Historical Timeline

1860, about 100 Norwegian settlers live at Norway Lake, a community near Willmar, MN which was attacked by Indians on August 20, 1862. Guri Endresen Rosseland of Vikør in Hardanger wrote about it. Lovoll, Odd, The Promise of America, p. 129.

1860s, these were years of poor crops and falling prices. Semmingsen, Norway to America, p. 103. There were crop failures in the years 1859-61. Norwegian-American Studies, Vol. 29, p. 75. Serious crop failures struck Tinn in 1859-60.

1860, There were 1,573 Norwegians in Chicago by this time. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 481.

1860, There were 29,557 Norwegians in Wisconsin at this time. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 485.

1860, There were more than eight thousand Norwegians in Iowa at this time.

1860, There were nearly 12,000 Norwegians in Minnesota at this time.

1860, There were more than 700 Norwegians in California at this time.

1860, The election of this year will determine not only the future of slavery in the United States but the very existence as a nation.

1860, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Iowa have 55,000 Norwegians, 68 percent born in Norway. Only about 50 had a university education. Of Norwegians who sought citizenship, 37.6% could not write their names. Dakota has only 129 Norwegians.

1860, a year when wind conditions were favorable brought travel time down to 39 days. Semmingsen, Norway to America, p. 61.

1860, Tov Østeinsen Kaase (Bøkasse of Bøen in Vestfjorddalen) and Astrid Kjetilsdatter Tveito arrive in America with children Østein, Kittil, and Gunnuf, born in 1848, 1850, and 1856 respectively. Anne was born in Tinn too, in 1860. On the ship there was only one place to cook. They mostly ate lefse, cheese, soft cheese, butter, dried meat and cured meat. Gene Estensen Family.

1860, One hundred ships brought immigrants to Quebec this year.

1860, Østein Nielsen Bøen (age 70) accompanies his son Niels (24) to Greenfield (Harmony). Østein was my g-g-g-grandfather. Gene Estensen Family.

1860, Astrid's brother, Ole Østeinsen Bømogen comes to Ridgeway, Iowa too. Gene Estensen Family.

1860, Kittil Tovsen Bømogen departs for America. He will die in the Civil War along with his uncle Per Torgiersen Såheimsmogen, both with the 15th Wisconsin, the Norwegian Regiment. Gene Estensen Family.

1860, Astrid's brother Ole Kjitilsen and wife Turid Torgiersdatter Mogn (Såheimsmogen) depart for America, to Ridgeway. Gene Estensen Family.

1860, Peder Torgiersen Såheimsmogen is now at Winneshiek County, Iowa with his brother Torgier. Peder will not survive the Civil War. Gene Estensen Family.

1860, Gunder Kittilsen, age 47, is now a farmer at Winneshiek County, Iowa. Gene Estensen Family.

1860. Halvor Kittilsen is now a farmer at Winneshiek County, Iowa. Tov and Astrid stay with him for awhile. They owed $100 for their trip. Gunulv let them build a home in his grove, about 2 miles west southwest of Ridgeway, just east of the Ridgeway Congregation cemetery. There were many rattlesnakes. Gene Estensen Family.

1860, Around Greenfield, later Harmony, MN, could be found Østein Mæland, Herbjorn H. Ingulvsland, Knut Pedersen Huseval, Jon Jonsen Kasen and his three sons, Herbjorn Gregardsen Bøen, Gunuv Bruflaat, Jon and Tov Krosso, Nils Gausta the famous painter, Helleck, Ole, and Sondre Maarum, Ole, O. Maarum.

1860, Around Ridgeway, near Decorah, Iowa, were Gunnulv and Halvor Kjitilsen, Torgier, Tov, and Gunliek Torgiersen Mogen (Såheimsmogen). Also, Knut, Jon, and Alv Vesset; Jacob Knutsen, Niels Vemork, Kjittil Sondresen, Torgrim and Ole Tveito.

1860, There are 44,000 Norwegians in America now, nearly half in Wisconsin. Nelson, O. A., History of Scandinavians in the United States, p. 112 in History of Wisconsin.

