In keeping with my recent "mini" theme...

Check out this tiny covered wagon I found in our box of Little House odds and ends! It was constructed long ago from a kit we bought at a historical site. Everything is wood, glued together, except the cover, which is paper. It is just large enough for the clothespin dolls to take a ride if a willing hand pulls the wagon along. 

It's incredible to think that in Laura Ingalls Wilder's lifetime, she saw a shift from travel being entirely horse- and people-powered to being entirely gasoline-powered. When Laura was a child, most people stayed in the same general area their whole lives, and if pioneers like the Ingalls family wanted to make a major move, they packed all their belongings into a covered wagon and got going, slowly. But by the time Laura wrote the "Little House" books in her later years, practically everyone traveled even short distances by automobile, and long trips were often made by train. Soon, airplanes would revolutionize long-distance travel again. Because travel is so much easier these days, it's possible to have friends all around the world, not just in your immediate neighborhood. Wow!

For a great Little House story about Laura seeing the railroad being built, read By the Shores of Silver Lake chapter 10 "The Wonderful Afternoon." Check back often for more fun on LHCO!
Elizabeth