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black-berry / blackberry

The berry of the bramble, Rubus fruticosous.

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“The Gypsy’s Warning”

1864 Henry Coard song.

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Jerome Beardsley family

De Smet hotel keeper.

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storm apron

Rain protection for buggy.

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Margaret Garland family / Cap Garland

Family living behind the Ingallses in De Smet.

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The Long Winter – the fictional story

Winter for seven months!

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mosquito bar / netting

Woven cloth bug barrier.

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beard / whiskers

Facial hair.

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Henry O. Quiner family

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

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Thomas Quiner

Ma’s brother and Laura’s uncle

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latch / latch-string

It’s always out!

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Carrie Ingalls, Homesteader

W-NW & W-SW 9-4N-20E of Black Hills Meridian

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Oscar Rhuel / Röhl

A romantic figure…

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tiger lily

Native spotted flower of tallgrass prairie.

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“A Life on the Ocean Wave”

1847 Epes Sargent poem put to music.

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“To a Girl”

Poem used to describe Beatrice Sorchan.

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pork-pickle

Salt and sugar pork brine.

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powder horn / powder-horn

Animal horn in which gunpowder is carried.

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thunder-pumps

American bittern, a member of the heron family.

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“On Jordan’s Stormy Banks”

Long Winter song

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Charles Barker

Early De Smet grocer.

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Orion E. Stearns

Caught by blizzard of ’88.

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Charles & Martha Harrison / Patterson

Charles and Elizabeth May Rundle.

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freeze drying

sublimation!

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claim shanty

Temporary dwelling.

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xanthophyll

I bet you can spell this word.

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Horace / Homer Heath

Railroad-working brothers.

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Royal Wilder

Almanzo’s older brother.

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reindeer

Why didn’t they fly over the creek?

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auk

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

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twin lakes

Lake Henry & Lake Thompson

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“I Wish I Was Single Again”

1871 J.C. Beckel song.

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kerosene / kerosine

Oil used for lighting.

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roller skates / rink

Wheeled frame for the shoe.

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yoke

Frame worn on the neck for lifting or drawing.

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hair receiver / hair-receiver

Container to save strands of hair in.

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“Mountain of the Lord”

Hymn #52, Pure Gold for the Sunday School

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literary society

Instructional and entertaining gathering.

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Caroline Ingalls

Mother of Laura Ingalls. She lived 1839-1924.

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“Three Blind Mice”

Popular nursery song, sung in rounds.

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Gather ye rosebuds while ye may…

From Robert Herrick poem.

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August Hanson

The Ingallses’ next door neighbor in De Smet.

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pumpkin

The plant and fruit of Curcubita pepo

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Peter Riley Ingalls family

Uncle Peter & Aunt Eliza.

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Maude Blair

Walnut Grove friend of Laura’s

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“Darling Nellie Gray”

1856 Benjamin Hamby song.

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Will Knight

Walnut Grove revival singer.

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worm / angleworm

common soil worm

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Turkey red

Durable red color, dyed with madder upon calico or woolen cloth.

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Henry Hinz

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

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“My Jenny Jerusha Jane”

1868 A.G. Chase song.

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“The Burial of Sir John Moore”

1817 poem by Charles Wolfe.

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Bloody Benders

Serial killers in 1870s Kansas.

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parsnip

Pastinaca edulis, a white, spindle-shaped root vegetable.

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Frank M. Cooley family

On the Way home travelers.

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homestead

Free land! [sic]

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lemon

The citrus fruit

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Carrie Ingalls

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

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photographs

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

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accordion

musical instrument

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Laura & Almanzo Wilder house in De Smet

Home of Almanzo, Laura, & Rose 1892-1894

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Tennyson’s Poems

Christmas present for Laura

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Little House Songs

Prairie Song Companion

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Joseph Bouchie family

Fictional Brewster family in THGY.

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“My Old Kentucky Home”

1853 Stephen Foster song.

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Singing School

Choral music classes

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Charlotte Quiner Holbrook

Caroline Ingalls’ mother

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“Life Let Us Cherish”

1796 Swiss song translated to English.

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cant-hook / cant-pole

Instrument used by lumbermen to move logs.

