Anna's Awesome Adventures!!!: Little House Trip Day #2

Today we woke up at 6:45, had breakfast (whole wheat toast with strawberry jam, cinnamon roll, apple juice), and headed about 50 miles west of Brookings to Manchester, South Dakota. Manchester was the longtime home of Grace Ingalls Dow, Laura's youngest sister, and Harvey Dunn, a famous prairie artist. Manchester had a terrible EF4 tornado in June 2003 which destroyed any remnants of the historically significant town, but through kind donations, there are several plaques and a little memorial. Especially cool was the town pump and the "Manchester" sign, weathered and twisted from the tornado but still up. Somehow, it signaled a great deal more than just the name of a now-ghost town.

Next, we headed about nine miles back east to DeSmet, where we enjoyed some dramatic viewing of the Big Slough and Silver Lake (both mentioned several times in Laura's books). Large, rolling black clouds were coming in from the north but glimmers of the sun still were on the horizon, so the mixing colors were creating such incredible lighting...perfect for photos! There was lightning and thunder and a little rain, but then it was mostly cloudy or clear for the rest of the day, with a very strong wind blowing and temperatures around 70 degrees. We headed for the Ingalls Homestead Site, 160 acres of hands-on perfection. Their three "rules"? Children should touch, feel, and climb; pictures may be taken anywhere; and visit and explore at your own pace. That was all I needed to feel welcome, haha! Admission is $10 and quite a bargain for the many, many activities to do and things to see. We started by watching a brief video about Laura and the homestead, then moved outdoors to experience each of nearly 20 different "exhibits" scattered on the property. A quick rundown on each follows; it's the order which we did things in today.

Laura's Travels Exhibit -- Housed in a little white building, small nooks feature quotes from the respective books on Laura's life from Pepin to DeSmet. Each book is in a small holder at each "station" for your reading pleasure. There's also a magnet game to follow Laura's journey and a covered wagon to climb on.

Wagon Ride/Prairie School -- In a covered wagon (with rubber tires, not wooden wheels) pulled by horses or mules, enjoy a ride out to the prairie school. Housed in Johnson School #20, a 125-year-old schoolhouse which was moved to its current location, you'll be engaged in an educational overview of schools and curriculum back in Laura's time. Did you know they only attended school for three months of the year? The rest of the year was spent working hard on their farms or claims. There were even a few desks from the 1800s!

Livestock Barn -- Housing farm implements and tools, the wagon horses/mules, Shetland ponies and miniature horses (two babies...one was running and jumping; the other was a day old and mostly slept), a little stagecoach used in parades (yes, you can sit in it and on the driver's seat and hold real reins), and Indian lifestyles, this was one of my favorite spots!

Flindt's Garage -- Make hay twists (like Pa and Laura in The Long Winter), a corncob doll, and rope...you can even grind wheat in the coffee grinder.

Fields -- The amber waves of grain (really) and corn are small fields but they do represent pioneer lives.

Lunch -- Well, this wasn't an exhibit, but you know I have to comment on food! We enjoyed chicken-bean-cheese wraps, crackers, peaches, zucchini bread, and juice.

Dugout & Burvee Shanty -- Which would you choose? The replica dugout was smaller than you could ever imagine, but it was cozy. The shanty, covered in tar paper on the outside and newspaper on the inside, was a bit bigger but didn't provide as much protection. Fully furnished and outfitted, trust me, there's no extra space.

Hay Roof Barn & Water Pump -- In this replica of a typical barn of Laura's time, there was a Holstein calf named Bright, orphaned kittens (they're grown up some, but still small...I fell in love with a Siamese), and chickens and roosters. At the water pump, try your hand at pumping.

Ma's Little House -- An accurate replica of the Ingalls' claim shanty, you can explore the inside (the bedrooms are so small!), then go check out the hand-washing outside. Scrub your muslin sheet on the washboard, send it through the wringer, and hang it on the clothesline to dry. No problem drying in today's wind!

Bethany Lutheran Church -- Nearly 110 years old, this was moved to its current location in 2009. It's such a humble yet gorgeous chapel. There's even a working pump organ and piano which you can try out.

Lookout Tower -- Typically, you should start your tour with this, but it was stormy when we got here so we waited until the afternoon. It was worth it since it had cleared up. It certainly gives you a bird's-eye view and puts things into perspective.

Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial Site -- In the small northwestern corner of the claim, you'll find a monument to Laura and pinpointing the exact location of their shanty. You'll also see the original five cottonwood trees Pa planted...yes, they are the real ones. Such feelings to run down the hill where Laura really would have walked and run dozens of times.

We also checked out Thompson Lake, which Laura and Almanzo would have driven to while they were courting. It's huge, like a mini ocean! There were also very large waves (you could surf them, literally), due to the wind. We had supper at the Oxbow Restaurant (I had the Farmer Boy Burger, with coleslaw and fries and water). It was very, very slow even though there weren't very many people. There was only one waitress. I do not recommend it, but we eventually got our food and it was pretty good. We're staying at the Heritage House Bed & Breakfast, a lovely brick building. It was built in 1888 and was formerly a bank (and a couple of other things too). Such a lovely place.