Hi all, Olaf is still translating. The pages are going online here as they are done: (He is working on the The Emigrant Ship Valkyrien now) http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~maggiebakke/ulvestad.html If you go to that page, you can click on the little house and a new page will pop up with a picture of Olaf Kringhaug. :-) Have a good rest of the weekend! Margit

Translated by Olaf Kringhaug http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~maggiebakke/ulvestad.html The Emigrant ship Valkyrien. In a near sinking in the North Sea the night of April 28 and 29, 1873. By Teacher C. K. Fjærestad. Part 1 Since there are 48 years between 'The Sloop', that took the first emigrants by sailing ship from Stavanger to New York, and the Valkyrien which took the last on a sailing ship from Bergen to Quebec, with 53 and 303 passengers aboard respectively, so it is important for the family that now exists, and that to come, to learn something about the Valkyrien's history. Also to learn how this, the last of that type transportation that went over the ocean, as much as the first. Following urging by a friend, I must give a short summary from my diary of the dangers that both the North Sea and Atlantic taught us to see through sorrow and joy and it was He who says, 'All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth' that came and saved us from death every time, for which many of us yet have not ceased to thank Him. The Valkyrien as far as is known to me was the last sailship to bring emigrants from Norway to America. But the Valkyrien's story and how God and strangers helped us in our need on our passage is not so easy to describe without being suspected and judged by some who might be tempted to think that it is self-praise and that I set myself above others and not have written more about the other passengers. But among the passengers there was, however, one who clearly knew more about how things went than the others and to prevent the idea that it was not him, I will carefully exclude everything that brought him respect even though it would have been an interesting chapter to hear he freed the captives and how he made every offence aboard settled in the best manner. His last act in Norway was to help in getting money for the release of a fellow passenger, J. R. from Bergen. He had been arrested by lawyer Hægstad for attempting to escape paying a mortgage of fifty 'daler'. At 10 o'clock of the last evening he came out of prison and came aboard the Valkyrien where his family was and which without the Captain's permission delayed the ship's departure for four hours after it had raised anchor. And to show that it is not a false assertion that the passenger who got the prisoner out of the prison was more informed about everything aboard than we others below decks, the dangers the Valkyrien met time and time again cannot be depicted in such an abbreviated form as this without me bringing him into the story as a sort of fill and against my will and until the reader wishes to know his right name, I will call him Pat.* The 4 year old bark, Valkyrien, whose Captain was Andreas Møller from Grimstad, and whose First Officer was Christian Krøger from Arendal, took aboard 303 emigrants and departed Bergen 1 o'clock in the afternoon of Friday the 25th April 1873. Pat, who for several years had been an agent for the Emigrant Office in Bergen, still has a letter of the 5th February 1873 he received from the Company in which they informed him that two ships would be equipped for emigrant transport that year and that the price by sailship would be 32 speciedaler for adults from Bergen to Austin, Minn. and by steamship 52 speciedaler 12 skilling and through the sailship company they could also redeem the ticket with a number of English steamship lines. But since there were not more than 303 that could sail that year from Norway by sailship it was necessary to send the 30 who could not get space on the 'Valkyrien' by steamship which was cheaper than to send another ship with only another 30 emigrants to Quebec. The Company had hired a small steamship to tow us out to Marsteinen, 50 kilometers accompanied by the Emigrant Office's leading gentlemen, Joachim, Meier Monsen and Schrøder leading us there and then returned with the steamship. Even though manna did not rain upon us when we left Bergen, we did, in honour of Norway, have a good parting meal with peas, grits and boiled pork. But as soon as the Valkyrien came out on the North Sea and plunged into the deep wave troughs and was washed over the prow by the waves, the good food that had been eaten decided that it would not come along.. Not even as far as Norway's cliffs! And whenever the North Sea was not as deep at any place as it had been before, the peas and pork flew overboard everywhere and there was much moaning. As soon as we had come aboard the ship, there were some who became aware that there were some among us who had longer fingers than they should, and the first day after we had left Bergen it was reported to the Captain that some of the passengers had lost one thing or another even though they had been under double lock in the provisions compartment. The officers had the key and only opened the compartment once a day so the passengers could the food they needed for the next day while in the compartment under guard, but people could also open other people's chests in which there was butter, bread, meat and many other things. A bit before these reports were made to the Captain, First Officer Christen Krøger had in some way found out that among the passengers there was a non-commissioned officer* who had been a policeman and had guarded 89 prisoners at Bergenhus fortress and he told Captain Møller immediately. When Captain Møller learned this he sent Krøger after the man who they imagined was a relative of "Jack of all Trades" and to bring him to the captain's cabin. He asked what it was about and why he should go there? Well, it was just that the Captain wished to request that he take over the position of commandant of the passengers below decks, keep the key for the provisions compartment and as a quartermaster open it once every 24 hours so the passengers could supply themselves as well as issue the statutory wood and water to each family. And of the 80 male adults, who according to the ship's law, should help the sailors wash the decks and empty the ashes from the stoves, he would order 6 men to that duty every morning at 6 A.M. Also he would sell the passengers all sorts of foodstuffs they needed, that the Captain could provide from his supply, and keep an account of this until they came ashore. Although the man who was to answer the Captain on this question seemed to know a bit about giving orders and arresting and taking care of prisoners and similarly how to sell all sorts of goods, he was not at all prepared to answer the question immediately since he had not had more time off than two days in twelve and a half years. To refuse so kind a man as Captain Miller what he now requested was impossible for a man who had been a soldier under two kings. The first we knew that we had gotten a new quartermaster was when on Monday morning, the 28th of April, he opened the hatch cover on the tweendeck, he told us he was appointed as commandant below decks. Not everyone thought well of this since all his orders seemed to cause more fear than we wished to endure. Whether it was that a number were happy that they now had their property in the compartment in more secure hands with a soldier as guard or for other reasons will be unsaid, but most showed happiness that day, but it did not last long. It soon became apparent that after happiness comes sorrow since happiness and sorrow always alternate. *Fjærestad himself. OK

