A Brief History of the BEAR CREEK COMMUNITY, Mower County, Minnesota Part 3 of 5 In the year 1861 came a large number of emigrants to Bear Creek directly from Norway. Their names are as follows: Gutorm Hansen Modalen, and wife, Kjersti, and children, Else, Lars, Beret, Hans, Kari, Christi, Gunhild-Maria and Anne Christine. The whole family were born Begnedalen, Aurdal South. The daughters in this family married as follows: Else, wife of Michael Olsen Beltestad. He died and she is now the wife of Borger Andersen of Lands parish, Norway. Beret, married Nils Julson, from Aurdal north, who came to Bear Creek in 1862. Kari married Mikkel Molstad of Hadiland, Norway. She died and he then married the sister Anne Christine who at this writing is Mrs. M. Molstad of Spring Valley, Minnesota. Christi married Wegger Torgrimson, both dead. Gunhild Maria married Knud Iverson of Begnedalen, Aurdal South, both dead. In the emigrant group with Modalen came Martha Syversdaughter, now the wife of J. H. J. Weeks; Ragnhild Guliksbraaten, she became the wife of Erland Olsen Skalshaugen, and her sister, Anna Thorina who married Engebret Hovda, both from Ness Odalen, Hans Simonson and wife, Olia, and one son Simon. Hans was a brother of Ole Simonsen. With the Modalen group of emigrants came Erik Suversen Oymoen and wife, Maria, and two children, Ragnhild, who married Halvor Jorgens, and a son Simon. This family came from Aadalen. Erik Eriksen Haugen came with the Modalen family in 1861. In July, 1861, came Engebret Sorben and wife, Kari, and children Ole, Beret and Anton, born Bang, Aurdal South. Beret became the wife of Eilef Jorgens of Reinli, Aurdal So. Knud Knudsen Ostagaarden, the Sr. and Knud the Junior, and two daughters, Inge- borg and Sigri. Ingeborg married a man in La Crosse County. Wis. by name Trond Arnesen Haugen. Sigrid married Arne T. Boen. All of the Ostergaarden family came from Reinlid, Aurdal So. Trond Arneson was from Aurdal North. In this squad of emigrants were Syver Skaran and wife, Marit, of Reinlid, Aurdal So., and children. With them were Anne, wife of Trond Boen and sons Syver and Ole and daughter Beret, wife of Syver M. Hoff, and Dortia, wife of Simon H. Simonson, Jens Brager and wife, Kari and children, Ole and Hans, both dead, and daughter Oliana, wife of Ole Tande, now residents of Northfield, Minn. In this emigrant group was Ole Jorgens of Reinlid, now one of the writers of this sketch. In 1861 the Bear Creek Lutheran Church together with the St. Olaf Parish of Rock Dell, sent a call for a permanent preacher to the state church authorities in Norway, and on this call one L. Steen came recommended by the said church authorities. The St. Olaf Church congregation had in the fall of 1861 a parish residence built and pastor Steen domiciled himself in this parish building. It was agreed between the St. Olaf's parish people and the people of Bear Creek that the preacher of St. Olaf should visit and preach in Bear Creek every seventh Sunday. In conformity with this agreement, Rev. Steen held regular church services in Bear Creek at stated times in the log school house and from the beginning of his administration, records were kept of all ministerial acts and the acts of the church association in connection with church affairs. Before this time no records were written in book form. Some pieces of paper had some notations, but these cannot be found. In 1862 and 1863 came a few individuals and families to Bear Creek and with the recording of these this sketch will close the list of old settlers. In 1862 came Arne T. Boen to Bear Creek from Iowa and Engebret Nelsen Haugerstuen and family, wife Aaste, and the sons Nels, Haldor and Erik and daughter Siri, wife of Syver Hovda. With the Nelson family came John Week, Sr., and wife, Ingeborg, and at that time one child, Johanns, Jr., now a resident of Thief River Falls; and with them came Nils Juelson and Ole Baker, known as hardware Ole Baker of Rochester, Minn.; and Ole Juelsen and wife Ragnhild and one Erick Eriksen, sometimes known as Erik Tveit. His wife was Astri Tveit, and his sisters, Marit, wife of Syver Sorben and Siri, wife of Knud Olson Grondalen of Under- wood, Otttertail County. In 1863 came Jorgen Olsen Hellingen, the family in becoming citizens of the United States adopted the name Jorgens. His wife's name was Secil, born Hagen, Reinlid, and their children with them were Eilif, Siri, wife of Ole Sven, and Sigrid, wife of Syver Bohn, and Halvor at present living on the old homestead. The two older children of the family had arrived in the settlement some years before, the daughter, Ingrid, the wife of Amund Finhart, and Ole, at present living in Minneapolis. This family came from Reinlid, Aurdal So. This ends the enumeration of Bear Creek settlers who came there more thtan 50 years ago, reckoning back from this year of the compilation of this topical sketch, now 1915. A complete history of the original settlers before fifty years ago, should give account of every child born of these families that would in the future enable many persons to trace the lineage of descent. Rev. Steen served the Bear Creek church till the year 1869. Steen was by natural disposition or bringing up in an aristocratic family, a stranger to the character of the common Norwegian people. He didn't try to become intimately acquainted with the church members or in any fashion attempted