1860, March 13, Anne Tovsdatter Kaase is born in Tinn. Anne was my g-grandmother. Gene Estensen Family.

1860, Disastrous crop failures due to early frost occurred in Norway. Nineteen hundred left Norway for America in 1860, 8,900 the following year. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 385.

1861, 200 emigrants died in passage this year. Semmingsen, Norway to America, p. 61.

1861, Dakota becomes a Territory (out of Nebraska and Minnesota) but the Indian wars stop penetration for several years. Qualey, Norwegian Settlement in the United States, p. 132. Also Norlie, The History of the Norwegian People in America, p. 186.

1861, About 50 Norwegians join the 12th Iowa, constituting half of Company G. Twenty-five fell at Shiloh. Nelson, O. A., History of Scandinavians in the United States, p. 68 of the Iowa document. Norwegians served in numerous Civil War regiments. See Andersen, The Emigrant Takes His Stand, p. 84 and 145 and the individual family histories in Gresham, Nicollet and Le Suer Counties Minnesota, Vol. II.

1861, Slooper Ole Olsen Hetletvedt had three sons who enlisted in the 36th Illinois Regiment. They were Porter C., Soren L. and James Webster. Porter rose to General and was killed at the Battle of Franklin. Soren had his head blown off at Murfreesboro. James survived and moved to Minnesota. Anderson, Rasmus, Norwegian Immigration, p. 117. Porter raised his company at Newark, made up largely of the sons of Norwegians from that locality and from the town of Mission in La Salle county. There is a great description of the battle of Stones River on Page 115. The battle of Chicamauga is described on Page 123.

1861, Luther College is established in Decorah, Iowa.

1861, Maria Kaase, Daughter of Tov and Astri Kittilson Kaase is born. She dies in 1864 and is buried at Lincoln Township, Winneshiek County, Iowa. Gene Estensen Family.

1861, The "Maple Leaf" sailed for Quebec, where she arrived on June 11th with 598 passengers, nearly all from Telemark. The passengers were ravaged by dysentery, and 19 children and 3 adults died at sea. 198 people were completely broke when they arrived at Quebec, their food supply had run out and they had been forced to buy food from others. All of them had to wait for 8 days in Quebec. Those that had no means got free transportation on the railway to Toronto. After a lot of trouble, they were cheated by a Norwegian interpreter, they arrived in Stoughton, Madison, and La Crosse, Wisconsin.

1861, Hans Christian Heg recruits in Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, and Illinois. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 391.

Colonel Hans Mattson organized Company D, 3rd Minnesota in Goodhue County, Minnesota. Almost exclusively Scandinavian. Nelson, O. A., History of Scandinavians in the United States, p. 303. Nearly fifty Northmen serve in the 1st Minnesota and more than three times that number in the 2nd. P. 304. 125 join the 3rd Wisconsin and much of the 27th is Norwegian. Nelson, O. A., History of Scandinavians in the United States, p. 121 in History of Wisconsin.

1862, Homestead Act provides for free land and a great need for settlers. Prior to this the price was $1.25 an acre. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 37. Free land? Morgenbladet refused to believe it. Semmingsen, Norway to America, p. 121.

1862, February 14, The 15th Wisconsin, the Norwegian Regiment, musters into the U. S. Service at Camp Randall, Wisconsin. On March 2 they head south.

1862, August 18, the Dakota Conflict begins. Guri Endresen Rosseland from Vikør in Hardanger survives, just barely. Qualey, Norwegian Settlement in the United States, p. 108. Also Carley, Kenneth, The Sioux Uprising of 1862, p. 22. See also Lovoll, Odd, The Promise of America, p. 129.

1862, "So swift were their movements, before any effective resistance could be brought against them, that about eight hundred of the settlers, men, women, and children were murdered within a few days". Gresham, Nicollet and Le Suer Counties Minnesota, p.42.

1862, E. O. at St. Peter writes of the Indian atrocities. Blegen, Land of Their Choice, p. 427. See the letter in Lovoll, Odd, The Promise of America, p. 130.

