Read more

“Gentle Words and Loving Smiles”

Hymn 139 in Pure Gold for the Sunday School.

Read more

Read more

equinoctial storm

Severe wind and heavy rain that occurs at or near the time of an equinox.

Read more

Read more

lime / whitewash

Oxide of calcium mixed with water and used for whitening.

Read more

Read more

Ven Owen

Teacher and principal of the first graded school in De Smet

Read more

Read more

“I Wish I Was in Dixie’s Land”

1860 Daniel Decatur Emmett song.

Read more

Read more

tomahawk

War hatchet used by American Indians.

Read more

Read more

cabin / log house

A small cottage; a hut or small house.

Read more

Read more

Carrie Ingalls

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

Read more

Read more

dried-raspberry sauce

Dried sauce good on biscuits.

Read more

Read more

Thomas Huleatt family

Neighbors of Ingalls family in Pepin Co.

Read more

Read more

by jingo!

A corruption of St. Gengoulph.

Read more

Read more

Hattie Dorchester

Jake Zickrick’s skating partner.

Read more

Read more

buttonhook

Curved metal tool for fastening shoes.

Read more

Read more

flag, the flower

An aquatic flower, Iris versicolor.

Read more

Read more

Robbins children

“froze stark stiff”

Read more

Read more

Reverend Edwin H. Alden

Walnut Grove Congregational minister and missionary in Dakota.

Read more

Read more

galluses / suspenders

Straps worn for holding up pants.

Read more

Read more

Farmer Boy – historical perspective

1860s Burke / Malone NY.

Read more

Read more

button

who’s got one?

Read more

Read more

dug out / dugout

Dwelling built into the earth.

Read more

Read more

turntable

Revolving railroad platform.

Read more

Read more

“The Floating Scow of Old Virginia”

1847 Charles White song.

Read more

Read more

“yell like a Comanche”

Imitated Indian battle cry.

Read more

Read more

“Ben Bolt”

1842 Thomas Dunn English song.

Read more

Read more

“Old Folks at Home”

Way down upon the Swanee River!

Read more

Read more

P A T

one seven seven ought

Read more

Read more

cottage cheese

Curdled skim milk.

Read more

Read more

cranberry

Good ones bounce!

Read more

Read more

Braille / New York Point

Used by Mary Ingalls.

Read more

Read more

apron

Garment protector.

Read more

Read more

poultice

Applied to sores to help them heal.

Read more

Read more

Henry O. Quiner family

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

Read more

Read more

Mrs. Jarley’s Wax Works

Rise! Come forward!

Read more

Read more

huckleberry

Let’s have some pie!

Read more

Read more

The Youth’s Companion

Weekly instructional magazine for children, first published in 1827.

Read more

Read more

jumping jack / jumping-jack

Jointed acrobat toy.

Read more

Read more

stone fences

Rock wall enclosure.

Read more

Read more

“Three Blind Mice”

Popular nursery song, sung in rounds.

Read more

Read more

cottonwood tree

Wetland plains tree, Populus fremontii.

Read more

Read more

“The Gum-Tree Canoe”

1847 Steele & Winnemore song.

Read more

Read more

Morocco leather

Fine goat leather.

Read more

Read more

Lewis Sasse

De Smet druggist

Read more

Read more

“The Polish Boy”

Poem by Ann S. Stephens

Read more

Read more

Alice & Arthur Whiting

Cousin Alice Ingalls Whiting’s family.

Read more

Read more

bear grease

Bear fat hair dressing.

Read more

Read more

Bibliography

LIW / RWL books & articles

Read more

Read more

candy hearts

Mary’s had a candy poem on it!

Read more

Read more

locust

Buy this book.

Read more

Read more

snowplow

Clears the tracks.

Read more

Read more

awl

pokes holes

Read more

Read more

worm / angleworm

common soil worm

Read more

Read more

butter

Edible fatty substance made by churning cream.

Read more

Read more

claim

The land to which one has a right.

