A wide view of the Westesen Farm & Ranch in 1929 with the family Buick Roadster in the foreground.

Centennial Farms & Ranches

Westesen Farm & Ranch

Montrose County

Westesen Farm began with the birth of Carl Westesen in Denmark in 1867.  When he was 21 years old, he moved to America and made his way to Colorado Springs.

Corn being harvested at on the Westesen Family Farm & Ranch.

Corn harvest.

Photo courtesy of the Westesen Family Farm & Ranch.

In 1901 he married Maude Viola Bishop and settled in Denver.  For almost two years he owned and operated a feed store in Denver.  Westesen traded his feed store in 1903, along with a payment of $1600, for a 160-acre lot near Olathe, Colorado.  Since its inception, the farm has grown to 242 acres, though that no longer includes the original 160 acres. 

The farm originally had several types of livestock, which included sheep, horses, dairy cows, pigs, and chickens.  Today the farm is home to 15 hives of Italian bees and grows “Olathe Sweet” sweet corn, alfalfa, onions, squash, and other crops.

 
An old outbuilding on the Westesen Farm & ranch on a snowy winter day.
Teams of horses and equipment with Carl and Harold Westesen in the foreground, 1912.
Harvesting "Olathe Sweet" sweet corn on the Westesen Farm & Ranch.
Carl, Harold, and Maude Westesen, 1923.
Aerial view of the Westesen Farm, 1983, with Dan Westesen flying the plane and Harold Westersen waving up at it.
Carl Westesen at the Colorado State Fair in Pueblo in circa 1910. Of this, his wife, Maude wrote:"We went to the fair yesterday and saw Carl and his exhibits. They were fine, I tell you. He won over 75 first prizes and I don't know how many 2nd prizes.”
Members of the Westesen Farm & Ranch with their Centennial Farm and Ranch sign.

Year Awarded

Year Founded