Woman of the Week: Laura Ingalls Wilder

written by Emma Bartley

As a kid, did you ever read the Little House on the Prairie books? Then you read something by Laura Ingalls Wilder!

Laura Ingalls Wilder was born on February 7, 1867, in a log cabin in Wisconsin, which would later be known as “The Little House in the Big Woods” in her autobiographical books. When she was two years old, her family moved to Kansas.

Wilder was one of five children; she had an old sister named Mary, two younger sisters named Carrie and Grace, and a younger borther named Charles, who died at nine months.

As a child, Wilder’s family moved from place to place. She described her childhood as “full of sunshine and shadow.” Because they moved so often, Wilder and her siblings often taught themselves. They attended local schools when they could.

Her family needed extra money after her older sister became blind, so Laura decided to become a teacher herself. In 1882, at just 15 years old, she received her teaching certificate. She began teaching in a one-room schoolhouse called Bouchie School 12 miles from her parents’ home. During her time teaching there, her parents often sent a family friend named Almanzo Wilder to pick her up and bring her home for the weekend.

Over their twelve mile wagon rides home, Laura and Almanzo fell in love. In 1885, they got married in South Dakota. Laura quit teaching to help Almanzo work the farm. In 1886, Laura gave birth to a daughter, Rose. In 1889, she had a son who died after only a month. A little after that, Almanzo was partially paralyzed after contracting a disease. Then, in 1890, their home burned to the ground.

“Every job is good if you do your best and work hard. A man who works hard stinks only to the ones that have nothing to do but smell.”

In 1894, the Wilders settled on a 200-acre farm in Missouri. There, they built a farmhouse, raised livestock, and did their farm work.

In the 1920s, Wilder tried writing an autobiography for the first time, called Pioneer Girl, but it was rejected. Wilder was determined to succeed, though, and spent several years reworking her writing.

In 1932, Laura Wilder published Little House in the Big Woods, the first book in her children’s series. Wilder finished her last book in the “Little House” series in 1943 when she was 76 years old.

On February 10, 1957, Laura Ingalls Wilder died on her farm. After her death, her daughter Rose edited and published several works based on her mother’s diary and manuscripts.

A TV series based on Wilder’s stories debuted in 1974 and ran for nine seasons. People across the US watched together as actress Melissa Gilbert, who portrayed Wilder, grew up on screen.

Laura Ingalls Wilder inspired generations of readers because of her courage and optimism. Laura connected with people through her books, and she will always be remembered as a literary legend.

“It is the sweet, simple things of life which are the real ones after all.”