Read more

Read more

“Buy a Broom”

O Du Leiber Augustin.

Read more

Read more

“Old Dan Tucker”

Mr. Edwards sings it!

Read more

Read more

New Ulm, Minnesota

Town in Brown Co., MN.

Read more

Read more

“The Singing School”

1869 P. Benson song.

Read more

Read more

A Modern Musketeer

In which Rose becomes a great actress.

Read more

Read more

Daniel Loftus

Early drygoods store owner in De Smet.

Read more

Read more

brakeman

Person who stops the train.

Read more

Read more

Good Templars Lodge

International temperance fraternal organization.

Read more

Read more

mercury / thermometer

Used to measure air temperature.

Read more

Read more

“In the Starlight”

1878 Glover & Carpenter song.

Read more

Read more

copyright / permissions

Please do not plagiarize.

Read more

Read more

gable

Triangular end of a building under the roof.

Read more

Read more

killdeer

Small aquatic bird.

Read more

Read more

Chicago Inter-Ocean / Inter-Ocean

Republican political newspaper.

Read more

Read more

churn

Cream agitator.

Read more

Read more

basket

Woven container.

Read more

Read more

Burr Oak today

Only Ingalls home in original location.

Read more

Read more

zenith

The point of the heavens directly overhead.

Read more

Read more

“To a Girl”

Poem used to describe Beatrice Sorchan.

Read more

Read more

Supposed Speech of Regulus

From Independent Fifth Reader.

Read more

Read more

Doxology

Old Hundred.

Read more

Read more

ground-cherry

Variety of husk tomato.

Read more

Read more

Henry Hinz

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

Read more

Read more

Pa’s red & white checked mittens

Fair Isle pattern.

Read more

Read more

“Beware!”

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow poem.

Read more

Read more

“Merry, Merry Christmas”

Hymn Number 150 in Pure Gold for Sunday Schools.

Read more

Read more

“The Lotos Eaters”

Tennyson poem.

Read more

Read more

Women’s Christian Temperance Union

W.C.T.U.

Read more

Read more

gopher

Four don’t go fur…

Read more

Read more

twilight

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

Read more

Read more

wintergreen

Aromatic, creeping evergreen, Gaultheria procumbens, having bright red berries.

Read more

Read more

starch

cloth stiffener

Read more

Read more

Young Pioneers

David and Molly Beaton.

Read more

Read more

“The Blue Juniata”

1841 Marion Dix Sullivan song.

Read more

Read more

cornice

Roof overhang.

Read more

Read more

“It’s a Long, Long Way to Tipperary”

1912 Judge & Williams song.

Read more

Read more

Docia Ingalls / Hiram Forbes

Sister of Charles Ingalls married to railroad contractor.

Read more

Read more

dickcissel / dickie-bird

A semi-nomadic finch, Spiza americana.

Read more

Read more

clove apple / clove-apple

Spice-preserved fruit decoration.

Read more

Read more

Charles Trousdale

De Smet drayman and his performing sons.

Read more

Read more

President James Madison

4th President of the U.S.

Read more

Read more

Mary & Samuel Ray / Ellen & Amos Leonard

Sisters feuding over a lovely homeplace…and a man.

Read more

Read more

“Come In and Shut the Door”

Circa 1862 song by J.P.H.

Read more

Read more

Alfred N. Waters

Attorney and land agent in De Smet.

Read more

Read more

Charles Barker

Early De Smet grocer.

Read more

Read more

Charles Lamson

Almanzo’s cousin.

Read more

Read more

Syndicate Hotel

Laura & Almanzo stayed there!

Read more

Read more

beet

Succulent root vegetable.

Read more

Read more

“Jerusalem the Golden”

Hymn from Pure Gold for the Sunday School.

Read more

Read more

George Whiting Ingalls

Bugle-blowing, jigging uncle.

Read more

Read more

“The New Year’s Come”

1842 “Why chime the bells so merrily?”

