When I post my video diaries I always get comments about my Laura clothes. No, not my period dresses, but my Laura Ingalls Wilder t-shirts that I wear for travel and Laura trips. I thought everyone might enjoy a closer look at them. So enjoy our monthly series where we look at a Laura shirt.
Shirt of the Month
Here’s this month’s shirt:
Full View of De Smet Pageant Shirt
This shirt comes from the last year’s big celebration in De Smet. 2021 marked 50 years since the first pageant came out. It started because of the Hallmark radio show.
Close Up of Logo
Aubrey Sherwood bought the rights to put on the play and the very first pageant followed that script. The shirt was sold last year as part of their celebration. It’s a great logo.
That original performance is available widely on the Internet even though rights are very complicated for any radio show of the kind and I don’t think the copies out are legal. It is also the only place not directly connected with the TV show that pronounces Almanzo as Almonzo.
You Can Get It
This was a limited time offering so it isn’t still available, but every time you hear of an event at a Laura homesite check with them because most of them have a limited run shirt in honor of the event.
Sarah S. Uthoff is a nationally known Laura Ingalls Wilder authority and has presented at five of the Wilder homesites, many times at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum, many conferences and numerous libraries, museums, and events around the Midwest. She is the main force behind Trundlebed Tales fighting to bring the History, Mystery, Magic, and Imagination of Laura Ingalls Wilder and other greats of children’s literature and history to life for a new generation. How can you help? Attend one of her programs, schedule one yourself, watch her videos, listen to her podcast, look at her photos, and find her on Facebook , Twitter , LinkedIn , SlideShare, and Academia.edu . Professionally she is a reference librarian at Kirkwood Community College and former director of the Oxford (Iowa) Public Library.
I only got one video posted in November 2022. I hope to do better for December. This is part of my new series of videos “Where to Drive and Why.” Each one takes a place in a Laura homesite town and shows you how to find it and why you want to see it.
Drive to Wilder Land: Where to Drive and Why
When you are in De Smet, South Dakota on your Laura Ingalls Wilder Trip, head north of town and drive out to the Almanzo Wilder homestead and Laura and Manly’s tree claim. Head north on South Dakota State Highway 25 and drive outside of town. Watch for the brown historic marker on the left and then 1 and 1/2 miles further north find the Almanzo Wilder Airport on the left with Almanzo’s remaining tree claim trees just south of the airport.
And those are my videos from this month. I hope you enjoy them and that you’ll want to subscribe to my channel and watch for more.
Sarah S. Uthoff is a nationally known Laura Ingalls Wilder authority and has presented at five of the Wilder homesites, many times at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum, many conferences and numerous libraries, museums, and events around the Midwest. She is the main force behind Trundlebed Tales fighting to bring the History, Mystery, Magic, and Imagination of Laura Ingalls Wilder and other greats of children’s literature and history to life for a new generation. How can you help? Attend one of her programs, schedule one yourself, watch her videos, listen to her podcast, look at her photos, and find her on Facebook , Twitter , LinkedIn , SlideShare, and Academia.edu . Professionally she is a reference librarian at Kirkwood Community College and former director of the Oxford (Iowa) Public Library.
Sarah S. Uthoff is a nationally known Laura Ingalls Wilder authority and has presented at five of the Wilder homesites, many times at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum, many conferences and numerous libraries, museums, and events around the Midwest. She is the main force behind Trundlebed Tales fighting to bring the History, Mystery, Magic, and Imagination of Laura Ingalls Wilder and other greats of children’s literature and history to life for a new generation. How can you help? Attend one of her programs, schedule one yourself, watch her videos, listen to her podcast, look at her photos, and find her on Facebook , Twitter , LinkedIn , SlideShare, and Academia.edu . Professionally she is a reference librarian at Kirkwood Community College and former director of the Oxford (Iowa) Public Library.
Whether you are looking for the perfect present for the Laura Ingalls Wilder fan in your life or you want to know what to put on your own Christmas wish list, check out these suggestions!
This is the twelfth year I’ve put together a Laura Ingalls Wilder fan shopping guide. I redid the first post for basic gift ideas 2 years ago. I rewrote it and added a bunch of photos. Even if you have an established collection, take a look!
