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fever ‘n’ ague / malaria

malaria

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emigrant car

Railroad car used to move a settler and/or a settler’s goods.

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“Nellie was a Lady”

…last night she died

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Syndicate Hotel

Laura & Almanzo stayed there!

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“Lend a Helping Hand”

Hymn #22, Pure Gold for Sunday School.

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“Come In and Shut the Door”

Circa 1862 song by J.P.H.

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“Gentle Words and Loving Smiles”

Hymn 139 in Pure Gold for the Sunday School.

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anvil

Iron block to hammer upon.

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Pre-1906 and 1912 De Smet Panoramic Photos

A view in every direction.

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candy hearts

Mary’s had a candy poem on it!

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coal / coal hod

Carbonized plant matter mined and used as fuel.

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Kingsbury County, D.T.

County in eastern South Dakota, organized in 1879.

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spoon holder / spoon-holder / spoonholder

Any vessel used to hold and display spoons.

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“The Girl I Left Behind Me”

17th century Irish tune.

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jumping jack / jumping-jack

Jointed acrobat toy.

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scour / scouring brick

To rub hard for the purpose of cleaning.

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lantern

A light meant to be carried.

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“Lilly Dale” / “Lily Dale”

1852 song by H.S. Thomson.

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“The Mulligan Guard” / “The Skidmore Guard”

Harrigan & Hart minstrel show.

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axle grease

Lubricant for wagon wheels and other machinery.

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“Oft in the Stilly Night”

Song from Lalla Rookh.

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last

Mold of a foot, used in making shoes.

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Little Georgie Dwight

He could not learn his letters!

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claim

The land to which one has a right.

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links

Helps you find what you’re looking for.

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starch

cloth stiffener

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bear grease

Bear fat hair dressing.

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Godey’s Lady’s Book

Women’s magazine, 1830-1898.

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“Old Dan Tucker”

Mr. Edwards sings it!

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photographs

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

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John James Ingalls

Senator from Kansas.

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World’s Industrial and Cotton Centennial Exposition

Destination of the Wilder brothers in the fall of 1884.

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wigwam

What Almanzo’s shocked oats looked like.

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Eliza Jane Wilder

Almanzo’s sister.

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pullaway

Outdoor tagging game.

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Belgian horse

They’d pull a barn, if hitched to it.

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cream of tartar / baking powder

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

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Z

zebra – Zion City

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Almanzo Wilder

The Man of the Place

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ostrich tips / feathers

Short bobbing feather used for hat decoration.

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“I Wish I Was in Dixie’s Land”

1860 Daniel Decatur Emmett song.

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canvas

Coarse hemp or flax cloth.

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Congress

Legislative body of a country.

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Little House in the Big Woods – the fictional story

Once upon a time, 60 years ago…

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“Pull for the Shore”

Sunshine for Sunday Schools hymn.

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H

hack – hypocrite

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“The Polish Boy”

Poem by Ann S. Stephens

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John H. Carroll

Early De Smet banker.

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trundle bed

Low bed stored under higher bed.

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The Youth’s Companion

Weekly instructional magazine for children, first published in 1827.

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birds in their little nests agree

Miss Wilder knew nothing about birds.

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poll

No horns.

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Charles Mead

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

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dried-raspberry sauce

Dried sauce good on biscuits.

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Mr. Clancy / Chauncey Clayson

Drygoods store owner, Chauncey Clayson

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Jerome Bisby

Burr Oak singing teacher

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By the Shores of Silver Lake – historical perspective

Dakota Central comes to De Smet.

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Pioneer Press

St. Paul newspaper read by Charles Ingalls in De Smet

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Charles Lamson

Almanzo’s cousin.

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“Kitty Wells”

1858 Sloan & Atherton song.

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The Square in Malone

Where the band played.

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carpet-bag / carpetbag

Traveling-bag

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Charles Philip Ingalls

Father of Laura Ingalls. He lived 1836-1902.

