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“For the Sake o’ Somebody”

1794 Robert Burns poem.

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South Troy / Zumbro Falls during the Little House years

Ingallses lived here with Uncle Peter.

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“The Good Old Way”

Hymn 18, Pure Gold for the Sunday School.

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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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awl

pokes holes

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“Polly Wolly Doodle”

Daniel Decatur Emmett song.

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Peytona & Fashion

Currier & Ives print at Rocky Ridge Farm.

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birds’-nest pudding

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

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worm / angleworm

common soil worm

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“When Johnny Comes Marching Home”

1863 Louis Lambert song.

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“The Campbells are Coming”

Traditional Scottish jig.

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Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Birthday

Happy Birthday, Laura!

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clinched nail

Bent at a right angle.

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James Glover family

Students in the Wilkin School.

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“Bonny Doon”

1792 Robert Burns song.

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“The Heavens Declare the Glory”

From The Conqueror, page 144.

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“Uncle John”

Play song to the tune of Yankee Doodle.

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Mansfield history

Town in Wright County, Missouri.

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Jesse French

Butchered oxen during the Hard Winter.

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windlass

Device to move water or dirt from the bottom of a well to ground level.

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alley / alleyway

Narrow passageway, distinct from public street.

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“Home, Sweet Home”

1823 Payne & Bishop song.

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“Billy Boy”

English folk song.

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snowplow

Clears the tracks.

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willow

Tree of the genus Salix.

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“The New Year’s Come”

1842 “Why chime the bells so merrily?”

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President George Washington

First President of the U.S.A.

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Mary Power & Edwin Sanford

Laura’s friend and the new clerk at Ruth’s bank.

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locust

Buy this book.

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Henry Ford’s Own Story

Industrialist and founder of Ford Motor Company.

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tax

A certainty, as is death.

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“Mary of the Wild Moor”

1845 song by Joseph W. Turner.

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John Anderson

Walnut Grove store clerk & more

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H

hack – hypocrite

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basque

Jacket-like part of a lady’s dress.

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beard / whiskers

Facial hair.

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handkerchief

Face and hand wiping cloth.

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Fred Fields / Big Jerry

Railroad boss and his brother-in-law.

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Albert Quiner

Laura’s cousin.

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Charles Barker

Early De Smet grocer.

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Will Knight

Walnut Grove revival singer.

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drop the handkerchief / drop-the-handkerchief

Circle game.

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A Modern Musketeer

In which Rose becomes a great actress.

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bake oven / bake-oven

Coals on top and below.

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Royal Wilder

Almanzo’s older brother.

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literary society

Instructional and entertaining gathering.

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Grace Pearl Ingalls

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

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John James Ingalls

Senator from Kansas.

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“Keep the Horse Shoe Over the Door”

1880 Joseph Skelley song.

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Protected: private post

Go away AI; you are not welcome here.

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Carrie Ingalls

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

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clear, pure green sky

Sunlight separated into colored bands at sunset.

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“Darling Nellie Gray”

1856 Benjamin Hamby song.

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New England States

ME, NH, VT, MA, RI, & CT.

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“Sweet By and By”

Pa’s favorite hymn.

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George Wilmarth family

Owner of early grocery store in De Smet.

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V

vain – vote

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census taker

Statistical registration of members of a country.

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“By Lo, Baby Bunting”

Mother Goose rhyme.

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dovekie

Arctic aquatic bird, Alle alle.

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xanthophyll

I bet you can spell this word.

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Father Pierre Jean De Smet

Missionary for whom the town of De Smet was named

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“Come In and Shut the Door”

Circa 1862 song by J.P.H.

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“The Tides” / The moon is at its full

1860 William Cullen Bryant poem.

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Gather ye rosebuds while ye may…

From Robert Herrick poem.

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“Lend a Helping Hand”

Hymn #22, Pure Gold for Sunday School.

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The Athenians

Hartville, Mo. study club.

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Waverly Novels

Sir Walter Scott books.

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Noah’s ark toy

Willie’s toy boat with animals.

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nickel

The metal. Or five-cent piece.

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button

who’s got one?

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brakeman

Person who stops the train.

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O

oak – oyster

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Chariton County, Missouri

Location of land purchased in 1868 by Charles Ingalls, Henry Quiner, and Tom Quiner.

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America / American

Pertaining to the United States of America.

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“A Motto for Every Man”

1868 Harry Clifton song.

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badger

Don’t poke it with a stick!

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quinine

Medicine used to treat malaria, made from cinchona bark.

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Hide the Thimble

You’re getting warmer…

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Millbank

1871 novel by Mary Jane Holmes.

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butter

Edible fatty substance made by churning cream.

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cranberry

Good ones bounce!

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Reverend Stewart Sheldon

American Home Missionary Society Superintendent 1874-1886.

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Big Tracy Cut

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

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jewel box / jewel-box

Nice place to keep a breast-pin.

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stone fences

Rock wall enclosure.

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Lansford James Ingalls family

Pa’s brother and Laura’s uncle.

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“Arkansas Traveler”

Traditional American folk song.

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George George

1874 Minnesota traveling companion of the Ingallses

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Pioneer Girl

Laura Ingalls Wilder’s memoir.

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Protected: James H. Clewett

De Smet teacher, January-March 1883

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railroad cut / fill

How you level a railroad grade.

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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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willow-ware

Blue-and-white tableware with Chinese story paintings.

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engine / locomotive / iron horse

Vehicle powered by steam and run on tracks.

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Laura, the Prairie Girl

1975-76 animated series.

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barrel

Round vessel or cask made of wooden staves.

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spinning wheel / spinning-wheel

Turns wool into yarn.

