Excerpted from Rekindling A Century -- Darfur, MN, 1902 - 2003

Chapter 6

Families

John JOHNSON, who received a patent in 1883 signed by president Chester A. Johnson, homesteaded the original parcel of 80 acres. The youngest of four children, JOHNSON was born in 1841 at Malmo Ronas Ckane, Sweden. His wife, Anna ANDERSON, was born in 1845 near the same place but in a different township. They emigrated from Sweden in 1869, settling at North Mankato where they were married that same spring. Johnson was employed splitting ties for the railroad.

When the JOHNSONs moved to Section 10, Adrian Township three years later, they had two young children. They lived in a sod house for a short time before building the house that is still occupied today. Six more children were born to the JOHNSONs after their arrival in Watonwan County, two of which died in early childhood Carl and Alfred. Ella, Andrew, Charley, Emma Ida and Anna were the six that grew to be adults. John died in 1914 and Anna died in 1919. The JOHNSONs were charter members of West Sveadahl Lutheran church.

Around 1990, they literally raised the roof on the house and added a second story as well as a kitchen, parlor, back entry and enclosed the front porch. The basic structure of the house has remained for a hundred years now, although it has undergone remodeling and modernization. Many of the buildings remaining on the farm today are from the original homestead.

The JOHNSON family proved to be very progressive in that one of them owned one of the first tractors in Adrian, a Bart Steel Mule. The original homestead had grown to include 232 acres.

Their seventh child, Ida Caroline, married Nels Emil ANDERSON and they remained on the home farm. They had four children: Dellas, Stella (Harry CARLSON), Walter and Helmer.

When Helmer married Violet (GUSTAFSON) on Valentine�s Day 1945, they moved into the residence and farmed the land. Still, the farm remained an undivided interest between the JOHNSON children until Andrew died and Helmer purchased it from the estate in 1964. In recent years, a seven-acre block on the shore of Wood Lake was sold to the Darfur Sportsman�s Club.

Helmer died on May 10, 1990. Violet died on January 31, 2002.

The ANDERSONs have two daughters: Sandra and Laurel. Sandra and her husband, Sam WILLMAN, live in Rockford, Iowa. They have three children: Amy, Gregory and Bradley. Laurel and her husband, Brian FREDIN of rural Mountain Lake are the 4th generation to farm the acreage. They have three sons, Mark, Paul and Jeffrey.