On the Mark: A salute to Finnish descendants

On a warm Saturday afternoon at Lakeside Cemetery, southwest of Wright, more than 90 offspring and partners of Isaak and Maria Haukkala Walli gathered to celebrate their Finnish ancestors who gave them life. A handsome, new engraved metal plaque bearing both the American and Finnish flags celebrates the cemetery's establishment in 1906 and acknowledges Isaak and Maria's donation of the cemetery land.

Isaak (1854-1918) and Maria (1845-1919) married and had seven children in Wassan Lanni, Finland. Unable to find land to farm in Finland, Isaak migrated alone to the U.S. in 1891 and homesteaded in Esko, logging and working at a sawmill, hoping to earn enough to bring his family. His 12-by-14-foot cabin burned. He rebuilt it and later found land and work near Wright.

In 1895, Isaak's wife Maria and four of their younger children arrived, walking to the land from the Wright train station. With their Finnish settler neighbors, Isaak and Maria helped to build their community. Their son Juho (John) joined them in 1899 and subsequently married Emelia Niskala. John bought a quarter-section of land southwest of Wright and sold parcels of it to other Finns. Life was hard in these early years. Isaak and Maria lost 10 grandchildren between 1906 and 1918.

People journeyed from afar to join the celebration, from places such as Guam, Calgary, Michigan, Mississippi and the Western United States. Phyllis Bordwell, a Walli descendant who lives near Spokane, Washington, shared a historical account of the family's origins, traveling from Finland, gaining citizenship, and losing Isaak in the 1918 fire. Isaak is buried in a mass grave for fire victims in Moose Lake. Maria and the five of her children who settled in the U.S. are all buried in the Lakeside Cemetery.

Gary Peterson recounted how he and Margaret Olson Webster researched the cemetery's origins and inhabitants from 2011 through 2013. Sources included a hand-drawn cemetery map, the cemetery register, obituaries from local newspapers, tombstones in the cemetery, census records and death certificates.

Gary recounted some of their findings: 86 of the interred were born in Finland. The earliest burial was Liisa Hunuri, who died in 1905 at age 18. The oldest person, Edith Aho Henrickson, died at age 103 years, 2 months, 22 days. Twenty-six were under a year old. Gust Walli died of a lightning strike. Daniel Lundgren was murdered. Of the 247 people buried here, 43 had Walli surnames.

After the dedication, we all gathered for this photo and then retired to the Lakeside Clubhouse, built by the community in 1908 as the local primary school, which it remained until 1940. In 1948, the Lakeside School became the community's clubhouse. We spent a couple of hours visiting, and listening to, even dancing to, music provided by family friend Steve Solkela.

You can find fascinating glimpses into these ancestors' lives and the cemetery's evolution by reading Margaret Webster's "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Cemetery," published in 2002. Also recommended is Hans Wasastjerna's "History of the Finns in Minnesota," 1957.

Ann Markusen is an economist and professor emerita at the University of Minnesota. A Pine Knot board member, she lives in Red Clover Township north of Cromwell with her husband, Rod Walli.