In  1876, when Laura was nine years old, the Ingalls family left Walnut  Grove, Minnesota, after suffering through two years of grasshopper  plagues. They traveled to Burr Oak, Iowa, to help manage the Masters  Hotel, owned by their friend, William Steadman, also from Walnut Grove.  Burr Oak is often referred to as “The Missing Link” in the Little House  book series.

The  Masters Hotel is the only childhood home of Laura Ingalls Wilder that  remains on its original site. It is registered on the National Register  of Historical Places.