After you’ve read that first post, use this post to look for new items, other ideas, and a list of which Laura homesites are offering Christmas mail order and the cut off dates for shipping by Christmas this year. If you’d like to see videos of unboxing packages from the homesite giftshops, I’ve added a category of unboxing videos on my YouTube.
Trundlebed Tales encourages you to do at least a little Christmas shopping from the Laura homesites because they are all local museums, highly dependent on admissions and gift shop revenue to stay open and preserve the homesites for Laura fans, so do your part.
Some homesites have closed for the season completely others are still monitoring and answering their phone calls and e-mail fairly quickly. Walnut Grove, De Smet, and Mansfield are still active over the winter.
If you are buying from Amazon, make sure you go into Amazon Smile and they’ll donate part of cost to your selected charity – select a Laura Ingalls Wilder homesite.
And don’t forget you can also get your Laura fan gift memberships to the museums or a donation in your Laura fan’s name! Most of the presents that I suggested in 2014 , 2015 , 2016, 2017,2018, 2019 , 2020 , and 2021 are still available so take a look at previous shopping posts for more ideas.
With the pandemic some things won’t be available. Restocking has been hard for all the homesites this year. Be understanding when they don’t have stuff. They aren’t doing a calendar again for 2023. De Smet organized it and they have a different director so they may not pick it up again any time soon, but there is a lot of other great stuff.
Recent Books
The South Dakota State Historical Society Press published Laura’s previously unpublished memoir, Pioneer Girl, a few years back. It was a huge smash (they’re still selling well) and they almost immediately started work on a follow-up trilogy. The second of that trilogy has come out as Pioneer Girl: Revisited Texts. As part of Laura and Rose’s efforts to get Pioneer Girl published, several versions were created. This book compares the three versions for changes and maybe how and why changes were made. Nancy Koupal is in charge of the program and I had her on my podcast about it last January. Although the press started talking about as Pioneer Girl and a follow up trilogy, at some point they’ve switched to talking as if Pioneer Girl was number 1 in the series and the rest following as 2,3,4. Bear that in mind if you order from them directly and make sure you give the correct title.
Between now and December 7th you can get 40th percent off the book & while supplies last a tote bag decorated with the book cover.
Lately it seems like there is a cast member from the NBC TV show rolling out a new book almost every year (last year 2 of them). So the new book this year is the third by Melissa Gilbert. Gilbert had covered her early life and career in her two previous books and this time she’s writing about her life since she married actor Timothy Busfield (Thirtysomething). They moved away from Hollywood first to Michigan and then on to rural New York where she has embraced what she considers a simple life. It was that move that caused Gilbert to sell her main 3 pieces of memorabilia from Little House on the Prairie. Two of them, the fiddle used on the show and one of Mr. Edwards’s costumes, ended up in the Laura Ingalls Wilder museum in the real Walnut Grove, Minnesota. The third was her red dress costume from the show and it ended up in the hands of a private collector.
This isn’t a brand-new book, it came out 2 years ago, but I decided to give a shout-out to The Laura Ingalls Wilder Companion: A Chapter-By-Chapter Guide by Annette Whipple. Frankly it took me pretty much the whole year to decide what I think of it. Although some of the material is definitely original by Whipple, a lot of it – or at least very similar stuff – is available from a number of other books. BUT I’ve decided that I should be recommending it more. I was looking at it from my perspective, but a lot of those books you could find this Laura stuff in? They’re no longer in print and you’d have to know they exist to search online for used copies. Those of you who don’t have a building to keep your Laura collection in? This book streamlines down to one 75-page summary what would take you half a shelf or more to store the books you’d have to have to find it otherwise. Being pretty new it’s available everywhere and if you’re just starting to adventure beyond Laura’s original books and the basic Laura biographies by William Anderson and John E. Miller, this is a GREAT place to start. You can always add to your collection later if you want more.
Selected Laura Letters
Does your favorite Laura fan have a copy of The Selected Letters of Laura Ingalls Wilder by William Anderson yet? If not, make sure they get a Christmas copy! Find it at any of the homesites. Any Williams book is always a great selection. This one has been out a few years now, but if your fan doesn’t have it, they really need it.
Oh Christmas Tree!
De Smet says this one only has 3 left!
