De Smet is located in Kingsbury County, South Dakota, forty-two miles west of Brookings on U.S. Highway 14. De Smet is 112 miles west of Walnut Grove, Minnesota. The former Chicago and NorthWestern Railroad bed and tracks are still within sight of the highway for much of the distance between Walnut Grove and De Smet. De Smet's original Main Street, Calumet Avenue, runs 15 degrees east of north / south one block east of State Highway 25 (originally Poinset Avenue). The Big Slough still lies to the west of the Ingalls Homestead two miles south of town. Silver Lake was born as a prairie pot-hole lake centuries ago and its condition and water content continues to vary from year to year.

The Ingalls Homestead is a half-mile south of Highway 14 on Homestead Road.

The Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial Society has its headquarters in town on Olivet Avenue.

The De Smet Cemetery is located southwest of town (location indicated by a cross on the map at right). Take Prairie Avenue south off Highway 14. Buried here are Charles and Caroline Ingalls, Mary, Carrie, and Grace, Laura and Almanzo's son, and numerous characters mentioned in the De Smet "Little House"® books.

Many of the sites of interest in De Smet are within walking distance of each other. Tours of the Surveyors' House and the Third Street House begin at the LIW Memorial Society, located at the corner of 1st and Olivet.

Check the Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial Society page for a printable map of De Smet. Green boxes on the map at left indicate places of interest. Mouse over to look around!

In town, be sure to visit the Loftus Store, still in operation since its beginning in the 1880s.

Almanzo Wilder's homestead and tree claim are north of town on State Road 25.

Ingalls Homestead

20812 Homestead Road

De Smet, South Dakota 57231 USA

phone: (605) 854-3984 / (800) 776-3594

web: www.ingallshomestead.com

email: mail@ingallshomestead.com

Charles Ingalls' 1880s homestead is located 1.5 miles south of De Smet; take Highway 14 to Homestead Road. Currently owned by the Joan and Tim Sullivan family, the Homestead offers lots of hands-on pioneer activities (in season) for the whole family, including twisting hay, wagon rides, and grinding wheat. There are farm animals, horses, and ponies. Native prairie grasses have been reintroduced and crops are planted and harvested the old-fashioned way. A replica shanty, hay-roofed barn, one-room schoolhouse, and other buildings are available for exploration. The Little Slough still exists on the property and the Big Slough is adjacent to the homestead. Camping is available, and an observation tower affords a wonderful view of the area, from Silver Lake to Lakes Henry and Thompson and beyond.

The Little Prairie School offers short school lessons in an original 1880s schoolhouse. Fun for both children and adults!  

Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial Society, Inc.

Box 426 - 105 Olivet Avenue

De Smet, South Dakota 57231 USA

phone: (605) 854-3383 / (800) 880-3383

web: www.discoverlaura.org

email: laura@discoverlaura.org

The Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial Society was founded within weeks of Laura's death in 1957, as a non-profit corporation dedicated to the restoration and preservation of Ingalls and Wilder heritage sites in De Smet and to provide information and promote interest in Laura Ingalls Wilder and her De Smet "Little House"® books. Its first project was to erect a marker on the corner of Charles Ingalls' homestead site, where five cottonwood trees still stand today. Buildings and building sites of Wilder interest were marked with commemorative signs. In 1967, the Society purchased and began restoring the Surveyors' House mentioned in By the Shores of Silver Lake. In 1972, the Ingalls home on Third Street was purchased.

Tours begin at the Society, and include the Surveyors' House and the Ingallses' home on Third Street. A "Discover Laura" hands-on learning center is located in the old Anderson schoolhouse across the street. A Gift Shop is located in a restored historical home next to the Surveyors' House.

In the fall of 1975, the Society began publishing the Laura Ingalls Wilder Lore, a bi-annual news magazine dedicated to all things Laura. Subscriptions are currently $10.00 per year in the United States. Back issues are available and well worth the investment!

Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant Society

Box 154

De Smet, South Dakota 57231 USA

phone: (800) 776-3594 / (800) 880-3383

web: http://desmetpageant.org/

Each summer in July, the Pageant Society presents an outdoor play based on one of Wilder's De Smet "Little House"® books. The pageant grounds are located just north of the Ingalls Homestead and the LIW Memorial Society's native rock monument located on a corner of the original homestead property, with performances held in the evenings. Gates open at 7:00 p.m., pageant begins at 9:00 p.m. Cost is $7.00 for adults, $4.00 for children ages 6-12, children under age 6 are admitted free. Advance tickets are available but not necessary.

Copyright © 2009 by Nancy Cleaveland - All Rights Reserved.