Carl enrolled for military training at the University of Washington (1917-1918), but performed the bulk of his undergraduate degree at the University of California, Berkeley, majoring in German and history. From 1922-1924 he held a teaching fellowship at the University of California and was selected to assist Carlton J.H. Hayes of Columbia University. Eventually Carl went to NEw York for higher education. Columbia University awarded him a fellowship in 1924 and a lectureship in history in 1925. 

Starting in 1935 Carl worked at the National Archives. He was an active member in the Society of American Archivists, American Historical Association, Minnesota Historical Society, Norwegian American Historical Association, and many others. At the time of his passing in 1960, he was on the editorial board of Norwegian-American Studies. Carl was married to Laura Wendt Lokke.

A biography on Carl Lokke was published by H.B. Fant and reprinted by the American Archivist (Society for American Archivists), Vol. 23, No. 3, 1960 July.

Scope and Content:
Articles, clippings, correspondence, diaries, maps, notes, and photographs collected by an archivist, author, and educator. The material concerns the Lars Gunderson family, and the career of the Monitor Gold Mining and Trading Company of Alaska. The papers formed much of the basis for Klondike Saga, by Lokke, published posthumously by NAHA in 1965.