Do you think a Christmas tree ornament is the perfect way to celebrate the holiday? Laura homesites have you covered. The new one this year comes out of the De Smet Memorial Society. They have added another china ornament to their collection. They are letting some of them go out of production so if you want a complete set be sure to get them while you can! They also have a metal ornament featuring 3 of their key buildings, the Surveyors’ House, the First School of De Smet, and the Ingalls Home that stand in De Smet, South Dakota.
There are specific ornaments by homesite including a wooden hand-painted one from Walnut Grove and the painted ball ornaments (each site only sells their own) available from many of the homesites. Mansfield is focused on its metal ornaments. The Ingalls Homestead is really focusing on Christmas stuff, including ornaments, books, and tin cups!
The Shirt Off Your Back
Walnut Grove does some of the coolest t-shirts in both quality and design. This shirt is my favorite one from this year. It comes with same design on both blue and red shirts. Mansfield also has an official Wilder Days shirt this year which I loved.
Mansfield has a wide collection of T-shirts because besides their normal homesite shirts, they carry them for their Laura Ingalls Wilder Children’s Literature Festival and for the Fiddle Contest shirts. This year they had one specifically for Wilder Days. In addition, they have zipped front sweatshirts.
All the homesites offer t-shirts and this type of “Laura clothes” everyone needs.
Whoa Nellie!
Alison Arngrim, Nellie Oleson the TV show, is one of the most active with the fandom. She offered daily readings to Laura fans daily via her Facebook page during the pandemic. Apparently a lot of the people tuning in were surprised that you can buy bonnets and tin cups. She has been doing a brisk business. She has some Christmas stuff on her website.
Wendi Lou Lee’s Eric Caron Designed Christmas Card
Wendi Lou Lee (Grace Ingalls on the NBC TV show) also has a shop. She’s selling copies of her book A Prairie Devotional and some crafts. This year she has introduced 2 new products for Christmas. One is a card designed by Eric Caron and the other an ornament on a slice of tree branch with two girls walking on it.
Another product are the Beadle Bags created by Charlotte Stewart each is unique. If you have a TV show fan in your life, they’ll probably want one.
Put the China Shepherdess on the Mantle
Mansfield Shepherdess – Photo courtesy of Laura Ingalls Wilder Home and Museum
What makes the Ingalls family a home? One thing is the china shepherdess. Do you want one for your house? There are currently 3 different designs available. Three of the Laura homesites (Mansfield, Walnut Grove, and Independence) have each introduced their own new version of the shepherdess. They cost about the same. Watch me unbox the shepherdesses from Independence and Mansfield.
With Rings on Her Fingers…
Walnut Grove has been offering a duplicate of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s engagement ring for sometime. It’s designed following what’s believed to be the one Almanzo bought her from the Montgomery Ward catalog. The cost is a little expensive (much more than Manly paid), but as many complements as I get when I wear mine, it’s a perfect gift! It’s always worth another shout out!
Cat’s Meow!
Lauri Goforth is the Cat’s Meow star! At least she should feel like she is because it was her efforts last year that lead the company to roll out a new set of Laura Ingalls Wilder figures to go with what they originally had in 1998. Mansfield is still selling their two set pieces from the 1998 batch.
Watch me unbox them!
Don’t Leave Home Without It!
The big new addition last year was a Laura passport. This passport is a multi-site opportunity to get stamps as you visit each Laura site. Learn more about the sites and get a stamp to show where you’ve been! They are available now at most of the Laura homesites. (Honestly, I was busy enough I didn’t get it taken along this summer, but I look forward to getting all the stamps.)
Passport, Photo Courtesy of Burr Oak
Laura, an American Master
Laura Ingalls Wilder: Prairie to Page is the documentary about Laura from American Masters. I’ve been told it’s one of their most viewed ever. The great news is that it’s available on DVD and Amazon Prime. You NEED a copy.
Queen’s Treasures
When Friendly Films and their Little House on the Prairie TV show started authorizing products again one of the first things licensed was a set of dolls and accessories for a Laura doll. They have everything from a covered wagon to all the miniature equipment you need to fill it up. You can outfit your doll in a typical pioneer dress or in one based on Laura’s good dress from the TV show. Last year they rolled out a second doll so now you can purchase both Laura and Mary. And be sure to check out their TV show house shaped Advent calendars. Watch for sales, they’ve had some pretty good ones so far this year.
Queen’s Treasures also have rolled out a different type of doll this year. They have itty bitty little bears made to look like the Ingalls family and the Oleson family a la the TV show. They come with playsets including a play building, furniture, and even little quilts.
