The 'Little House' Book Series

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Meghan Clyne, Songs of the Free and the Brave. Wall Street Journal, Sept 22, 2012
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB ... 49541690283760.html
(book review Laura Ingalls Wilder, The Little House Books. Library of America, 2012)

Note:
(1) Wilder and Wilde, surnames of various European nations, are variants of surname Wild, an unruly person.
(2) Laura Ingalls Wilder
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laura_Ingalls_Wilder
(1867-1957)
(3) The review said, "In 1874, the family [from Wisconsin] crossed the frozen Mississippi River into Minnesota to try farming."

See maps in
Mississippi River
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mississippi_River
(4) The review then said "by 1880 the Ingallses were working to 'prove up' on a homestead in De Smet, SD."

(5) The review observed, "The lively characters who populate these books are drawn from Wilder's own family and neighbors, including her sisters Mary, Carrie and Grace, the beloved pastor Rev Alden, and the detested schoolmate Nellie Oleson."

(a) Carrie
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrie_(name)
(Carrie is a female given name in English speaking countries, usually a pet form of Caroline or Karen)
(b) Nellie Oleson is a fictional character, a composite based on several school girls from Laura Ingalls Wilder's childhood. Wikipedia
(i) Nelly (given name)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelly_(given_name)
(Nelly, Nela, Nell, and Nellie are female given names, also used as nicknames, which are derived from the names Helen, Ellen, Petronella and Cornelia)
(ii) For Oleson, see Olson (surname)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olson_(surname)
(Olson (also Olsson, Oleson) is a common surname of Scandinavian origin that literally means "son of Olof or Ole")

Naturally in Scandinavia, olson (which is Americanized) is actually spelled "Olsen."
(6) Mansfield, Missouri
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mansfield,_Missouri
(section 4 Notable people; section 6 External links: including "Official website of the Laura Ingalls Wilder Home and Museum, a local tourist attraction")