laura ingalls wilder historic home and museum

*And cue Little House on the Prairie theme song* lolI was SO excited to visit here. I grew up with my mom reading me the little house on the prairie books every night before I went to bed, and I watched all the shows. I loved it, and was excited to go here. The house and antiques are VERY well preserved, however the ladies that ran the tours and museum left a lot to be desired. I found them to be a little rude.You couldn't just go into the house, you had to wait for the first woman to give the tour, which was fine....but the second woman was off at the other Rocky Ridge and had the keys for this house, so we couldn't go in until she finished that tour and came back to open the door for the other woman, even though there were 2 people in the museum just chatting. So that was ok...But what I didn't like was the woman who gave us the tour through the house was very rehearsed and memorized and I felt like it was rushed from one room to the next. I wanted to have a closer look at things around the room, but we were quickly pushed from room to room and then out the side door. It was so cool for me to see things that Almanzo had made for Laura, and to see where Laura wrote her books, etc...but since I flew a thousand miles from home, I wish I didn't feel like I was pushed in and out of the house in 10 minutes. So that was a bummer.I enjoyed looking at the gardens. There really is nothing else around here. So make sure you pack a lunch or make plans to find a place for a meal before you go here since it's out in the middle of nowhere :)

Grady for any Little House fans l. This is not for little kids. Price could be a little cheaper. Gift shop is nice

My family went for Laura Ingalls Wilder Days and had a great time. We drove about 3 hours to go see where Little House on the Prairie was written. This house is so well preserved that it's like you've been transported back in time. It was pretty cool to stand right behind the desk and chair that Laura wrote all of her books at. The grounds were very pretty and the museum was really interesting. If you know about LIttle House mainly from the TV show like I do then you'll learn a lot about the real life Laura. Since it was Wilder Days there were extra events. Lucy Lee Flippin that played Almanzo's sister Eliza Jane was there and it was funny because she only looked a little older than she did on the TV show. We had a lot of fun and it was worth the 6 hour round trip in the car on a Saturday to go. I think we'll be making a return trip in a few years.

We live about 20 miles from the Wilder home and have been there about 10 time or more. Anytime friends or family come for a visit the first time , we take them to see Almanzo and Laura's home . My wife and I enjoy every visit no matter how many time we go. It has been about two years since. The attraction is open from late March to October .

It was great to see the house built by the Wilder's and to see all the exhibits from Laura's life including Pa's fiddle and her writing desk. The house has all authentic furnishings, and being in the kitchen makes you realize how short she was (4'11") as the counters were built to her height. You can also tour the stone house Rose built for them on their property. Our tour guide was quick but nice and let us wander back through the rooms on our own at the end to re - visit things we wanted to spend more time to see. You can't take photos inside but there are books and postcards with photos of the interior in the gift shop.

I love Laura's books and was thrilled to visit the lovely farmhouse Almanzo and Laura built in the early 20th century. Everything in the home has been left intact, as it was when they lived there. It is a warm, cozy home and it's easy to imagine Laura sitting at her dining room table and working in the kitchen. The home tour was about 25 minutes long and the tour guide was friendly and very knowledgeable. Following the farmhouse tour, we got in our cars and drove a short distance, less than a mile, to the Rock House, built for Laura and Almanzo by daughter Rose. Our tour guide explained the Wilder's lived in that house for about 8 years and then moved back to the farmhouse which they preferred. The Rock House tour is about 20 minutes. This house is important because it's where Laura wrote her first four books. The museum and book store buildings are located adjacent to the farmhouse and are both worth visiting. I agree with other reviewers the museum building is located too close to the farmhouse but there's good news...plans are underway to construct a new museum building so the old one can be torn down. This will be a great improvement to the overall site since the current museum location detracts from the beautiful setting of the farmhouse.

We had a great day at the Wilder homes. I had been wanting to go there for many years. Well worth the 9 hour drive from home. Great for families and children too.

Having read all the books, it was very enjoyable to learn a lot more about Laura and Almanzo and to see where they lived for most of their married lives. We were pleasantly surprised to discover our admission covered tours for both the Rocky Ridge house and the Rock house that Rose built for them. The museum has a lot of memorabilia related to the Ingalls and Wilder families. Definitely worth a visit!

Have never read the books, but I used to watch the TV show back in the day. I finally decided today after all these years to stop by on the way home from Springfield, MO. Sure glad I did. The museum is very well done. There are innumerable artifacts, family memorabilia, and photographs. "Pa's" fiddle, circa 1850, is on display as are many belongings of Laura and Almanzo. The farm house sits adjacent to the museum. The tour lasts about 20 minutes, and the tour guide was extremely knowledgeable. The house and contents are left in the same state they were in when Laura Ingalls Wilder died in the late 1950s. It's particularly interesting that the farm house was built one or two rooms at a time over a period of 17 years. Many of the furnishings were hand-crafted by Almanzo Wilder. There is a gift shop nearby, and also the "rock house" that the Wilders lived in for a few years, but I did not get the chance to tour it. If I have a criticism it is that the museum and gift shop were built in such close proximity to the historic home. These contemporary structures detract from the "setting" of the farm house and should have been built across the street where the parking area is located.

