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Part 1
A partial history of the HOUKOM and KJØRKJEBØ Families
Collected from Old Records, Letters, News Items and printed Biography.
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Table of Contents
Notes from the Translator
Poem: On - and By Kviteseid Lake
Maps (Southern Norway and the Kviteseid District)
Genealogical Charts
Old Records from Langelim
Ole Bjørnsen, Biographical description
90 Year Family Festival at Coon Prairie
Letters from Friends, 1870
Olaf Svennungsen Houkom, by John A. Houkom
Pastor Olaf S. Houkom's Letters
Letters from Friends and Family, 1871 - 1891
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Notes from the Translator (Dordi Round)
I hope the descendants and relatives of the HOUKOM and KJØRKJEBØ (Kirkebø) families will enjoy reading this translation as much as I have enjoyed working on it. It had given me many weeks of delight, and I am almost sorry that I have finished the work.
For those of you who are unfamiliar with Norwegian language and customs I will include a few items of general information which may make some of the references easier to understand.
I must also point out that, unlike Olaf S. Houkom, who was well educated, the writers of some of the letters had apparently had very little schooling. The Telemark dialect is not found in the standard Norwegian - English dictionaries, so even in the well-written biography of Ole Bjørnsen, I had many word-puzzles to untangle; but some of the writers of the letters used their own methods of spelling, and NO punctuation! I have sprinkled commas, semi-colons, and periods here and there, for easier reading, but I have tried to preserve their style of writing, because it obviously reflects their conversation; and almost every phrase begins with "so".
I have done the best I can with unfamiliar dialect words, which even my first generation Norwegian-American friends did not know; but I am still stumped by one, so I have not tried to translate it. In one letter Egelev Midtsund asks her brother to send her a pair of 'kaler'. I guessed many things from wool cards to galoshes, but did not feel justified in using any of them. Can any of you help?
Note: Erling Brauti wrote: I am not sure, but I think they meant a word which we now write "karder". I think the English word is card(s). It is a tool you need to card fx wool before you spin it, and you must have two of them, a pair. It looks like: A grip with a flat full of "nails" or "needles".
A brief historical note may be worth adding: for over 400 years Norway and Denmark shared a king, with the government in Copenhagen, and Norway treated like a poor relation. During the 1700's the Norwegians began to feel national pride and a desire for independence. Denmark sided with Napoleon during his wars, and was defeated along with him. The British forced Denmark to cede Norway to Sweden; but the Norwegians wanted independence, and adopted a Constitution, in 1814, which the Swedes agreed to recognize. Your ancestor, Ole Bjørnsen, (first to use the name Houkom) was a member of the 1815 Storting (Great Parliament) and helped to make vital decisions for the future of Norway.
However, he and the other rural representatives were constantly out-voted by city members on matters of rural welfare, and it was for this reason that many wealthy farm families, such as the Houkoms and Kirkeboe, emigrated. Not all the emigrants came with "nothing but the clothes on their backs".
Now about names: the old custom was for a child to be known by three names: the baptismal name, the father's baptismal name plus son (sen, son) or dotter, and the name of the birthplace or family home; or of a home adopted in later life. In this way, Olav son of Bjørn from Hestehaga (the Horse Farm) was Ole Bjørnsen Hestehaga as a small child, but he lost the last name when his widowed mother remarried to a different farm. When he purchased the farm Houkom as an adult, he became Ole Bjørnsen Houkom - or Haukom as it was formerly spelled. Ole himself used both spellings.
It was also a custom to use all the family names for children, so seven brothers and sisters might produce five or six boys called Olav, plus a group named Aslak, and a few girls named Gunhild, etc. Ole Bjørnsen himself had two living sons named Aslak, one by his second, one by his third wife, who were sisters, and both wanted a son named after their brother, Aslak Kjørkjebø. The older one was known as Aslak Gotuholt, because his father gave him the farm with that name, and his youngest brother was Aslak Houkom. Perhaps these notes will help you to keep your ancestral relatives sorted out.
Have fun, and thank you for sharing your history with me.
