The Wilder's legacy

We had a discussion in another (german) forum and there was told, that in 1907 Almanzo and Laura got $500 as a legacy from Almanzo's parents.

I was wondering as Almanzo's father lost all of his fortune when an investment failed and he died shortly after that. As far as I know Almanzo's mother had no income and spent the rest of her life with her children and grandchildren. So where should the money come from, especially as there were other children as well to be considered?

When I recently read "The Story of the Wilders" by W. Anderson, I found a story about a house in Mansfield, which was purchased by Almanzo's father and presented to his son. Later Almanzo sold the house and got $500, which made his first bank deposit in Missouri.

Could it be that this $500 was the "legacy" or was there another $500, the Wilders got from Almanzo's parents?
The girl who posted the legacy-information said it came from W. Anderson's LIW-biography. Unfortunately I don't own the book and can't check it out by myself. But as Anderson didn't mention it in the Wilders-booklet and I also didn't find it in Zochert's LIW-biography, I guess that the girl perhaps misunderstood something - it wouldn't be the first time.

Does anybody here know something about this $500-legacy?

That's interesting Rana. This is the first time I hear about the $500-legacy

The girl said, she read it in "Laura Ingalls Wilder- a Biography" by W. Anderson. The page is 171.

Perhaps somebody, who has the book handy could have a look on this page and perhaps tell or quote what is written about these $500? Not that it was important, but this detail somehow drives me crazy and I don't want to buy the whole book only for this single page...

Carol wrote:

That's interesting Rana. This is the first time I hear about the $500-legacy

Same Here

rana wrote:

Perhaps somebody, who has the book handy could have a look on this page and perhaps tell or quote what is written about these $500?

Marilyn?

The inheiritance is mentioned in Anderson's book. I looked in the other biography that I have by Donald Zochert but couldn't find mentioned. This is what Anderson says, on p 171.
Laura and Manly spent more than a decade working and living in town. They weathered the financial Panic of 1907, and they inheirited $500 from Manly's parents. Then they decided to sell their town house and finish the partially completed home on Rocky Ridge Farm.
That's all it says

Thank you sooo much, Marilyn! :Gjob:
But isn't it odd that Anderson tells two versions (one in the LIW-biography and one in the Wilders-booklet) of what seems to be the same story?

I just finished the booklet "A Wilder in the West", a biography on Eliza Jane Wilder by William Anderson. And again a $ 500 inheritance is mentioned:

Quote :

Though Mother Wilder did not die until 1905, E.J. [i.e. Eliza Jane], as administrator of James Wilder's estate, had distributed $ 500 inheritances to each of her brothers at the end of 1903

Before that it was said, that she got $ 500 as well.

I wonder if these were the same $500, Anderson told about in his LIW-biography, or if actually there were two inheritances of $ 500 - one in 1903 and another one 1907 or later.
The part from Anderson's LIW-biography sounds as if Almanzo got $ 500 after the financial panic of 1907, but perhaps this is just a misunderstanding... :think: