Olaf is having trouble posting to the rootsweb lists. Margit ---------- From: Olaf <Kringhaug@shaw.ca> Date: Wed, 15 Dec 2004 14:12:03 -0800 To: Margit <margit@eot.com> Subject: Jackson County, Minnesota Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Jackson County Simon Olsen Slaabakken from Tolgen, Jackson County's first official, writes, "The immigration of Norwegians began in 1860, for then came Børre Olsen from Holtaalen, with his three sons (Bersvend, Ole and Jonas), his daughter and son-in-law (Hans Lien from Røraas) after an arduous journey from Winneshiek Co. Ia. They came here to the lovely Des Moines Valley, that was richly covered with forest - something that the Norwegians eagerly sought as the first necessity when they wished to build a home, they wished to settle where there was a forest. But alas, every single grove was occupied by a Yankee. 'Well,' sais Bør, 'we came here to find a home. The land is good, we will have to ask Mr. Yankee how much it will take to get him out.'* Besides the aformentioned persons, there came Ole Pedersen from Røraas, Engebret and Anders Olsen Slaabakken from Tolgen, Ole O. Førde and Knud Midtstad from Voss along with several others, 15-20 families altogether. This was thus in 1860. In 1861 many others came, some bought claims, others found free forested land, and all felt happy and well satisfied. Even though there were no Indians nearby, we did not feel very safe. In May, D. M. West went to the Governor and received a number of guns and ammunition. The we organized ourselves as a home guard with drills every Saturday afternoon. However, there came a request for soldiers to hold in check the rebels in the South. And from the little settlement at Jackson, 22 men left. Many of those who were to protect the settlers from the Indians also went away. About the 20th of August rumours came that the Indians were on the warpath and that they had robbed and murdered people at New Ulm. They gathered together - two to three families at each place - to assist each other in case of need. On Sunday, the 24th August, when a number of the population were gathered for services, Ole Førde's eldest son came, dripping with sweat and blood, and told that the Indians had arrived, he had been shot through his arm. One can imagine the fright that arose. Everyone ran to their respective homes as fast as they could, but most soon gathered again at the home of the Postmaster in Jackson. The most intrepid wanted that they should fortify themselves and face the attack with such weapons that they had. However, the majority of those present were so frightened that they wished to go to Etherville, Ia., about 25 miles south of here. Just before sunset they left and reached there the next morning, received food and drink and began to organize a company of horse, that on Thursday drove up to those places they were informed that the savages had murdered and plundered. They found 12 dead and some wounded. Among them were two daughters of Knud Langeland, one was dead, the other survived. Anders, the son of Knut Slaabakken, they had shot twice, hit on the neck and stabbed in the side with a large knife and was left with the thought that he was dead. He came to life and crept to a water spring where, after getting a good drink, was in such condition that could reach his home, where he hoped to find something to eat. But everything was destroyed. he then went to the barn and laid down in the manger to die. There he lay from Sunday until Wednesday, when he was found and taken to Etherville, a doctor was called and his life saved. Just think, what he to go though in those three days!" A list of those who were killed by the Indians the 24th of August, 1862: Mikkel Olsen Slaabakken from Tolgen, born 1st March, 1831 Ole O. Førde from Evanger, Bergens Stift, born 18th January, 1822. Johannes K. Exe from Voss, Bergens Stift, born 26th August, 1833. Knudt Midtstad from Voss. Brita Midtstad from Voss. Lars Larsen Førenes from Strilelandet, born 1834. Anna Larsen, his wife, born 1834. Anna Langeland, Knut Langeland's wife, born 1824. Anna Langeland, Knut Langeland's daughter, born 1853. Aagaata Langeland, Knut Langeland's daughter, b. 1857. Nicolai Johan Langeland, Knut Langeland's son, born 1860. Knud Langeland, Knud Langeland's son, born 1861. Now there was a temporary end to the Norwegian settlement in Jackson; all the survivors moved eastward, some to Winneshiek County, Ia., others to Houston County, Minn. The new settlement began in 1864. The Indians troubles had obliterated all organization and it became necessary to re-organize the county, which was done in 1865 by the aforementioned Simon Olsen Slaabakken and two Americans, who were appointed by the Governor. Anders Olsen, another of the old settlers, writes that he transported the materials for the first church in the county - from Mankato - a distance of 80 miles - 160 miles each trip! Once he went astray in a snowstorm and stumbled around the prairie for 5 days - without food - and poorly clad. Grain, cattle and swine was the first settlers' main source of income. The nearest marketplace was Mankato. In 1873 and the following 4 years, grasshoppers destroyed most of the crops, so it was rather tight for the people. There are 9 Norwegian churches and 11 congregations in Jackson County, 4 belong to Hauge's Synod, 3 to The United Church, 3 to The Norwegian Synod and 1 to Elling Eielsen's Society. For information in the political area, see the section 'Norwegians in public office in America' Places with Norwegian names; Christiania (Township), Verdal (Værdalen), Bergen and Namsos (Post Offices). Only the last P.O. still exists. *They learned this. The price for a good forest claim was usually a pair of oxen and a wagon. The price was paid and the Yankees had to move.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Kanabec County The first, or at least one of the first, Norwegian in this county was H. E. Sjøbøen from Os parish, near Bergen. He moved from Winneshiek County, Iowa to the vicinity of Mora in 1898. There were many Indians at that time and few whites. The Norwegians were mainly occupied in mixed farming. In the area of Lewis Lake, Ole and P. Langlie, S. Huser, H. Olsen, A. J. and H. Hansen, A. E. Mehl and P. Stark were the first. The aforementioned H. E. Sjøbøen was to first Norwegian to receive public office in the county. He was elected County Commissioner in 1900. Hauge's Synod, The Norwegian Synod and The Lutheran Free Church each have a congregation in this county.

