The United States is a nation deeply committed to the principle that “all men are created equal” and that all lives matter. We are fascinated by the stories of individuals willing to take great risks for great rewards, confident in their ability to achieve their dreams, and willing to constantly reinvent themselves in the pursuit of success and personal fulfillment. Laura Ingalls Wilder is just such an individual. As a young pioneer of the western frontier, she lived a life of great risk, forcing her and her family to rely almost entirely on their own wits and efforts to survive. In her final years, she again took a great risk and reinvented herself as a children's writer, sharing her stories of the American frontier with new generations. Laura Ingalls Wilder became an American icon through her constant willingness to take risks, practice self-reliance, and repeatedly reinvent herself. Laura Ingalls was born to Charles and Caroline Ingalls on February 7, 1867 ("Laura Ingalls Wilder Timeline"). During her early years, the Ingalls family joined the growing number of Americans pioneering on the western frontier. After leaving Wisconsin , spent time living in Indian Territory, Minnesota, and Iowa. The family finally settled in DeSmet, South Dakota (“About Laura”). settlers moving westward, they faced the dangers of an unknown frontier, including potentially hostile Native Americans, blinding blizzards in the winter, scorching heat in the summer, and a degree of isolation that meant any disease within the family or failure to plan or prepare could have affected their fate situation. Yet Laura, along with her family, appreciated these...... middle of paper......ek Associates, 2012. Web. October 17, 2012. “All About Laura Ingalls Wilder.” Done Monster/Info please. Pearson Education, Inc.,2007. Network. October 17, 2012. "Laura Ingalls Wilder." WisconsinHistory.org. Wisconsin Historical Society, 1996. Web. October 17, 2012. “Laura Ingalls Wilder Timeline.” Discoverlaura.com. Laura Ingalls Wilder Memorial Society, Inc., nd Web. October 17, 2012. “Little House on the Prairie.” IMDb. IMDb.com, Inc., and Web. October 17, 2012. “‘Little House on the Prairie’ Movie in Talks,” HuffPost, HuffingtonPost.com, Inc., October 1, 2012.Web. October 17, 2012.Swanke, Sharon. “Historical Overview of Laura Ingalls Wilder's Cottage in the BigWoods,” University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, November 14, 2004. Web. October 17, 2012.Wilder, Laura Ingalls. The first four years. New York: Harper Collins, 1971. Print.