Bio: Peterson, Ralph & Gwen – Century Farm (1880 – 1980)
Transcriber Stan

Surnames: Peterson, Hayes

----Source: Olson Family Scrapbook

Ralph and Gwen Peterson attended the Wisconsin State Fair in Milwaukee where they received recognition for having a century farm. To eligible for this honor, a farm must have been in the family for 100 years.

Ralph's grandfather, Peder Pederson, came to Wisconsin from Norway in 1875 when Indians still inhabited the area. Peder bought the farm and worked his 160 acres for five years before finally getting a deed from the Wisconsin Central Railroad. The deed, dated 1880, was signed by President Rutherford B. Hayes; it is now framed and hangs in the present farm house built by Ralph and Gwen in 1957.

Peder's son, Edwin, purchased the farm in 1918; he and his wife Anna farmed until 1947 when their older son Ralph took over. On January 1, Tom, Ralph and Gwen's eldest son, moved back to the farm. Tom and his wife Linda represent the fourth generation to work the Peterson family farm.