DORDI ROUND
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Descendants of Ole (Olav) Bjornson Hestehaga Haukom
After the Biography, eight poems of Ole Bjørnsen are printed in the book, including the one referred to in this story "Telebondernes Følelser C (The Telemark Farmers' Feelings) ---" and the following:
Vaarsand (Spring Song)
Sommersang (Summer Song)
Høstsang (Autumn Song)
Vintersang (Winter Song)
Vort Kjaere fødeland til aere (To the honor of our dear birth-land)
Ved breden bord med støb i haender (At the spread table with cup in hand)
Til Zetlitz (To Zetlitz)
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News Item from "Reform", Eau Claire, Wisconsin - June 22, 1933
90 Year Family Festival at Coon Prairie
On Sunday, June 11, the Oberson-Kjørkjebø Family gathered in the beautiful Ingman Thorsgaard home in Coon Prairie for the 90 year festival, since it is not 90 years since the first of the family, Høie Oberson Kjørkjebø came to Dane County. The day dawned with sparkling weather and one and all seemed to be in festive spirits. The women brought well-filled food baskets and dinner was served under the great shady trees. The gathering was called to order and Pastor Holum led them in prayer. Next "Blest Be the tie that binds" was sung. Then the following historical account was read, which was written by Obert Rundahl of Coon Valley, and also a poem by Mrs. Hilda Berg, which she read herself.
I was asked by several of my relatives whether I would write a few words about the Kjørkjebø Family for this occasion. As I had only a short time to work on it, it will be both brief and deficient.
I must begin with old Ouver Kjørkjebø, who was born in Kviteseid Parish, Upper Telemark, in 1791. He was married to Karen Knutsdotter. She was a sister of Stortingsman Houkom. (Note: All the other papers in this collection indicate that Stortingsman Houkom had only one sister, Gunhild, who married Johannes Guttormson. Her father was Bjørn, not Knut. However, Stortingsman Ole Bjørnson Houkom had three wives, two of whom were Kjørkjebø girls, sisters, so Ouver Kjørkjebø was brother-in-law to Stortingsman through his sisters, not through his wife.) They had the following children: Svennung, Høie, Oslak, Thron, Ouver, Ingeborg, Jon and Saave. In 1851 he emigrated with his family and settled in Coon Prairie the same year, where he got a farm in the town of Jefferson. His grandson still owns it. He was a good woodcarver, furniture maker, and painter, and in Norway he had had various positions of trust in his town. His wife was often helpful in cases of sickness and was interested in gardening and flowers. Ouver Kjørkjebø died 9th May, 1862 and was laid to rest in Coon Prairie Churchyard.
Svennung, his eldest son, very early got himself a good farm on Coon Prairie. As he brought money with him from Norway he was a well-to-do man. He was married twice. The first time to Thone Houkom. They had two children, Ole and Ouver. The second time with Ronnei Guttormsdotter. They had the following children; Karen, Ole, Gustav, Alfred, Tillie, Julius and Theodore. He is also buried in Coon Prairie Churchyard.
Høie, the second son, was the first of the family to emigrate to America. He came to Koshkonong in 1843 when he was not quite 16 years old. He was a member of the first emigrant-party that left Upper Telemark. When he came to Koshkonong he worked for a Yankee farmer, where he soon learned the English language. In the following years he had many exciting experiences, as he passed several winters in the woods of Northern Wisconsin, and had several trips to the South. In the year 1849 he came to La Crosse, which then consisted of just a few houses. He traveled further to Coon Prairie, where he took himself some land. There were not more than 5 or 6 settlers in Coon Prairie and one in Coon Valley. He was married to Ingeborg Quale who was the daughter of one of the first settlers on Liberty Prairie, Dane Co. She was related to the famous flyer, Carl Ben Eielson.) Høie had the following children; Karen Juve, Engeborg Rundahl, Ole, Ouver, Ellen Sebion, Malla Nelson and Emma Thorsgaard. He had the first farm in the town of Coon and was a very wealthy man. He was nearly 94 when he died and was buried in Coon Prairie Churchyard.
Aslak had a good farm in the town of Jefferson and was married the first time with a girl from Skarrerud. They had three children, Olaus, Engeborg and Karen. The second time he was married to Tone Skolos. They had two children, Gustav and Ben. He is also buried in Coon Prairie Churchyard.
Jon bought a fine farm in the town of Coon. He was not married. He died on New Year's Eve 1916 and is buried in Bangs Churchyard.
Engeborg died as a young girl.
Thron and Ouver were twins. Thron was married to Tone Juva. They had the following children; Tom, Ole, Sam, Alfred, Karen, Bentine, Torvald, Arthur, Alma, Alma and Hartvig. He moved in the 60's to the town of Hamburg on the farm which his son Tom still has. He is buried in Lower Coon Valley Churchyard.
Ouver bought the neighboring farm to Thron and his son Oscar still lives on it. He was married to Mathea Hammersberg. They had the following children; Mrs. Carl Gullord, Caroline, Andreas, Ole Isidore, Mathilde, and Oscar. He is also buried in Lower Coon Valley Churchyard.