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Classification: Query Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/rw/lcC.2ACI/332.1 Message Board Post: Kornelius Korneliussen was from Lilledrange in Nes parish (rural Flekkefjord). Susanna Larsdatter was born 1808 on Kvavikmoen, Lyngdal parish. The family is mentioned in the bygdebok (farm history book) Lyngdal II, page 627, 649). She was daughter of Lars Jonasen Kvavikmoen (1770-1821) and Gunhild Markusdatter (1771-1839). 1801 census: http://digitalarkivet.uib.no/cgi-win/webcens.exe?slag=visbase&filnamn=f11032&gardpostnr=62&personpostnr=741&merk=741#ovre Ancestors there can be traced back to ca 1600

This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Classification: Query Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/rw/lcC.2ACI/332 Message Board Post: I seek information about the family of Caroline Jersine Corneliusen b. 1847 in Flekkefjord. Her parents were Cornelius Corneliusen and Susanna Larsdatter. Caroline married Christian Fredrik Thomassen in 1877 in Barbu, Aust Agder.

---------- From: Olaf <Kringhaug@shaw.ca> Reply-To: TRONDELAG-L@rootsweb.com Date: Sun, 12 Dec 2004 18:45:27 -0800 To: TRONDELAG-L@rootsweb.com Subject: [Tronder] Itasca County, Minnesota Resent-From: TRONDELAG-L@rootsweb.com Resent-Date: Mon, 13 Dec 2004 08:07:25 -0700 Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Itasca County The first Norwegian in this county was Thomas Irgens from Modum. He came from Dakota and settled at Grand Rapids in 1868. Later in the year came Johannes JensenÝ from Kristiania, Fredrik Christiansen from Frøiøen near Kristiansund, Kolbjørn and Bernt E. Bensen and O. K. Sherman from Vaaler, Solør, L. A. Willmann from Ørkedalsøren, Lars Orge from Søndmøre, Fritjof and Martin Madsen from Kristiania, Ole Hansen from Kragerø and Ed Holum from Overhalden. Firewood, timber and game have, until now, been the Norwegian settlement's main source of subsistence. P. O. Bohn was the first in the vicinity of Rosy. He was from Ørskoug, Søndmøre. Indians were the first Norwegians' nearest neighbours. One of the pioneer's writes, "I settled in here in the thick primeval forest to fight with mosquitoes, brush ticks - and wild people, if necessary. And how I chopped, cleared and dug! But it is now good to be here." There are 4 Norwegian congregations in the county, 2 belonging to The Norwegian Synod, 1 to The Lutheran Free Church and 1 to The United Church. ==== TRONDELAG Mailing List ==== To Subscribe/Unsubscribe-http://lists.rootsweb.com/index/intl/NOR/TRONDELAG.htm l ============================== Search Family and Local Histories for stories about your family and the areas they lived. Over 85 million names added in the last 12 months. Learn more: http://www.ancestry.com/s13966/rd.ashx

Hi all, You can still get to them all from the old site, but I have updated the page here so you don't have wade thru Flom's page anymore :-): http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~maggiebakke/ulvestad.html Olaf is working on Minnesota now. North Dakota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, Iowa and Canada are done. Margit

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Hennepin County The first person of Norwegian origin that settled in Hennepin County (the county that makes up the center of the Norwegian northwest and that includes Minneapolis - Norway in America's capital) was a woman and her name was Ingeborg. In 1850, she came to Meomny (about 8 miles north of St. Anthony) where for a time she had employment in a small hotel. The City of Minneapolis was founded later - in 1855 - it took St. Anthony's place and it has, as we know, grown very large - yes, now it reaches almost up to the place where Ingeborg settled. She has herself told that it was not many years before she met people from the Land of the Midnight Sun, where she had come from. About that time she married an Irishman by the name of Clark. However, her destiny was that she would get a Norwegian husband. It went so, Mr. Clark died after a short marriage, and. thus, the Norwegian woman became a widow. And further out in Minnesota there was a Norwegian by the name Michael Johnson, who after a couple years stay at Smith Lake (Wright County) had moved to Acton (Meeker County) in 1860, and who lost his wife while he lived at the that place. A bit later (the spring of 1864) he went to Hennepin County to seek work and came by chance to the aforementioned widow, who had a farm, horses, livestock etc and who needed a working man. To this post then, the Norwegian Michael