wanderluster

Did an extensive search (including here) and found these locations where Laura Ingalls Wilder of Little House fame lived.
Pepin, WI

Independence, KS

Walnut Grove, MN

Mansfield, MO (BEST location?)

DeSmet, SD (BEST location?)

Wondered if anyone could give updated or additional feedback as to which is best, easiest access (i.e. close to highways) or anything else relevant.

Thanks in advance.

FainaAgain

I, too, like the movie, but I'd go to a location where it was filmed not where she lived, unless there is a museum.

littlehouse

I live near Mansfield, MO and there's Wilder Days every year in the Fall.

Here's some links that may help you. http://www.umkc.edu/imc/wilder.htm and http://www.lauraingallswilderhome.com/main.htm

wanderluster

Thank you for the sites littlehouse, they were very helpful.

ElendilPickle

We've been to Mansfield twice, and I've loved it each time. If you've checked the links, you've found that Mansfield is the location of the Laura Ingalls Wilder Home and Museum. When Laura, Almanzo, and Rose left South Dakota, they moved to Mansfield, and Laura wrote the Little House books there.

The museum is very nice, and we enjoyed the house tour as well.

I think DeSmet and Mansfield have more to see than the other sites, from what I recall reading. One of these days I'd like to visit all the Laura sites!

Lee Ann

PaulRabe

I read the "Little House" books decades before they were a TV show, and have thus visited almost everything connected with Laura. What I've found:

Pepin WISC -- a marker, nothing more.
Burr Oak IOWA -- a marker on a reconstructed building.
Independence KANS -- haven't been.
Walnut Grove MINN -- interesting place because the early books took place there. Nothing much original from her life remains. The life shown as taking place in Walnut Grove in the TV show much more resembles DeSmet
DeSmet SD -- a few original buildings from her life remain, as well as grave sites of her parents and a sibling. This is where she lived the longest time. Tie for best place.
Mansfield MISS -- Laura's home for decades, as well as her grave site and where she wrote her books. Tied with best.

All places are easily accessible by major highways, but not interstates.

jor

I thought the TV show was interesting and I watched it a lot. However it was filmed in California which looks nothing like the countryside of southern Minnesota.

I was watching one of the episodes back in the 70's when the family was at the the little farm house table for breakfast. I could not believe what the mother asked her daughters. "Would you like Orange Juice for breakfast?" as she put it on the table. No way would there be orange juice in a farm household on the praire in the upper midwest in the 1800's. Did anyone else catch this goof?