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black-berry / blackberry

The berry of the bramble, Rubus fruticosous.

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Yankton, Dakota Territory

1879 land office town.

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John Anderson

Walnut Grove store clerk & more

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“Uncle John”

Play song to the tune of Yankee Doodle.

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bushel / peck

Dry quart measurements.

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Spin-offs and Adaptations of the Little House Books

Not by LIW, but kindred publications.

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“Uncle Ned”

One of the earliest Stephen Foster songs.

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carpet-bag / carpetbag

Traveling-bag

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Sale of School Lands on the Osage Diminished Reserve

LHOP cabin was on Section 36

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Laura, the Prairie Girl

1975-76 animated series.

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willow

Tree of the genus Salix.

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“Buffalo Gals”

1844 Virginia Minstrels song.

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“There is a Happy Land”

Whoop! How those eggs do smell!

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kerosene / kerosine

Oil used for lighting.

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dovekie

Arctic aquatic bird, Alle alle.

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August Hanson

The Ingallses’ next door neighbor in De Smet.

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“Ben Bolt”

1842 Thomas Dunn English song.

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Charles Mead

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

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Lansford James Ingalls family

Pa’s brother and Laura’s uncle.

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“Mountain of the Lord”

Hymn #52, Pure Gold for the Sunday School

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Jim River / James River

A tributary of the Missouri River.

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Volga, Dakota Territory

Town on the Dakota Central R.R. between Brookings and Arlington, platted in 1879.

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“The Star-Spangled Banner”

Our National Anthem; words by Francis Scott Key.

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These Happy Golden Years – the fictional story

Laura teaches and falls in love.

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rubber

Used for waterproofing.

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certificate

Written testimony of fact.

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le cadeau du cheval

mosaic painting featuring Almanzo’s Morgan horses

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silver castor

Rotating condiment set.

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“A Motto for Every Man”

1868 Harry Clifton song.

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K

Kansas – knothole

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De Smet today

Where I would like to be right now.

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Charles Philip Ingalls

Father of Laura Ingalls. He lived 1836-1902.

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handcar

Don’t be left behind!

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“Love’s Old Sweet Song”

1884 song by Bingham & Malloy.

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Missouri Pool

Smoked a pipe & grew pretty flowers.

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H

hack – hypocrite

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apple pie / dried apple pie

Just like Ma used to make.

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dickcissel / dickie-bird

A semi-nomadic finch, Spiza americana.

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ticket

All aboard!

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John D. Peirson

Early De Smet liveryman.

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trough

Stock-watering vessel.

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alley / alleyway

Narrow passageway, distinct from public street.

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The Story of Art Smith

1915 Rose Wilder Lane serial about an aviator.

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Walnut Grove during the Little House years

Village in Redwood County, Minnesota

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Margaret Garland family / Cap Garland

Family living behind the Ingallses in De Smet.

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chestnut / horse chestnut

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

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Big Sioux River / Sioux River

SD-IA tributary of Missouri River.

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“Polly Wolly Doodle”

Daniel Decatur Emmett song.

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photographs

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

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Poverty Flat

Early De Smet residential area.

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barrel

Round vessel or cask made of wooden staves.

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“The Silver Moon”

Sail on, silver moon…

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H. W. Cooledge

De Smet photographer.

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Pre-1906 and 1912 De Smet Panoramic Photos

A view in every direction.

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Thomas Huleatt family

Neighbors of Ingalls family in Pepin Co.

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Ella & Robert Boast

Friends of the Ingalls family in De Smet.

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Fred Fields / Big Jerry

Railroad boss and his brother-in-law.

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Horace / Homer Heath

Railroad-working brothers.

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trundle bed

Low bed stored under higher bed.

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“Song of the Grass”

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

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tattoo

Sounds like beating drums!

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De Smet Cemetery

Ma & Pa’s final resting place.

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gaiters

Cloth ankle covering.

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quinine

Medicine used to treat malaria, made from cinchona bark.

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muff

A warm covering for receiving the hands.

