History:
The land was purchased from the government in 1850 by John Stassen. The farmstead was built in 1856 when John was forced to leave Oldenburg, Germany for being a rabble rouser. John and his best friend John Janssen founded the Monee Academy which was an institution of higher learning. He also worked with the state capital to create the first insurance company in the state, the Green Garden Insurance Company, which still exists to this day.
A descendant of John, Harold Stassen was Governor of Minnesota for many years and would visit John and Margaret Stassens graves in the local Union Cemetery during his 9 campaigns for the presidency of the United States. The property was then passed onto the Janssens who lived there in the early part of the last century. The farm has changed hands several more times and continues to be farmed today.
