Bakkemellum Family

Map to cemeteries on the western side of the town of Farmington

The Bakkemellum family came from the Lillehammer area of Norway and settled on this farm in 1849, before La Crosse County had even become a separate county. Johannes (John) Anderson, son of Anders Jensen Bakkemellum and Marie (Olsdatter) Bakkemellum, sailed from Christiana (now Oslo) to New York, a trip that took eight weeks. Once he landed in New York, he journeyed to the city of Buffalo in New York, and from there to Milwaukee. He then travelled to La Crosse by ox team as there were no railroads in this region at that time.

Bakkemellum Farmily Cemetery looking toward the Ofstedahl farm, Nov. 2000He came to the Trempealeau, Wisconsin, area first, but because there wasn't any bridge across the Black River, he decided to settle just north of Holmen in an area that became known as Lewis Valley. The village of La Crosse was scarcely more than a fur trading post at that time, and the Lewis family from Scotland was the only other family that occupied the valley. The Lewis family later moved farther west, but descendants of the Bakkemellum family still live and farm the land their ancestors worked so hard to clear. According to the Biographical History of La Crosse, Trempealeau and Buffalo County, Wisconsin (1892), Johannes was said to have been the first Norwegian settler in La Crosse County.

The Ofstedahl house was constructed in 1887, Nov. 2000The following year, Johannes sent for his wife, Caroline Olson, and his parents to leave Norway and join him in the United States. The name Bakkemellum refers to the original farm name in the Biri area of Norway from where the family originated. At least the three sons of Anders settled close to each other in Lewis Valley. The boys' surnames were Anderson as per the Norwegian naming practices and the girls' Andersdatter.

Because there wasn't an organized church or cemetery in the area when they died, Anders and Marie Bakkemellum are buried on the southeast corner of their 80 acre farm.The original Bakkemellum log farm house is on the right. The building was covered with clapboard siding and it burned down in 1947. The farm house on the left remains almost unchanged from its construction in 1887. Photo courtesy of Walton Ofstedahl, 2000

However, there is a Mari aged 84 years who died Feb. 24, 1871, and is buried with Christian and Anna Anderson in the Lewis Valley Lutheran Church Cemetery. Caroline's parents, Ole and Betsy Olson, came to the La Crosse County in 1855 and may also be buried with the Bakkemellums. All three sons of Anders and Marie and their wives are buried in the Lewis Valley Lutheran Church Cemetery. At this time, the family plot is not marked in any special way, other than an old lilac bush, but a white picket fence surrounded the area at one time.

The Bakkemellum/Ofstedahl farm yard. On the right is the original log barn. The granary building on the left is still standing. Photo courtesy of Walton Ofstedahl, 2000Seven children were born to Johannes & Caroline, including a daughter Mary who married Andrew Ofstedahl. Together, Mary and Andrew had seven children. This is how the farm passed into the Ofstedahl family. The Ofstedahls also came from the Lillehammer area and immigrated to the United States in 1868. Andrew and his wife and family appear in the old pictures included on this page.

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