Visit Walnut Grove, MN, for the Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant
My wife and I had just been through a year of planning for our daughter’s wedding and it was now over. Feeling that we would need a change of pace, we had signed up, sometime before the wedding, to be part of a group of people from our church making the journey from Minneapolis to Walnut Grove, MN, in order to enjoy the annual Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant. It was a good decision.
Although the “Little House on the Prairie” books written by Laura had not been a part of my childhood, they were definitely a part of our children’s life when they were growing up. We had read the books and seen the television series, and had a good grasp of the story of the Ingalls family.
According to a Walnut Grove website, Laura was seven years old when her parents moved the family to Walnut Grove, living near the town in a dugout home on the banks of the Plum Creek. Their three years in the town-1874-76-are chronicled in Laura’s book, “On the Banks of Plum Creek,” one of the “Little House” books. Laura’s father, Charles Ingalls, had intended to homestead their property, but crop failures changed his mind. Rather than earn the land by farming it and building on it, he made an outright purchase of it from the United States government, then immediately resold it. The location of the dugout is still visible on the banks of the creek. None of the buildings constructed by the Ingalls family remain and, says the Walnut Grove website, even their locations are uncertain.
The Wilder Pageant is presented along the banks of Plum Creek. The pageant will be presented in 2008 on July 11-12, 18-19, and 25-26. The website below can give you ticket information and the phone number to contact the ticket office. While it’s good to reserve tickets early, it’s crucial to take care of housing reservations. Walnut Grove is small and unless you plan to drive in and out on the same day, you may want to make your arrangements early. Our group from Minneapolis found a motel in a nearby town and drove from there to Walnut Grove.
The pageant, which will observe its 31st year in 2008, is based on the life of the Ingalls family in Walnut Grove, with all the actors being drawn from the Walnut Grove area. The pageant begins with the arrival of Laura and her family in Walnut Grove, proceeds through several good and bad events, and ends with Mary’s blindness and a major decision on the part of the family.
There is more in Walnut Grove than the pageant, however. Visitors to the town can get a sense of the history of the area and the Ingalls family by touring the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum, a series of buildings housing various collections of artifacts and memorabilia. Some of the stars of the television series have contributed items in connection with their visit to the area.
In 2007, there was a Laura–Nellie look-alike contest. Different organizations offer meals to visitors. Visiting Walnut Grove during the pageant is like going back in history to a time when things were simpler-or at least seemed simpler from our modern perspective. Attending the festival is an opportunity to reconnect with your childhood or with the childhood of your children.
