Wold Cabin - Norskedalen

The first important business of the pioneer settler, upon his arrival on Coon Prairie, was to build a house. Until this was done, some had to camp on the ground or live in their wagons—perhaps the only shelter they had known for weeks. So the prospects for a house, which was also to be a home, was one that gave courage to the rough toil, and added a zest to the heavy labors. The style of the home entered very little into their thoughts—it was shelter they wanted and protection from stress of weather and wearing exposures. The poor settler had neither the money nor the mechanical appliances for building himself a house. He was content, in most instances, to have a mere cabin or hut. This was made of round logs light enough for two or three men to lay up. The house would generally be about fourteen feet square—perhaps a little larger or smaller—roofed with bark or clapboard, and floored with puncheons (logs split once in two and the flat side laid up). For a fireplace, a wall of stones and earth was made in the best practicable shape for the purpose, in an opening in the one end of the building, extending outward, and planked on the outside by bolts of wood notched together to stay it. Sometimes a fireplace of this kind was made so large as to occupy nearly the whole width of the house. In cold weather when a great deal of wood was needed to keep the proper warmth inside, large logs were piled in the fireplace. To protect the crumbling back wall against the effects of the fire and to throw forward the heat, two backlogs one on top of the other, were placed against it.

Wold cabin located at Norskedalen

For a chimney, any contrivance that would carry up the smoke would do. They were usually constructed of clay and sticks. Imagine a cold winter’s night when the storm of wind and snow was raging without, the huge fire blazing within, and the family sitting around. It  might be cozy enough if the cold was not too intense; and, in reality, before those fireplaces there was often something of cheer, as the farmer sat smoking—if he had any tobacco; and the wife knitting—if she had any yarn and needles.

For a door to his log cabin the most simple contrivance that would serve the purpose was brought into requisition. Before a door could be made, a blanket often did duty in guarding the entrance. But, as soon as convenient, some boards were split out and put together, hung upon wooden hinges, and held shut by a wooden pin inserted in an auger-hole.

City of Westby - short version

300 block of West State Street

The City of Westby began as Westby Station in 1879 when the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad named this railroad stop in honor of Ole Westby, who owned a general store and was already one of their best customers. Prior to 1879, this area was called Coon Prairie with a general store and post office located at what is today called “Old Town”. Westby Station became a village in 1896, dropping the word Station in the process. In 1899, Westby voted to dig a well, build a water storage tower and install water pipes to all citizens. This was completed in 1900. A power plant was built in 1902 to have electricity available to anyone who wished it, but for the next twenty plus years electricity was available only during daytime hours. In 1920 Westby became a city. A citywide sewer system was made available in 1927. 

Unseth Bekkedal Block

Completed in 1905, the State Bank was located on the corner of State & Main Street with Unseth’s Rexall Drug store located on State Street. In between these two major businesses was located the Unseth & Bratlie Clothing store, later becoming Pickwick Clothing. The Westby Post Office was located in the northeast corner of the bank building on Main Street and upstairs were numerous real estate, law offices and the offices of numerous doctors. Today Organic Valley encompasses the entire building except for the part that is the Ole & Lena Kaffee Hus. 

Shortly after this 1908 photo was taken, the building on the left that is protruding, was moved back to line up with the buildings on either side. Today this building houses the Midwest Natural Gas. The corner building was the Ramsland Drugstore until bought by O.A. Unseth in 1899. At the time of its demolition in the seventies it had been Goettel’s meat market for more than 50 years.

Westby Coon Prairie Lutheran Church

In 1848, when the first settlers came to Coon Prairie, the emigration from Norway was just in its beginning. True, the first group of emigrants sailed from Stavanger for New York with 53 participants in 1825. But that departure was rather unique. The region these immigrants were shown in the northwest corner of New York was not suitable for farming without immense improvements, the members of the colony led a miserable existence. There was therefore no real emigration from Norway to America for another 10-12 years.

