

Sail on, silver moon…

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hardtack

Unleavened hard bread made from flour and water.

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“Camptown Races”

1850 Stephen Foster song.

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“All the Blue Bonnets are Over the Border”

1829 Sir Walter Scott air.

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silver castor

Rotating condiment set.

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“The Evergreen Shore”

1861 William Hunter song.

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muff

A warm covering for receiving the hands.

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“The Whip-Poor-Will’s Song”

1865 Harrison Millard song.

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cranberry

Good ones bounce!

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cat hole / cat-hole

Jack will keep other animals from using it.

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geranium

Winter windowsill flowers.

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oyster

A mollusk of the genus Ostrea, having a bivalve shell.

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mummy

Put. that. back.

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poultice

Applied to sores to help them heal.

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tax

A certainty, as is death.

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Reverend Stewart Sheldon

American Home Missionary Society Superintendent 1874-1886.

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slate

Stone used as tablet for writing upon.

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Waverly Novels

Sir Walter Scott books.

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Peytona & Fashion

Currier & Ives print at Rocky Ridge Farm.

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post office / post-office

Where you send and receive mail.

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harvest moon

Full moon nearest autumnal equinox

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cornice

Roof overhang.

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David Thorp

Walnut Grove teacher 1877-78.

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Silver Lake

Kingsbury County prairie pothole lake.

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“Give us this day our daily bread”

“The City, a Mc Kee plain glassware pattern.

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surveyor

One who measures land and delineates the same on paper.

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birds’-nest pudding

Dessert made of apples baked in syrup and served with cream.

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“Old Grimes”

1822 Albert Gorton Greene poem.

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Jack Frost

A popular personification of frost.

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nubia

A light scarf worn about the head and neck.

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Daniel Loftus

Early drygoods store owner in De Smet.

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Bad Lands

Area eroded by wind & water.

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butter

Edible fatty substance made by churning cream.

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“A Life on the Ocean Wave”

1847 Epes Sargent poem put to music.

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catechism

Question & answer book of religious doctrine.

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dried-raspberry sauce

Dried sauce good on biscuits.

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Laura, the Prairie Girl

1975-76 animated series.

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dictionary

The words of a language.

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Jerome Beardsley family

De Smet hotel keeper.

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photographs

There’s a little birdie in the camera, Rose.

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claim jumper / Mr. Hunter / Jack Hunt

One who ousts another from their land.

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jumping jack / jumping-jack

Jointed acrobat toy.

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Charles Lamson

Almanzo’s cousin.

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willow

Tree of the genus Salix.

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hoity-toity snip

Thoughtless, giddy, haughty, flighty, gay, and noisy.

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writ of attachment

Legal document requiring action.

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bushel / peck

Dry quart measurements.

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“Old Folks at Home”

Way down upon the Swanee River!

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“Home of the Soul”

1865 E.M.H. Gates hymn.

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crocheted rag rug

Crocheted floor covering made of strips of cloth.

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buttonhook

Curved metal tool for fastening shoes.

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Oh Whistle and I’ll Come to You, My Lad

1793 Robert Burns poem.

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popcorn

Heat makes it burst & it’s tasty.

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“Great is the Lord”

Singing school song from The Conqueror.

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blueing bag

Whiter whites.

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Uncle Sam

Figure symbolizing the United States.

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“Mary of the Wild Moor”

1845 song by Joseph W. Turner.

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Declaration of Independence

Document renouncing U.S. subjection to Great Britain.

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George Wilmarth family

Owner of early grocery store in De Smet.

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Bibliography

LIW / RWL books & articles

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The House that Jack Built

…for two pieces of money.

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“Polly Wolly Doodle”

Daniel Decatur Emmett song.

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Nellie Oleson Meets Laura Ingalls

Heather Williams book.

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cabin / log house

A small cottage; a hut or small house.

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Gather ye rosebuds while ye may…

From Robert Herrick poem.

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candy hearts

Mary’s had a candy poem on it!

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

Quilt block pattern.

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water alcove

Railroad car water for drinking.

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On the Banks of Plum Creek – historical perspective

Walnut Grove in the 1870s.

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storm apron

Rain protection for buggy.

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Hiram Ingalls

Pa’s brother.

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hogshead

100-140 gallon cask.

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Western Reserve

Land in Ohio, given to Connecticut upon agreement to give up claim to lands in Pennsylvania.

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“The Floating Scow of Old Virginia”

1847 Charles White song.

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“Barbary Allen”

Old Scotch tune.

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Ernest & Minnie Green

This is not Mary & Edwin Sanford!

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alley / alleyway

Narrow passageway, distinct from public street.

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“The Pied Piper”

Robert Browning poem.

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dove-in-the-window / bear’s tracks

Patchwork pattern variations.

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“Tubal Cain”

Charles McKay poem.

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basket

Woven container.

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lantern

A light meant to be carried.

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Spin-offs and Adaptations of the Little House Books

Milking the cash cow.

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Edward H. Couse

Early hardware store owner in De Smet.

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bale

Specific bundle of goods packaged for transport.

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Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Birthday

Happy Birthday, Laura!

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mustache

Hair above the lip.

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Hide the Thimble

You’re getting warmer…

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locust

Buy this book.

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Will Knight

Walnut Grove revival singer.

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Rev. Royal Gould Wilder

Almanzo’s uncle.

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“My Jenny Jerusha Jane”

1868 A.G. Chase song.

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zebra

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

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Syndicate Hotel

Laura & Almanzo stayed there!