Johnson (from the Moen farm in Selbu, near Trondheim) was the very man. We can guess the result of this meeting. But we can certainly write it down. These two then became man and wife - in the fall of 1864. Their home was in Brooklyn Township, to which, in the course of time there came several people from Norway - likely from Selbu - and where they e! stablished a Norwegian Lutheran congregation in 1876. Ingeborg died some time ago. However Michael is still alive and lives with his son, J. M. Johnson, 720 8th Ave. S., Minneapolis. (I will add that Mr. Chris. Swensen, one of Michael Johnson's earlier neighbours, who now lives in Robbindale and who got the task of finding him and paid almost a dozen streetcar fares before his mission succeeded. This is an example how difficult it has been to get hold of such persons, who could give reliable information about the old days. Auth.) In this connection, it is told that at this time, a Norwegian, who stayed temporarily in St. Anthony in the 50s, and who was for a time the owner of Nicollet Island (now Minneapolis' centrum). He claimed the land by pre-emption. Later he sold it for $500,000, which he thought was well done, since he had obtained it free from the government (that is, by using his homestead rights). Now, it is worth several millions. Further information about the man cannot be found. Even his name is unknown. All that is known of him is that he moved westward to become a farmer. But later (in the 60s) Norwegians began to settle in Minneapolis, that is now the most Norwegian city in America in relation to its size, since ca. 45,000 of its 300,000 citizens are of Norwegian ancestry. The Norwegian Lutheran Trefoldigheds Congregation in Minneapolis, that now belongs to The Lutheran Free Church and was established in 1867 by Pastor Nils Olson (who at that time lived in the Christiania Settlement in Dakota County), is the oldest Norwegian congregation in Hennepin County. Its first church (that was also the first Norwegian church in the county) was built at the corner of 3rd Street and 13th Avenue South, in 1868. Pastor Ole Poulsen was Minneapolis' first Norwegian priest, since he had taken over the service of the aforementioned congregation by 1868. Both he and Nils Olsen (the congregation's founder) were Augustana men. Vor Frelsers Congregation was established in 1869 by Pastor Nils Ylvisaker, belonging to The Norwegian Synod. Its first church was built in 1871, where the Great Western Railway Station now stands. The number of Norwegian congregations has now grown to 23, while the churches have reached the number of 22. The congregations are divided so;! The Norwegian Synod - 9, The Lutheran Free Church - 4, The United Church - 2, Methodists - 2, The Evangelical Free Church - 1, Hauge's Synod - 1, M. Falck Gjertsen - 1, The Brethren - 1, Baptists - 1 and Unitarians - 1. 'Nordisk Folkeblad' that was begun in 1870 by Hjalmar Eger, a student from Kristiania University, was the first Norwegian newspaper in Minneapolis. Later there were started, 'Norsk Maanedstidende', 'Budstikken' (a continuation of 'Fedrelandet og Emigranten', now 'Daglig Tidende' and 'Minneapolis Tidende'), 'Minnesota', 'Normanna', 'Norsk Maanedskrift', 'Folkebladet', 'Familie-Vennen', 'Felt-Raabet', 'Kvartal-Skriftet', 'Luthersk Børneblad', 'The North', 'Saamanden', 'Samfundet' (now 'Lutheraneren'), 'Ungdommens Ven', 'Det Frie Ord', 'Krydseren', 'Viking', 'Typografstidende', 'Lynilden', 'Nye Nordmanden' (now 'Politikken', 'Santhalmissionæren', 'Gasseren', 'Luthersk Børneblad', 'Den Lutherske Missionær', 'Missionsvennen', 'Den Forente Kirkes Missionsblad', 'Vingaardsmanden', Northland Weekly', 'Children's Companion', 'Sønner av Norge', 'Gaa paa', 'Vor Tid', 'Den Kristelige Lægmand' and 'Kvindens Magasin'. For more information about these and other newspaper ventures, see t! he section 'Norwegian-American Newspapers and Periodicals'. Augsburg Seminary, that was founded in its own building in 1872, was the first Norwegian school in Minneapolis. Later came Wraamann's Academy, Minnesota Normal School, The United Church's Seminary and Skørdalsvold's School. For further information, see the section 'Norwegian-American Teaching Institutions'. The Norwegian Lutheran Deaconess Home, that was started in 1889, was the first of that kind. Now money is being collected for hospitals. In the '90s, the Norwegians erected several society buildings, The Norwegian Christian Youth Society and Normanna Hall, but both were lost because of debts. The Ole Bull Statue, that was designed by sculptor Jakob Fjelde and that was