Lentsman Family

Peter Lentsman and his family, accompanied by members of the Erdman and Kulpas family, settled in the area near Barons, Alberta in 1904. They had arrived from South Dakota frustrated that they were unable to successfully farm the land near Pierre. Peter's son, John, was born in August, 1903 and made the trip north as an infant.

The Lentsmans' first home was made of sod, not unlike other homesteads at this time. The walls were two feet thick making it warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Helen Lentsman was born in March 1905 while her sister, Lucy, followed 18 months later. Helen and Lucy walked three and a half miles, back and forth, to attend school at the Wheatland Centre School. Later, they were fortunate enough to travel to their new school, Barons Consolidated School, using horses.

Peter farmed until 1919 when his wife's health was rapidly declining. The entire family moved to Vancouver hoping the milder weather would alleviate some of her symptoms. She eventually passed away in 1933 at the age of 57 years. The remainder of the family returned to Barons where they had been renting out their property. Lucy soon found work in Calgary while Helen enrolled at a teacher's college in Nelson, British Columbia.

Helen died in a car accident in November 1939; she was 34 years old. Peter's health was gradually deteriorating at this time and he passed away in December 1944; he was 71 years old. John married in 1933 and has one daughter named Joan. Lucy married into the Baustad family and has two sons named Warren and Sigurd.