Some Homesite Highlights
The Ingalls Homestead recommends keeping an eye on their update page. They also have a Christmas themed page in their online store. One of their most popular items every Christmas is their version of Laura and Mary’s Christmas presents from their year in Independence, Kansas. They also have a South Dakota handcrafted page – which has a Nettie rag doll (Mary’s childhood doll) which is definitely a unique present.
One of the most exciting things about Pepin’s store for fans of the “Little House” picture books is that Pepin now is selling high quality prints of Renee Graef’s illustrations. There are several and appear in different sizes. Another cool thing is that they are now selling private label honey and maple syrup. Take a look around their web store! I haven’t been to very many of the gift shops this year, but I think Pepin is in the lead to take the cutest stuffed version of Jack.
For Burr Oak you can shop online through their website or at http://www.shopiowa.com (although the selection is much better and more items on our website). Shopiowa limits the vendor to sell only 25 items and they have more than double that on their website. You can still shop their regular online store. Right now they have low inventory on some of their gift shop items. They plan to re-order in February.
Watch the Walnut Grove Facebook page for specials. They’re really pleased with their clothing line. They have some long-sleeve t-shirts with hoods available in blue or black.
Almanzo and Star the Calf Puppets from Spring Valley
The Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial Society in De Smet has a special Christmas patterned “Tea for 1” set decorated with Christmas holly. It’s a giant cup and small teapot. Not sure what exactly to get? De Smet has put together themed “goody boxes” for both adults and children. Finally if you don’t have a copy of Laura Ingalls Wilder and Education in Kingsbury County by Nancy S. Cleaveland, get one from De Smet.
Spring Valley, which always focuses on having non-typical things, is still the home of the best “American Girl”/”Queen’s Treasures”/Other 18-inch doll dresses. Walnut Grove out does them in accessories. They’ve also rolled out a great series of puppets.
Laura and Jack Puppets from Spring Valley
If you love “18-inch dolls” aka “American Girl Doll Size”, Thimbles and Acorns has been printing dress patterns for specific doll dresses. There are publications of various lengths and with patterns around various themes. Most of the homesite giftshops have them now.
Malone has continued to offer limited products in the Almanzo Wilder farmstead Facebook shop. You can also shop their full online store. Malone is really focusing on getting new members this Christmas. They’ve been raising interest with readings by Dean Butler and if you become a new member you’ll get a special new Christmas themed recording by him. Malone is still the best place to find a tin lantern if you’re looking for a cheaper, mass-produced tin lantern (like Ma uses in Little House in the Big Woods), they have a selection of different designs. In their new to the giftshop section they have “I Found the Chicken” t-shirts which kid visitors to the farm will recognize. It was a big year for ball caps they have a new one, also.
Mansfield has some great things this season. The best thing is that they’ve got some first edition copies of the Rose Years books. They’ve created a great wood box to sell them as a set. They have specialized soy candles in both 9 oz and 12 oz candles flavored (Lemon Verbena, Almanzo’s Prize Pumpkin, Big Woods, Ma’s Apple Pie). They’ve also rolled out some new clothes including sweatshirts and ball caps.
When I teach one-room school sessions I’ve been surprised by questions about where to buy McGuffey’s Readers after I tell them they are still in print. (102 years of reprints and counting after they fell out of print for about 20 years.) You can find them online at Pepin (under Books keep clicking show more until they show up, it’s a long way down) and Mansfield (note the covers that are all brown are the 1830s edition and the blue/orange-ish covers are 1890s-ish).
I recommend contacting the sites by e-mail or online store instead of by phone, except where noted. I had a little more wait time getting answers to e-mails this year. If you want to order in person or want to be sure there is someone there if you have questions; Walnut Grove, the Memorial Society in De Smet, and Mansfield still have open gift shops.
Check out the shipping dates from the United States Postal Service, if you have a question about shipping dates.
Ingalls Homestead Online Store Phone: 1-800-776-3594
FREE SHIPPING Deadline – 7AM CST, Saturday December 17, 2022.
There is a chance that orders placed by 8AM CST, Monday, December 19, 2022 will arrive before Christmas. Your readers can send a quick message to double check that weekend.
