Caddie Woodlawn

Tom Woodlawn is Caddie’s older brother by two years. At the start of the novel, he is Caddie’s partner in crime. Together with their younger brother Warren, they go on several adventures. On these exploits Tom takes the role of leader. When crossing the river to see the Native Americans, Caddie and Warren “had every confidence in Tom” (5) that he would keep them safe, despite none of them being able to swim.

Tom is also fiercely loyal to his family. When Caddie gets into an altercation with Obediah Jones, Tom is quick to act after “sensing danger to Caddie” (64). Additionally, when Caddie falls through the ice, Tom’s love for his sister and quick thinking result in her rescue. Like Caddie, Tom matures throughout the novel, developing a crush on Katie Hyman and even purchasing her the nicest valentine. Katie acts like a lady, as she is quiet and demure and engages in feminine activities like sewing. While Tom scoffs at the necessity for these qualities in Caddie, he finds them attractive in Katie, much to Caddie’s confusion.

After Annabelle’s arrival, Tom teams up with Caddie to play tricks on her. Tom’s motivation stems mostly from frustration at how Annabelle insults Wisconsin and its people by constantly speaking of Boston’s supposed superiority, demonstrating Tom’s pride in his home and his family. When given the choice to move to England and be a lord, Tom says he’d “rather build a new mill in America than live in a castle in England” (265), expressing his affinity for the sense of adventure and hard work required of American pioneers.

By the end of the novel Tom is a young man who is proud of his home and family, and who has romantic feelings for a young woman. Additionally, Tom’s interactions with Caddie change to reflect Caddie’s own maturation. When Caddie expresses interest in quilting and other housework, Tom joins her and does not criticize her pursuit of more feminine activities, indicating an ability to adjust his behavior.

Warren Woodlawn, Caddie’s younger brother by two years, joins Caddie and Tom in most of their adventures. Warren tends to follow his siblings’ actions and often mimics their ideas as well. When Tom jumps into action against the Jones brothers to defend Caddie at school, Warren fights alongside him. When Caddie falls through the ice, Warren lays down so that Tom can push him toward Caddie and rescue her. Warren’s devotion to his siblings is rewarded when Tom steps in to tell Miss Parker that Warren’s mistake during the reading performance was his fault, saving Warren from being hit with a ruler.

Hetty Woodlawn is an annoying, tattletale sister and “the self-appointed newsbearer of the family” (3-4). When Tom, Caddie, and Warren cross the river at the start of the novel, Hetty watches them from afar, and the children are convinced that she will tell their mother of their dangerous undertaking. However, when Hetty joins Caddie at Mary’s grave and wonders whether Caddie wishes that she “hadn’t come” (208), Caddie realizes that Hetty is lonely because she is not part of any group. Caddie’s attitude toward Hetty softens at this point, which gives readers a glimpse into why Hetty constantly tags along with her siblings and tells on them. Those actions provide her with a role to play, even though it negatively affects their relationship.

When Annabelle comes to visit, the children still try to exclude Hetty, worried that she will tattle. Readers see Hetty’s restraint when she keeps quiet after the first trick, but she is tested when Annabelle cries, and she tells her mother everything. Hetty starts to come into her own when she tells Caddie that she wants to stay in America because she likes “it better than any place” and she wants “to be an American” (266). Though her desire matches Caddie’s, she comes to this conclusion on her own. By the end of the novel Hetty has a more positive relationship with her siblings, and her independence is beginning to blossom.

As the patriarch of the Woodlawn family, Mr. Woodlawn has a profound effect on his children’s actions and beliefs. Caddie’s adventurous childhood is the result of Mr. Woodlawn’s desire to let her live free to make her strong and healthy. Bucking the normal gender expectations that determine a young lady’s daily undertakings causes Caddie, and her brothers, to see beyond gender norms. When Mr. Woodlawn sees Caddie’s curiosity and willingness to work with clocks, he encourages it, helping Caddie repair Mr. Tanner’s clock and bragging about her skill to the others. Again, Mr. Woodlawn’s actions and words solidify his belief that Caddie, even as a girl, is capable of many things.

As the children learn of Mr. Woodlawn’s aristocratic family, they understand why he puts a premium on hard work and values personal accomplishments. When his children try to decide whether to stay in America or move to England to become lords and ladies, Mr. Woodlawn’s influence is evident when Tom and Warren declare that they would rather work for what they have. Though John Woodlawn is careful not to influence his children’s decision, his example through the years impacts their values.

Finally, John Woodlawn demonstrates compassion, which he imparts to his children by example. When the pigeons migrate through the farm, Mr. Woodlawn tells his men to not “kill more than we can eat” (30), demonstrating a desire to avoid gluttony and killing for the sake of killing. This parallels Caddie’s discomfort with the idea of killing as many pigeons as possible, demonstrating that Caddie has internalized some of her father’s beliefs. Additionally, Mr. Woodlawn empathizes with the Native Americans in their region. When rumors fly about an impending massacre, Mr. Woodlawn does not believe them. His experiences with the Native Americans have been positive, so he is loath to believe that they would harm the white settlers. He understands that the white men are fearful of the Native Americans, but he does not let their fear or rash decisions affect his own thinking. Again, his children demonstrate these same tendencies, believing that the Native Americans are kind and attributing others’ fear of them to lack of experience and understanding.

Harriet Woodlawn is Caddie’s mother, and throughout the novel she demonstrates the ability to adjust her behaviors, expectations, and views. Mrs. Woodlawn initially misses Boston and views Wisconsin as a “barbarous country” (57). However, she makes the best of her situation, throwing herself into raising turkeys and being a good neighbor when people are afraid during the massacre scare. By the end of the novel, Mrs. Woodlawn has grown to love Wisconsin; she never “knew how much [...] until [she] had to choose” (270). She realizes that she is happy as long as her family is, even if that means staying in Wisconsin.

Mrs. Woodlawn is portrayed as a woman who believes ladies must behave a certain way, as evidenced by her admiration of Annabelle and her disgust at Caddie’s behavior when she plays tricks on Annabelle. However, Mrs. Woodlawn allows Caddie to run wild at her husband’s behest. Despite an occasional comment wherein Mrs. Woodlawn wonders when Caddie will be more ladylike, Mrs. Woodlawn does not intervene in her daughter’s behavior, suggesting that she has adjusted her own expectations for Caddie out of respect for her husband and devotion to her daughter. When Caddie does start to demonstrate some interest in housework, Mrs. Woodlawn realizes that she need not push her daughter; Caddie will make good choices and engage with what she sees fit.

Finally, Mrs. Woodlawn’s opinion of the Native Americans changes over the course of the novel. At first she views them as savages and succumbs to fear. However, after she meets Indian John and sees his interactions with Caddie, she softens in her view. She gains enough compassion to express disdain at Mr. Hankinson’s treatment of his Native American wife, and she wonders why white settlers are afraid of the Native Americans in the first place, marking a substantial change from her viewpoint at the start of the book.