We Visited "Little Town on the Prairie" - Tuesday, July 31, 1962

Tonight we're in a motel in Spencer. It even has a swimming pool so we just finished having a dip. We saw Huron College this morning and then we came through DeSmet that Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote about as "Little Town on the Prairie" in her last "Little House" book. It was so wonderful - we saw the false front stores, then drove out of town toward where we thought they might have lived. We drove through a little country cemetery and there were Ma and Pa's graves, Mary's, Carrie's, and Laura's baby son's. We found a marker for their home site on the prairie south of town then, and the cottonwood trees Pa planted! Then we came through Volga, I called and saw Dick Peeke and found Jim at the Brookings swimming pool life guarding. We saw one of Daddy's college farm men near Worthington, Minnesota.

We Saw a Wide Expanse of Land - Monday, July 30, 1962

Oh, what a nice trip we're having! We're in Aberdeen, South Dakota tonight. We had a nice drive south of Winnipeg on the widest expanse of flat land I've ever seen. We crossed back into the United States at a little country port of entry place in North Dakota. We stopped at the Ft. Totten Indian Reservation near Devils Lake and looked over the Jamestown campus. It's nice. I like, like, like this beautiful northern scenery. We plan to go through, among other places, none other than Volga, South Dakota.

We Went in to Canada at International Falls - Sunday, July 29, 1962

For the first time in my life I'm going to sleep on foreign soil. We're in Winnipeg tonight after crossing into Canada at International Falls and Ft. Francis. We drove up to Kenora and then on over here by way of the Trans-Canada Highway. This is such beautiful country. We drove out in the country and saw some colony farming and young people in their costumes, and were given a night watchman's tour of a modern race track.

Saw Lake Superior and Hibbing Iron Ore Mine - Saturday, July 28, 1962

We're just about at the top of the United States - near International Falls in Minnesota. After we crossed into Duluth this morning we drove along the North Shore of Lake Superior as far as Two Harbors. Then we went west 80 miles to visit the two Laddehoff families and Crawfords who moved up here from West Chester. Coming on up through north central Minnesota we saw birch trees and iron ore, pine trees and lakes. At Hibbing we stopped to see the world's largest open pit iron ore mine, three miles long and a mile wide. Something! It's so pretty up here.

We Saw Effigy Mounds National Monument - Friday, July 27, 1962

We are in northwest Wisconsin tonight. We had a nice drive up through northeast Iowa and into Wisconsin. We stopped at Pike's Peak near McGregor, a gorgeous view of the Mississippi, similar to Alfalfa Point, and Effigy Mounds National Monument. We didn't know Iowa had a national monument. The place is fixed up real nice with a trail winding a bluff up to the Indian mounds. Northeast Iowa is really picturesque.

Volunteered to Drive the Tractor - Thursday, July 26, 1962

We're leaving on our trip in the morning. I'm still trying to think of things to take. I drove the tractor here today for unloading straw. It didn't seem like a bad job today. I even volunteered my services. Mom gave me a permanent this afternoon. The state broke 1911 records for coolness - the 40's today.

Completed Scrapbook for First Year of College - Wednesday, July 25, 1962

We went to town this afternoon. I got some new white tennis shoes, nail polish and remover, some tan suiting and matching blouse material and a pattern. I was talking to two guys selling some hope chest or something to working girls. They seemed real nice. They didn't try to sell me any since I wasn't making my own income. (Incidentally, I'm trying to go to the end of September on money I've earned; then I'll have some more.) I'm coming along on my suit. I hope I didn't goof on one of the collar corners. I'll press it out in the morning and see. I fixed up my scrapbook for my first year of college.