USPS Priority Mail Deadline – 10AM CST, Monday December 19, 2022
USPS Express (2-Day for most locations from De Smet) Deadline – 10AM CST Thursday, December 22, 2022
UPS 3-Day Deadline – 8AM CST Tuesday, December 20, 2022
UPS 2-Day Deadline – 8AM CST Wednesday, December 21, 2022
Loftus Store Online Store
Phone: 605-854-3773 Call to order
Last Day for Priority – Didn’t give a date use your own judgment
Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum (Store not online)
wilderinspringvalley@hotmail.com
Recommends using e-mail to order for Christmas, but you may want to include your phone number in the e-mail so they can get back to you with questions quickly.
Last Day for Priority – December 16, 2022
The best way for people to shop during the winter is through the website gift shop and then pay through Paypal. You can email the museum with questions. They are no longer accepting checks for orders because of some bad check incidents.
Pepin WI
Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum Online Store Best to order online, but can also reach by phone 715-513-6383, or by sending a letter. Neither museum nor gift shop is open during the winter.
Last Day for Priority – Didn’t give a date use your own judgment
Sarah S. Uthoff is a nationally known Laura Ingalls Wilder authority and has presented at five of the Wilder homesites, many times at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum, many conferences and numerous libraries, museums, and events around the Midwest. She is the main force behind Trundlebed Tales fighting to bring the History, Mystery, Magic, and Imagination of Laura Ingalls Wilder and other greats of children’s literature and history to life for a new generation. How can you help? Attend one of her programs, schedule one yourself, watch her videos, listen to her podcast, look at her photos, and find her on Facebook , Twitter , LinkedIn , SlideShare, and Academia.edu . Professionally she is a reference librarian at Kirkwood Community College and former director of the Oxford (Iowa) Public Library.
I’ll always have a soft spot for Pepin because it was the very first Laura homesite that I ever visited. I’ve gotten to know it very well with yearly visits and posted about Pepin often, so there might not seem like there would be a lot new to say. But I had a great time this year and there have been some changes. There is an entire new wing between the formerly separate buildings that made up the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum. One of the best known bed and breakfasts has sadly closed. They’ve added a Cousin Charlie to the Little Miss Laura competition. What else? You’ll have to watch to find out.
Kitchen in Pepin Museum
Video Diaries for Pepin Laura Days Trip 2013
Laura Ingalls Wilder Birthplace Wayside Cabin 2013 – a one minute short video of the replica cabin in Pepin, WI sent to organ music.
Some of the actors from the NBC Little House on the Prairie TV series are more involved in the fandom than others. Dean Butler is one who is really involved. Butler has a special connection with the Almanzo Wilder Farm in Malone/Burke, New York. He has done a special documentary for them, Almanzo Wilder: Life Before Laura, and worked with them on a couple of fundraisers. Between now and Christmas he’s working on another fundraising project with them.
Butler took over reading for Alison Arngrim (Nellie Oleson) for a couple of books during Arngrim‘s multi-year reading project. Today Butler announced that on Thanksgiving Day, 11am EST and 10am CST he’ll be doing a reading from Farmer Boy, then four more between now and Christmas. If you join the Almanzo Wilder Farm you’ll get a special holiday download. Watch their Facebook page for more details as they come.
UPDATED November 30 2022: We have the dates of the next readings:
Sarah S. Uthoff is a nationally known Laura Ingalls Wilder authority and has presented at five of the Wilder homesites, many times at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum, many conferences and numerous libraries, museums, and events around the Midwest. She is the main force behind Trundlebed Tales fighting to bring the History, Mystery, Magic, and Imagination of Laura Ingalls Wilder and other greats of children’s literature and history to life for a new generation. How can you help? Attend one of her programs, schedule one yourself, watch her videos, listen to her podcast, look at her photos, and find her on Facebook , Twitter , LinkedIn , SlideShare, and Academia.edu . Professionally she is a reference librarian at Kirkwood Community College and former director of the Oxford (Iowa) Public Library.
Community Christmas Tree from Hoover Presidential Library Christmas Tree Exhibit 2010
Here are the Christmas Laura plays from this year. I hope you can attend one. Look for next year’s list and be sure to tell your local theaters that these plays are available.
Christmas Plays and Laura – An Annual Tradition
It’s time to get in the mood for the holidays and for many families attending a Laura Ingalls Wilder play. There are five titles that are currently running on the circuit.
