Little House on the Prairie

We decided to check out the Ingalls' settlement near Independence, KS.  This was the "Little House on the Prairie" that gives the series its name.  The Ingalls' lived here for only about a year; they were evicted by the government since there was some confusion about a treaty with the Osage.  There is some dispute about whether Charles Ingalls knew that the land was not available.  I don't want to go into that right now, but expect to come back to it later.

My first impression is that this part of eastern Kansas must look quite a bit different than it did during Laura's time.  The area is pretty lush and any area that is not under current cultivation is covered with trees.  Many of the trees are arranged in the straight lines typical of CCC trees that were planted to alleviate topsoil erosion during the Dust Bowl.  Many of the other trees seem to have grown up naturally, and form dense copses.  Even though Laura does describe some areas that were forested, I have the impression that the prairie was more open during the post-Civil War homesteading.  The Osage had a reputation for clearing land using fire, so it seems plausible that the trees are more dense now than they have been in a long time.

There are no original buildings on this site.  There are four buildings: a replica of the Ingalls' log home, a post office and a schoolhouse that were moved here from other Kansas sites, and a "farm house" that was built to house a gift shop.  They know where the house was, more or less, because they found the well that Pa dug.

I find that the replica house is actually quite interesting.  Since there are no actual artifacts, you can go in and sort of poke around.  The thing I always forget about these pioneer places is that they are dark.  Light comes in through the door, a very small window, and some cracks.  There would also be some light from the fire when they had it burning.  I think it is remarkable that the site that gives the most authentic feel is one that is almost completely artificial, but there you have it.

I also picked up a splendid book, John E. Miller's Becoming Laura Ingalls Wilder.  I have read some excerpts of this book, but never read the whole thing.  I am just now starting the book, so don't have that much to say.  It has some information about the politics of the Wilders, which he describes as more stridently anti-government than I had imagined.  He describes Almanzo chasing off an agent from the Department of Agriculture, saying, "God damn you, you get the hell off my land and you do it now" (199).

Miller's book seems to have even more biographical information than Little House, Long Shadow, and it is not burdened by an implausible thesis.