For a long time I debated if I could possibly keep a list of Laura Ingalls Wilder events around the country up to date. I finally decided that current information is probably best posted on a month by month basis so for current information search which I post on my personal blog. I shared this list here last year  and I hope you will find it useful this year, too. Most of these events are annual, but check with the group hosting the event for exact dates for following years. I keep a page for this on my personal blog and update it as more information comes in. Find it here.
I decided that doing an annual list of the major repeating events would be worthwhile. Let me know if I’m missing any. Most of these events are annual, but check with the group hosting the event for exact dates for following years.
Check out Ep 71 of my podcast Looking Ahead to Laura Ingalls Wilder Fandom 2016

Also, find other William T. Anderson appearances around the Midwest.

Pepin WI

Annual Meeting- February 2, 2016 7pm.
This year they will have an inaugural performance on a newly-acquired reed organ, restored by Dave Zahn.
149th Celebration of Laura’s Birthday – February 7, 2016 2pm
The celebration at the cabin will be on Sunday afternoon at 2pm, with hot drinks and birthday treats for all who brave the weather to come out. “snow date” would be Feb 21.
Laura Days – September 10-11, 2016

Independence KS

Prairie Days – Saturday, June 11, 2016

Walnut Grove MN

Fragments of a Dream Pageant

• July 8-9, 2016
• July 15-16, 2016
• July 22-23, 2016
  

Family Festival held in Walnut Grove City Park on pageant Saturdays July 9, July 16, and July 23, 2016
11:00 am to 6:00 pm Check the Walnut Grove website for full schedule and more details as it gets closer.

Karen Grassle (Caroline Ingalls) will return to Walnut Grove on July 16 & 17, 2016 to visit with fans during our annual Wilder Pageant weekend. The schedule will include autograph sessions on Saturday, an evening speaking engagement prior to the Wilder Pageant performance on the 16th and a photo & autograph session on Sunday.

Burr Oak IA

Find out more about their events.
Spaghetti Supper and Silent Auction – February 12, 2016 5:30pm – 7:30 pm
Advent Christian Church Open House (the church by the cemetery at the top of the hill, you drive by the cemetery on the way into town but you have to go through town to reach the parking area and the church) – May 30, 2016 (Memorial Day) 9:30 am – 2:00 pm
Laura Ingalls Wilder Days June 25-26, 2016 – This will be the 40th Anniversary of the event
NEW EVENT! – Fall Fest and Used Book Sale October 10, 2016 – 10:00 am – 3:00 pm
Annual Fund Brunch – December 14, 2015 – 8:30 am
Birthday Parties can be scheduled by any group at any time.

De Smet SD

The Long Winter

• July 8-10, 2016

• July 15-17, 2016

• July 22-24, 2016

Pageant Selection for 2017 – Little Town on the Prairie

The Memorial Society in De Smet has long staunchly held that when you pay a subscription for “Laura Ingalls Wilder Lore” that was all you were getting and it was completely separate from the museum is rolling the subscriptions into a new membership program. They will honor current subscriptions until they expire, but then have a new program with varying levels and member benefits. No word about how long current lifetime memberships will be handled, but it will no longer be an option to get new ones. A wish list for donations is listed in the Winter 2015 issue of the Lore with a fuller explanation of the new membership program.

Spring Valley MN

Find more about their events.
Wilder Fest – May 13-15, 2016
Ice Cream Social – June 20, 2016 from 5 pm – 7pm
Eliza Jane School Days – July 25-26 & 28-29 2016
Christmas Teas – Dates To Be Announced

Mansfield MO

Future Teachers Group meets at Rocky Ridge Farm: April 8, 2016
Laura Ingalls Wilder inducted into Missouri State University Public Affairs Hall of Fame : April 14, 2016
Grand Opening for New Museum: April 22, 2016
Laura’s Memories Pageant
Evening (7:30 pm) Performance Dates (rain or shine):

• July 15-16, 22-23, 29-30, 2016
• Sept. 2-3, 9-10, 16-17, 2016

Morning (10:30 am) Performances: Sept. 17, 2016
Wilder Festival: Sept. 17, 2016

Malone/Burke NY

Find more on events.
Celebration of Youth – Saturday, July 30, 2016 10 am-4 pm

• Children’s art show will be on display, along with student essays. Award ceremony.
• Kids art activities, 19th century games, vendors, food available.
• Morgan horses from Wm. H. Miner Institute

Cultural Festival-Irish Fenian Festival – Saturday, August 27, 2016, 10 am-4 pm

• Celebrating the Irish heritage of the area in the mid-19th century with food, music, demonstrations, and more, Fenian Raid reenactments. More details to follow.