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vanity cakes

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

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A

aboveboard – axle

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twine

A strong twisted thread.

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parsnip

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

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Alfred Thomas

He was MARRIED, people!!

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“The High Tide”

Jean Ingelow poem.

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Henry Burvee

One of the first settlers in Kingsbury Co.

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smoke stack / smokestack

locomotive firebox chimney

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depot / station

Railway station.

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Adam / adam’s apple

The first man, the progenitor of the human race.

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Big Tracy Cut

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

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dictionary

The words of a language.

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Jacob Hopp

Printer and De Smet newspaper owner.

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“Sing a Song of Sixpence”

Mother Goose rhyme.

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Laura & Almanzo Wilder house in De Smet

Home of Almanzo, Laura, & Rose 1892-1894

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swimming hole

Watch out for ankle grabbers!

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lief

Gladly; willingly; freely.

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Lansford James Ingalls family

Pa’s brother and Laura’s uncle.

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“Great is the Lord”

Singing school song from The Conqueror.

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barber

Shave and a haircut, two bits!

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“yell like a Comanche”

Imitated Indian battle cry.

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“When I Can Read My Title Clear”

1700s Isaac Watts hymn.

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William H. Reed

Teacher in Burr Oak school, 1876-1877.

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literature

Knowledge and fancy preserved in writing.

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birds’-nest pudding

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

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C

cabbage – cyclone

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Charles Ely

Early lumber man in De Smet.

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forfeits

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

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“Captain Jinks”

1868 comedic opera song.

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checkers

Game played on a board of 64 squares.

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snow-fort

“Holler ’nuff!”

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Charlotte Quiner Holbrook

Caroline Ingalls’ mother

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S

Sabbath – sycamore

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J

jabot – Justice of the Peace

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threshing

Beating to separate.

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galluses / suspenders

Straps worn for holding up pants.

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“Bo-peep has lost her sheep”

Game of hiding and surprise to amuse a small child.

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Johnny Johnson

“Wake up and watch the cattle!”

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Charles & Martha Harrison / Patterson

Charles and Elizabeth May Rundle.

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Laura, the Prairie Girl

1975-76 animated series.

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Reverend Edwin H. Alden

Walnut Grove Congregational minister and missionary in Dakota.

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How well do you know the Little House books?

a quiz for you!

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drop the handkerchief / drop-the-handkerchief

Circle game.

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whip

A lash tied to a handle.

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garnet

Deep orange-red gemstone.

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

Quilt block pattern.

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Hamlin Garland

…and his first Christmas tree!

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On the Banks of Plum Creek – the fictional story

Farming struggles in Minnesota.

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Verdigris River

River that runs through Montgomery County, Kansas.

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Ross family

Neighbors in the Perry District.

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flag

the banner

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chilblain

Cold sores on hands and feet.

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“Miller Boy”

“Grab!”

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huckleberry

Let’s have some pie!

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“Arkansas Traveler”

Traditional American folk song.

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Hill-Billy

1926 Rose Wilder Lane book.

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“Jerusalem the Golden”

Hymn from Pure Gold for the Sunday School.

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“The Ninety and Nine”

Elizabeth Clephane poem.

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birthday

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

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Jim River / James River

A tributary of the Missouri River.

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Army bugle

Brass military horn.

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name card / name-card

Pasteboard identification.

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Lost, between sunrise and sunset…

Horace Mann quotation from his Writings, published in 1872.

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engine / locomotive / iron horse

Vehicle powered by steam and run on tracks.

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Spat them Out

Clapping (and kissing) game.

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The Advance

Weekly family newspaper of the Congregational church.

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“Three Blind Mice”

Popular nursery song, sung in rounds.

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“There is a Happy Land”

Whoop! How those eggs do smell!

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Edelbert Harthorn family / Frank Harthorn & Mabel Burd

Father and son owners of early drygoods store in De Smet.

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chapel

Place of worship.

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Missouri Ruralist

The Missouri Ruralist. A twice-monthly Missouri farm periodical...