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Carrie Ingalls

Younger sister of Laura Ingalls; she lived 1870-1946.

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Christmas

Christian observation of the birth of Christ

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“Daisy Deane”

1863 song by Union soldiers.

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Mother Goose

Fictionalized compiler of ancient nursery rhymes.

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“Merry, Merry Christmas”

Hymn Number 150 in Pure Gold for Sunday Schools.

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gloves / mittens / mitts

fingerless hand and wrist cover

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forfeits

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

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primer

Used to teach someone to read.

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Little House in the Big Woods – historical perspective

Pepin Twp., Pepin Co. Wisconsin

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flag, the flower

An aquatic flower, Iris versicolor.

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“Pull for the Shore”

Sunshine for Sunday Schools hymn.

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blueberry

a kind of whortleberry

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Morocco leather

Fine goat leather.

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Timothy Johnson family

De Smet Wagon Shop.

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“The Heavens Declare the Glory”

From The Conqueror, page 144.

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“The Campbells are Coming”

Traditional Scottish jig.

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“Arkansas Traveler”

Traditional American folk song.

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buttonhook

Curved metal tool for fastening shoes.

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Lost, between sunrise and sunset…

Horace Mann quotation from his Writings, published in 1872.

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missionary barrel

Collection of items distributed to the needy.

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P

Pa – pussy-in-the-corner

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carding-machine

Straightens fibers by combing.

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smoke stack / smokestack

locomotive firebox chimney

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handkerchief

Face and hand wiping cloth.

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“Tubal Cain”

Charles McKay poem.

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Good Templars Lodge

International temperance fraternal organization.

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velvet

Silk or blend fabric with short shag surface.

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railroad cut / fill

How you level a railroad grade.

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“When I Can Read My Title Clear”

1700s Isaac Watts hymn.

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

Quilt block pattern.

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“By Lo, Baby Bunting”

Mother Goose rhyme.

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Declaration of Independence

Document renouncing U.S. subjection to Great Britain.

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“Oh! Susanna”

Stephen Foster song.

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George George

1874 Minnesota traveling companion of the Ingallses

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Freddy Ingalls

Laura’s brother (1875-1876)

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Will Barnes

Walnut Grove laborer

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New England Supper

Fund-raising communal pot-luck meal.

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poke bonnet / poke-bonnet

the lining matched Laura’s eyes

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Santa Claus / Santa Clause

Ho. Ho. Ho.

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“Golden Years are Passing By”

1879 Will Thompson song.

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Singing School

Choral music classes

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D

daisy – dye

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Mary Amelia Ingalls

First child of Caroline and Charles Ingalls, 1865-1928; she lost her sight at age 15.

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consumption

A wasting disease, pulmonary tuberculosis.

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“Keep the Horse Shoe Over the Door”

1880 Joseph Skelley song.

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dug out / dugout

Dwelling built into the earth.

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Dr. Alfred Starr

His wife wanted Laura.

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engine / locomotive / iron horse

Vehicle powered by steam and run on tracks.

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“Nobody Ask’d You”

“Where are you going, my pretty maid?”

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George C. Bradley

Early De Smet druggist.

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pasteboard / lambrequin

Paperboard used as base for decorative edging.

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Dolly Varden

NIckname of Edith Ingalls, Laura’s cousin.

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Thomas C. Wilkin family

Florence Wilkin’s father.

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blacking / stove-blacking / boot blacking

Preparation used to make things black.

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“Camptown Races”

1850 Stephen Foster song.

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Amos Whiting family

Superintendent of Schools, De Smet.

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Henry O. Quiner family

Ma’s brother, married to Pa’s sister Polly.

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whip

A lash tied to a handle.

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cranberry

Good ones bounce!

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Little House on the Prairie – the fictional story

The Ingallses in Indian Territory.

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Henry Ford’s Own Story

Industrialist and founder of Ford Motor Company.

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swan

Cygnus Americanus

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Burr Oak today

Only Ingalls home in original location.

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“Wait for the Wagon”

Buckley and Knauff song.

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Arthur Sherwood

Brother of Carter Sherwood.

