Pages

▼

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Aunt Docia

If you read the Little House in the Big Woods chapter I wrote about on Monday, "Dance at Grandpa's", you may have noticed some obscure relatives of Laura's. Today I'm going to share a little bit about one of Laura's aunts, whose name was Laura Ladocia Ingalls, but who was usually called "Docia." Read her article on Laura Ingalls Wilder, Frontier Girl for some general information about her life. 
Aunt Docia was the daughter of Landsford and Laura Ingalls (Laura Ingalls Wilder's grandparents), so she was Pa's sister. She married August Waldvogel and had two children with him: Lena, who was one year older than young Laura, and Jean, who was four years younger than his sister. At the time of Little House in the Big Woods, she had moved back in with Grandpa and Grandma Ingalls. The page I linked to above has more details on why this happened. In the 1800s, this was probably a much bigger deal than it is today. I wonder how Pa and Ma viewed the situation and how it affected Docia's life.

Later, Docia got married again to a railroad contractor named Hiram Forbes. Docia, Lena, and Jean made a prominent appearance in By the Shores of Silver Lake. It seems that her family and Laura's lost touch in the following years. Docia died in 1918. I think it's wonderful that a little piece of her life is remembered even today through the "Little House" books. So many people in history are totally forgotten - I love having the chance to know even a small amount about the way someone else lived in a different time and place. Isn't history amazing?!

If you enjoyed this post, share it with your friends on your favorite social network. Check out the links below to get the latest updates from LHCO. And come back soon for more posts inspired by Laura Ingalls Wilder's "Little House" books. Thanks for stopping by!
Elizabeth
Facebook
Pinterest
Twitter
at

1 comment:

  1. AnonymousMay 24, 2014 at 9:53 AM

    I can't say for sure I might be a child of Michael Landon's I went to school with Randy Noe and dated Ron Noe these people kept up with me for some reason Berea High in Greenville, SC Ron was a substitute teacher. I graduated in 1974 and Ron dated me when I was of age 18 I am Janet Brown Robinson is my maiden name everyone keeps saying I need to check into the Reed name or Reid. I was raised by Inez Reid Dover and she looked identical to Eugene Orowitz. I live at 138 Wellington St. Anderson, SC 29624 One of Michael Landon's wives parents was from Greenville, S.C. Ms. Noe her parents. I loved all his shows and the children that are on T.V. now. I'd love to find out if he is my father.

    ReplyDelete