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claim

The land to which one has a right.

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butter tester

Instrument used to remove core sample from a vat of butter, for the sake of testing.

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gingerbread

Chocolate frosting adds to the goodness!

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ostrich tips / feathers

Short bobbing feather used for hat decoration.

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album

Blank booklet for collecting autographs or photos.

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nubia

A light scarf worn about the head and neck.

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breast-pin / brooch / bar pin

Ornament worn on clothing.

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spider

Legged cooking vessel.

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Thomas C. Wilkin family

Florence Wilkin’s father.

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J

jabot – Justice of the Peace

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missionary barrel

Collection of items distributed to the needy.

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peddler’s cart / wagon

A little store on wheels.

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Tennyson’s Poems

Christmas present for Laura

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“Golden Years are Passing By”

1879 Will Thompson song.

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mummy

Put. that. back.

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M

Ma – “My Sabbath Home”

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Adam / adam’s apple

The first man, the progenitor of the human race.

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yeast / yeast cakes

Bread-leavening organism.

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dictionary

The words of a language.

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William H. Reed

Teacher in Burr Oak school, 1876-1877.

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Nellie Oleson Meets Laura Ingalls

Heather Williams book.

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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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cornmeal mush / hasty pudding

Cornmeal and water, cooked.

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Old Military Tract

Franklin Co. NY map reference

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Dr. Alfred Starr

His wife wanted Laura.

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These Happy Golden Years – the fictional story

Laura teaches and falls in love.

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dickcissel / dickie-bird

A semi-nomadic finch, Spiza americana.

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Thanksgiving

Public celebration of divine goodness.

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“Irish Washerwoman”

Traditional Scottish and Irish song/dance song.

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canvas

Coarse hemp or flax cloth.

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Reverend Edward Brown

Minister of the First Congregational Church of De Smet, 1880-1884.

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P A T

one seven seven ought

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organ

musical instrument

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acre

4840 square yards of land.

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claim jumper / Mr. Hunter / Jack Hunt

One who ousts another from their land.

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“Jesus Holds My Hand”

Hymn #85, Pure Gold for the Sunday Schools

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Kitty

the Ingallses’ cat in Dakota Territory

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Blanche Coday

Rose’s friend.

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cameo

Aunt Docia’s pretty collar pin.

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Silas Rood

Rude by name & nature?

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killdeer

Small aquatic bird.

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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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isinglass

mica for stove windows

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churn

Cream agitator.

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vanity cakes

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

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Mr. and Mrs. Scott

Indian Territory neighbors of the Ingallses.

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Hiram Ingalls

Pa’s brother.

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sewing machine

“Such beautiful stitching!”

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“My Old Kentucky Home”

1853 Stephen Foster song.

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geranium

Winter windowsill flowers.

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popcorn

Heat makes it burst & it’s tasty.

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“Rock Me to Sleep”

Elizabeth Allen poem.

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Charles Trousdale

De Smet drayman and his performing sons.

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“Lilly Dale” / “Lily Dale”

1852 song by H.S. Thomson.

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G

gable – “Gypsy’s Warning”

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“Mountain of the Lord”

Hymn #52, Pure Gold for the Sunday School

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Visscher Barnes

Probate Judge, VP of Temperance Society, and first director of De Smet school board.

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U

udder – upland

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“The Rock of Ages”

Painting at Rev. Brown’s.

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buckwheat pancakes

Seeds of the flowering plant Eriogonum used as a grain.

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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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George A. Williams

Superintendent of Schools, 1883.

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Walnut Grove during the Little House years

Village in Redwood County, Minnesota

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custard / ice-cream

Sweetened milk and eggs, cooked.

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Charles H. Tinkham

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

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hair receiver / hair-receiver

Container to save strands of hair in.

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auk

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

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roller skates / rink

Wheeled frame for the shoe.

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blizzard

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

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E

ear flap – expelled

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Robbins children

“froze stark stiff”

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“Am I a Soldier of the Cross”

Isaac Watts hymn.

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milking-stool

Three legs (the cow has the udder).

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“The Evergreen Shore”

1861 William Hunter song.

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cream of tartar / baking powder

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

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Pre-1906 and 1912 De Smet Panoramic Photos

A view in every direction.

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ice cream / ice-cream

Sweetened cream, congealed by freezing.

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milk pan / milk-pan / milkpan

Where cream rises.

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Eleck Nelson family

Neighbors of the Ingalls family when living on their preemption claim north of Walnut Grove.

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dragon-fly / dragonfly

Mosquito hunter.

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nutmeg

Myristica moschata, used as a spice.

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“Kitty Wells”

1858 Sloan & Atherton song.

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These Happy Golden Years – historical perspective

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

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stockade

Enclosure of posts or sticks.

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china shepherdess / little china woman

Ingalls family figurine.

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apple pie / dried apple pie

Just like Ma used to make.

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James McKee family

Homesteader north of Manchester D.T.

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powder horn / powder-horn

Animal horn in which gunpowder is carried.

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gloves / mittens / mitts

fingerless hand and wrist cover

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spoon holder / spoon-holder / spoonholder

Any vessel used to hold and display spoons.

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beef

tough! juicy!

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copper-toed shoes

Metal shoe protector.

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Mr. Clancy / Chauncey Clayson

Drygoods store owner, Chauncey Clayson

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birthday

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

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“Down in Alabam'” / “The Old Gray Mare”

1858 J. Warner song.

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barber

Shave and a haircut, two bits!

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poll

No horns.

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post office / post-office

Where you send and receive mail.

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consumption

A wasting disease, pulmonary tuberculosis.

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anvil

Iron block to hammer upon.

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