1862, In August Swan Lake and Norwegian Grove were terrorized by Indian attacks that resulted in loss of lives and homes in the vicinity. Bernt Julius Muus, p. 170.

1862, August 27, Torstein and Ole Estensen enlist with the Scandinavian Guards of Nicollet County, MN under Gustaf A. Stark. Minnesota in the Civil and Indian Wars, p. 807. This group was left by Sibley to garrison St. Peter after he departed to raise the siege of Fort Ridgely. Carley, Kenneth, The Sioux Uprising of 1862, p. 49.

1862, Gresham, Nicollet and Le Suer Counties Minnesota, p.127 starts a section on the Little Crow Uprising and the role of the citizens of St. Peter.

1862, "During this awful uprising of Indians there were thirty persons killed in Nicollet county, among whom were these….". Gresham, Nicollet and Le Suer Counties Minnesota, p.141. See page 154, 155, 180, 198, 207. See also, Treaty Site History Center of St. Peter account on file.

1862, In Nicollet county, Peter A. Peterson is Captain of the home guards. Gresham, Nicollet and Le Suer Counties Minnesota, p. 54, VII.

1862, See Johnson, Millicent, Let's Have Harmony, p. 12 for a gripping tale of survival during the Indian Uprising.

1862, The first railroad is built in Minnesota. Lovoll, Odd, The Promise of America, p. 136.

1862, Guri Endreson at Willmar, MN, escapes the Sioux after losing much of her family. She returns to the farm and a State of Minn. Monument marks her grave. Eight Norwegians and 15 Swedes had been murdered. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 405-410. See Lovoll, Odd, The Promise of America, p. 129.

1862, Gro Svendsen writes to her parents while on the ship to America. Blegen, Land of Their Choice, p. 113. She was from ål in Hallingdal. Lovoll, Odd, The Promise of America, p. 139. See her full story at p. 139.

1862, December 26, some 38 Dakota Sioux were hanged at Mankato, MN. Occasional attacks and raids by American Indians continued for three more years. Lovoll, Odd, The Promise of America, p. 130.

1862, Peder Thompson and Charles Thompson enlist in the 15th Wisconsin, The Norwegian Regiment. Both of my g-g-uncles will die in the South. Gene Estensen Family.

1862, October 7, Charles Thompson of the 15th Wisconsin dies of disease. See 15th Wisconsin history. Gene Estensen Family.

1862, Luther College is established at Decorah, Iowa.

1863, The Norwegian government final sets laws related to the number of passengers on an emigrant ship related to the size of the ship. Standards for light and water were established.

1863, January 8, Peder Thompson of the 15th Wisconsin dies of disease. Gene Estensen Family.

1863, September 20, Hans Christian Heg is killed at Chickamauga, Georgia. He was commander of the 15th Wisconsin, the Norwegian Regiment. His wife was Gunhild Jacobsdatter Einong of Tinn, Telemark. Another Norwegian, Colonel Porter C. Olson, the son of a Slooper of 1825, rose to command a company made up chiefly of Norwegians from the Fox River settlement in Illinois, the 36th Illinois Volunteer Regiment. Olson was killed in action at Franklin, Tennessee. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 388-397.

1864, May 27, the battle of Pickett's Mill shatters the 15th Wisconsin.

1864, Tov and Astrid had child, Maria, born and died this year at Ridgeway. Gene Estensen Family.

1864, Johan Reinert Teiersen dies in Texas. J. R. Reiersen, Pathfinder for Norwegian Emigrants, p. 3.

1865, From 1820 to 1865 total Norwegian migration totaled only 77,874. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 454.

1865-1930, when 87 percent of emigration occurs, some 780,000 people.

1865, Cleng Peerson, the "father of Norwegian emigration" dies at Clifton, Texas. He is buried across from Our Savior's Lutheran Church in the old Norse settlers cemetery. A tall white marble monument is inscribed in Norwegian on one side and English on the other: "Cleng Peerson. The Pioneer of Norse Emigration to America. Born in Norway, Europe, May 17, 1782. Landed in America in 1821. Died in Texas, December 16, 1865. Grateful countrymen in Texas erected this to his memory". Nestled at the base of the monument is a bronze plaque commemorating the visit of King Olav V of Norway in 1982 in honor of Cleng Peerson's 200 birthday. He has been called the "father of Norwegian emigration". Semmingsen, Norway to America, p. 22.