A Laura Ingalls Wilder Christmas by Laurie Brooks
A Little House Christmas by James DeVita
Melodies and Memories of Laura Ingalls Wilder by Laree Fletcher Florence
A Little House Christmas at Plum Creek by Lisa Cordes
Patchwork – the Life of Laura Ingalls Wilder
I’ve only found productions of the two of these works this year, but I’ve included information for all five in case you want to encourage a local theater group to put one on for next year. Remind them there are only SO many versions of A Christmas Carol they can do and one of these might make a fun change.
It doesn’t really have a strong Christmas connection Little House on the Prairie: The Musical is also available for production and has a couple of shows in or nearing production.
Little House on the Prairie: The Musical
This play was originally opened at the Guthrie and had an international tour. Then lay fallow for about 10 years before rights were released for purchase for local production groups. I try to keep track of productions if you find out about one, please let me know. I missed several this spring and I’m only including back to October on this list since that’s the start of Christmas shopping season. If you missed it at any of these locations and would go to see it – tell them! Sometimes theaters remount popular plays if people ask for them.
Elkhart, IN
Friday, Oct. 14th 7:30pm
Saturday, Oct. 15th 7:30pm
Sunday, Oct. 16th 3:00pm
The Lerner Theatre
Fergus, Ontario, Canada October 21-23, and 28-30, 2022
I don’t have much information on this one except that it did have a booking as recently as 2019.
No current productions this year.
North Alabama Christmas Market – Cotton Gin at Roberson Farm, Rogersville, AL
December 3-4, 2022
Admission to the North Alabama Christmas Market is $10, children 12 & under are free! Please have your cash ready as it helps with the lines getting in.
Cast members from the Little House on the Prairie will be:
Dean Bulter (Almanzo Wilder),
Charlotte Stewart (Miss Beadle),
Patrick Labyorteaux (Andy Garvey),
Wendi Lou Lee (Baby Grace Ingalls) &
Pamela Roylance (Sarah Carter).
Each cast member will have autographed pictures for sell for $20 each. If you have an item to autograph of your own, it is $10, per signature. They will also have CDs, Books, and other fun collectibles.
General Admission tickets for Saturday & Sunday for the North Alabama Christmas Market are only sold at the gate! The actors will be at the Christmas Market both days.
We will have vendors both inside & outside of the old Cotton Gin. You will find everything from Vintage/Antiques to homemade crafts! AND lots of great food vendors.
Now, here are the limited ticket events:
Presale tickets for the Saturday “Early Bird”
Event are now on presale! Only 500 will be sold! These tickets get you in at 8:30 am!
Sarah S. Uthoff is a nationally known Laura Ingalls Wilder authority and has presented at five of the Wilder homesites, many times at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum, many conferences and numerous libraries, museums, and events around the Midwest. She is the main force behind Trundlebed Tales fighting to bring the History, Mystery, Magic, and Imagination of Laura Ingalls Wilder and other greats of children’s literature and history to life for a new generation. How can you help? Attend one of her programs, schedule one yourself, watch her videos, listen to her podcast, look at her photos, and find her on Facebook , Twitter , LinkedIn , SlideShare, and Academia.edu . Professionally she is a reference librarian at Kirkwood Community College and former director of the Oxford (Iowa) Public Library.
Sarah as 1930s Laura at Hoover’s Laura Ingalls Wilder Christmas Tree Disply
December we have another spurt of Laura Ingalls Wilder events.
De Smet, South Dakota
“Christmas at the Ingalls Home” – Saturday, November 26, 2022 10:00 am – 3:00 pm
Join us for early holiday shopping plus a chance to tour the Ingalls House on 3rd Street free of charge. Stop at the Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial Society for your free ticket.
“A Barrel full of Christmas Memories Radio Play” – Saturday, December 10, 2022 5:00 pm
If you’ve enjoyed these radio plays in the past, you’ll be sure to enjoy this year’s. It will be broadcast live on Facebook, OR, you can grab tickets to watch it LIVE at the De Smet Event & Wellness Center in De Smet. Tickets are $20, call 605-854-6060 to buy.
Mansfield, Missouri
Christmas at Laura’s – Saturday, December 10, 2022 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Visit Rocky Ridge decorated for Christmas and get to take your photo by the fireplace.