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cottonwood tree

Wetland plains tree, Populus fremontii.

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muskrat

Their houses predict winter weather.

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awl

pokes holes

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Martha Perry / Mrs. White

Laura helped her sew shirts.

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Henry J. Stebbins

Railroad contractor who inspired a song.

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“Oft in the Stilly Night”

Song from Lalla Rookh.

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morning-glory

Climbing plant of the genus Ipomœa.

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saleratus / soda

Leavening agents used in baking.

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Charleton Fuller / Gerald Fuller

Hardware store owner, partnered with his brother Gerald.

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Little House on the Prairie – historical perspective

      The Ingalls and Quiner families...

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“Rock Me to Sleep”

Elizabeth Allen poem.

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spring tonic

Bitter purifying medicine.

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Mansfield history

Town in Wright County, Missouri.

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cottage cheese

Curdled skim milk.

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Hamlin Garland

…and his first Christmas tree!

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Pioneer Girl: The Annotated Autobiography

Laura’s handwritten manuscript.

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William H. Reed

Teacher in Burr Oak school, 1876-1877.

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Becky Newhall / Rebecca Stewart

Classmate of Laura Ingalls in De Smet.

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Quiner graves

Abandoned cemetery off Playhouse Road.

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icicle

Conical mass of ice, formed by water freezing as it flows downward.

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poll

No horns.

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“Beware!”

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow poem.

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“A Shelter in the Time of Storm”

Ira Sankey hymn.

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Good Templars Lodge

International temperance fraternal organization.

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sheep sorrel

Tastes like lemon… or springtime?

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Caroline Ingalls

Mother of Laura Ingalls. She lived 1839-1924.

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Charles Trousdale

De Smet drayman and his performing sons.

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equinoctial storm

Severe wind and heavy rain that occurs at or near the time of an equinox.

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Eskimo / igloo

Tribes of arctic America and Greenland. / Snow hut.

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“Buy a Broom”

O Du Leiber Augustin.

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“The Old Time”

Mr. Boast’s favorite song.

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Alfred Thomas

He was MARRIED, people!!

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Frank Schaub

Early harness maker in De Smet.

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“The Gum-Tree Canoe”

1847 Steele & Winnemore song.

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Fred Fields / Big Jerry

Railroad boss and his brother-in-law.

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“Old Dan Tucker”

Mr. Edwards sings it!

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picket rope / pin / line

n. A stake sharpened or pointed, used in fortification and...

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worm / angleworm

common soil worm

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Marshall, Minnesota

Almanzo Wilder farmed here in 1879-1880.

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amen / amen corner

Expression used at the end of prayers.

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pen / pen-wiper

An instrument used for writing. / Material used to clean it after writing.

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Thomas Power family

De Smet tailor.

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elevator

Warehouse for seed and grain.

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galluses / suspenders

Straps worn for holding up pants.

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Adam / adam’s apple

The first man, the progenitor of the human race.

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basque

Jacket-like part of a lady’s dress.

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Lizzie

the child bride

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claim

The land to which one has a right.

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sewing machine

“Such beautiful stitching!”

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Docia Ingalls / Hiram Forbes

Sister of Charles Ingalls married to railroad contractor.

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railroad cut / fill

How you level a railroad grade.

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George A. Williams

Superintendent of Schools, 1883.

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Johnny Johnson

“Wake up and watch the cattle!”

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bangs / lunatic fringe

hair across the forehead

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bacon

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

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Horace / Homer Heath

Railroad-working brothers.

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blizzard

In 1880-1881, a long, severe, blinding, and bitterly cold snowstorm.

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thunder-pumps

American bittern, a member of the heron family.

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lone cottonwood / lone tree

The big one between the lakes.

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spelling / speller

The order of letters in a word. / A book of exercises on the order of letters.

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land office

Where sales of public lands are registered.

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De Smet Cemetery

Ma & Pa’s final resting place.

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“Merry, Merry Christmas”

Hymn Number 150 in Pure Gold for Sunday Schools.

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“My Old Kentucky Home”

1853 Stephen Foster song.

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Morocco leather

Fine goat leather.

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A Modern Musketeer

In which Rose becomes a great actress.

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links

Helps you find what you’re looking for.

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Lewis Sasse

De Smet druggist

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Marvin Hughitt

Officer and President of the Chicago & NorthWestern Railway Company.

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copperplate

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

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spinning wheel / spinning-wheel

Turns wool into yarn.

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by jingo!

A corruption of St. Gengoulph.

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Robbins children

“froze stark stiff”

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last

Mold of a foot, used in making shoes.

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“When Johnny Comes Marching Home”

1863 Louis Lambert song.

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Perry School

April 28 – June 27, 1884

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acre

4840 square yards of land.

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reindeer

Why didn’t they fly over the creek?

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“Elizabeth, Elspeth, Betsy, and Bess”

Nursery rhyme wordplay on the name Elizabeth.

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“The Heavens Declare the Glory”

From The Conqueror, page 144.

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cant-hook / cant-pole

Instrument used by lumbermen to move logs.

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turntable

Revolving railroad platform.

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riot / Tracy railroad strike

Tracy in June, not De Smet in September

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composition

The act of forming a written piece.

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Old English letters

Variety of printing type.

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“Marching Through Georgia”

Union song from American Civil War.

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scones

“Mamabess is growing fat.”

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wild prairie rose

RWL was their namesake, my dear.

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killdeer

Small aquatic bird.

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