1865, January 12, Martin Tovsen Austin is born at Ridgeway, Iowa to Tov and Astrid Kaase. Gene Estensen Family.

1865, Tov and Astrid move to NW ¼ Sec. 27, Harmony Township, Fillmore County, MN. A much nicer home, 18x18, was made of logs with with three windows. Gene Estensen Family.

1865, May 17, The St. Peter Tribune talks about the great grasshopper invasion. Gresham, Nicollet and Le Suer Counties Minnesota, p. 335.

1866, Morganbladet (Morning Post) insisted "the imprudent, ignorant, and poor part of our population… is enticed to emigrate by false accounts from America of easy access to extraordinarily high wages".

1866, Aasmund O. Vinje, a poet of the people, Telemarken, produced a long poem. Blegen, Norwegian Migration to America, p314.

1866, June 4, The first real settlement occurs in Minnehaha County, SD. John Thompson and Jonas Nelsen Fosmo took land near Sioux Falls. By 1870 there were 68 Norwegians in the county. Qualey, Norwegian Settlement in the United States, p. 143. Also see Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 10.

1866, The newspaper "Skandinaven" was founded in Chicago and still flourished 74 years later.

1866, Søren Jaabaek attributed the potency of America as a magnet to two major forces: its great civic liberty and its wonderfully fertile soil. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 463.

1867, July 25, Astrid Johnsdatter Bøen and Ole Østensen have a daughter Astri. Gene Estensen Family.

1867, August 8, Astrid Johnsdatter Bøen dies at Norseland. See Blegen, The American Transition, p. 63, for a discussion of the trials of giving birth to multiple children under poor medical conditions of the early settlements. Astrid, my pioneer g-g-grandmother was 19 when she left Tinn in 1851 with baby Aase in her arms. Gene Estensen Family.

1867, The artist Herbjørn Gausta emigrates from Tinn, Telemark at age 13. Lovoll, Odd, The Promise of America, p. 258.

1867, There were three Norwegian settlements in Texas; Brownsboro, Four Mile Prairie, and Bosque County. Ole T. Nystel was 14 years old when he was captured by the Comanche Indians in Bosque County and was held as a prisoner for three months

1868, A newspaperman wandered down to the docks of Christiania to visit an emigrant vessel. The typical was from age 20-24, both early and later on in the mass emigration. He saw a boy and his mother saying goodbye. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 63.

1868, Telemarkings came to Minnehaha County, S. D. this year. The first were Andreas Hogstad and Halvor O. Ustrud of Goodhue County. Then came two families from Winneschiek County, Iowa. They were Iver Bersheim and his two sons, Thomas and Ole. They were of Hardanger lineage. Then came Ole and Soren Bergeson from Winneschiek, originally of Hedmarken. Also, in June of the year the first Tellers appeared at Canton, a caravan of 22 wagons besides other freight wagons, all from Eastern Iowa. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 17 and 109.

1868, The newspaper "Faedrelandet (Fatherland) of La Crosse, Wisconsin absorbed the pioneer newspaper "Emigranten". Then, in the early 1890s, it in turn was absorbed, along with "Budstikken", by the "Minneapolis Tidende". Later, "Tidende" was absorbed by the "Decorah Posten", in 1935.

1868-70, Svein Nilsson edited periodical, "Billed-Magazin" this year, in Madison. He collected stories from the pioneers themselves. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 584. Also, see Flom, Norwegian Immigration to the United States, p. 67.

1868, Decoration Day, or Memorial Day, was celebrated in a meaningful way. See the description at Gresham, Nicollet and Le Suer Counties Minnesota, p. 338.

1869, Norway passes a law providing for the establishment of public schools. It is ten years or so before this is widely implemented. Blegen, Norwegian Migration to America, p. 278.