Malone, New York
Christmas with Almanzo – Saturday, December 3, 2022 10:00 am – 2:00 pm
Children’s craft activities
Farmer Boy Christmas chapter readings
Carol singing.
Looking Ahead to 2024 – TV Show 50th Anniversary
50th Anniversary in Walnut Grove – Walnut Grove, MN – TBA
Sarah S. Uthoff is a nationally known Laura Ingalls Wilder authority and has presented at five of the Wilder homesites, many times at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum, many conferences and numerous libraries, museums, and events around the Midwest. She is the main force behind Trundlebed Tales fighting to bring the History, Mystery, Magic, and Imagination of Laura Ingalls Wilder and other greats of children’s literature and history to life for a new generation. How can you help? Attend one of her programs, schedule one yourself, watch her videos, listen to her podcast, look at her photos, and find her on Facebook , Twitter , LinkedIn , SlideShare, and Academia.edu . Professionally she is a reference librarian at Kirkwood Community College and former director of the Oxford (Iowa) Public Library.
I’ve been going through some old computer files and I found my speech from the 2012 LauraPalooza conference. I thought you might enjoy reading it. – SSU 2022
LauraPalooza Legacy Award 2012
Now I want to mention a little about the award. In July of 2009 the board met in De Smet, South Dakota to start planning the 2010 conference. One of the things we decided was a real need that hadn’t been met yet was to recognize some of the people who made major contributions to Laura Ingalls Wilder fandom. These are people who did research, people who got museums started, people who made it possible to have the Laura Ingalls Wilder experiences that we have today. We were also concerned because there were people who had made major contributions and then just drifted away. That’s a problem when you know someone through an organization sometimes they just drift away and you lose track of them. So while we still knew where people were we wanted to take the time to show our appreciation.
Our first recipient given at the 2010 conference was, of course Bill Anderson, I don’t think anyone needs any explanation of that. Bill has taught us all an incredible amount about Laura and if he hadn’t started doing research when he did, a lot more would have been lost. But Bill doesn’t get the award every year. So this year we have two people that we really wanted to come to the conference and give an award to, Barbara Walker and Shirley Knakmuhs.
Barbara Walker
Barbara Walker signing a T-shirt
The first recipient is Barbara Walker. Barbara Walker got involved in Laura Ingalls Wilder fandom kind of by accident. She was taking a trip heading to a family wedding and she decided they could pay for part of the trip if she could stop at a Laura homesite and get someone to pay her for writing an article about her trip . She got the New York Times. It was really a very early article about what there was available to see at the homesites and lead to a lot of people knowing that there was something to see in De Smet, South Dakota that had never known before. Well, she wanted to follow up from that and she did that by coming up with the idea of researching the food in the “Little House.” You need to remember, at this time, we’re talking the 1970s, HarperCollins was VERY protective of the property. Today they are quite willing to publish lots, but at THAT time they were really protective. There really had only been The Laura Ingalls Wilder Songbook by Eugenia Garson. This would be the first fully endorsed follow up. It proved so popular that it remained in hardback only for over 10 years before it came out in paperback. It also came out in two different language versions – in Japanese and in Danish.
Beyond Laura fandom it’s made a big impact in another big area I do research in – historic foodways. Lots of people who are leaders in historic foodways today have told me that their first book on history foodways was the Little House Cookbook. While I only got to meet Barbara in person today, I’ve known her through cards, letters, phone calls for a long time. She very kindly allowed me to interview her and at that point she said she didn’t think she’d be making any more Laura appearances so I’m doubly happy that she is here today.
Shirley Knakmuhs
We also have a second award winner this year, Shirley Knakmuhs. Although Shirley was not a native of Walnut Grove, Shirley jumped right into her adopted home and didn’t hesitate when a need was made apparent for something for the Laura Ingalls Wilder fans to do when the town suddenly found themselves “on the map” in 1974 thanks to the Little House on the Prairie TV show. Shirley can’t REALLY say she was there from the beginning, she missed the first meeting, but was there for the second and was on the board of the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum from October 29, 1974 until the late 2000s. She was also the Producer of the very first Wilder Pageant. This was the pageant they did in July in a hot high school gym. She is such a nice person she actually took me over there to see the gym on one trip. She served as Treasurer and Secretary for several years on the museum board, as director of the museum from 1974-1990, was the unofficial curator until an official Collections Manager was hired in the late 1990s, and still worked in whatever capacity needed until she retired in late 2006. Shirley was involved in every aspect of the museum, from public relations to packaging mail orders. She was a huge force behind creating the museum. She took the museum from no building, through time in an old service station, to a complex of buildings on the current grounds. She started the gift shop with bonnets her mother made from her old pattern. One of the things Shirley is most proud of was to be part of the group that got the official Laura Ingalls Wilder Historic Highway designation for the roads connecting the homesites. When she retired in 2006, she had dedicated 33 years of service to the Museum.
