Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant

11/11/2025

As promised after harvest the restroom floor would be poured. This morning the Carter crew began the restroom floor and by noon the floor was poured. According to Bill Richards "Main pour is done. Waiting for it to settle to do the final work."

It has been a long process getting the project finished due to funding. The goal is to have the restrooms useable for this year's performances.

11/10/2025

Saturday Walnut Grove was graced with our first measurable snow fall. We had about one inch of the white stuff. The first flakes of winter are pretty and a bit calming as they fall gently to the ground.
Many are looking forward to more snow and snowmobiling, ice skating and making snowmen and snow angels and ice fishing.

In our Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant, we have several scenes where there is snow. One is a blizzard where Pa gets lost in the snow and finds himself in a gully and waits out the storm, another is a search in a snowstorm for missing children.

What are your favorite winter activities?

11/07/2025

Over the years the Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant has had several directors.

The first director was Greg Anderson in 1978. In the 1978 program it was stated that Greg was a Southwest State student with one semester of school left. He was asked by the playwriter to be the director.

Then for nine years Ross Alford was the director. Over the years Ross has also helped to rewrite some of the scripts. At the time Ross was the head of the Drama department at the Walnut Grove High School.

In 1988 Bill Richards took over the director reins and directed the play for 15 years. Bill has been a part of the Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant since the 1978/1979 production years. Designing and building the sets. Even today if you are looking for Bill the first place to look is at the Wilder outdoor Theater doing any job that needs attention.

1993 and 1994 Deb Kuehl directed. Deb was also active in the pageant and had the role of Caroline Ingalls for 6 years before becoming the director. Deb was a housewife and owned an antique shop as stated in the 1981 pageant program.

In 1995-1997 Todd Snyder was the director. In the 1997 program Todd stated that "as a director of the pageant he seen many ties that linked himself and the cast to the people who lived here so many years ago"

In 2003 and 2004 the duo of Missie Erbes and her mother Deb Saxton co-directed the pageant. Their assistant in 2003 was Sara Saxton the sister/daughter of the directors. The Saxtons were involved with the pageant for many years as a family, acting, directing and helping with the sets.

2006-2008 Anna Belle Kelsey directed the show. Anna Belle Kelsey and her family also acted in the production over the years. In 2007 Anna Belle stated in her Prologue: "Everyone may have a different reason for helping, but in the end, giving a wonderful performance to our audience is our goal." This still rings true today.

Dan Wahl directed the Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant in 2014. Dan is a long-time resident of Walnut Grove. Dan remembered in his prologue watching the pageant in the high school gym. He said, "The messages felt right: How people must join together, work and play together, help each other get through hard times."

Our last but not least director is Erin Richards Altmann. Erin is the daughter of Bill Richards. Erin has directed the pageant for the past 11 years. When Erin gives her "talk" to the cast and crew it is evident her love of the Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant. In the 2015 program Erin talks about growing up in the pageant.

11/04/2025

Hunting season in Minnesota is underway. Many hunters are already hunting goose, ducks, pheasant and wild turkey. Deer hunters who prefer archery have already began hunting and the rest will begin in November. Fishing happens pretty much year-round. Check your local hunting laws for exact dates. The people who hunt now still use the meat to feed their families and the furs are sometimes tanned and used for personal use, sold, or donated.

Charles Ingalls hunted to keep food on the family table. The food Pioneer families had was grown, foraged or hunted, very little was purchased in town. Charles trapped small animals, such as beaver, fox, mink and otters, to sell the furs in town as Laura wrote in "On the Banks of Plum Creek in Chapter 35. Keeping House". Charles also made a fish trap to put in Plum Creek and catch fish to eat for supper in Chapter 19 "The Fish Trap". In our Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant Charles and Laura also go to check the fish traps. Besides fishing, Charles more than likely hunted for geese, ducks, wild turkey, rabbit, squirrels and deer. To preserve the meat over the long winters it was salted, pickled or smoked and stored away in a root cellar, which was usually a room under ground.

10/29/2025

The Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant Committee met Monday night October 27th at the Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum.

Some of the items discussed were: New Business
Grant Updates: there are a few to apply for to get possible funding for the new restrooms, adding handicap doors for the new restrooms, saving the trees. Getting better headphones as the metal building stops the signal at times. Bill is working on this.
The Museum gave their update, and the new roof has been completed on the depot. The Museum is now closed on Mondays until spring. The pageant is still looking for a concession stand manager for 2026. Please email us @ [email protected] if you are interested in this position or know of someone who is.

Bill went to the National Conference on Outdoor Theaters. One topic was the weather and how to deal with it. Some outdoor theaters have purchased their own weather stations; they have their own app and put the information on their page and websites. Bill got many ideas at the conference for fund raisers and ways to use the pageant site. We should also be thinking about the Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder 50th Anniversary that will be in 2027.

