On September 28, 1951, the Mansfield branch of the Wright County Library District was dedicated in honor of one of the Ozarks' most beloved writers, Laura Ingalls Wilder, shown standing in the middle of the crowd in this photograph.
The 84-year-old author of the Little House on the Prairie series of children's books attended the ceremony, saying: "I cannot tell you how much I value your friendship and how much I appreciate the honor you have bestowed upon me."
By then, Wilder had become an international celebrity, with her books translated into both Japanese and German, but the people of Mansfield knew her as a good neighbor too. According to state librarian Paxton P. Price, who gave the dedication speech that day, Wilder was "famous in her home
community for her fine needlework and delicious gingerbread as well as her literary achievements."
This image is part of a much larger collection of historically rich photographs from the News-Leader’s photo archive. Each week, the Springfield-Greene County Library will tap into this vast collection and present an interesting image “from the darkroom" and share its history. This image is presented in partnership between the Springfield-Greene County Library District and the Springfield News-Leader. For more historical images of the Ozarks, visit: thelibrary.org/fromthedarkroom.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: From the Darkroom shows Laura Ingalls Wilder being honored in 1951
