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“Arkansas Traveler”

Traditional American folk song.

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poultice

Applied to sores to help them heal.

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Army bugle

Brass military horn.

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On the Banks of Plum Creek – historical perspective

Walnut Grove in the 1870s.

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Docia Ingalls / Hiram Forbes

Sister of Charles Ingalls married to railroad contractor.

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carding-machine

Straightens fibers by combing.

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sewing machine

“Such beautiful stitching!”

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The Long Winter – historical perspective

The Hard Winter of 1880-1881.

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Sale of School Lands on the Osage Diminished Reserve

LHOP cabin was on Section 36

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Charles & Martha Harrison / Patterson

Charles and Elizabeth May Rundle.

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Oscar Rhuel / Röhl

A romantic figure…

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Mr. Anderson / Niels Kopperud

Hard Winter wheat settler

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“Rock of Ages”

1760s Augustus Toplady hymn.

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Waverly Novels

Sir Walter Scott books.

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composition

The act of forming a written piece.

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Jim River / James River

A tributary of the Missouri River.

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Bibliography

LIW / RWL books & articles

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dipper / ladle / skimmer

Used to remove foam when boiling maple sap.

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Laura & Lansford Ingalls

Grandpa & Grandma Ingalls

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“Bo-peep has lost her sheep”

Game of hiding and surprise to amuse a small child.

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The House that Jack Built

…for two pieces of money.

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By the Shores of Silver Lake – the fictional story

The railroad comes to Dakota.

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links

Helps you find what you’re looking for.

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whip

A lash tied to a handle.

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Mr. Clancy / Chauncey Clayson

Drygoods store owner, Chauncey Clayson

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milking-stool

Three legs (the cow has the udder).

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De Smet today

Where I would like to be right now.

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lief

Gladly; willingly; freely.

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“Love’s Old Sweet Song”

1884 song by Bingham & Malloy.

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“I Wish I Was Single Again”

1871 J.C. Beckel song.

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“Great is the Lord”

Singing school song from The Conqueror.

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William H. Steadman family

Proprietor of hotel in Burr Oak.

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Peytona & Fashion

Currier & Ives print at Rocky Ridge Farm.

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Henry O. Quiner family

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

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George Wilmarth family

Owner of early grocery store in De Smet.

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A

aboveboard – axle

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pumpkin

The plant and fruit of Curcubita pepo

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blueing bag

Whiter whites.

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Frogs at School

“Twenty froggies went to school…”

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“all’s well that ends well”

A proverb.

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“Nobody Ask’d You”

“Where are you going, my pretty maid?”

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Alice Maria Wilder

Older sister and playmate of Almanzo Wilder. She lived 1853-1892.

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cupola

Dome-like vault on a public building.

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De Smet bird’s-eye view

1883 Henry Wellge drawing of De Smet

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Supposed Speech of Regulus

From Independent Fifth Reader.

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President James Madison

4th President of the U.S.

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chewing gum

Long white sticks of chewiness.

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bank

financial institution

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“Give us this day our daily bread”

The City, a Mc Kee plain glassware pattern.

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Z

zebra – Zion City

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The New York Ledger

Weekly story paper, published 1855-1898.

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Pa’s red & white checked mittens

Fair Isle pattern.

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“To a Girl”

Poem used to describe Beatrice Sorchan.

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Alfred N. Waters

Attorney and land agent in De Smet.

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“Old Folks at Home”

Way down upon the Swanee River!

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Mrs. Jarley’s Wax Works

Rise! Come forward!

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reindeer

Why didn’t they fly over the creek?

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“The Treadmill Song”

Oliver Wendell Holmes poem set to music.

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clear, pure green sky

Sunlight separated into colored bands at sunset.

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Noah’s ark toy

Willie’s toy boat with animals.

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Fred Fields / Big Jerry

Railroad boss and his brother-in-law.

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“Three Blind Mice”

Popular nursery song, sung in rounds.

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William H. Reed

Teacher in Burr Oak school, 1876-1877.