My family made the journey to Mansfield, MO to Laura's home during the Wilder Days celebration. If you are traveling a great distance to see Laura's home and museum, I would suggest not picking this one particular weekend out of the year... or perhaps do what we did, go both Friday and Saturday. Fortunately, when we arrived at Laura's home on Friday afternoon, we were just passing through as we were on our way to our hotel in Springfield, but wanted to get a feel of what things would be like for the next day. We were told that on Saturday, though the tickets would be discounted, you would be walking through the homes on your own, and no guided tours. We opted to go ahead and purchase our tickets and take the guided tour of the farm house. It was an excellent tour, people there are more than willing to share their wealth of knowledge on the subject. Our tour guide was especially sweet to our two children, making sure they saw certain items and explained how it worked. Since we arrived close to closing, they marked our tickets for us, and we were able to come the next day to tour the rock house. The cost of your tickets gets you guided tours of both the farm house, which Laura and her husband built themselves, and the rock house, which their daughter, Rose, had built for them. Plus access to the museum, bookstore, view a film and walk the beautiful grounds. I highly recommend reading On The Way Home, by Laura Ingalls Wilder before visiting. This book walks you through the time Laura left De Smet and ended up at that location in Missouri. My 6 year old loved the museum and read nearly every detail inside. The tour of the house without a guided tour was very dull for our family. We enjoyed both our days at Laura's home, but the guided tour was definitely a highlight. The bookstore is not huge, but easily has enough books and other interesting items to take some time looking through. Mansfield is a very small town, and does not offer hotels or even many places to eat, so we packed a picnic lunch. Springfield is about a 45 minute drive from Laura's home, and has many options for lodging and fine dining. We have no regrets about visiting! Just a note about Wilder Days, they have all kinds of activities going in town that day, as well as at the house. We were able to watch the parade and visit the cemetery while we were in town, which the center of town is only about a mile from the Wilder house.

We went on the Friday of Wilder Days, I suspect we would have enjoyed it in some ways better at another time because the tours were obviously more crowded than usual. Even with that, we loved it and could have easily spend all day exploring but we only had a few hours and felt rushed to get it all in. We did however get to tour both houses, the museum, and the gift shop and thoroughly enjoyed the visit.

My husband and I spent a couple of delightful hours at the site. We visited both the farm home and Rock house and spent quite a bit of time in the museum. We visit numerous literary sites and authors' homes, and this is a very nice one to visit. The homes are maintained as LIW lived n them. There are an amazing array of her personal belongings going back to when she was very young. There were only six of us on the tours of the homes, and Stanley, our guide, was extremely knowledgeable and helpful, answering Many questions and not rushing any one. He directed us to parking right by the Rock House. There was handicapped parking right by the farm house and gift shop as well. Lovely lovely views to enjoy. There are numerous displays on LIW, as well as on Almonzo, Rose, and Laura's sisters. Very well done, very well organized, friendly person at reception as well. Thank you.

This was my second trip to the Wilder home/museum. My daughter and I had a lovely time last year when we visited and came back this year specifically to attend the Wilder Days festival. Her heart's desire was to see Pa's fiddle being played and to see the upstairs bedroom of the house (only opened for public viewing this one day of the year). We are Laura Ingalls Wilder fans and really thought this day would be a fun-filled one. However, there were several things that went haywire and really need to be considered for future festival weekends. First, we arrived to find that not only was there no parking available, there was no way to know until we'd pulled into the lot. Two very young boys (these kids didn't look a day older than 12 or 13) were stationed well into the parking lot telling people "I don't think there are any spots left, but try that driveway over there." and pointing them back down to some person's private drive. Just so you understand, the lot sits on a busy highway just off a blind corner. Turning around, especially with a long line of traffic, was nothing short of a miracle. Then, the "driveway" we were directed to was a long, winding, rutted thing that was surrounded by hilly, soft ground. We ended up, like everyone else, parking haphazardly next to a pretty deep ditch on a steep hill. There were a few people who got stuck in the grass or blocked in by other cars. Parking is a REAL issue during the festival. If you can, take the trolley in from the town square (this isn't well advertised - next time, we'll know). Second, Pa's fiddle was advertised in the paper as being played at 9am and noon. We arrived at 11:45 and sat and waited. And waited. And waited. Around 12:40, the violin was *finally* brought out. This is not the end of the world, but when you're sitting out in the sun with little ones, it gets old fast. The home was incredibly crowded. It's a small home where real people lived, so it's tough to funnel hundreds of people through without feeling crowded or rushed. While we were happy we got to see the upstairs portion (Rose's room), the whole tour was very loud and rushed. Lots of people talking and moving about - this is NOT the time to go for your first visit. Luckily, we'd seen the home before and were okay with it. Lastly, the gift shop was a mob scene. Because they only have a dial-up connection (and, other than during the Wilder Days weekend, there's no need for them to have an upgraded system), the line moved s-l-o-w-l-y. It took my mother over 30 minutes just to stand in line to purchase a few little things for my kids. The AC unit couldn't keep up with the mass of humanity roiling through the shop, so it was hot and muggy in there. We are HUGE fans of Mrs. Wilder's books and we adore the home and museum. In fact, my daughter and I have agreed that we'd like to make the trip down once a year to visit; however, next year, we'll skip the Wilder Days festival. This beautiful home and adjacent facilities just aren't equipped to handle that many people.

My 80 year old mother and I were recently on our way to Springfield, MO and decided to stop. The parking lot is not user-friendly at all for elderly people. I understand that those running the home and museum want to keep it as authentic as possible. However, the parking lot is a little crazy. There is no close parking (other than handicapped, bus and employee) to the facility. If you decide to visit - you wound having to park across the road - not street - road with a blind hill and walk uphill on loose gravel to get to the entrance. Because of this - my mother decided she didn't want to chance falling or turning an ankle so we left without actually going through it.

My wife and I have visited several of the Laura Ingalls Wilder historic sites, and this was the best yet. The museum features many of the actual family belongings and contains displays of what their lives were like through various experiences. They really tell the story of life in a time that offered few conveniences but many challenges. The tour of the home was very good and our guide came across as if he knew each family member personally. It was a great stop on our vacation.