Land Ownership - Trempealeau Co, Wisconsin

Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: Trempealeau, Wisconsin, United States

This page explores land ownership in Trempealeau County, Wisconsin, and includes, among other things, deeds, maps and surveys. Its express purpose, thus far, is to consider the land holdings of Torger G. Olson, his wife, Christina T. Olson, and his son, Albert B. Olson.

An 1877 map of Trempealeau County, Wisconsin purports to show land ownership at the time.^[1] In the northern part of Sumner Township, near Osseo, that land ownership looked like this:

Attention is drawn to three parcels of land shown in that clip. The first is the 160 acres supposedly owned by "F. Olson," in the upper middle. That's the southwest quarter of Section 4 of Sumner Township, Trempealeau County (aka Township 24 North Range 7 West). The other two parcels of interest appear to the immediate left (west), being the 80 acres supposedly owned by "C. Olson" and the 80 acres supposedly owned by "W.S. Hine." Those two parcels together comprise the southeast quarter of Section 5 of Sumner Township.

On 23 Nov 1880, Torger G. Olson was, by deed, quitclaimed the parcel supposedly owned by "F. Olson" in 1877, but the quitclaim deed wasn't from F. Olson; it was from Anton and Therese Zachtemire, husband and wife of Eau Claire County, Wisconsin.^[2] A quitclaim deed differs from a warranty deed in that, unlike a warranty deed, the grantor isn't promising the grantor actually owns the land he or she conveys.^[3] So, the grantors of this 1880 deed may have conveyed title to the land, or, perhaps, they executed the deed simply to confirm that Torger G. Olson already owned the land. Whichever is true, it's highly likely that, after this deed's delivery, Torger owned the 160 acres. It's also the case that, by now and certainly by 1890, Torger also owned the 160 acres that was, in 1877, supposedly owned by "C. Olson" and "W.S. Hine," i.e., the southeast quarter of Section 5.

That's known because, on 28 Jul 1890, Torger and his wife, Christine, took two legal actions in anticipation of his imminent death. One was to have Christine deed to Torger her interest in the westerly of their two 160-acre parcels in Sumner.^[4] The second was to have Torger execute a will, the same day, bequeathing all his property to his wife, for her life, and then to their six, then-living children (Anna, Alfred, Carl, Julia, Bergetta and Ollie), after she passed.^[5] Torger died 16 Aug 1890, less than a month later.^[6] This explains why, in a map of Sumner from 1901,^[7] the ownership appears like this:

The 329 acre farm of "Mrs. T. G. Olson" in 1901, after Torger died.[8]

As observed in that 1901 map clip, the 320 acres previously discussed is, together with nine additional acres in the northeast quarter of Section 8 of Sumner Township, part of "West Valley Stock Farm" and owned by "Mrs. T. G. Olson." On the easternmost portion there's a home shown as being the residence of her son, Albert. To the north of that parcel is 80 acres owned by "Math Olson," but no connection is yet known.

Here's where that 320 acres would be based on 2014 satellite imagery, with the community in the lower left being what was then the village of Osseo:

Sources

1. ↑ Clip from: Tucker, M.G. 1877. Map of Trempealeau County, Wis. Milwaukee: Tucker, M.G. (J. Knauber & Co., lithographers). Available w/o restriction at Library of Congress. Control #2012593176. LCCN Permalink. Digital Id. Accessed 21 May 2020.
2. ↑ See Quitclaim Deed of Anton and Therese Zachtemire, husband and wife of Eau Claire County, Wisconsin, to Torger G. Olson, of Trempealeau County, dated 23 Nov 1880 and recorded in the Trempealeau County, Wisconsin Land Records in Book 22 Page 410, quitclaiming SW ¼ of Section 4 of Township 24N Range 7W. Purchased online by the Profile Manager (Christopher Smart) 20 May 2020, through Trempealeau County, WI here. [X00000392]
3. ↑ The Profile Manager (Christopher J. Smart) is a real estate attorney.
4. ↑ 1890 Deed of Christina T. Olson to Torger G. Olson, both of Sumner, dated 28 Jul 1890 and recorded in the Trempealeau County, Wisconsin Land Records in Book 34 Page 288, conveying SE ¼ of Section 5 of Township 24N Range 7W. Purchased online by the Profile Manager (Christopher Smart) 20 May 2020, through Trempealeau County, WI here.
5. ↑ See Will and Probate Orders, discussed in Torger’s Profile.
6. ↑ Sources. (1) Will and Probate Orders, discussed in See Torger’s Profile, confirming at page 489 that Torger died in Sumner, where he lived, 16 Aug 1890.
7. ↑ Geo. A. Ogle & Co. 1901. Standard Atlas of Trempealeau County, Wisconsin. Chicago, Ill.: Geo. A. Ogle & Co. Page 15. Available online without restriction from Wisconsin Historical Society, Digital Identifier AGZ902T79.
8. ↑ Geo. A. Ogle & Co. 1901. Standard Atlas of Trempealeau County, Wisconsin. Chicago, Ill.: Geo. A. Ogle & Co. Page 15. Available online without restriction from Wisconsin Historical Society, Digital Identifier AGZ902T79.