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brakeman

Person who stops the train.

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dickcissel / dickie-bird

A semi-nomadic finch, Spiza americana.

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elevator

Warehouse for seed and grain.

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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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Mr. and Mrs. Scott

Indian Territory neighbors of the Ingallses.

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writ of attachment

Legal document requiring action.

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ticket

All aboard!

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udder

Where the milk is before milking.

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Ella & Robert Boast

Friends of the Ingalls family in De Smet.

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New England Supper

Fund-raising communal pot-luck meal.

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Jesse French

Butchered oxen during the Hard Winter.

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W

wage – writ of attachment

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Father Pierre Jean De Smet

Missionary for whom the town of De Smet was named

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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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F

Fair Grounds – furrow

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Jerome Beardsley family

De Smet hotel keeper.

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Charleton Fuller / Gerald Fuller

Hardware store owner, partnered with his brother Gerald.

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Margaret Garland family / Cap Garland

Family living behind the Ingallses in De Smet.

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justice / Justice of the Peace

Limited jurisdiction magistrate.

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tiger

Noah’s ark toy piece.

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T

tableland – two-faced

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“The Girl I Left Behind Me”

17th century Irish tune.

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Western Reserve

Land in Ohio, given to Connecticut upon agreement to give up claim to lands in Pennsylvania.

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Grace Pearl Ingalls

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

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bracket lamp

Affixed lighting fixture.

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cottonwood tree

Wetland plains tree, Populus fremontii.

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gloves / mittens / mitts

fingerless hand and wrist cover

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Charles Philip Ingalls

Father of Laura Ingalls. He lived 1836-1902.

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silver castor

Rotating condiment set.

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“The Blue Juniata”

1841 Marion Dix Sullivan song.

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Missouri Ruralist

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

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door knob

Grab to open a door.

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mustache

Hair above the lip.

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calendar

What’s today’s date?

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windlass

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

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gingerbread

Chocolate frosting adds to the goodness!

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braid / plait

Entwined strands.

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“Keep the Horse Shoe Over the Door”

1880 Joseph Skelley song.

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These Happy Golden Years – historical perspective

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

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bacon

Hog’s flesh salted or pickled and dried, usually in smoke.

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button

who’s got one?

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Syndicate Hotel

Laura & Almanzo stayed there!

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axle grease

Lubricant for wagon wheels and other machinery.

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I

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

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mercury / thermometer

Used to measure air temperature.

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Henry Burvee

One of the first settlers in Kingsbury Co.

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tax

A certainty, as is death.

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lantern

A light meant to be carried.

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“Jesus Holds My Hand”

Hymn #85, Pure Gold for the Sunday Schools

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Spookendyke

Rose’s stubborn donkey

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parsnip

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

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tattoo

Sounds like beating drums!

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“De Boatmen’s Dance”

Away Down the RIver on the O-hi-o.

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fascinator

Pretty, light head covering.

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“nervous as a witch”

restless

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Walnut Grove during the Little House years

Village in Redwood County, Minnesota

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ice-house

Stores ice blocks in warm weather.

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“Darling Nellie Gray”

1856 Benjamin Hamby song.

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Bloody Benders

Serial killers in 1870s Kansas.

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willow

Tree of the genus Salix.

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Jerome Bisby

Burr Oak singing teacher

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“Life Let Us Cherish”

1796 Swiss song translated to English.

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“Highland Mary”

1799 Robert Burns songs, favorite of Mary Ingalls.

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Royal Wilder

Almanzo’s older brother.

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whiffle-tree / whiffletree

Bar to attach traces to.

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awl

pokes holes

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“The Rock of Ages”

Painting at Rev. Brown’s.

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The Youth’s Companion

Weekly instructional magazine for children, first published in 1827.

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threshing

Beating to separate.

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“The Swan’s Nest”

Elizabeth Barrett Browning poem.

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Malone Hotels

Where the horse-buyer spent the night.