In 1833 Cleng Peerson, emigration’s careful and persistent leader, made a journey on foot of a thousand miles from New York to northern Illinois. This journey was of much importance to the history of Norsemen here as well as in Norway. He found out there in Illinois, which then lay outside civilization's outpost, the richest farm land ready for the pioneer’s plow. On Cleng Peerson’s advice, nearly all of the Norwegian settlers in New York moved to Illinois, and they were soon in good circumstances. Cleng Peerson and a man named Knud Anderson Slogvik went to Norway to report to the hard pressed common people about the beautiful land which was available cheap in America’s west. The result of this was that in 1836 and 1837 four ships left Stavanger and Bergen with about 350 emigrants bound for Fox River, the new settlement in Illinois. Thereafter, followed a large exodus which continued for most of a hundred years.

Westby Coon Prairie Lutheran church

before the steeples were removed in 1949

Immigration of Norwegian people to the northwest was about 12 years old when our Coon Prairie settlement was begun in 1848. To begin with, emigration was limited to the west coast areas of Norway, to people from Stavanger and Hardanger. Nearly all of these went to Fox River. But it was not long before the news of the American Goshen found its way over the mountains to the nearest neighborhoods in Telemark and Numedal. In 1838 the first from Numedal arrived at Jefferson Prairie near Beloit, the first Norwegian settlement in Wisconsin. In 1839 a large group from Telemark founded the famous Muskego settlement. In the same year settlers found their way to Rock Prairie, which became a center for people from Numedal, Hallingdal and Land. In 1840 immigration began to Koshkonong in Dane County, which became the primary destination for Norwegian emigrants.

In the southwest corner of Wisconsin, between Dodgeville and Dubuque, were many lead mines. This region was the first in the state to receive considerable population. Many Norseman went there to work in the mines as early as 1840. In 1843 a considerable settlement was founded near Wiota. Most of the Norwegians who settled there were from Land in Norway. The same year a settlement was established north of Oconomowoc which was named Rock River. The first from Sætesdal came there, together with people from near Skien.

A settlement was begun in 1846 south of Blue Mounds in western Dane County. This became very large and was the most important center for people from Valdres. Winchester settlement also began the same years. That is west of Neenah and became an area for people from Telemark.

These were all the noteworthy settlements established before Coon Prairie was colonized. There were many small settlements near the larger ones.

Although all of these settlements counted many thousand Norsemen, there were very few pastors among them. In 1850, when there were about 20,000 Norwegians in American, there were only seven Norwegian Lutheran pastors among them; namely Elling Eiellsen at Jefferson Prairie, C.L. Clausen at Rock Prairie, Ole Andrewson in Fox River, Paul Anderson in Chicago, A.A. Scheie at Leland (near Fox River in Illinois), H.A. Stub in Muskego, and A.C. Preus at Koshkonong. All the pastors had a very large mission field which often stretched over a hundred miles. In spite of their untiring efforts to visit the widespread settlements, both a year and a day often went by between pastoral visits in many places.

This fleeting view is given to provide an idea of the spread of Norwegian settlements and their churchly service at the time when Conn Prairie’s history begins.

100 block of South Main

Taken in 1908 this photo looks north showing the 100 block of South Main Street. On the left is the Evans Hotel and the Flugstad Hardware Company with a vacant space between the two buildings that in six years would become the Bank of Westby. Barely visible is the old Stevlingson and Call general merchandise store before they constructed the building on the corner that exists today. Crossing the street from the State Bank of Westby is Ole Westby’s second store being used in 1908 as a Hardware store. The turret is over the front entrance to the A.H. Dahl general merchandise store, now Uff-Da Mart. The front right of the photo is Erik Sveen & Son Furniture and Funeral business.

Must be a sale at Stevlingson’s or Dahl’s.

Why else would all the buggies be at their locations?

You will notice that in 1908,  one of two city gas street lights was hanging over the middle of the intersection of Main and First. The other gas street light was hanging over the center of the intersection of State and Main. An explanation for this is that when a town, village or city is in its infancy, the center of town is usually First and Main and a bank is on one of the corners. Westby had two banks at this intersection before they both moved north. The new Bank of Westby moved to the middle of the block and the new Bekkedal Bank moved one block north to State and Main. Since the intersection of Main and State by 1908 was also the center of town another gas light lit this intersection.