Laura Ingalls Wilder was an American writer best known for the beloved children’s book series “The Little House On The Prairie,” which told the story of her childhood in a settler and pioneer family. The books, published between 1932 and 1943, were adapted loosely into a successful television show of the same name which aired from 1974 to 1983 and starred Melissa Gilbert as Laura and Michael Landon as her father, Charles Ingalls.
Wilder was born on February 7, 1867, to Charles and Caroline Ingalls in their log cabin outside of Pepin, Wisconsin. The family moved frequently from one part of the American frontier to another, traveling by covered wagon to Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Native American Territory, and the Dakota Territory. These experiences formed the basis for Wilder's novels “Little House in the Big Woods” and the beginning of “Little House on the Prairie.”
In 1882, just before her 16th birthday, Ingalls began teaching in rural, one room school houses. She married bachelor and homesteader Almanzo Wilder, whom she had met in De Smet, South Dakota previously, worked several part-time jobs, and formed friendships. This time in her life is documented in the books “Little Town on the Prairie” and “These Happy Golden Years.”
Wilder, however, did not begin writing her book series until later in life when prompted by her daughter to record her memories of growing up a pioneer. She was in her 40s when she first began writing, and her first book, “Pioneer Girl,” was not completed until she was in her 60s. It was rejected by publishers and eventually published posthumously in 2014. Encouraged by her daughter, however, Wilder was determined to succeed and continued writing, penning “Farmer Boy,” “On the Banks of Plum Creek,” “By the Shores of Silver Lake,” “The Long Winter,” “Little Town on the Prairie,” and “These Happy Golden Years.” Wilder completed the last book in the Little House on the Prairie series in 1943, when she was 76 years old.
Wilder’s stories paint a picture of a warm, simple life that captures the hardworking spirit and independence of American pioneers during the 1800s. Wilders died in 1957 and her works, which are now public domain, have remained iconic over the years, becoming a global phenomenon. An award in her honor, the Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal, recognizes a living author or illustrator whose books, published in the United States, have made "a substantial and lasting contribution to literature for children."