PBS Wisconsin Documentaries

Pepin County is home to the revered birthplace of Laura Ingalls Wilder. Laura was born here in 1867. Little House in the Big Woods is set here, the first book of Wilder's influential Little House series on pioneer life.

bell ringing

Any boys and girls that want to come in for a quilt block story... Thousands come annually to celebrate the author. People come from all over. They're drawn by the chance to get a taste of the past. Doing what Laura did. Run through the fields with your bonnet flying off and having a good time. If you could, would you try living like a pioneer? Yes. - She would.

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But it may be more than playing pioneer that brings out Wilder's fans. The book's celebration of simple virtues also resonates, according to celebration organizers like 92-year-old Maxine Johnson. Well, I think they like that homespun philosophy that Laura had. She always pointed out that even though many years have gone by, those principles that were taught at that time are still the things that we should rely on today.

marching band playing

Today the village of Pepin celebrates their connection to Wilder and her legacy in classic small-town fashion. The community puts on a parade and they hold old-fashioned events like fiddle contests and spelling bees. "Chocolate." "Chocolate." C-H-O... C-O-L-A-T-E. "Chocolate." Okay, I guess we have our winner.

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Children learn about Wilder's hardscrabble life and then make a mad scramble for Life Savers and lollipops.

slow fiddle music

It's easy to see all that's changed since Wilder's day, but her influence remains. And the values. I think her values are just what families and the world needs to get back to.