Melissa Gilbert has shared a series of personal family discoveries that she described as too meaningful to dismiss as coincidence, including an unexpected connection between her biological father and the character she famously played onLittle House on the Prairie.
The actress, best known for portraying Laura Ingalls in the long-running television series, revealed the findings in a recent Instagram post after reconnecting with relatives while researching her biological family history. Gilbert, who wasadopted as a baby, said the discoveries were made with help from a fifth cousin who had been tracing family records.
Among the details Gilbert shared was the revelation that her biological father, David Darlington, had the middle name 'Manly', the same nickname Laura Ingalls Wilder famously used for her husband, Almanzo Wilder, in the Little House books and television adaptation. Gilbert described the discovery as one of several unusual parallels uncovered during the research.
In the Instagram post, Gilbert also revealed that her biological mother, Frances Catherineanne Wood, was born on 26 April 1935, while her adoptive mother, Barbara Gilbert-Cowan, was born on 26 April 1936. The actress said she wanted to hear from other people with similar adoption experiences and family stories while continuing her own genealogical research.
Melissa Gilbert through the years ♥❤💕pic.twitter.com/DbGREGpR5I
Gilbert later shared additional information uncovered through the research, including details showing that her biological mother had also been a child performer. According to the actress, her birth mother began performing professionally at the age of three and a half.
Gilbert compared the timeline to her own early start in entertainment, noting that she appeared in her first commercial at the age of two before later being cast as Laura Ingalls at nine years old. The actress wrote that the discoveries made her feel she had been 'born with the right set of genes and then adopted by the exactly perfect family'.
The revelations quickly attracted attention from fans ofLittle House on the Prairie, which ran from 1974 to 1984 and became one of the most recognisable family dramas in American television history.
Gilbert starred throughout the show's nine-season run and later received a Golden Globe nomination for her performance as Laura Ingalls.
She has previously spoken publicly about eventually connecting with her biological father later in life. During a podcast interview last year, Gilbert recalled that he recognised her immediately after learning she had starred inLittle House on the Prairie.
Source: International Business Times UK
