The Andreas Michelsen Farmstead was originally built as a two-room house in 1902 by Andreas himself. In 1912 an addition was added to the home, making seven rooms in total, and little has changed since. The homestead consists of a 1 1/2-story Victorian-style farmhouse with a wraparound porch, and various outbuildings including a barn, granary, calving shed, coal shed, machine shed, storage cellar, corrals and pens, and an outhouse. Landscape elements on the property include a dugout, cistern and filter, and garden. The farmstead is located at the corner of 2nd Avenue & 6th Street, on the west half of four blocks in the northwest corner of the National Historic Site of Stirling, Alberta. The home remained in the Michelsen family until 1995 when the village, in partnership with the Stirling Historical Society, bought the homestead to turn into an interpretative center. In center the homestead was registered as a Provincial Historic Resource and added to the Alberta Register of Historic Places. The Stirling Historical Society has since restored the property to its original 19th-century style, and the farmstead is now a museum, depicting life as it was from 1900 to the 1930s. Each summer the Historical Society holds day camps for children and an old-fashioned harvest dance which is held on the grounds of the Michelsen Farmstead every October. History From the very beginning, it was clear that the new settlement of Stirling was expected to be economically self-sufficient. Allotments of 2.5-acre building plots were designed specifically so the individual owners could provide their food. Equally important, but sometimes overlooked, was the expectation that the newly established village should be a community in the fullest sense. This must, of course, include cultural outlets to relieve the monotony of daily labor. The ability to provide for themselves culturally as well as physically contributed to the strength and self-reliance that was a sustaining force for Stirling throughout the years. Entertainment at the turn of the century had to be locally provided, for travel was slow and difficult. House parties were the norm for the early settlers. Friends would gather at various homes for visiting, card playing, or spontaneous music. Locals would play the bones for rhythm, or the violin for a quick dance, others were known for singing. The Michelsen home was a favorite gathering place for many years, and the family hosted my dances typical of those house parties. Though