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M

Ma – “My Sabbath Home”

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“The Pied Piper”

Robert Browning poem.

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“The Campbells are Coming”

Traditional Scottish jig.

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hatchet

A small ax with a short handle, to be used with one hand.

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Wilkin School

April 20 – July 10, 1885.

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“Uncle Ned”

One of the earliest Stephen Foster songs.

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cornmeal mush / hasty pudding

Cornmeal and water, cooked.

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blueberry

a kind of whortleberry

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P

Pa – pussy-in-the-corner

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tomahawk

War hatchet used by American Indians.

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George George

1874 Minnesota traveling companion of the Ingallses

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Charles Barker

Early De Smet grocer.

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twilight

Light when the sun is 0-18 degrees below the horizon.

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“Am I a Soldier of the Cross”

Isaac Watts hymn.

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“On Jordan’s Stormy Banks”

Long Winter song

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poke bonnet / poke-bonnet

the lining matched Laura’s eyes

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Pure Gold for the Sunday School

Hymnal owned by the Ingalls family.

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Home Missionary Society

Group organized to raise money to start churches and Sunday schools in the west where there were none.

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Docia Ingalls / Hiram Forbes

Sister of Charles Ingalls married to railroad contractor.

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W

wage – writ of attachment

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herd

A number of large beasts assembled together.

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gloves / mittens / mitts

fingerless hand and wrist cover

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On the Banks of Plum Creek – historical perspective

Walnut Grove in the 1870s.

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dug out / dugout

Dwelling built into the earth.

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crocheted rag rug

Crocheted floor covering made of strips of cloth.

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Mother Goose

Fictionalized compiler of ancient nursery rhymes.

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blacking / stove-blacking / boot blacking

Preparation used to make things black.

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wall-paper

Wall covering.

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V

vain – vote

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These Happy Golden Years – the fictional story

Laura teaches and falls in love.

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Little Town on the Prairie – the fictional story

Homesteading and town life.

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Farmer Boy – historical perspective

1860s Burke / Malone NY.

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spring tonic

Bitter purifying medicine.

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mustache

Hair above the lip.

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“Bonny Doon”

1792 Robert Burns song.

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“Darling Nellie Gray”

1856 Benjamin Hamby song.

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pieplant

Rhubarb.

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Malone Hotels

Where the horse-buyer spent the night.

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“Oh Boys, Carry Me Along”

Stephen Foster song.

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L

lace – lynx

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sulky / sulky plow

One-seated conveyance.

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Y

“Yankee Doodle” – Youth’s Companion

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Albert Quiner

Laura’s cousin.

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tax

A certainty, as is death.

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bureau

A dresser / chest of drawers.

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spider

Legged cooking vessel.

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storm apron

Rain protection for buggy.

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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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ante-over / anti-over / anteover

Game in which a ball is thrown over a structure.

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Amos Whiting family

Superintendent of Schools, De Smet.

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A Tribute to the Early Day Teachers

Neva Whaley Harding tribute.

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“Ben Bolt”

1842 Thomas Dunn English song.

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South Troy / Zumbro Falls during the Little House years

Ingallses lived here with Uncle Peter.

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wristlets

Knitted bands worn around the wrists for warmth.

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what-not / whatnot

An étagère for books & ornaments.

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latch / latch-string

It’s always out!

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“A Shelter in the Time of Storm”

Ira Sankey hymn.

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morning-glory

Climbing plant of the genus Ipomœa.

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Indian camps

Look! Beads!

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mantel-shelf

Shelf above a fireplace.

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“Elizabeth, Elspeth, Betsy, and Bess”

Nursery rhyme wordplay on the name Elizabeth.

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E

ear flap – expelled

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Manchester, Dakota Territory

Railroad town west of De Smet

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Lewis Sasse

De Smet druggist

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Fred Fields / Big Jerry

Railroad boss and his brother-in-law.

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William H. Steadman family

Proprietor of hotel in Burr Oak.

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