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Governor of Orleans / The American Remount Association

Registered stallion leased to Almanzo Wilder 1923-1925.

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buckwheat pancakes

Seeds of the flowering plant Eriogonum used as a grain.

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Little Georgie Dwight

He could not learn his letters!

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“Barbary Allen”

Old Scotch tune.

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black bird / blackbird

Name given to various American birds.

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legal cap

legal document paper

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“The Girl I Left Behind Me”

17th century Irish tune.

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“Polly Wolly Doodle”

Daniel Decatur Emmett song.

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“The Big Sunflower”

Pa’s trouble song.

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oyster

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

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Mr. and Mrs. Scott

Indian Territory neighbors of the Ingallses.

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“The Star of Bethlehem”

When Marshalled on the Nightly Plane

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The Athenians

Hartville, Mo. study club.

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Syndicate Hotel

Laura & Almanzo stayed there!

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scour / scouring brick

To rub hard for the purpose of cleaning.

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St. Lawrence River

A streak of silver on the horizon.

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Little House on the Prairie – the fictional story

The Ingallses in Indian Territory.

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William H. Steadman family

Proprietor of hotel in Burr Oak.

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buffalo / bison

bison

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De Smet during the Little House years

The Ingalls family moved here in 1879.

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lime / whitewash

Oxide of calcium mixed with water and used for whitening.

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C

cabbage – cyclone

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ante-over / anti-over / anteover

Game in which a ball is thrown over a structure.

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galumphing

To move in a clumsy, ponderous, or noisy manner.

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ostrich tips / feathers

Short bobbing feather used for hat decoration.

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Big Tracy Cut

“100 feet deep & tapering off for 1/4 mile”

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Pittsburgh Courier

Widely-circulated black newspaper, which Rose Wilder Lane wrote a column for in the 1940s.

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X

xanthophyll

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lantern

A light meant to be carried.

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mantel-shelf

Shelf above a fireplace.

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basque

Jacket-like part of a lady’s dress.

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depot / station

Railway station.

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herd

A number of large beasts assembled together.

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blizzard

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

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nubia

A light scarf worn about the head and neck.

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Jim River / James River

A tributary of the Missouri River.

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“The Sculptor Boy”

Carrie recited it.

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“Beware!”

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow poem.

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“Sweet By and By”

Pa’s favorite hymn.

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Ida Belle Wright

Laura’s best friend in De Smet

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D

daisy – dye

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Protected: trundle bed

Low bed stored under higher bed.

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“Gentle Words and Loving Smiles”

Hymn 139 in Pure Gold for the Sunday School.

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starch

cloth stiffener

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“nervous as a witch”

restless

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“Uncle John”

Play song to the tune of Yankee Doodle.

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Little House in the Big Woods – the fictional story

Once upon a time, 60 years ago…

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“Haste to the Wedding”

Traditional Irish fiddle tune.

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crow

Large black bird of genus Corvus.

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The Long Winter – historical perspective

The Hard Winter of 1880-1881.

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Thomas Huleatt family

Neighbors of Ingalls family in Pepin Co.

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basket

Woven container.

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poor man’s fertilizer

Snow plowed into a field.

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wild prairie rose

RWL was their namesake, my dear.

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South Troy / Zumbro Falls today

Little town along the Zumbro River.

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leap frog / leap-frog

Run and jump game.

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Mr. Anderson / Niels Kopperud

Hard Winter wheat settler

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“All the Blue Bonnets are Over the Border”

1829 Sir Walter Scott air.

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bracket lamp

Affixed lighting fixture.

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writ of attachment

Legal document requiring action.

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apron

Garment protector.

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Silver Lake

Kingsbury County prairie pothole lake.

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I

“I am Mrs. Jinks…” – “I wouldn’t marry a farmer”

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blueing bag

Whiter whites.

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spinning wheel / spinning-wheel

Turns wool into yarn.