Annual Harvest Festival and Civil War Living History Encampment – September 24-25, 2016 10 am-4 pm

• All Wilder buildings will be open for self-guided tours.
• Civil War living history encampment and skirmishes
• Pumpkin painting and children’s 19th century games in the apple orchard, children’s corn pit in the barn, Farmer Boy readings.
• 7th Annual “As Time Passes” adult juried art show on display in the museum. Vote for People’s Choice.
• Food and beverages available. Freshly made donuts!

Celebrate Christmas With Almanzo – Saturday, December 3, 2016 11 am -3 pm Free admission.

•  Come and enjoy readings from the Farmer Boy Christmas chapter in the parlor of the house. (Adults must accompany and remain with child.) Enjoy cookies, mulled cider, Christmas carols, and children’s activities. Come visit our gift store for last minute shopping with complimentary gift wrapping for purchased items.

Vinton IA

Mary Ingalls Society Pageant – August 5, 6, and 7 2016. The 7th will be a Sunday Maintee.

Keystone SD – Longtime Home of Carrie Ingalls Swanzey

Keystone Area Historical Association always hosts an event on August 3rd, Carrie’s actual birthday no matter what day of the week it falls on.

Old World Wisconsin – Eagle WI

World of Little House – July 16 – August 7, 2016 10:00 am – 5:00 pm

Heritage Hill – Green Bay WI

July 16 & 17, 2016 – Watch their website for more details. Heritage Hill has long held an annual Laura Ingalls Wilder event and confirmed it will return this year.

Genesee Country Village and Museum – Mumford, NY

Laura Ingalls Wilder Days  August 6-7, 2016 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM.

Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum – West Branch, Iowa

Laura Ingalls Wilder expert and editor of The Selected Letters of Laura Ingalls Wilder, William T. Anderson will speak at their Laura Ingalls Wilder Remembered event on will speak at 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. The event is held every Labor Day which falls this year on Monday, September 5, 2016. Last year they charged for the first time. I haven’t yet heard whether they will sell tickets or not in the coming year, but if you plan to call ahead by at least a week to see what they’re doing (I’m not sure when plans will be finalized so don’t call much before that).

Anaheim White House – Anaheim, California

Dinner with 7 Little House on the Prairie TV Show stars – March 19, 2016  4 pm – 10 pm
Tickets range between $350 and $750 and discounted hotel rooms are available. Purchase tickets in advance they go on sale January 19th. Stars scheduled are: Join Alison Arngrim, Allison Balson, Dan McBride, Radames Pera, Charlotte Stewart, Rachel Greenbush & Dean Butler. There will be 15 high grade tickets that will include a tour of the exterior sets site in Simi Valley, California with Alison Arngrim.

Books

A brand NEW book by William T. Anderson will be released on March 8, 2016. The very anticipated book is The Selected Letters of Laura Ingalls Wilder. Anderson thinks this will be the last newly published material we’ll see from Wilder.
Available new paperback editions of 2 scholarly books announced by Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial Society in De Smet, SD.

• Little House Long Shadow: Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Impact on American Culture by Anita Clair Fellman (which includes a Sarah Uthoff reference).
• Laura Ingalls Wilder and Rose Wilder Lane: Authorship, Place, Time, and Culture by John E. Miller

Sarah S. Uthoff is the main force behind Trundlebed Tales striving to bring the History, Mystery, Magic and Imagination of Laura Ingalls Wilder and other greats of children’s literature and history to life for a new generation. Uthoff is a nationally known Laura Ingalls Wilder authority and has presented at five of the Wilder homesites, many conferences and numerous libraries, museums, and events around the Midwest. Attend one of her programs, schedule one yourself, watch her videos, listen to her podcast, and find her on  Facebook,  Twitter,  Google+, LinkedIn, and Academia.edu. Professionally she is a reference librarian at Kirkwood Community College and director of the Oxford (Iowa) Public Library.