1869, Kristian and Claus Clausen were born in America and came over to Minnehaha County from Winneschiek County. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 18.

1869, Norway passed a law providing for public schools. It took 10-20 years for the provisions to be enacted.

1869, Paul Hjelm-Hansen traveled around the Alexandria area to Stephens County where the railroad was to come through shortly. He still feared the Sioux. Blegen, Land of Their Choice, p. 442.

1860s, late, when Svein Nilssen, a genuine pioneer of culture, journeyed about the Norwegian communities of the Middle West interviewing settlers and recording their accounts of immigration and of pioneering. His articles in "Billed-magazin" were titled "The Scandinavian Settlements in America".

1869, Waldemer Ager was born in Fredrikstad, Norway in 1869 and came to America in the year 1885. Ager, Sons of the Old Country, p. forward. This forward contains an interesting review of Norwegian-American literature.

1869, The singing societies played an important part in Norwegian America. The first society was Normanna Sangerkor (Normanna Singers' Choir) founded in La Crosse, Wisconsin. The Norwegian Singers Association (Det Norsk Sangerforbund) had fifty member choirs in 1914. The first Scandinavian Institute was founded in Madison, Wisconsin, and Rasmus B. Anderson was appointed professor of Scandinavian languages. Andreas Larsen Dahl immigrated to America from Skrautvål in Valdres. He traveled around in Wisconsin as a photographer

1870, Public offices, elected, for the first time. C. T. Austin (Kaasa) Telemarken was a member of the Legislature's lower House in 1890, 1895, and 1899. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 55.

1870, There were 1,264 Norwegians in the Missouri-Big Sioux region of South Dakota.

1870-1910, Most Norwegian emigrants sailed on foreign steamers now. Semmingsen, Norway to America, p. 57.

1870, Minnesota census, there were 440,000 inhabitants, more than 48,000 came from Germany, 36,000 from Norway, and 20,000 from Sweden.

1870, According to the census the Scandinavians had become the largest foreign-born group in Minnesota. The Scandinavian group was dominated by the Norwegians. Carl Lewenhaupt wrote a Report on Swedish-Norwegian Immigration in 1870

1871, The first settlers came to Sioux Falls, SD. Lars Simonson was a Tellemarken. It was at the Coulton settlement (Toapi and Grand Meadow townships). Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 19.

It was also in the Coulton settlement (southern Toapi and Northern Grand Meadow) that the Telemarkens were most numerous. Charles T. Austin (Kaase) was the leader there. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 21.

1871, A bridge is finally placed over the Minnesota River at St. Peter. Gresham, Nicollet and Le Suer Counties Minnesota, p. 338.

1872, Augsburg Seminary moved from Marshall, Wisconsin to St. Paul, Minnesota.

1873, May 15, Schooners set out from southern Minnesota and northern Iowa for Lake Hendricks, Dakota Territory. See Gustav Sandro, "The Immigrants' Trek". Blegen, The American Transition, p. 502. Also see Qualey, Norwegian Settlement in the United States, p. 145. The assembled near the present town of Mabel, Minnesota. Most were originally from Trondhjem, Norway.

1873-1875, Epidemic, Influenza, North America and Europe

1873, Ole E. Rølvaag, Giants in the Earth, settlers move to Minnehaha County. Sioux Falls in Minnehaha and Canton in Lincoln County became Norwegian centers. Qualey, Norwegian Settlement in the United States, p. 130.

1873, January, one of worst Minnesota storms ever. It raged for days and hundreds of people died and thousands of animals. Gresham, Nicollet and Le Suer Counties Minnesota, p. 341. "There were 75 lives lost between New Ulm and Lac qui Parle during that never-to-be-forgotten storm". Gresham, Nicollet and Le Suer Counties Minnesota, p. 342. See also Treaty Site History Center of St. Peter, on file.

