time residents of the Spillville area. Dorothy has 2 sisters Alice and LaVonne and 2 deceased brothers, Lester and Raymond. The Frey and Swehla relatives came from Bohemia, Switzerland, and Germany.

Vernon and Dorothy farmed first in the Ridgeway area, moving to Granger, MN where Alan , Lee , and Amy  joined the family. After moving to Decorah another child Glen was born.

Alan is married to Susan Mailey and they have 4 children: Dale, Tammy, Shane and Daniel.

Lee has 2 children: Lee Jr. and Lynn.

Amy has 4 children: Tom, Beth, Pat and Mike Ryan

Glen, married to Darla Huinker, has 2 children: Ian and Aubrey.

Front: Dorothy and Vernon Back: Alan, Glen, Amy and Lee Ellickson

All of the Ellickson children live in Winneshiek Co. as do many of their grandchildren.

Vernon and Dorothy moved to their present location in Pleasant Twp. in 1959. After farming their 300 acre farm they are now retired and still live on the farm.

For many years dancing at Matter’s Ballroom was a regular Saturday night event. Now Vernon enjoys his favorite pastime of reading; a love of books that has been handed down to all his children and to the grandchildren as well. They both enjoy gardening and playing cards.

Dorothy quilts, bakes (we used to joke that some of the neighbors could smell her baking as they seemed to time their visits) and spends much time canning and babysitting grandchildren.

Ellickson ancestors are buried at Union Prairie Cemetery and the Frey’s at Haug Cemetery west of Spillville.

Ellingson, Anton and Ida (Hanson)

(Lorraine Houck)

Anton Ellingson was born 27 Oct 1880, son of Christian and Marie Ellingson. His father was born 1 Apr 1837 in Maurtvedteie, Norway, and his mother was born 15 Jun 1840 in Flarestueie, Norway. They were married in Norway in 1861. Anton’s brothers and sisters were: Karen,

Kari, Tom, Elen, Eldine, Hilda, Jane, Isabel, and Christian.

Anton married Ida Hanson (b. 19 Jul 1884), daughter of Julius (25 Mar 1858) and Mathilda (14 Jul 1857) Hanson who had been married 30 Dec 1881. Ida’s sisters and brother were: William, Alice, and Hattie.

Anton and Ida were married 14 Jul 1906 at the home of Ida’s parents in Pleasant Twp. as the Canoe Ridge Church was not completed at that time. One thing Anton often spoke of was that he hauled lemon pies that day with team and buggy from his home to the Hanson home. Evidently the weather was too hot for lemon pies; he would never eat lemon pie again.

Anton had nine children: Tilvina (Bigler), Myrtle (Bigler), Arnold, Irene (Tilleros), Julius, Erven, Clifford, Bernice (Byrnes), and Helen (Bergan). All nine children were baptized and confirmed in Canoe Ridge Church. The Ellingsons farmed a few miles from this church and were very active members. They regularly filled a whole pew at Sunday services. Their family is now spread over the country and numbers 38 grandchildren, 79 great-grandchildren and 26 great-great-grandchildren.

A huge garden was planted every year, and after a long, hard day of labor in the field, Anton would work in the garden until dark. Much canning was done and the cellar shelves were neatly filled with hundreds of quarts of sauce and vegetables. Many gallon buckets of green gooseberries were picked and cleaned; when peas were picked for a family dinner, a large milk pail full was needed.

The kitchen at home was a busy place, filled with the aroma of freshly baked bread, a fresh cake nearly every day (sometimes unfrosted), and delicious cookies. There was fresh butter that had been churned in a barrel type churn and stored in the coolness of the cellar. Everyone who came to their home was made welcome and no one went away hungry, not even a trucker or salesperson. Everyone was invited in for coffee and some of Ida’s good baking.

A big event was moving to the summer shanty for the summer months and back to the house again in the fall. After having moved out in the fall, Anton would bring home many sacks of corn to be dried in the shanty. The ears were left with a few husks on, two ears tied together and hung on wires underneath the ceiling. These were dried and used as seed corn for the spring planting. Many late nights were spent doing this until the job was finished.

The Ellingson farm was located across the road from the Coon Club Cabin, owned by the Curtins. The Ellingson children’s biggest delight was when the Curtins vacationed in their cabin and came to the farm to buy milk, eggs, and cream. They never forgot to bring treats such as candy, gum, and crackerjacks.

Grandma Marie Ellingson lived in a two-story, two-room log house just a short distance away until she was no longer able to care for herself. She moved in with the Ellingson family until her death 5 Aug 1918 at the age of 78. Grandma never went for the cows and sheep unless she had her knitting along, and knitted as she walked.