to gain their friendship or social relation, but always in an official superiority commanded. He showed this disposition as well when he ordered a woman to bring him a cup of coffee or brush his clothes, as when he presided at a church business meeting, and for the least little act by his parishioners that didn't suit his notions, he lost his patience and calm temper and broke out in intemperate language. Many of his most earnest and faithful church supporting members lost their love for him. In the crisis of the strained condition between Rev. Steen and his congregation, a Swedish Methodist preacher began to hold meetings and he was able to turn several families and individuals in favor of his church. At one time 15 families of the settlement joined the Methodist congregation. Most of them were members on probation. Rev. Bjork, that was the name of the preacher, was a forceful and enterprising man and soon had a small church and parsonage built on the highway corner two miles north of the present village of Grand Meadow--the village of Grand Meadow and the Southern Minnesota railroad were not in existence at this time. Rev. Bjork was an intelligent, shrewd and cunning man, but lacked the essential qualification necessary for a pulpit preacher. His congregation was nearly all Norwegians and he being an uneducated Swede was not able to modify his Swedish ianguage to properly impressive figures in language. He struggled and worked hard for the establishment of his church and increase of membership, but his defects as stated were against him, and besides this, many of the members moved away from the neighborhood, and he left the place for some other location. The Methodist conference of Minnesota was not willing to abandon the little church and sent several able preachers who could speak the Norwegian language intelligently. Among these were presiding elder Amund Olson UIland, a person of unstained character as a preacher, citizen and a sincere Christian. Another honorable, honest and upright man, Rev. Asle Knudsen spent a few years of his life there in earnest preaching, but the church could not be redeemed or advanced. The Lutheran church had by this time discharged Rev. Steen and in his place was the able and efficient Rev. Jorgen A. Thorsen. The Bear Creek church was built during the years 1869 and 1870, and the cemetery located about the church building. Rev. Thorsen preached in the Bear Creek church every fifth Sunday. In 1875 the Bear Creek congregation dissolved connection with the St. Olaf congregation and united with the churches of Bloomfield and Le Roy, and together with said church organizations sent a call for a preacher to the state church authorities in Norway, Rev. Ole A. Bue accepted the call and was installed minister of the united congregations Bloomfield, Bear Creek and Le Roy. In Bear Creek he preached every third Sunday. Rev. Bue served the Bear Creek congregation till the year 1893. At this time the Bear Creek church congregation dissolved connection with Bloomfield and Le Roy and together with the church organization of Grand Meadow Village established a parish by name Bear Creek and Grand Meadow. The new parish bought 50 acres of land near the Bear Creek church in Section 7, Town 103, Range 14, and erected necessary buildings on it for a preacher's home. At this time, 1893, the Bear Creek-Grand Meadow congregation accepted Rev. S. 0. Rondestvedt as their pastor. He served the churches till the year 1901 and resigned. During the same year, 1901, the churches called and accepted Rev. 0. G. Belsheim. He served the churches till the year 1907. During the year 1907 the churches called and accepted Rev. A. H. Gjevre. He served the churches till the year 1913 and resigned. In 1913 the churches called and accepted its present preacher, H. C. M. Jahren. This completes our brief skeleton history of the early settlement of the Bear Creek Norwegian colony with dates and figures of incidents in our possession. It is mostly compiled from personal recollections of the writers and other old persons yet living who at the early days were young children or youths. A comparatively full history of the developement of this colony up to the present date would make a large and interesting history. We will return to a few remarks about the hard struggles of the first years in the settlement. Nearly all the colonists were without money sufficient to insure them against great suffering during the first years before they could raise grain for bread and this con- dition was general among all settlers of all nationalities in the territory. Our Norwegian settlers were all young and strong people and able and willing to work, but could find little or no employment for pay. It must be understood that the first great necessity for all the settlers or homesteaders was to build shelters for themslves to live in and some kind of hovels for their domestic animals. It was, also, necessary to get as many acres of ground broke the first summer as possible so as to enable them to grow something for food the next year. The settlers brought their steers together and put 4, 5 or 6 pairs together in a string. This string they called breaking teams. In this way each and all got a patch of an acre or few acres broke. Many of the settlers were so poor that they didn't own a yoke of steers, but those who had oxen broke a patch for them.