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Ingalls office / store in De Smet

NW and SE corners of Calumet and Second.

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“To a Girl”

Poem used to describe Beatrice Sorchan.

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Pioneer Girl

Laura Ingalls Wilder’s memoir.

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bangs / lunatic fringe

hair across the forehead

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Q

quaker meeting – quinine

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oranges

Citrus fruit.

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butter

Edible fatty substance made by churning cream.

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Hattie Dorchester

Jake Zickrick’s skating partner.

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vanity cakes

Egg and flour batter fried in oil into golden brown puffs.

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Blanche Coday

Rose’s friend.

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“The Pied Piper”

Robert Browning poem.

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On the Banks of Plum Creek – the fictional story

Farming struggles in Minnesota.

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Christopher Columbus

A native of Genoa, in Italy.

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“The Gum-Tree Canoe”

1847 Steele & Winnemore song.

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Grace Pearl Ingalls

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

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Women’s Christian Temperance Union

W.C.T.U.

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bison / “The Bison Track”

Bayard Taylor poem about Bos Americanus, found in Independent Fifth Reader.

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Kitty

the Ingallses’ cat in Dakota Territory

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door knob

Grab to open a door.

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blizzard

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

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“Gaily Now Our Boat is Sailing”

Singing school exercise

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Roman candle

Flaming stars and balls firework.

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“Old Dan Tucker”

Mr. Edwards sings it!

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“A Life on the Ocean Wave”

1847 Epes Sargent poem put to music.

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Sam Owen

De Smet boot & shoe maker… and horseman!

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“The Floating Scow of Old Virginia”

1847 Charles White song.

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On the Banks of Plum Creek – historical perspective

Walnut Grove in the 1870s.

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bale

Specific bundle of goods packaged for transport.

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Alfred N. Waters

Attorney and land agent in De Smet.

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zenith

The point of the heavens directly overhead.

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Braille / New York Point

Used by Mary Ingalls.

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A Tribute to the Early Day Teachers

Neva Whaley Harding tribute.

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Silas Rood

Rude by name & nature?

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Protected: private post

Go away AI; you are not welcome here.

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greenhorn / greeny

Immature, raw, awkward.

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button

who’s got one?

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George Wilmarth family

Owner of early grocery store in De Smet.

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“The Polish Boy”

Poem by Ann S. Stephens

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Almanzo Wilder

The Man of the Place

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twisting hay

makes a hot, quick fire

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composition

The act of forming a written piece.

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George A. Williams

Superintendent of Schools, 1883.

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“Rock of Ages”

1760s Augustus Toplady hymn.

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Commentators on the Ac’s

Pa’s charade pun.

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candy hearts

Mary’s had a candy poem on it!

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A

aboveboard – axle

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The New York Ledger

Weekly story paper, published 1855-1898.

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beard / whiskers

Facial hair.

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Army bugle

Brass military horn.

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Martha Perry / Mrs. White

Laura helped her sew shirts.

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“The Sculptor Boy”

Carrie recited it.

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birthday

As near as I can figure, E.J. was right.

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Hamlin Garland

…and his first Christmas tree!

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scour / scouring brick

To rub hard for the purpose of cleaning.

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amen / amen corner

Expression used at the end of prayers.

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storm apron

Rain protection for buggy.

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tax

A certainty, as is death.

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auk

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

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cameo

Aunt Docia’s pretty collar pin.

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Frank M. Cooley family

On the Way home travelers.

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fever ‘n’ ague / malaria

malaria

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button lamp

Improvised grease lamp.

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Adam / adam’s apple

The first man, the progenitor of the human race.

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by jingo!

A corruption of St. Gengoulph.

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J

jabot – Justice of the Peace

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starry papers

Hand-made shelf edging.

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Bloody Benders

Serial killers in 1870s Kansas.

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Alfred Thomas

He was MARRIED, people!!

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“Ta-ra-ra-Boom-de-Ay”

1891 Henry J. Sayers song.

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“Coming Through the Rye”

Robert Burns tune.

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