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Discover the Pioneer Spirit: Top 9 Fun Facts About Laura Ingalls Wilder

illustration of laura-ingalls-wilder
Dive into the fascinating world of Laura Ingalls Wilder, the beloved author who brought the enchanting pioneer days to life in her Little House novels, and discover some remarkable tidbits that make her story even more captivating!

1. Great-great-grandma of Google Translate

Who knew that Laura Ingalls Wilder was the great-great-grandmother of Google Translate? This prairie queen's stories have made their way across the globe, and transcended all language barriers, leaving her legions of fans clamoring for mullets and butter churning: By having their beloved Little House series translated into 40 different languages, these cherished tales continue to infuse their magic worldwide. Even Mrs. Bush, a lifetime admirer, played her part by securing the Laura Ingalls Wilder Historic Home and Museum as a Save America's Treasures project, ensuring the conservation of its valuable artifacts for generations to enjoy.
Source => georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov

2. Tim McGraw's Prairie-loving Daughters

Who knew Tim McGraw's daughters had a hankering for the pioneer life: they adored Laura Ingalls Wilder's books, reading them together as a family, but curiously steered clear of the TV adaptations of Little House on the Prairie and The Waltons, proving they won't settle for anything less than the real literary deal.
Source => self.com

3. Lemonades and Dairy Success

When life gives Laura Ingalls Wilder lemons, she made milk: Laura and her husband Almanzo didn't just dabble in poultry farming but churned their way into success with a full-fledged dairy operation, alongside raising fowls and growing fruit at their Rocky Ridge Farm in Missouri.
Source => littlehouseontheprairie.com

4. Minimalist Wedding Garb

If the phrase "dress to impress" had a minimalist cousin with a penchant for practicality, it would be Laura Ingalls Wilder's wedding garb game: The famed author walked down the aisle in her best black dress, her old sage-green poke bonnet with a blue silk lining, and borrowed Ma's square gold pin with a strawberry design, nailing the "something borrowed" and "something old" traditions without breaking the bank.
Source => thebluestockingdressmaker.blogspot.com

Mother-Daughter Editing Tension

5. Mother-Daughter Editing Tension

When the "Little Cheese" gets help from the "Big Cheese": Laura Ingalls Wilder and her daughter Rose Wilder Lane worked together in editing the beloved Little House books, transforming them fashionably into novels. This collaboration, while fruitful, did bring a side dish of tension, as Rose even went so far as to warn her mother that declining the collaboration would be her final frontier in the book world.
Source => vanityfair.com

6. Globetrotting Prairie Adventures

Who knew that Laura Ingalls Wilder was such a trailblazing globetrotter without ever setting foot outside of America? From Catalan to Welsh, her adventures have spanned the globe in more languages than you can shake a covered-wagon hitch at: Little House on the Prairie has been translated into a whopping 41 languages, though not all books in the series have made their multilingual debut yet.
Source => laurasprairiehouse.com

7. Wedding Vows Rebellion

Here comes the bride, all "dressed" in defiance: Laura Ingalls Wilder took a stand during her wedding vows, refusing to utter the word "obey" as she believed she couldn't follow anyone's orders if they clashed with her own judgement.
Source => susannahfullerton.com.au

8. Benjamin Button Author

Bet you didn't know Laura Ingalls Wilder moonlighted as a modern-day Benjamin Button, dabbling her quill in a backwards aging potion just for kicks: In truth, this literary whiz published her maiden magnum opus, Little House in the Big Woods, at the ripe age of 65, following a diverse career as a teacher, journalist, and farmer's wife.
Source => aphmuseum.org

9. Needlework Extraordinaire

They say a stitch in time saves nine, but Laura Ingalls Wilder’s needlework could save even the most fashionably hopeless attire: Laura was a master embroiderer, creating intricate lace collars and cuffs of her era, and was so skillful that her work was featured in magazines.
Source => historicalnovelsociety.org

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