"It's Al-man-zo, not Al-mon-zo"

Our day in Mansfield, Mo.

     Since we found that Dabbs’ date of death was missing from his headstone, we have been on the search for information.  A few weeks ago, our search led us to Mansfield, Missouri, Southeast of Springfield, where two of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s homes are located.  Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote the Little House on the Prairie books, which is what the television show “Little House on the Prairie” was based on.  We really enjoyed our day at Rocky Ridge Farm. 

One of the things I found interesting was that Laura’s husband’s name was pronounced Al-”man”-zo not Al-”mon”-zo.  It seems creating a role for television made a change in the way the name is pronounced.

I fell in love with the rock house that Laura and Almanzo’s daughter, Rose, had built for them as a retirement home.  The front opening up for air flow and overlooking a beautiful valley, the water cistern, the stone, and even the design by the stone mason when he put the rock together all show that the home was built with love. 

The builder put these unique trowel marks on the entire house between the rocks.

 While we were in the museum, we found out that we have a few items in Grandma’s Attic that are similar to, or exactly like, some of Laura and Rose’s favorite possessions. 

There were pieces of Depression glass throughout the rock house.

All of these pieces of Depression glass are for sale at Grandma's Attic

In the museum, there was a leather postcard.

In the corner of the museum displaying Rose’s possessions, there was a set of Stangl “blueberry” pottery dishes.   

There was a lovely lilac bush in the front yard of Laura and Almanzo’s original farm house.  This house was a house built with love over time.  The kitchen had first been attached to a log cabin then moved across the yard to be the beginning of what grew into a farm house over time, complete with a library and music room.

     We ended the day with a visit to Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company’s village which is also located in Mansfield, Missouri. It is a fun village, where you learn the story of how it started with a seed finding trip, and now has hundreds of varieties of natural seeds.  

Building at Baker Creek Village

With annual weekend festivals at Baker Creek and the prospect of more exploration of the Rock House....

Mansfield is one up for a second visit from me!  

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Baker-Creek-Heirloom-Seed-Company/155935376162?fref=photo

http://www.rareseeds.com/

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Laura-Ingalls-Wilder-Historic-Home-and-Museum/166413716755023