1873-1876, Locusts destroy crops annually, covering 13 Minnesota counties. It was estimated that from 12 to 15 hundred settlers were impoverished. Qualey, Norwegian Settlement in the United States, p. 1110. See also Gresham, Nicollet and Le Suer Counties Minnesota, p. 335. See Lovoll, Odd, The Promise of America, p. 137.

1873, Østein Nielsen Bakhus/Böen dies of old age on September 16 at Harmony, Minnesota. He was my g-g-g-grandfather from Tinn, Telemark. Gene Estensen Family.

1873, The newspaper "Budstikken" was established and became the chief Norwegian newpaper of the 1870s and 80s.

1873, The first novel by a Norwegian in the United States appears to have been by Hjalmar Hjorth Boyensen's "Gunnar" which appeared as a serial in the Atlantic Monthly in 1873 and a novel in 1874. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 586.

1874, John Johnson Jøines of Tinn came to America. Three children in the family died on the way. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 384.

1874, Austin K. Rollag of Tinn came to America. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 397.

1874, St. Olaf's school is incorporated at Northfield, MN. It became a college in 1886.

1874, St. Olaf College was founded in Northfield by Bernt Julius Muus. Decorah-Posten was one of the three most important newspapers in the Midwest. It was published in Decorah, Iowa, until 1972. In the 1920s Decorah-Posten had about 45,000 subscribers. Rasmus B. Anderson, professor of Scandinavian languages at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, published America Not Discovered by Columbus and Den norske maalsag (The Norwegian Language Issue), Hjalmar Hjorth Boyesen, professor of Germanic languages at University of Columbia, New York, published Gunnar, a peasant idyll written in English for American readers.

1874, The "Decorah Posten" was founded and gained a vast circulation through publishing Norwegian-American fiction, notably the novels of H. A. Foss. In 1935, Posten absorbed the "Minneapolis Tidende". Blegen, The American Transition, p. 549. Also see Lovell, Odd, The Promise Fulfilled, p. 24.

1873, Paster O. O. Sandro comes to the Nidaros Congregation in Minnehaha County. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 159.

1874, Many people traveled west from Winneshiek County, Iowa and Fillmore County, MN to the southwest corner of MN, Rock County, and to Minnehaha County, Dakota Territory.

1874, Pastor Sando leaves SD for Iowa where he married Barbro Kittleson. Torger Thompson arrives at Burke Township, as does Thomas O. Kittleson, born 4-15-1851, and wife Oline. Ole Østeinsen Bømogen, born 1816, and Liv, born 1811, live here with children Gonil and Aslaug. Torger Tovsen Mogen, born 4-26-1849 in Tinn was here. Others here were John T. Thompson, born 10-28-1869 at Ridgeway, and Torger Thompson, born 1828 in Tinn, with wife Guro, born 1834. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 160.

1874-75, the ravages of the grasshopper continue in Nicollet County. Gresham, Nicollet and Le Suer Counties Minnesota, p. 335. And the aid flowed in and it was noted "that this should stand out as a perpetual memorial for this people, who in times of dire distress put forth a self-sacrificing hand to aid their brethren. Gresham, Nicollet and Le Suer Counties Minnesota, p. 335. "No one can form any idea of the ravages of the grasshoppers in that section of the county without first seeing them. For miles the groundis literally covered with them. They are coming this way and mow evertthing before them". Gresham, Nicollet and Le Suer Counties Minnesota, p. 337.

1875, St. Olaf School opens its doors on January 8.

1875, There are five times as many Norwegians in Minneapolis than St. Paul.

1875, Diptheria strikes many families at Harmony. Johnson, Millicent, Let's Have Harmony, p. 10.

1875, On July 5, Rasmus B. Anderson gave a speech in Chicago at the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Norwegian emigration to America.

1876, Skandinaven's bookstore opened in Chicago.

1876-1878, Toapi Township and surrounding areas were overwhelmingly populated,
Burke and Grand Meadows too. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 179.

1876, Charles Austin (Kjetil Tovsen Kaase, son of Tov Østensen Bøkasse) and Jørgen Akre were the first settlers in Taopi Township. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 228. Charles Austin was my g-g-uncle. Gene Estensen Family.