Hei List! You may have noticed that the county translations are all done. We are in the process of polishing them up in the compilation: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~maggiebakke/ulvestad.html Again I urge you, that if you see any errors, please let me know. Olaf

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Alaska It is a little too early to write about Norwegians in Alaska - when it still stands on the first rung of development and before there can be any talk of settlement. It is essentially just gold seekers* and businessmen who have come here to date. In this connection it can be reported that the Norwegian Jaset Lindeberg**, Magnus Kjelsberg (and his brother) as well as V. Basi and O. Paulsen were among those who discovered the rich goldfields in the Nome district (in 1900) and that induced many people to stream there. Even now Nome is a big city - with mines and traffic in all directions. We find Norwegians in Nome as well as Dawson, Juneau, Wrangel, Sitka, Kodisky, Petersburg and othetr towns and areas see, *Sammenstilling af norsk Sambygdinger' in the book's last part. Alaska is also represented in section 'Norwegians in public positions in America' The City of Petersburg was named after the Norwegian Peter Busmand*** who made himself renowned up there but which finally was tragic. And there is another place (post office) with the name Andvik. Since 1894 The Norwegian Synod has maintained a mission station among the Eskimos in Alaska. The station is located at Port Clarence and has almost the whole time been managed by Pastor T. L. Brevig. Mining, hunting and fishing are the leading sources of income in this territory. But they have also begun farming and logging. *Only a small number of the gold seekers found what they aspired to. But many became so poor that they could not afford to go back and many lost their lives as a consequence of the unendurable hardships. Blizzards, cold, hunger, overexertion etc forced many a brave man to close his eyes up there in the wilderness - far away from the people who could give them a helping hand. **Judging by his name Lindeberg would more likely be Swedish but he is not. He was born in Norwegian Finnmarken. ***Peter Buschmann. OK

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. New Mexico The only place in New Mexico where it can be said there is any number of Norwegians is Albuquerque, Bernalillo County but there are not many of them either. Olaf B. Aagaard, who now lives in La Center, Wash., writes, "It was in the year 1881 that a mining company in Boston sought to colonize its vast land holdings in New Mexico with Scandinavians and the company's Norwegian agent in Chicago gathered a group of 50 persons who set off. But the disappointments we encountered were great. First, the lawlessness was so great that we always had to be armed with great revolvers - hanging from cartridge belts around our waists. We were surrounded by Indians and half-wild Mexicans all the time and shots were exchanged quite often with death as a consequence. Finally we were afflicted by an epidemic that took several members of our families. After a stay of two years down there we were fortunate to get back to civilisation." But civilisation has also reached New Mexico now.