Old Business. Concrete for the new restrooms should be poured around the end of this month. There will be a Zoom meeting on November 22, 2025, for the cast and crew to give their input on script rewrites using the surveys pageant goers turned in after the shows. There is a need to get the younger generation interested in theater. Laura's Birthday party- Wendy is meeting with the museum to plan a joint birthday celebration.

There was an election of officers, and it was unanimous: Wendy Sjoblom- President, Dennis Alexander- Vice President and Connie Knott- Secretary.

At the end of the meeting Wendy gave out policy packets to each member to read over and start updating policies as needed.
Next meeting ins November 27 at 7:00 with a budget meeting before hand at 6:30 p.m.

10/27/2025

Oleson's Store is one of the sets at the Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant.

The set was built in 1978/1979 from an old building that was donated to the pageant and moved to the pageant site. The building has served its purpose well. It has weathered many storms including, one that in 1979 pretty much flattened the building before it had its start, a couple floods and many years of wind, rain, snow and whatever else mother nature threw at it.

Time seems to be its worst enemy at this point. The building is "sinking". It has been shored up but that is only a temporary fix. The mechanism that ran the hydraulics has long since failed and the wheels that turn the set open have basically frozen making turning it into a four-man job.

Oleson's Store is a project that is in waiting as after almost 50 years many of the sets need attention. It is with the help of many volunteers and donated funds that the Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant remains a success for almost 50 years. Thank you to all who have donated funds or their time. More volunteers and funds are always appreciated. If you would like to donate your time or funds, contact the pageant office at 888-859-3102 or email [email protected]. Work has halted for the winter, but we will resume in the spring weather and funding depending.

10/24/2025

Shirley Knakmuhs was a very influential person with our Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant. In 1978 the show began in the Walnut Grove High School and Shirley was there helping get the show on the road as producer. In 1978 Shirley played the role of Mrs. Oleson and she did that role for 17 years. Those of us who have been around the pageant for many years can still hear Shirley reciting her lines as Maragret Oleson. Shirley also played the part of Margaret Kennedy for 4 years, Maria Clark Bedal for 2 years and was listed as a Waltzer in 2003-2004.

In 1985 the Pageant Singers were formed, and Shirley was there singing along with 7 others at pageant performances and other social events. Shirley was a part of the Pageant Singers for 10 years singing alongside her son Kerry and daughter-in-law Becky for several years and many other local talents.

From Bill Richards "Shirley certainly was a huge promoter and cheerleader in creating the museum and the Wilder Pageant."

Our accolades to Shirley for all she did to help build the Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant into what is has become today.

10/23/2025

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Knakmuhs family. Shirley will always be remembered for her roles as Mrs. Oleson and Mrs. Kennedy. Her support of the pageant and the many years she sang with The Pageant Singers.

Search recent and past obituaries for Redwood Falls, Tracy, Walnut Grove, and Westbrook Minnesota. You can search by name, locaiton or death date.

10/23/2025

Today in Walnut Grove is definitely a fall day. Frost showed up overnight.

Most gardens are done and made ready for winter. Outside work now will be raking leaves, tidying up yards and putting away anything we won't be using over winter. In Walnut Grove snow can come anytime now.

The Ingalls in Walnut Grove would have had harvest completed probably a month ago. They would be getting ready for the long cold winters by stockpiling wood for the fire for cooking and heating the home. Remember there were not as many trees in Walnut Grove in the 1870's. in "On the Banks of Plum Creek" by Laura Ingalls Wilder in Chapter 35 "Keeping House" Laura wrote about pa gathering wood from old plum trees and willow trees.

10/22/2025

In next year's Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant "Chasing the dream Act 1 scene 3 "Nellie's Town Party" Laura, Mary & Carrie go to Oleson's store to celebrate Nellie's birthday. Of course, Nellie shows up fashionably late.

In real life Walnut Grove, the Owens' lived above the store. In Dan Peterson's book "The Story of Walnut Grove, Minnesota 1873-2022" (This is a great book if you want to learn about the "real" Walnut Grove.) Dan writes "Wilder wrote of the store:.......They had such wonderful toys, tops, and jumping jacks and beautiful picture books. It was a treat to see such toys, though they would not let us play with them. Nellie had the most wonderful doll she kept wrapped in soft paper most of the time...."

In our production Nellie and the rest of the girls learn about the doll and other toys the Oleson children have.

10/17/2025

In next year's Walnut Grove Laura Ingalls Wilder Pageant "Chasing the Dream" Act One Scene 2 "Growing up Nellie". We are introduced once again to the Oleson family who owned a mercantile.

In 1875 William Oleson (William Ownes in real life) in fact did travel to Chicago to sell cattle. This left Margaret home alone to take care of the store and the children. In this scene the Oleson's are talking about William leaving when the Ingalls family come to do some shopping.

In Laura Ingalls Wilder book: On the Banks of Plum Creek" she writes of going to town and the store. Even though Walnut Grove was only about a 2-mile drive for the Ingalls this was pretty much an all-day affair, a wagon traveled about 2 miles per hour thus making the Ingalls trip about 1 hour just to get to town. In pioneer days it was not common to go to town on a whim.