Margaret O'Neil - Pioneer and Story Teller - Part 1
Margaret O'Neil might be just another name in a long list of names of my ancestors. An ordinary woman in a faraway corner of 19th-century America, she was a wife, mother, sister, and aunt who was born in small-town Wisconsin and grew up, lived, and died in small-town Iowa. In those days, letter writing (correspondence) and journaling were common occupations of those who could read and write. Margaret was no different, except for one thing that stands out, which helps us shine a light on her existence. She wrote a story, a story of her family and their traveling adventure across the Midwest in a covered wagon - it's a pioneer's story. She told it well enough to get it published in a local newspaper and through that, it found its way to others. Not unlike a more famous writer and contemporary, Laura Ingalls, Margaret told her 'Little House on the Prairie' tale.
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Margaret (center) with brother Loren and sister Hannah. They
were just little kids on the month-long journey to far western Iowa. |