raised in Central Park in 1897, will be permanent, since it was paid for in advance. * Of societies that work in comprehensive activities, one can mention 'Sønner av Norge', 'Døtre av Norge', the Christian relief societies and temperance societies. The first Norwegian to hold public office here was George H. Johnson, elecetd as Sheriff in 1870. Civil War veteran Albert E. Rice was the first Norwegian to represent Minneapolis in the Stae Legislature (1870), he moved to Willmar that same year. Later he became Lt. Governor. For further information about these and others who have had official positions, see the section 'Norwegians in Public Positions in America'. *But have Norwegians over here only done that which is creditable? No. Take for example, the bank scandals that took place in Minneapolis a few years ago. A half dozen 'prominent' Norwegians and some other 'smart' fellows went into the banking business with more debts than money. They managed to get some references, and after trusting people, likely Scandinavian workers, deposited their savings, these went as 'loans' to the 'bank directors' themselves and their friends - and so the bank went bankrupt - to a pecuniary loss for the depositors and damage to the Norwegian name in America.- and especially in Minneapolis.. After that time here, it has been rather difficult for Norwegians to obtain positions of trust of any significance. Now a similar scandal has taken place in Chicago. What a single person has done cannot rightly be laid to a people as a whole. The facts still say that the Norwegian immigrants as a whole conduct themselves well. As ann example it can be mentioned that in a newly prepared crime statistics for Chicago that Norwegians (compared with other nationalities) are listed with the least number of law-breakers.

unsubscribe ----- Original Message ----- From: <NOR-VEST-AGDER-D-request@rootsweb.com> To: <NOR-VEST-AGDER-D@rootsweb.com> Sent: Friday, December 10, 2004 11:00 AM Subject: NOR-VEST-AGDER-D Digest V04 #162

Hi Florence, This is the site you used to subscribe to the list, you can also use it to unsubscribe. http://lists.rootsweb.com/index/intl/NOR/NOR-VEST-AGDER.html Margit List Admin > > PLEASE DON'T SEND ME ANYMORE OF THESE MESSAGES!!!!!! > flobendle@midlands.net > ----- Original Message ----- > From: <NOR-VEST-AGDER-D-request@rootsweb.com> > To: <NOR-VEST-AGDER-D@rootsweb.com> > Sent: Friday, December 10, 2004 11:00 AM > Subject: NOR-VEST-AGDER-D Digest V04 #162 > > > > > ==== NOR-VEST-AGDER Mailing List ==== > Make sure you check out the other lists available here for Norway: > http://lists.rootsweb.com/index/intl/NOR/ > > ============================== > Search the US Census Collection. Over 140 million records added in the > last 12 months. Largest online collection in the world. Learn more: > http://www.ancestry.com/s13965/rd.ashx >

PLEASE DON'T SEND ME ANYMORE OF THESE MESSAGES!!!!!! flobendle@midlands.net ----- Original Message ----- From: <NOR-VEST-AGDER-D-request@rootsweb.com> To: <NOR-VEST-AGDER-D@rootsweb.com> Sent: Friday, December 10, 2004 11:00 AM Subject: NOR-VEST-AGDER-D Digest V04 #162

Norwegian-Americans by state The 10 states with the most Norwegians: 1. Minnesota ­ 851,000 2. Wisconsin ­ 456,000 3. California ­ 436,000 4. Washington state ­ 368,000 5. North Dakota ­ 193,000 6. Illinois ­ 179,000 7. Iowa ­ 167,000 8. Oregon ­ 147,000 9. Texas ­ 119,000 10. South Dakota ­ 115,000 The 10 states with the top percentages of Norwegians: 1. North Dakota ­ 33% of the state's white population is of Norwegian ancestry 2. Minnesota ­ 20% 3. South Dakota ­ 17% 4. Montana ­ 12% 5. Wisconsin ­ 10% 6. Washington state ­ 8% 7. Iowa ­ 6% 8. Alaska ­ 6% 9. Oregon ­ 5% 10. Wyoming ­ 5% [edit]

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Grant County Ole Gudmunsen from Støtvig, Smaalenene and Peder Gran from Vestre Toten were the first Norwegians in Grant County, they came from Houston County by ox and wagon and settled at Elk Lake Township in 1865. The first in the vicinity of Erdahl were A. Hansen from Kristiania, Lars† and Elland† Anderson from Eidsvold and Jacob Olsen from Valders, who settled there in 1866. The first in Asby was Knut Melby, who settled there in 1867. A part of Ashby was built on his land.