Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1903-09-09
A Trip Through the County x
VI. Arctandsr.
BY THE EDITOR.

VI. Alexander.
One f'the wealthiest towns of the
county is Arctan2er. It's soil is rich
and the inhabitants thrifty and per-
servering. Its surface is moderately
rolling and the landscape beautifully
set off with lines of fine natural
groves. But little water remains in
the number of small lakes about which
the belts of timber grew. AS excep-
tlons might be named Knutson Lake,
Swenson Lake and Lake Mary which
still remain as beautiful small sheets
OF water. When eventually the old
lake beds are drained, the amount of
waste land in Arctander will be very
small indeed. The average elevation
of the town is about forty feet lower
than the average of Norway Lake
township, and about 20 feet higher
than the average elevation of Mamre
on the south. The markets to which
most of the produce of Arctander is
hauled are New London and Kerk-
hoven. Some of the people here pre-
fer to do their heavy trading at Will
mar, and if the advantages of so do
ing were properly held forth, more
trade could be secured from this To-
cality. In this connection it would be
proper to mention that there are but
few homes in Arctander where the TRI-
BUNE is not carefully perused twice
each week.. A word to the wise is
sufficient. The early history of the
territory which comprises the township
of Arctander is very interesting. On
the western line Swedish settlement
was practically exterminated by the
merciless savages on that dreadful
Goth day of August, 1862. On the
shore of Knutson lake in Section 3
stood the first Norwegian Lutheran
church, built in this large Norwegian
settlement extending over the greater
part of five townships. The building
was log structure 30x26 feet in size
and was erected in 1868. That organ
ization was the parent of six or seven
large churches of that creed now ex-
listing in the community. There arethree
postoffices located within the borders
of the town-Norway Lake, West Lake
and Negord. There are two cream
cries within the tOwn-Norway Lake
and West Lake. The former has been
recently re-organized from a cooper
alive to a stock company. A network
of telephone lines, built on the cooper
alive plan, furnish this convenience
to large number of the farm homes.
The system comprises the Arctander
Central and number of connecting
lines. The original settlers of Arc
lander have stuck to their farms more
generally than in some other towns.
Out of thirty heads of families who
were assessed in 1868, thirteen are
dead or have moved away, and seven
teen still live on their old homesteads.
OF the thirteen missing ones, the heirs
of the deceased still retain possession
in seven cases, two live at Willmar,
one died at Willmar and three have
moved from the county or state or
cannot be accounted for. The popu-
lation of Arctander is nearly solidly
of Norwegian extraction, there being
however few Swedish families in the
south part of the town.
We began our weeks work in Arc
lander at the home of Syver Iverson,
the town clerk. We spent the day
there taking notes from the official
records. Mr.. Iverson is also clerk of
school district No. II and West Lake
post-office is located at his house.
The first postmaster was Urjans Iver-
son and he was succeeded by Syver
1verson, the present incumbent. MI.
Iverson has a neatly kept room in his
cottage set aside for his official bust
ness. He deals in a small way with
confectionery and stationery. He al
so owns a small printing outfit and
does some work in that line. The
official beginning of Arctander under
separate township government dates
from the year 1879. Attempts had pre-
viously been made to organize, and
in 1876 the county board did call a
town meeting to organize the Clown
ship of West Lake, The following
spring, however, the citizens voted to
again consolidate with Norway Lake.
Arctander was the first township in
the county to secure the convenience
of town hall located at the center
of the township, for use at town meet
ings or other public gatherings. In
1884 Atty. John W. Arctander offered
the township 5000 for that purpose on
condition that the town raise $500.
The condition was complied with and
building 2x24 feet was erected. In
the rules adopted governing the same