Hi List! Some may be confused about the reference to the Indian Territory. It is now part of Oklahoma, since 1907, I believe. A little history: http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/history/A0825124.html In the southeast US, the Indians were forced to leave to settle west of the Mississippi in what became known as the Trail of Tears. A sort of ethnic cleansing, I suppose. http://ngeorgia.com/history/nghisttt.html Olaf

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Indian Territory At Chickasha (on the border with Oklahoma) a Norwegian settlement was established in 1905. The first to settle there was Thomas T. Sand. Next after him came Charles Henning, Math. Evensen, Anders L. Mordt, Nels S. Nelson, Andrew Nelson, Ole Olsen, Andrew Rørem, Ole Ellertson, Lewis O. Tendal, Ole Dahl, T. Hallum, O. O. Lia, Matt. Ivarson and M. Alson, most of them from Illinois. Their sources of income were the same in the Indian Territory as in Oklahoma; see above.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Oklahoma At Griams,* Roger Mills County there is a small group of Norwegians of which clearly, Nils Mathiasen was the first but the year he came to Oklahoma is not known. The leading sources of income are cotton, maize, wheat and sweet potatoes. Of Norwegians who have held public office there are none, with the exception that there is supposed to be a Sheriff Jesper Nilsen in Greer County. However, I have not had a reply from him so I do not know if he is of Norwegian ancestry or not. A Trønder by the name Gustav Andersen writes the following from Sayre, Okla., "My wife and I emigrated by sailship in 1869. We lived in Wisconsin for 11 years. Then we moved to Kingsbury Co., S.D. where we took a homestead. There we experienced much of the newcomer's unpleasantness. The first winter so much snow fell that the railway was blocked from the middle of January until the 8th of May. Provisions ran out for most of us and we had to grind our wheat in a coffee mill. For fuel I had nothing else but hay that I had to carry or drag with a rope over the hard snow. I did not own a horse or an ox, just a cow. For it and fuel I had to go long distances to get hay. Two years later (1882) we had a bad drought that lasted three years. We suffered great need at times. The conditions soon became better and we lived there for 11 years altogether. But because of the harsh climate we and some others moved to the promised land of Tennessee. We took everything we owned with us - and we lost it. We had fallen in to the hands of fraudulent land agents. They had gotten some priests and newspapers to recommend land that was worth nothing and we poor farmers had swallowed the bait. Finally we found ourselves in a position to come to Oklahoma where we have now lived for six years. This is written mainly as a warning. Do not listen to the land agents' promises. If you wish to move, go and look at the land yourself. And do not sell your old home before you know that you have gotten a new one that you will be content with". *Probably an error for Grimes. OK

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Jackson County Near the California border where my current work was completed, a number of Norwegians are found in the vicinity of Ulvestad Post Office. In this connection I will take the liberty of of telling a true anecdote about myself. It goes so: Naturally, people became weary of Martin Ulvestad (me) and the consequence was often that they refused to take my questionnaires out of the post office, they let them be sent back to Minneapolis where I lived. But then I had the clever idea of changing the name. On the envelope I printed for example, 'Publisher of Statistics', 'Publisher of Norway' etc. And when I could not come up with more names that suited, I sent the letters without a name - that is, no name or return address. Just the same it happened they did not wish to receive them since from the postmark they saw that they came from Minneapolis - and from me, obviously. But then I moved to Oregon. And - while I have been busy with the work - and always felt pressed with its associated costs, the advocates for 'Det norske Selskab' (The Norwegian Society) has been busy telling (through newspapers) that they will publish a similar work.* And people who have believed and waited for them have naturally found it superfluous to support me. But inasmuch as one works for a good cause and has sufficient faith in it, one will be in a position to continue. Instead of complaining I will give thanks. All that is significant about the Norwegian-American people I have now managed to scrape together - gotten information about. The finances will also straighten out. In Union County there is a post office with the name Hilgard that certainly sounds Norwegian but the author has been disappointed with the hope of finding any Norwegians in that area. *It should be noted that I have a couple of personal enemies in this Society and that was because they in this manner sought an opportunity to injure me and in this way they also had the chance to advertise themselves. The society as a whole is without fault. But should these men actually decide to publish a similar book then perhaps this one (now finished) will be of help? Or perhaps they will restrain themselves from using my work since I (unfortunately) do not possess any of what is known as higher education. It is in any case the only defense I can wish for in this circumstance nor can it be relied on. These advocates (not the Society) are of the sort to take the fruits of the toil and drudgery of others.