* In the fall of the same year came John P. Sætre from Numedal, who settled nearby. Ole E. Lien from Hemsedal settled in the vicinity of Barrett the same year (1867) and was thus, the first there. Knut Laastuen from Hallingdal was the first at Elbow Lake. And Ole Torstensen from Hadeland was the first at Hoffman. The first in the vicinity of Aastad were Hans Haavig, Tørris Hansen†, Knut Hansen†, Gunder Ericksen†, R. G. Baasen, K. P. Eidal and Jens E. Pletan. Ole O. Hillestad from Lærdal was the first at Norcross. Wheat growing became the county's leading source of income. Besides, the first settlers did much hunting and trapping. Day pay at that time was 50 cents. That the Indians terrified people in this as well as the adjacent counties is obvious. Once, there came a rumour that the Indians were on the warpath. Everyone took their oxen and fled from their homes and went toward Alexandria. But on the way they learned that the rumour was false, so they returned to their daily duties. This was before there were any soldiers stationed at Pomme de Terre Fort. Pomme de Terre Congregation, that was established in 1869 by Pastor L. Carlson, belonging to The Norwegian Synod, was the first Norwegian congregation in the county. Now there are 12 Norwegian congregations and 8 churches, 6 belong to The Norwegian Synod, 3 to The United Church, 1 to Hauge's Synod, 1 is Independent Lutheran and 1 belongs to the Methodists. The first Norwegian county officials were Wendelbo Olson†, Ole Larson Sundvold†, Ole Thompson Ring, S. Frogner† and K. R. O. Melby. They were all elected in 1873. Gilbert Hagen published the newspaper 'Samhold' in Elbow Lake in the 90s. Places with Norwegian names; Erdahl and Lien Townships, Fridheim, Erdahl, Pikop, Thorsborg, Ramstad, Lillemon and Aastad post offices. *Another part of Ashby stretches over Simon Larsen's land. When he came here, he had everything he owned in a gunny sack. It would be much harder for anyone to carry everything he owns now. And the gunny sack would be far too small.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Douglas County Nels Mickelsen† from the Røraas area was the first Norwegian in Douglas County. He settled in the vicinity of Holmes City in 1865. At that time there were Indians in the neighbourhood. In 1866 many Norwegians came, of whom can be named; John Arntsen from Kobbervik, Ole Brandson† from Hedemarken, Ole Urness†, Lars Grinden† and Amos Johnson†, all from Sogn, Mathias Wolstad†, Sivert Olsen† and Hans Pedersen, all from Hedemarken, Gunder Johnson and Ole Hammer from Trondhjem, Renhard Bottner† from Solør. Petter E. Julin from Hammerfest, Ole Ellefsen from Telemarken as well as Petter Stenstrup, Tore Evensen†, Ole Amundsen†, Albert Barsness, Torsten Hovde, Gunder Knudsen, Jens Gundersen†, Charley Brown†, Karm Øen, Ole Pedersen and Johannes Olesen. Some dug dugouts, others built log cabins, all were poor. Nor was work to be found in the area, but thos who had oxen and wagons went to St. Cloud, where there was the opportunity to carry goods west to the forts (where soldiers were stationed against the Indians). The settlers who did not have the means for this transport, supported themselves mainly with trapping muskrats, of which there were many, and a good price was paid. My informant adds that if there had not been something to trap, it would have been impossible for the new settlers to manage. Now it is different. Wheat has made people prosperous. Another of the old settlers in Douglas county writes, "I emigrated in 1854 on the sailship 'Urania' from Stavanger and was 11 weeks on the sea. When we came to Montreal, the cholera began to rage. About half of our company died on the way to Chicago. We were 203 persons in all - the greater number from Strand and Fister parishes and islands in Ryfylke. I especially remember a family from Monstrevaag. The man's name was Peder Knudsen Rygmyre, as far as I can remember. At 4 o'clock in the afternoon all were healthy, by 9 in the evening, his wife and three eldest children were dead, and now the man remained alone with a child that was only 8 months old. But then I had to weep with him even though at that time I was just a youth. The trip from Montreal to Chicago will never be forgotten by those who survived it." A third writes, "When we came here to Evansville, there were not many white people here, however many Indians. I was with them now and then and saw them eat muskrats. Now the Indians are gone, game and fish similarly - and the land has changed - yes, and it seems even the climate is different from what it was in the old days." Vor Frelsers Congregation, that was established at Holmes City in 1867 by Pastor L. A. Carlson, belonging to The Norwegian Synod, was the first Norwegian congregation in the county. The first church was built in 1877 by Moe Congregation, belonging to The Synod. Now there are 12 congregations and 11 churches, 7 belong to The United Church, 3 to The Norwegian Synod and 2 to The Lutheran Free Church. The first Norwegian to hold public office here was Thorer Evensen, who was elected Co. Commissioner in 1871. The current Senator Knute Nelson was the first Norwegian who represented Douglas Co. in the State Legislature (in 1875). For detailed information in the politicl field see the section, 'Norwegians in public positions in America. Townships with Norwegian names; Lund, Moe, Solem, Brandon and Urness. Post offices with Norwegian names; Melby, Moe, Urness and Brandon. Wartburg Mission School was started in Alexandria in 1901.