Aho forest ranger farm

Ahontie 123 Lestijärvi

In 1936, Johannes Anselm Jalander (1897–1967) and his family settled in the Aho forest ranger farm by Lake Lestijärvi. That is when Johannes started as a foreman of the Lesti forest district. In addition to his paid work, he served in many positions of trust in Lestijärvi, such as the chair of the primary school board and of the road maintenance board. He was also an eager hunter and fisherman. Fishing nets, fyke nets and fish traps were made on the farm. Hay, corn and potatoes were cultivated on the farm, which also had three cows, sheep, a pig, and hens. Johannes was also skilled in woodwork and made, for example, a wooden boat and some pieces of furniture for his home. He used leftover timber to build a windmill, whose axle spun the dynamo of a car. Electric current was used to charge the lead-acid batteries of radios brought from nearby areas. 

Today the former Aho forest ranger farm is called Kuturanta, where SF-Caravan Keski-Pohjanmaa provides camping for caravanners as well as services and events such as dancing. The old main building of the farm has been renovated for use by the customers of Kuturanta.  

Stories

Olavi Laitala was about ten years old when his family and neighbours got electricity. The moving spirit behind the electric power line was Johannes Jalander. Laitala takes a trip down memory lane: “My own first experiences of electricity are from the 1950s. I remember that we had a flat torch and a battery-operated radio at home. There was no electrical connection in our house. On the granary roof of the neighbouring farm, Jalander, there was a small windmill. It was used for charging the battery that served – as I recall – as the power supply for the radio. From the times I visited the parish village, I remember the electric lights that seemed extremely bright and fantastic to me. In those days, I didn’t understand yet what electricity is, where it comes from and how it works.” (Laitala 2017, 47)

Photos

The main building of the Aho farm in summer 2018

The information board of Kuturanta 

Map