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Dr. E. Gomer Davies

First doctor in De Smet.

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trough

Stock-watering vessel.

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Burke / Malone during the Little House years

Almanzo Wilder birthplace.

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pieplant

Rhubarb.

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velocipede

Carriage propelled by pedals or feet.

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Yankton, Dakota Territory

1879 land office town.

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carpet-bag / carpetbag

Traveling-bag

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“Jingle Bells”

1857 James Pierpont song.

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Young Pioneers

David and Molly Beaton.

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whip

A lash tied to a handle.

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cat’s cradle

Game played with string twisted on the fingers.

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Stories of the Moorland

1869 book by Lizzie Bates about a young boy growing up in Scotland.

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Pre-1906 and 1912 De Smet Panoramic Photos

A view in every direction.

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Spat them Out

Clapping (and kissing) game.

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forfeits

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

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Kitty

the Ingallses’ cat in Dakota Territory

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“Dakota Land”

1876 hymn, Beulah Land.

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badger

Don’t poke it with a stick!

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Father Pierre Jean De Smet

Missionary for whom the town of De Smet was named

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A Modern Musketeer

In which Rose becomes a great actress.

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Waverly Novels

Sir Walter Scott books.

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Little House on the Prairie – historical perspective

LHOP history

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Little Town on the Prairie – historical perspective

De Smet D.T. in the 1880s.

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O

oak – oyster

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justice / Justice of the Peace

Limited jurisdiction magistrate.

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“Oft in the Stilly Night”

Song from Lalla Rookh.

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turntable

Revolving railroad platform.

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George A. Williams

Superintendent of Schools, 1883.

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“Coming Through the Rye”

Robert Burns tune.

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le cadeau du cheval

mosaic painting featuring Almanzo’s Morgan horses

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De Smet bird’s-eye view

1883 Henry Wellge drawing of De Smet

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post office / post-office

Where you send and receive mail.

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On the Banks of Plum Creek – the fictional story

Farming struggles in Minnesota.

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garnet

Deep orange-red gemstone.

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W

wage – writ of attachment

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harvest moon

Full moon nearest autumnal equinox

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Noah’s ark toy

Willie’s toy boat with animals.

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Peter Pfeiffer family

John May’s son-in-law.

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Jack Frost

A popular personification of frost.

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“Auld Lang Syne”

Now is now. It can never be a long time ago.

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peddler’s cart / wagon

A little store on wheels.

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Silas Rood

Rude by name & nature?

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Perley Day Wilder

Almanzo’s youngest brother.

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“Wait for the Wagon”

Buckley and Knauff song.

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“By Lo, Baby Bunting”

Mother Goose rhyme.

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greenhorn / greeny

Immature, raw, awkward.

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cream of tartar / baking powder

Byproduct of wine-making process, used in baking as leavening agent.

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Declaration of Independence

Document renouncing U.S. subjection to Great Britain.

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“Song of the Grass”

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

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Protected: Alfred Ely

One of the younger boys in school.

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Timothy Johnson family

De Smet Wagon Shop.

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Dr. Alfred Starr

His wife wanted Laura.

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By the Shores of Silver Lake – historical perspective

Dakota Central comes to De Smet.

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“Oh! Susanna”

Stephen Foster song.

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osage orange

no good to eat or for anything else

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Belgian horse

They’d pull a barn, if hitched to it.

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“The New Year’s Come”

1842 “Why chime the bells so merrily?”

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milk pan / milk-pan / milkpan

Where cream rises.

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These Happy Golden Years – the fictional story

Laura teaches and falls in love.

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Quiner graves

Abandoned cemetery off Playhouse Road.

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Mr. Clancy / Chauncey Clayson

Drygoods store owner, Chauncey Clayson

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copyright / permissions

Please do not plagiarize.

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Jesse French

Butchered oxen during the Hard Winter.

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pokeberry

For rosy doll cheeks.

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saleratus / soda

Leavening agents used in baking.

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The Youth’s Companion

Weekly instructional magazine for children, first published in 1827.

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