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad 1907 Dakota County The first Norwegians in Dakota County were Peter Sampson† from Voss, Ole Olsen† and Ole Toresen from Hallingdal and Johannes Jacobsen† from Vinje, Telemarken They came from Wisconsin and settled in 1853 in the area that was later called the Christiania Settlement. O. P. Ruh, who settled there a couple of years later, writes, "We came up here with oxen 400 miles (from Muskego, Wis.) and continued to use them 10 years after that time. Our nearest towns, Hastings and St. Paul were 25 to 30 miles away. If one wished to tell of the new settlers' struggles, the Indian raids and war fears, it would be too much." They first began growing hay but wheat became the settlement's main source of income later on. People who wished to earn cash, received 50 cents a day. There was ample clearing work to do. The Telemarking, Halvor Torgersen, who lived here for a time but now lives in Homen, N.D., writes, "In 1862, when the Indian Wars broke out, we were not secure in the Christiania Settlement either. In case of need, the new settlers had decided on a gathering place, namely John Jacobsen's. It happened once, when Ouver Olsen and Torger Juveland led a group of refugees (with women and children) that Ouver shouted the command, 'drop down!' (which meant that the Indians were approaching). Everyone dropped headlong, thinking certain death was at hand. After a moment, Torger Juveland, who was the bravest of the leaders, peeked up to see where the Indians were, but when he saw none he said, 'You can get up now, it was just the back side of a deer that Ouver saw!' and this awakened a feeling of good spirits in the fleeing group. Torger still tells this anecdote, even though he is now over 80 years old. He still lives on his homestead in the aforementioned settlement." Christiania Congregation, that was established in 1857, that built a church in 1862 and that belonged to The Augustana Synod, was the first Norwegian congregation in the county. My correspondent adds, however, that The Norwegian Synod established a congregation about the same time. Now there are 2 Norwegian churches and 2 congregations, 1 belonging to The Norwegian Synod and 1 to The Lutheran Free Church. The aforementioned settlement lies west of the City of Farmington. In Dakota County, there has until recently, been two post offices with good Norwegian names, namely Christiania and Eidsvold.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad 1907 Crow Wing County The first Norwegian settler in this county was Nils Tørris from the Bergen area. He settled 9 miles east of Brainerd. The year is not known. The first in the vicinity of Garrison, where there is also a small Norwegian settlement now, was the Stavanger man by the name of E. Eliasen, who became Postmaster and began a store among the Indians and the Irishmen (in 1897). The Lutheran congregation, the was established at Brainerd in 1886 by Pastor K. Bjørgo, belonging to The Norwegian Synod, is the county's oldest Norwegian congregation. Its church was built in 1888. Now there are 9 congregations and 7 churches, 4 of them belonging to The Norwegian Synod, 3 to The Lutheran Free Church, 1 to The United Church and 1 to Hauge's Synod. The first Norwegian official in Crow Wing Co. was Anton Mahlum from Næs, Hedemarken.