Saave was married to Torbjørn Thompson. They bought a farm in Lower Coon Valley and were neighbors of Thron and Ouver. Their daughter Mrs. Gunhild Hagen, now owns their old home. They had the following children; Mrs. Gunhild Hagen, Hannah, Clara, Tillie, Ida, Karen, Oscar and Theodore. She is also buried in Lower Coon Valley Churchyard. Yes, now has Ouver Kjørkjebø's Family become a great clan, which has fine homes in towns and on the land from the Mississippi River to Viroqua. Many have also moved away and live in other places.
The Kjørkjebø name is a very old name which goes back with some certainty to the year 1398. They were called in those days Kirkeboen and were probably of German descent. Ouver Kjørkjebø's old farm in Norway is now changed to an important country town. It lies very beautifully along Bandak Lake. (Note: My large-scale map of Telemark shows Kyrkjebø to be on a smaller lake, Sundkilen. Only small villages are marked on the shores of Lake Bandak. It has electric light and paved streets with many shops and beautiful homes. In old Grandfather's time it had a central situation with Church and school and grocery store. The only ones of the clan, whom I know of, still in Norway, are two sons of my Grandfather's siblings. The one is Rector of Skein High School and the other is also a teacher there. A brother's grandson of Ole Rundahl is also a teacher there. The Kjørkjebø family is also related to former Congressman Halvor Stenerson and his brothers.
I must finally say, that the Lord has been good to us in all these 90 years.
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90 year Jubilee
It is a great day for the Kjørkjebø Clan
Today we gather from west and east
Some are only distantly related
But all wish to share in the feast
It is long since the first of the Family
Left home and crossed the sea's waves
They wanted to travel towards the west
All now rest, hidden in their graves
Høie was the first to leave his home
Just a youngster not yet sixteen
He was with the first flock of migrants
Who traveled from Telemark that spring
He came with the others to Koshkonong
Where for several years he stayed
But then he wandered to Coon Prairie
Where a better living was made
Later followed his five brothers
And also both his sisters, so dear
Their Father and Mother added their strength
So that all were together here
Høie and Svennung, Aslak and Jon
Made lovely Coon Prairie their home
But the twin brothers, Ouver and Tron
And sister Saave made Chaseburg their home
Engeborg died as a lovely young girl
In her later teenage years
She was sadly missed by the Family
Who shed for her many tears
But courage was strong, and life's force great
Their mood was pure white as snow
Music and song encouraged them
And fun was not lacking, we know
They brought God's word with them and never forgot
When they came to a foreign land
To keep it always hidden deep
In the heart of each woman and man
For many long years, ninety now,
The Family has been living here
God shall be honored, above all else
Who allows us to celebrate this year
So we bid you all heartily welcome
To the lovely Thorsgaard home
May we have good times together
To remember when further we roam
Mrs. Hilda Berg
After this Pastor H. O. Bach of Coon Valley gave a talk, and the gathering sang "Among slopes and hills near the ocean." Next came a talk by Pastor J. A. Houkom, of Blanchardville, Wisconsin, who is one of the Clan. The group sang "Now we will bid each other Farewell." Pastor J. O. Holum said a few more words, and the program ended by repeating The Lord's Prayer in unison.
Henry Randahl was elected chairman of the Arrangement Committee, which was composed of Oscar Gullord, Coon Valley, Albert Skolos and Ernest Thorsgaard of Westby. The Program Committee was Mrs. Philip Bouffler and Paul Overson from Chaseburg and Annie Gilbertson from La Cross. A Portrait of the Gathering was taken by L. H. Davidson of Coon Valley. There were 124 guests. Several from Taylor, Wisconsin and Deerfield, Wisconsin were also there. Then Supper was served.
It was a day which will long be remembered. All speakers spoke well of the Telemarkingers. It was the fourth reunion to be held. The first was held in Pettibone Park, La Crosse. The second at the home of Ole and Ouver Oberson, Westby and the third at the home of Obert Rundahl, Coon Valley.
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These letters are in the book TCFK - Part I .......
Letters from friends in America to Svennung Olsen Houkom 1870
Ole Halvorson Klevstul January 15, 1870
G. Gundersen May 21, 1870
Olav Svennungsen Houkom May 21, 1879
John A. Houkom
Letters from Pastor Olaf S. Houkom 1870 to his parents, brother and sister
To Friend Svenung Olesen Houkom from Gunlek Gundersen
To Sister-in-law Aslau Halvorsdotter Lande from Gregor Kittilsen 1871
To Brother from Bergit Olsdotter 1880
To Brother Egelev O. Midtsund 1881
To Uncle and Aunt from Dorthe Bergseth 1891
