Digiarkiston keskustelufoorumi

Is there a website that has photos of 19th century farms/farmhouses in the Alajärvi/Lappajärvi region?
I am wondering what the farmhouses, saunas, barns and fields looked like back when my ancestors lived there. Also, photos of the farm workers in the fields. I have translated a few estate inventories and there doesn’t seem to be many tools they used in the fields.
Thank you,
Lynette

Hi again!

There is a FB group called Alajärven historia but you have to apply for membership in the group.
Another one is Lappajärvi vanhoissa valokuvissa and that is open for any FB user to see the photos.

Then in this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pPQ1l9r4foo (Alajärvi Historiikki Kuvina) you can see some nice pictures although many are from the 20th century.

Finna also has a lot of photos on almost anything. I made a search with the word "pellolla", on the field, and this is what I got: https://www.finna.fi/Search/Results?loo ... e%2Cid+asc There are newer photos there, too - and also photos on the farming style of eastern Finland.

Farming was very hard work in the old days, a man and his horse did the work, the tools were not many.

Tuula K

Tuula,

Thank you again!

Those photos are wonderful! Some of the landscape in the video reminds me of where I grew up in northern Minnesota. There’s even a town named Finland there… lots of Finnish immigrants settled in the area. Many also settled in northern Wisconsin where my great-grandparents settled and built a log house very similar to one I also saw in the video. They received 80 acres of land from the government through the Homestead Act.

The farmhouses are absolutely beautiful. There was even one from the Niemitalo farm! Many of the farmhouses had ladders next to them which was unusual but I assume that was to remove snow. The way the farmers raked the hay into the unique bundles was interesting; at a glance some of the bundles looked like people.

Again, thank you for taking the time to find the photos/video for me. It really helps to be able to see where my family was from, not just to read about it.
Lynette

At the site "Sukutilat webissä" you get to see some 19/20th century farm houses as well.
http://sukutilat.sarka.fi/

Taitta,
Thank you. I found a photo of a farmhouse from the Anttila farm in Alajärvi on the website!
Lynette