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad 1907 Cottonwood County Haagen Anderson† from Sigdal was the first Norwegian to take land in Cottonwood Co. but Gullick, Carolius† and Ole† Pedersen and Joe Christensen, all from Helgeland, were the first to get their houses built. They came from Dakota Co., Minn. and settled in the vicinity of Westbrook in 1868. It was partly dugouts and partly log cabins, they welcomed their families to. Wheat was the settlement's main source of income. In the first time, they also had some furs to sell, for with the lack of people, there were many animals. New Ulm, ca 60 miles away, was the new settlers' nearest marketplace. Mr. K. R. Langeland, one of my correspondents in Cottonwood Co., writes, "During the Indian War in 1862, I lost my wife and 4 children as well as everything else I owned. I remained without all earthly goods. Some of my Norwegian neighbours were also killed. (More information under Jackson Co., for it was there the aforementioned murders took place). A bad grasshopper year was 1876 for the people of Cottonwood County. They ate everything to the ground. The following year, they were a little gentler, since they left a bit of the harvest. There are 5 Norwegian churches and 7 congregations in this county, 4 belong to The United Church, 2 to The Lutheran free Church and 1 to the Methodists. Erick Sevatsen from Hallingdal was the first Norwegian to hold public office in the county, he was elected Sheriff in 1870. He was also the first Norwegian to be elected from here as a Member of the State Legislature (in 1887). Places with Norwegian names; Dale and Storden. Dale is a Township, Storden is both a Township and a post office.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Cook County The first Norwegians in this county were H. E. and J. E. Redmayer (Rømyr) from Tromsø. They settled here in 1882. The settlement was called Redmayer, but when the founders moved to New Hall, Wash., the settlment's name was changed to Schroder. The next settlers were; H. O. Engelsen as well as John, Andrew, Johannes, Eddie, Hans, Helge, Martin and Nils Tofte, Andy Sho, Nels Eide, Sivert Eide and Thomas Lande, all from Halsnøen, Søndhordland, Berge Bertwet from Storøen and Ole Narvik from Skudesnæs. They settled at a place to which they gave the name Tofte. Logging and fishing has been the Norwegian's main source of income. To Two Harbors, that in the beginning, was their nearest marketplace, it was 64 miles. They used dogs as draft animals. Peder Rindal from Rindalen and Hans Gulbrandsen from Ringerike were the first in the vicinity of Grand Marais, they came there in 1891. At that time there were only Indians nearby. Mr.Rindal says that the difficulties and trial they had to go through at first, when there were no other white settlers, iare undescribable, but that is what the trail blazers had to undergo and they held out. Now it is good to be here. There is 1 Norwegian church and 3 congregations in Cook County, 2 of them belong to Hauge's Synod and 1 to the Methodists. Norwegian place names; Hovland, Tofte and Rømyren.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Dodge County The first Norwegian settlers in this county were Knut Rockne† from Voss, Louis Evenson Folkestad from Bø, Telemarken, Ole Benson† from Valders as well as Jacob Helgesen Dalen† and Anders Christophersen†, they settled in the vicinity of Mantorville in 1854. A short time after came Johannes Bendikson Fjerestad† and Bottolf Larson Eithoren† from Vik in Sogn, Hans Kittelsen and Jacob Hansen† from Kviteseid, Telemarken, Ole Monsen† from Voss and Tollef Hellicksen† from Valders. In the vicinity of Oslo, the following were the first; John Kittelsen†, Nils Sjursen Gilderus†, Andreas Torgrimsen Moen†, Jacob Knudsen Thoe†, Ole O. Lia, Helleck Gulbrandsen Waagtveit, Erik Reiersen Bakko, Halvor Knudsen Berg†, Erik Clausen Himle, Lars Sjursen Gilderus†, Ole Olsen Esterli, Torgrim Torgrimson Moen†, Isak Anderson†, Anders Ellefsen†, Erik Knudsen Torvik† and Sjur Olsen Brækhus. They came from Dane Co., Wis. They began to grow wheat and had to drive right to Winona, ca. 70 miles. It was oxen they used for plowing and driving. That it was far between farms in those days, the following example from St. Olaf Settlement will possibly convince us, "An old man was going in foggy weather to a neighbour to borrow a large kettle. On his way home he lost his bearings and kept going through the wilderness until he came to Brownsdale, about 20 miles to the southwest, where there were some settlers. Since he could not find his way from there, he walked to Highforest in Olmstead Co., about 16 miles southeast from his home, where there was a road he knew. He carried the kettle the whole time." In Dodge County there are 3 Norwegian churches and 5 congregations, 3 of them belong to The Norwegian Synod, 1 to The United Church and 1 to Hauge's Synod. L. G. Nelson from Naas, Drangedal was the first Norwegian to hold public office in the county. He was elected Refistrar of Deeds in 1872. And John N. Hansen from Furness in Hedemarken was elected as member of the State Legislature the same year. Post offices with Norwegian names; Thoe and Oslo, both closed.

