Today In History: Remembering Laura Ingalls Wilder

"There was thin snow on the ground. The air was still and cold and dark. The bare trees stood against the frosty stars. But in the east the sky was pale and through the gray woods came lanterns with wagons and horses, bringing Grandpa and Grandma and aunts and uncles and cousins." -- - Laura Ingalls Wilder, Little House on the Prairie, p. 2.

Known for her children's books in the series, Little House on the Prairie, Laura Ingalls Wilder (February 7,1867 - February 10, 1957) was a beloved American writer who grew up in the American Midwest. She began teaching at the age of 15 in one-room schoolhouses -- while she was attending school -- before marrying at age 18 homesteader Almanzo Wilder. After the birth of their daughter Rose, Laura Ingalls Wilder started recording her childhood experiences and fashioned her novels, with encouragement from her family, on the lives of pioneers in the mid 1800s. Despite her husband's ill health, farming (wheat, poultry, dairy, and fruit) and writing (including journalism) provided for their living on a 40 acre estate, often in times of hardship.

Laura Ingalls Wilder is remembered for her charming, picturesque portrayal of life on the American frontier. Her books inspired the eponymous popular television series which was set in Plum Creek, near Walnut Grove, Minnesota, and starred Melissa Gilbert, as Laura, and Michael Landon, as Laura's father, Charles Ingalls. 

 The following articles are drawn from Proquest Historical Newspapers, which informs and inspires classroom teaching and learning.

• Laura Ingalls Wilder Dies; Wrote 'Little House' Books. (1957, Feb 12). New York Herald Tribune (1926-1962) 
• Reich, H. (1980, Oct 03). 'Little House' Stories Inspire Library Festival. Chicago Tribune (1963-1996) 
• The Loose-Leaf Library: Laura Ingalls Wilder's Pa On Success. (1986, Aug 19). The Christian Science Monitor (1908-) 
• Hughes, C. (1988, Sep 11). Land That Inspired Laura Ingalls Wilder's 'Little House'. Chicago Tribune (1963-1996) 
• Summers, K C . (1988, Dec 11). Pilgrim On the Prarie: On the Midwest Trail Of Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little Houses. The Washington Post (1974-) 
• Hines, S. W., & Lynn Van Matre, A. T. W. (1994, Sep 14). Fresh Tales Of Laura Ingalls Wilder: 'I Remember Laura'. Chicago Tribune (1963-1996) 
• McNamara, M.  (1999, May 05). Lady Of the 'House': The Fresh Voice Of Laura Ingalls Wilder Echoes Through New and Ever-Popular Stories Of the Homesteading Family. Los Angeles Times (1996-) 
• Sawyer, J. (2006, Mar 07). Early Writings From the 'Little House' Author: Letters and Diaries Of Laura Ingalls Wilder. The Christian Science Monitor (1908-) 
• A 'Little House' Anniversary. (2010, Apr 01). New Journal and Guide (1916-) 
• Boland, R. (2014, Dec 15). Hard Truths Behind Wilder's Little House: Fans Of Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House Books Will Treasure Her Autobiography, Which Illuminates the Stories and Spares No Details of the Pioneers' Difficult Lives. The Irish Times (1921-) 

“There was only the enormous, empty prairie, with grasses blowing in waves of light and shadow across it, and the great blue sky above it, and birds flying up from it and singing with joy because the sun was rising. And on the whole enormous prairie there was no sign that any other human being had ever been there.”-- Laura Ingalls Wilder, Little House on the Prairie, p. 25.

 Tips:

• Cather, Willa. O Pioneers! Lincoln : University of Nebraska Press, 2020. e-book
• Hollingworth, Leta Stetter. Prairie Years : Verse. New York: [Columbia University Press], 1940. e-book

• Wilder, Laura Ingalls. Dear Laura : Letters from Children to Laura Ingalls Wilder. New York: HarperCollins, 1996.  Juvenile  PS3545.I342 Z48 1996
• Wilder, Laura Ingalls, and Stephen W. Hines. Laura Ingalls Wilder, Farm Journalist Writings from the Ozarks. Columbia: University of Missouri Press, 2007. e-book
• Wilder, Laura Ingalls, and Helen. Sewell. Little House on the Prairie. Newly illustrated, uniform edition. New York: Harper, 1935. Closed Stacks Juv PZ7.W6461 Lit 1935
• Wilder, Laura Ingalls, Helen Sewell, and Helen. Sewell. Little House in the Big Woods. New York ;: Harper & Brothers, 1932. Closed Stacks Juv PZ7.W6461 Li 1932
• See other books by Laura Ingalls Wilder.

Images:

• Winter Sunset on Little Falls Lake at Willow River State Park, Wisconsin, Courtesy Wikimedia Commons
• Hythecker Prairie, by Joseph Mayer, Flickr, (CC BY-SA 2.0)
• Book Cover, Little House on the Prairie, Illustration by Helen Sewell
• Laura Ingalls Wilder, Courtesy Wikimedia Commons

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