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Surnames: Oierstedt Eirstedt Eierstedt Classification: Query Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/an/lcC.2ACI/336 Message Board Post: Attempting to locate any/all information for these surname variations in this region: Oierstedt Eirstedt Eierstedt

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Louisiana There are no Norwegian settlements in this State. However, there are some scattered countrymen - probably in Orleans, Jefferson and Calcasieu Counties. See, 'Sammenstilling af norske Sambydinger i Amerika'

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. South Carolina In Orangeburg County there is a post office with the name Norway but there are no Norwegians there. Nor can one find any gathering of them elsewhere in this State.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. West Virginia With the exception of some few Norwegians in Charleston there is, so to say, no Norwegian population in this State. No Norwegian settlement can be found.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Maryland The only place in Maryland where one can say there can be found a group of Norwegians is Baltimore. Pastor O. M. Anderson has worked among them for a time but no congregation has been established. In the higher institutes of learning in Baltimore we find teachers who are of Norwegian ancestry. See, 'Sammenstilling af norske Sambygdinger i Amerika' in the book's last part.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Georgia The first who settled at Listonia (at Lloyd P.O.), Dooly Co., where there is a small Norwegian settlement, were Ole O. Lockrem, T. O. Lockrem from Valders and S. O. Andersen and R. Syverson; they settled at there in 1898. A small congregation was established here in 1902 by Pastor H. Engh of The United Church. In the City of Savannah there are also some Norwegians, mainly seamen and such, who are occupied with loading and unloading ships. Pastor H. Iverson has worked there many years. Another Norwegian who should be mentioned is Captain Nils P. Moe from Porsgrund Most of his later days he spends on land but despite his 73 years, "he can run down into the deepest compartments like a cat," they say. In Georgia I have found three places with Norwegian names; Norden P.O., Bryan co., Norway P.O. (closed), Harris Co. and Sigurd P.O., Dodge Co. despite the fact that there are few Norwegians in this State and especially in the three mentioned places. For information about Captain Iversen and his son, who became a U.S. Senator, see 'Forhistorie'.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Cumberland County A family by the name of Thompson from Ryfylke were the first Norwegian settlers here. They settled at Genesis, where there is a little Norwegian settlement, in 1891. Later in the year came Gulbrand Gulbrandsen from Hallingdal. Maize and potato growing is the settlement's leading source of income. The pay for workers was 50 cents per day in the first period.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Morgan County The first Norwegians in this county were A. Rice, E. Rice† and R. Bemnes from Sogn and K. K. Bekkedal† from Hallingdal. They settled near Frankfort at a place now called Bekke (after Mr. Bekkedal) in 1891. Next after them came Wm. Adsmon from Telemarken, A. S. Nelson from Sogn and F. Neset, M. Anderson, A. Lee†, A. Lund, M. Gaarden, P. Strøm and the Weideman family. They settled in the vicinity of Deerlodge. Maize, potatoes and livestock were the main sources of income. A Norwegian congregation was founded at Frankfort in 1893 by Pastor J. Nummedal of The United Church.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Lawrence County The first Norwegian in the vicinity of Lawrenceburg, where there is a Norwegian settlement - the first in the State - was Lars Syversen from Drangedal, who settled at that place in 1887, and who died in 1894. There are, however, not many Norwegians in this State. See the accompanying map. In 1892, 2 Norwegian congregations were established in Lawrenceburg, one belonging to The Norwegian Synod and the other to The United Church. The Synod congregation, whose first priest was O. Skattebøl, built a church in 1894 - the only Norwegian church in this State.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Kootenai County The first Norwegian in this county was Hans A. Sandager from Modum. He settled near Stinson in 1894. A couple of men ferried him and his family and baggage - on a log raft - down a lake that lay between civililisation and his future home. Another Norwegian who has lived a long time in this county is Captain Sørensen of Coeur d'Alene. P. Johnson and T. Hedal have also lived there some years. The first (and until now the only Norwegian congregation in Kootenai County was established at Stinson in 1901 by Pastor J. Blækkan of The Norwegian Synod. Post offices with Norwegian names in Idaho; Stinson in Kootenai Co., Lund in Bannock Co., Ola in Boise Co. as well as Anderson and Nora in Latah Co.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Bannock County Frantz Kay from Akershus and Edward Berg were the first Norwegians in this county, they settled at Pocatello in 1886. The Kay family were leading members of the Mormon Church.