Read more

Read more

Osage Indian Treaty

Legal agreement between nations or sovereigns.

Read more

Read more

Freddy Ingalls

Laura’s brother (1875-1876)

Read more

Read more

handcar

Don’t be left behind!

Read more

Read more

“Great is the Lord”

Singing school song from The Conqueror.

Read more

Read more

Willard Seelye

De Smet teacher, 1881-1882.

Read more

Read more

cream of tartar / baking powder

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

Read more

Read more

xanthophyll

I bet you can spell this word.

Read more

Read more

dipper / ladle / skimmer

Used to remove foam when boiling maple sap.

Read more

Read more

Laura’s wedding silver

Wm. Rogers’ “Crown” silverplate.

Read more

Read more

emigrant car

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

Read more

Read more

Horace Woodworth family

Family of first depot agent in De Smet.

Read more

Read more

A Tribute to the Early Day Teachers

Neva Whaley Harding tribute.

Read more

Read more

Big Green Animal Book

George Hartwig’s The Polar and Tropical Worlds: A Description of Man and Nature.

Read more

Read more

Carrie Ingalls, Homesteader

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

Read more

Read more

Nellie Oleson Meets Laura Ingalls

Heather Williams book.

Read more

Read more

New England Supper

Fund-raising communal pot-luck meal.

Read more

Read more

“The Silver Moon”

Sail on, silver moon…

Read more

Read more

“Darling Nellie Gray”

1856 Benjamin Hamby song.

Read more

Read more

Sale of School Lands on the Osage Diminished Reserve

LHOP cabin was on Section 36

Read more

Read more

Lansford James Ingalls family

Pa’s brother and Laura’s uncle.

Read more

Read more

Peter Riley Ingalls family

Uncle Peter & Aunt Eliza.

Read more

Read more

George A. Williams

Superintendent of Schools, 1883.

Read more

Read more

what-not / whatnot

An étagère for books & ornaments.

Read more

Read more

“Gaily Now Our Boat is Sailing”

Singing school exercise

Read more

Read more

Jerome Bisby

Resident of Burr Oak, Iowa, during the Ingallses’ stay...

Read more

Read more

“The Rock of Ages”

Painting at Rev. Brown’s.

Read more

Read more

picket rope / pin / line

n. A stake sharpened or pointed, used in fortification and...

Read more

Read more

Dr. Alfred Starr

His wife wanted Laura.

Read more

Read more

The Long Winter – the fictional story

Winter for seven months!

Read more

Read more

nutmeg

Myristica moschata, used as a spice.

Read more

Read more

crow

Large black bird of genus Corvus.

Read more

Read more

“Home, Sweet Home”

1823 Payne & Bishop song.

Read more

Read more

oyster

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

Read more

Read more

dumpling

Dough cooked in liquid.

Read more

Read more

“Nobody Ask’d You”

In the frosty mornings and the chilly evenings when they went...

Read more

Read more

“Elizabeth, Elspeth, Betsy, and Bess”

Nursery rhyme wordplay on the name Elizabeth.

Read more

Read more

engine / locomotive / iron horse

Vehicle powered by steam and run on tracks.

Read more

Read more

Pioneer Girl: The Annotated Autobiography

Laura’s handwritten manuscript.

Read more

Read more

“For the Sake o’ Somebody”

1794 Robert Burns poem.

Read more

Read more

Minnie Johnson

Laura’s schoolmate in De Smet

Read more

Read more

sulky / sulky plow

One-seated conveyance.

Read more

Read more

Hamlin Garland

…and his first Christmas tree!

Read more

Read more

“America”

1832 Reverend Samuel F. Smith song.

Read more

Read more

carding-machine

Straightens fibers by combing.

Read more

Read more

dragon-fly / dragonfly

Mosquito hunter.

Read more

Read more

Mary Amelia Ingalls

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

Read more

Read more

spelling / speller

The order of letters in a word. / A book of exercises on the order of letters.