If you visited Walnut Grove on a Laura pilgrimage from the 1970s through the 2000s, you most likely saw Shirley. She was the main person to welcome you in the museum, played the pump organ in the chapel on the grounds, and for 17 years portrayed Mrs. Oleson in the Fragments of a Dream pageant taking a pie in the face every single night. Shirley even responded to Mrs. Oleson when children called out to her in the streets. Images of Shirley and her familiar blue dress are resting in family vacation photos tucked away in cherished albums all over the country. On a personal note I have known Shirley for many years and one of the things she did was take in weary researchers in Walnut Grove that has no motel and gave them a place to spend the night – me included. She truly was the face of Walnut Grove.
Thank you to both these strong women who helped forged the face of Laura Ingalls Wilder fandom.
Sarah S. Uthoff is a nationally known Laura Ingalls Wilder authority and has presented at five of the Wilder homesites, many times at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum, many conferences and numerous libraries, museums, and events around the Midwest. She is the main force behind Trundlebed Tales fighting to bring the History, Mystery, Magic, and Imagination of Laura Ingalls Wilder and other greats of children’s literature and history to life for a new generation. How can you help? Attend one of her programs, schedule one yourself, watch her videos, listen to her podcast, look at her photos, and find her on Facebook , Twitter , LinkedIn , SlideShare, and Academia.edu . Professionally she is a reference librarian at Kirkwood Community College and former director of the Oxford (Iowa) Public Library.
Laura Ingalls Wilder was married in 1885 and Laura, Manly, and Rose moved to Mansfield, Missouri in 1894. Around 1970 the BBC [the main British television station] brought in some women who had been teenage girls in Great Britain at that time. They talk about what their lives were like. Although it’s the same time, it’s a different country and an urban environment, but I thought you’d be interested in seeing what they are up to.
Sarah S. Uthoff is a nationally known Laura Ingalls Wilder authority and has presented at five of the Wilder homesites, many times at the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum, many conferences and numerous libraries, museums, and events around the Midwest. She is the main force behind Trundlebed Tales fighting to bring the History, Mystery, Magic, and Imagination of Laura Ingalls Wilder and other greats of children’s literature and history to life for a new generation. How can you help? Attend one of her programs, schedule one yourself, watch her videos, listen to her podcast, look at her photos, and find her on Facebook , Twitter , LinkedIn , SlideShare, and Academia.edu . Professionally she is a reference librarian at Kirkwood Community College and former director of the Oxford (Iowa) Public Library.
Lately it seems like there is a cast member from the NBC TV show rolling out a new book almost every year (last year 2 of them). So the new book this year is the third by Melissa Gilbert. Gilbert had covered her early life and career in her two previous books and this time she’s writing about her life since she married actor Timothy Busfield (Thirtysomething). They moved away from Hollywood first to Michigan and then on to rural New York where she has embraced what she considers a simple life. It was that move that caused Gilbert to sell her main 3 pieces of memorabilia from Little House on the Prairie. Two of them, the fiddle used on the show and one of Mr. Edwards’s costumes, ended up in the Laura Ingalls Wilder museum in the real Walnut Grove, Minnesota. The third was her red dress costume from the show and it ended up in the hands of a private collector.
Walnut Grove does some of the coolest t-shirts in both quality and design. This shirt is my favorite one from this year. It comes with same design on both blue and red shirts. Mansfield also has an official Wilder Days shirt this year which I loved.
Mansfield has some great things this season. The best thing is that they’ve got some first edition copies of the Rose Years books. They’ve created a great wood box to sell them as a set. They have specialized soy candles in both 9 oz and 12 oz candles flavored (Lemon Verbena, Almanzo’s Prize Pumpkin, Big Woods, Ma’s Apple Pie). They’ve also rolled out some new clothes including sweatshirts and ball caps.
Sarah's Notebook 