Laura and Almanzo in 1942
Photo courtesy of Herbert Hoover Presidential Library.
Used with permission. |
Although Almanzo was ten years older than Laura, he seemed to take a special
interest in her from the start. When she was nearly sixteen and began
teaching school twelve miles away, he went after her with his beautiful
Morgan
horses, Prince and Lady, each Friday so she could come home for the
weekends. He took her back to school each Sunday. Laura, in the
innocence of youth, thought he was only doing it as a favor to
Pa. After the teaching job was over, Almanzo
asked her to go sleigh-riding, and then buggy-riding when spring came.
Laura soon came to realize that Almanzo's true interest was in her.
The two courted for two and a half years.
Almanzo and Laura were married on August 25, 1885, in De Smet. Their
early years of marriage are recorded in The First Four
Years. Their first child, Rose, was born on December 5, 1886,
and an unnamed baby boy was born in August 1889, but died soon afterward
of an unknown cause. Other hardships such as crop failures, debts,
diphtheria, and loss of their home due to fire forced the young couple
to leave De Smet in search of a better life. After spending time with
Almanzo's family at
Spring Valley, Minnesota and with Laura's
cousin at Westville, Florida, they
returned to De Smet briefly. In 1894, Laura and Almanzo finally
settled in Mansfield, Missouri.
"Manly", as Laura always called him, was known in Mansfield as a friendly,
hardworking man, who enjoyed joking around with his friends.
He was a "jack-of-all-trades" and loved to
work in his toolshed. Some items he made, such as furniture and his
cane collection, can be seen today in Mansfield.
Almanzo died on October 23, 1949, at Rocky Ridge farm at the age of 92.
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