The beloved television series Little House on the Prairie was not only one of the most popular shows of the 1970s and early 1980s, but of all time. It brought a comforting, relatable and uplifting cast of characters to our living rooms over the span of nine seasons, more than 200 episodes and three movies.
And almost 50 years after it first debuted, the legacy of Little House is still going strong. Here, we take a walk down memory lane and revisit the history, longevity and see the Little House on the Prairie cast then and now.
The origins of Little House on the Prairie
The Little House on the Prairie novels, which were inspired by author Laura Ingalls Wilder’s pioneer childhood in the 1870s and 1880s, have sold more than 60 million copies, been translated into more than 30 languages, and delighted families as the source material for the beloved show.
Wilder wrote the first book, Little House in the Big Woods, in 1932; the eighth and last “official” Little House book, These Happy Golden Years, was published in 1943 (a ninth book, The First Four Years, is widely considered a final installment and was published in 1971, a few years after Wilder’s death at the age of 90).
The books…
