Fifty Years In The Northwest by William H. C. Folsom

The branch St. Paul & Duluth railroad passes through the southern part of this township. The township contributed to this road $3,000 in bonds. A railroad station in the southwest quarter of section 32 bears the name of Shafer, derived, together with the name of the township, from JACOB SHAFER, who, as early as 1847, cut hay in sections 4 and 5. He seems to have been in no sense worthy of the honor conferred upon him, as he was but a transient inhabitant, and disappeared in 1849. No one knows of his subsequent career. The honor ought to have been given to some of the hardy Swedes, who were the first real pioneers, and the first to make substantial improvements. PETER WICKLAND came from Sweden in 1853, and settled in the northeast quarter of section 26. He moved to Anoka in 1860, and was drowned in Rum river in 1880. His son Peter is a prominent merchant in Anoka. TUVER WALMARSON was born in Sweden in 1812. He was a member of the Swedish colony of 1853, settled in the northwest quarter of section