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad 1907 Clearwater County P. O. Enneberg from Sigdal parish was the first Norwegianto settle in this county. He came from Fertile, Minn. and took land at Willborg in 1883. He was accompanied by a Nils Berg. Later in the year came Tor Klevstad, Christ Stenerson, Andrew Stensrson, Peder Berg, Andreas Morstad and a Mr. Rode†. Potato grwing and logging was the new settlers main source of income. The nearest marketplace, Crookston, was 65 miles away. The first time Enneberg went to Crookston, it took him a month, but he had to chop his way in several places through the forest, and he had to build bridges over a couple of rivers so he could get across with his load. However, one of the bridges gave away under the weight of the load and so both the driver and his horses got a highly involuntary bath in the icy waters. Most of what he had with him, he found along the shore. Once, runours came that the Indians had gathered for a war dance and he (Enneberg) and his neighbours, who lived closest to the reservation, would be the first victims. Then there was great fear, especially among the women and children. But just then a company of soldiers came and protected the settlers against the savages. The redskins were, however, good except when whisky appeared among them. Clearwater Congregation, the was established at Shevlin in 1895 by Pastor J. R. Vaaler, belonging to The Norwegian Synod, was the first Norwegian congregation in the county. There are now 13 congregations and 8 churches, 5 of them belonging to The Lutheran free Church, 4 to The Norwegian Synod and 4 to The United Church. Most of the first officials (who took office in 1902) are Norwegian. See the section 'Norwegians in public positions in America' Post offices with Norwegian names; Olberg, Holst and Gonwick (Gonvik).

Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad. 1907. Clay County Ole Thompson from Aal, Hallingdal was the first Norwegian in this county. He came from St. Ansgar, Ia. and settled at Holy Cross, Minn. in 1869. (His adress now is Kurtz, Minn.) Later in the year came P. Røkken from Sogn and Bernt Anderson from Hedemarken. The latter settled at Hickson N.D., right across from Ole Thompson - on the other side of the Red River. Narve Moen also came about this time. They began to grow wheat and oats, but they had to go all the way to Alexandria to sell their products and to obtain necessities. "The oxen had to scurry along, you can be sure." The first Norwegians in the vicinity of Rollag and Hawley were Martin Olsen from Beitstaden, N. Trondhjem's Amt and Johannes Tetli from Frosten, they came from Winneshiek Co., Ia. in 1870. Right after them came Tom Gundersen† from Moland, Telemarken, Claus Olsen, similarly from Telemarken, Petrus P. Solum from Namsos, Sevrin P. Solum from the same place, Erik Hansen†, Tov Herbrandsen† and Torsten Arneson, the last three from Rollag, Nummedalen, A. Rusfelt from Finmarken, Knut O. Myrbø from Telemarken and Jørgen ?? from Toten. About the same time came John O. Tansem from Eidsvold, Amund Røgle from Nannestad and Iver Ranum† from Opdal. Tansem settled in the area where a P.O. bears his name. Røgle and Ranum settled closer to Norwegian Grove. In the vicinity of Stockwood, Martin Thomson† was the first. He settled her in 1870 or '71. It was a long time before the iron horse puffed across the prairie. However, they could see Indians travel back and forth and sometimes they would visit a home, frightening the women and children. What a difference from then and now! Now there are rolling fields, splendid houses, railway stations, schools and churches everywhere - and it was the Norwegians, more than anyone else, that have built this great change. The grasshoppers and the Indians who had sworn to drive the vikings to flight, had to flee themselves. It was in the 70s that the control struggle took place in Clay County. One of the old settlers gives an example about how the mosquitoes pestered them, "I was going to town to get some provisions," he says, "but since I did not know this area, I got lost on the return trip just as dusk fell. Thus, I could not drive further. It was warm and humid and the air was fully packed with mosquitoes, so that I could not open my mouth without filling my mouth with them. My horse rolled and foamed from pain and sought to break away from me. I tried to change things by lying down and rolling but I suffered just as much. I will never forget that night's torture. For several days my body was terribly swollen from the mosquito poison." Grong Norwegian Evangelical Congregation, that was established at Rollag in 1872 by Pastor B. Hagbø, belonging to The Conference, was the first Norwegian congregation in the county. Now there are 20 Norwegian congregations and 17 churches, 11 belonging to The United Church, 4 to The Norwegian Synod, 4 to The lutheran Free Church and 1 to the Adventists. The first Norwegian to hold public office in the county was John Thorsgaard† from Gudbrandsdalen, he was elected County Treasurer in 1876. Peter E. Thompson of Barnesville was the first to be elected as a member of the State Legislature (in 1890). Norwegian place names (Townships and post offices) in Clay County; Kragness, Lund, Hitterdal, Viding, Moøand, Rollag, Hagen, Morken and Tansem. Concordia College, a Norwegian school, was started in the Moorhead in 1891. The newspaper 'Nye Nordmanden' appeared in the latter city in 1894 and a short time later 'Dagen' was begun.