Peter Burfiend Farm

History

The early history of this property is somewhat murky. Government records indicate that the names of Fischer, Bronson (or Brunson), and Kemener were variously associated with it soon after the region was opened for settlement in 1852. The 1860 census indicates that Joseph Bronson had settled here, but little else is known about him or his family. None of his buildings or other remnants from his life appear to remain.

In 1882, the son of Port Oneida’s first European settler purchased the property. Peter Burfiend had grown up on the Carsten Burfiend Farm, 1½ miles to the northwest. He and his wife Jenny, who came from the nearby Goffar Farm on Narada Lake, built a log cabin and started a farm operation here. Peter’s father was a commercial fisherman, and Peter was brought up in a fish boat, almost, according to his grandson Jack Barratt. However, because his brother had drowned a few years earlier, Pete’s bride told him, “That’s the end of the fishin’. You’re not going on the lake.”

This cabin consisted of a main room and a bedroom downstairs, and a loft where the children slept. Note the dovetail joints, which held the logs tightly in place. According to Peter’s grandson George Burfiend, Pete “was considered kind of a master ax person…Of course, he liked the ax…The Anderson boys [neighbors] said, “When you needed a timber hewed, you wanted to get Pete because he could hew to a line¦He could do it with both the broad ax and the adze, either one it didn’t matter to him, he could do her. He often did ax work in trade with neighbors.

In 1891 Peter and Jenny Burfiend moved back to Peter’s home place to take over that farm from his aging father. This farm then changed hands several more times before being sold to Charlie Brunson, a brother of Joe Brunson of Thoreson Road. Charlie Brunson and his wife Anna raised several children here, but apparently not easily. Jack Barratt recalls, They had a team and a couple cows and that was it. There was only 40 acres in the farm, so you don’t do much and it’s mostly sand & swamp.

In the early 1940′s the Brunsons sold this farm to Milton Basch, who had grown up on the Martin Basch Farm, 1/2-mile north. Milton and his wife Mildred raised 5 sons here, supplementing the farm income with a house-painting business. In 1977 the Basches sold their farm to the National Park Service, retaining use of it for the next 25 years. Milton always kept a beautiful flower garden alongside the driveway. He frequently had tips for passing Park Rangers regarding area goings-on, and enjoyed chatting about old times.

The existing house is thought to have been built sometime during the 1890′s by Martin Basch, of Baker Road. Most of the outbuildings were probably built during following years. The barn, which was torn down in 1978, stood some 100 yards north of the house.

When Peter Burfiend came of age, he married neighbor Jenny Goffar and moved 1 1/2 miles southeast from his home place. There he built this cabin and began farming along Basch Road, just north of M-22. Jack’s mother, Laura (Burfiend) Barratt, was born here. Later Pete and Jenny had a frame house built (which remains) and began using the cabin for equipment storage. Eventually they moved back to take over Pete’s home place.

This farm was then sold to Charlie Brunson, a brother of Joe Brunson of the Thoreson Road Brunson Farm. He and his wife Anna raised several children there, but apparently not easily. Jack recalls: They had a team and a couple cows and that was it. There was only 40 acres in the farm, so you don’t do much and it’s mostly sand & swamp. Most of the farmers around here worked in the lumber woods (winters). It was their income from the logging business that built all these homes and barns.

The Brunsons later sold this farm to Milton Basch, who had grown up on the Martin Basch Farm, 1/2-mile north. Milton and his wife Mildred raised 5 sons here, supplementing the farm income with a house painting business.