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peddler’s cart / wagon

A little store on wheels.

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“What Shall the Harvest Be?”

1850 Emily Oakley poem.

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locust

Buy this book.

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last

Mold of a foot, used in making shoes.

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“The Old Time”

Mr. Boast’s favorite song.

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crocheted rag rug

Crocheted floor covering made of strips of cloth.

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legal cap

legal document paper

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By the Shores of Silver Lake – historical perspective

Dakota Central comes to De Smet.

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cornice

Molded roof or window projection.

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handcar

Don’t be left behind!

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icicle

Conical mass of ice, formed by water freezing as it flows downward.

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“Marching Through Georgia”

Union song from American Civil War.

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The Long Winter – the fictional story

Winter for seven months!

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Reverend Edwin H. Alden

Walnut Grove Congregational minister and missionary in Dakota.

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These Happy Golden Years – the fictional story

Laura teaches and falls in love.

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Missouri Pool

Smoked a pipe & grew pretty flowers.

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wonderful house / frame house

Wooden house built on Charles Ingalls’ Plum Creek preemption claim.

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“Wait for the Wagon”

Buckley and Knauff song.

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buck / buckskin

Male of the fallow deer, and leather made from its skin.

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engine / locomotive / iron horse

Vehicle powered by steam and run on tracks.

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“The Burial of Sir John Moore”

1817 poem by Charles Wolfe.

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stockade

Enclosure of posts or sticks.

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cornmeal mush / hasty pudding

Cornmeal and water, cooked.

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trough

Stock-watering vessel.

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

Quilt block pattern.

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winnow

Drive off chaff by wind.

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De Smet during the Little House years

The Ingalls family moved here in 1879.

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census taker

Statistical registration of members of a country.

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Willard Seelye

De Smet teacher, 1881-1882.

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S

Sabbath – sycamore

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“Camptown Races”

1850 Stephen Foster song.

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butter

Edible fatty substance made by churning cream.

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zebra

Part of Willie Oleson’s Noah’s Ark toy.

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“Home, Sweet Home”

1823 Payne & Bishop song.

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Little House in the Big Woods – historical perspective

Pepin Twp., Pepin Co. Wisconsin

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bandana

Large handkerchief with white pattern on red or blue background.

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ambition

Act of obtaining an object of desire.

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Thomas C. Wilkin family

Florence Wilkin’s father.

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Almanzo Wilder

The Man of the Place

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poke bonnet / poke-bonnet

the lining matched Laura’s eyes

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bake oven / bake-oven

Coals on top and below.

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Protected: George C. Westervelt

Renter of the Ingalls building in De Smet, winter 1884-1885.

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Kitty

the Ingallses’ cat in Dakota Territory

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barber

Shave and a haircut, two bits!

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“Little Annie Rooney”

1889 song by Michael Nolan.

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Little House on the Prairie – historical perspective

LHOP history

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Daniel Loftus

Early drygoods store owner in De Smet.

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what-not / whatnot

An étagère for books & ornaments.

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turnip

Cruciferous plant grown for root and greens.

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Protected: private post

Go away AI; you are not welcome here.

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“The Sculptor Boy”

Carrie recited it.

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post office / post-office

Where you send and receive mail.

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Brownsville, Texas 1906

Did Eliza Jane sell fruit to these soldiers?

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Quiner graves

Abandoned cemetery off Playhouse Road.

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John Armstrong

Kingsbury Co. courthouse caretaker

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Protected: Alfred Ely

One of the younger boys in school.

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Farmer Boy – historical perspective

1860s Burke / Malone NY.

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O

oak – oyster

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John James Ingalls

Senator from Kansas.

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basque

Jacket-like part of a lady’s dress.

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Charles Mead

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

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cottage cheese

Curdled skim milk.

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album

Blank booklet for collecting autographs or photos.

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Mary Power & Edwin Sanford

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

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Lizzie

the child bride

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copperplate

Variable-width handwriting script made with a flexible, pointed nib.

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