The Little House on the Prairie and Crowley High Connection

CROWLEY, La. (KMDL-FM) - Have you ever stumbled upon a piece of local history that’s too interesting to forget? That’s exactly what happened in Crowley, Louisiana, where a surprising link connects a beloved TV classic to a small-town classroom over a century ago in Acadiana.

(Photo by NBC Television/Courtesy of Getty Images)

Crowley High's First Graduating Class

If you've ever taken the time to look around the lobby and bathrooms at the Grand Opera House of the South in Crowley, you've probably noticed old class photos from Crowley High School’s earliest days. Among them is a photograph that reveals something remarkable about the school’s first graduating class in 1904.

That year, seven students received diplomas on the opera house stage, but the student who led the class wasn’t just anyone. She was Rose Wilder Lane, daughter of Little House on the Prairie author Laura Ingalls Wilder.

Who Was Rose Wilder Lane?

Rose Wilder Lane wasn’t just the top student of her class in 1904, she was also an accomplished writer and intellectual. According to historical records, she managed to learn and translate Latin in a single year...a course that typically took three according to wikipedia.com.

As the valedictorian of Crowley High School’s first graduating class, Rose delivered a memorable commencement reading of Edgar Allan Poe’s "The Raven", but in Latin.

After her early Louisiana years, Rose built a distinguished career as a journalist, novelist, and political thinker. She is widely recognized as a key early voice in American libertarian thought alongside writers like Ayn Rand and Isabel Paterson.

TSM Employee Photo

Rose Wilder Lane’s Notable Works

Rose Wilder Lane authored several significant books, including:

Let the Hurricane Roar (1938)
The Discovery of Freedom (1943)
Young Pioneers (1932)
Give Me Liberty (1936)
Charlie Chaplin’s Own Story (2007)
The Lady and the Tycoon (1973)

Why This Louisiana Connection Matters

Crowley itself is rich in heritage, known as the “Rice Capital of the World” and home to historic landmarks like the Grand Opera House where Rose Wilder Lane’s academic milestone took place.