Read more

Read more

By the Shores of Silver Lake – the fictional story

The railroad comes to Dakota.

Read more

Read more

quinine

Medicine used to treat malaria, made from cinchona bark.

Read more

Read more

The Missouri Ruralist

Twice monthly Missouri farm periodical.

Read more

Read more

Burr Oak during the Little House years

Town in Winneshiek County, Iowa.

Read more

Read more

Jesse French

Butchered oxen during the Hard Winter.

Read more

Read more

tax

A certainty, as is death.

Read more

Read more

“Pull for the Shore”

Sunshine for Sunday Schools hymn.

Read more

Read more

Mary Power & Edwin Sanford

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

Read more

Read more

velocipede

Carriage propelled by pedals or feet.

Read more

Read more

The Athenians

Hartville, Mo. study club.

Read more

Read more

mother-of-pearl

Hard, silvery, brilliant, internal layer of several kinds of shells, particularly oysters.

Read more

Read more

building paper / tar paper

Crude building paper used for covering.

Read more

Read more

census taker

Statistical registration of members of a country.

Read more

Read more

barrel

Round vessel or cask made of wooden staves.

Read more

Read more

Edward H. Couse

Early hardware store owner in De Smet.

Read more

Read more

John H. Carroll

Early De Smet banker.

Read more

Read more

nickel

The metal. Or five-cent piece.

Read more

Read more

“Billy Boy”

English folk song.

Read more

Read more

William H. Steadman family

Proprietor of hotel in Burr Oak.

Read more

Read more

batten / lath

Thin, narrow board for fastening or joining.

Read more

Read more

Arthur Sherwood

Brother of Carter Sherwood.

Read more

Read more

vanity cakes

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

Read more

Read more

“Hail Columbia”

1789 Philip Phile march.

Read more

Read more

President George Washington

First President of the U.S.A.

Read more

Read more

flag

the banner

Read more

Read more

Wilder feed store

Shhh. There’s wheat in the wall!

Read more

Read more

Uncle Sam

Figure symbolizing the United States.

Read more

Read more

Hide the Thimble

You’re getting warmer…

Read more

Read more

On the Banks of Plum Creek – the fictional story

Farming struggles in Minnesota.

Read more

Read more

cannon

Military engine used for throwing balls and other instruments of death by the force of gunpowder.

Read more

Read more

bushel / peck

Dry quart measurements.

Read more

Read more

“The Mulligan Guard” / “The Skidmore Guard”

Harrigan & Hart minstrel show.

Read more

Read more

Walnut Grove during the Little House years

Village in Redwood County, Minnesota

Read more

Read more

“Nellie was a Lady”

Pa would play some of the old songs, ‘to go to sleep...

Read more

Read more

crocheted rag rug

Crocheted floor covering made of strips of cloth.

Read more

Read more

Pure Gold for the Sunday School

Hymnal owned by the Ingalls family.

Read more

Read more

hogshead

100-140 gallon cask.

Read more

Read more

Henry Ford’s Own Story

Industrialist and founder of Ford Motor Company.

Read more

Read more

“Buffalo Gals”

1844 Virginia Minstrels song.

Read more

Read more

Laura’s Sorosis Club speech

“My Work”

Read more

Read more

Martha Perry / Mrs. White

Laura helped her sew shirts.

Read more

Read more

“By Lo, Baby Bunting”

Mother Goose rhyme.

Read more

Read more

Mr. Anderson / Niels Kopperud

Hard Winter wheat settler

Read more

Read more

swan

Cygnus Americanus

Read more

Read more

starry papers

Hand-made shelf edging.

Read more

Read more

“Home of the Soul”

1865 E.M.H. Gates hymn.

Read more

Read more

“Love’s Old Sweet Song”

1884 song by Bingham & Malloy.

Read more

Read more

“The Sculptor Boy”

Carrie recited it.

Read more

Read more

Peytona & Fashion

Currier & Ives print at Rocky Ridge Farm.

Read more