1876, Charles (Kjittil) Tovsen Austin came to Grand Meadow with his wife Jøgen were in both Toapi and Grand Meadow townships. Norwegian Immigration to the United States, Flom, George, p. 203. The first settlers came to Grand Meadows in 1875. They were Nils Haugen and Ole T. Bunde. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 203 and 248.

1876, Jon Torsteinsen Rui, or Snowshoe Thompson, dies and is buried at Genoa, Nevada.

1877-1878, Great swarms of grasshoppers crossed the Dakota Territory plains.

1877, July 17, Austin Estensen (Østen Olsen Bøen) and Anne Thompson (Anne Tovsdatter Bøkasse of Tinn, Telemark) are married by Pastor Tobias Larsen at Harmony. They lived in Charley's old home, then in the spring of 1878 they move to Toapi and are listed Austin Olsen (Estensen) born 7-24-1856 in Nicollet County, Minnesota Territory with wife Anne Tovsdatter Kaase, born 3-12-1860 in Tinn, and later their 13 children. When Austin came to Minnehaha in 1878, he was accompanied by Mrs. Halvor Clauson, mother of Anne who was married to C. T. Austin (Anne Estensen's brother). Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 301. The wife of Pastor Larsen was the daughter of Peder Jacobsen the well-liked postmaster at Muskego. Clausen, C. A., A Chronicler of Immigrant Life, p. 22.

1877, Gunnulv Kittilsen Såheim and Gro Torgiersdatter Mogen (Såheimsmogen) both die at Ridgeway. Martin "Halvor mourned, I saw him standing by his house looking down at his brother's and the tears ran". Gene Estensen Family.

1877-1888, Claus and Stener Clauson settled in Toapi. Also listed are Austin Thompson, born 7-18-1857 at Ridgeway with wife Lizzie Walker of Stavanger. She died 1-4-1910. Tov Thompson, born 5-3-1820 at Tinn with wife Liv Østeinsdatter Svadde, born 5-3-1817. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 229.

1877, Luther College Museum was started at Luther College, Decorah, Iowa. In 1925 the name was changed to Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum. Since then, the museum has been located in the center of Decorah. Nordic Fest takes place in Decorah the last weekend of July every year.

1878, Gilbert Tovsen Austin, born 6-18-1856 in Tinn, with wife Jørgine, born 11-07-1858 were married. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 203.

1877, H. A. Foss emigrates to America and in 1889 his book "The Cotter's Son" became an unparalled success. Skard, Sigmund, The United States in Norwegian History, p.103.

1878, Clear Lake Township, Albert Larson is first Norwegian this year. Other that lived here were Gilbert Tovsen Austin, born 6-18-1856 in Tinn, with wife Jørgine, born 11-07-1858 at Drammen, Bratsberg (now Telemark). Martin Tovsen Austin, born 1-12-1865 at Ridgeway. His first wife was Anne Johnson Kasen, born 12-22-1864 at Harmony - no children. Second marriage was Augusta (Aagodt) G. Kasen, born 10-08-1884 at Harmony - no children. Tom Austin (Tov Østensen Bøkasse), born 4-04-1820 at Tinn with wife Astrid Kjetilsdatter Tveito, born 12-17-18213 in Tinn. One boy and three girls died in Norway. John Johnson Kasen, born 4-1-1804 at Tinn. Ole Johnson Kasen, born 5-15-1838 in Tinn. Knut Røllog, born Tinn and Anna Jøines, born 1853, in Tinn with children Hanna, Theodor, Albert. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 203.

1878, Lyons Township and Grand Meadow Township, Austin T. Austin, born 5-21-1848 at Tinn and wife Kristine Halvardsdatter Clauson, born 7-26-1856 and their 11 children. He accumulated 640 acres of land. Charles Tovsen Austin, born 9-15-1850 at Tinn and wife Anne Halvardsdatter Clauson, born 4-8-1857. They were childless but adopted Knud Røllog. In the spring of 1877 they moved from Harmony to Grand Meadow. They built in 1882 on land they owned in Toapi Township. He took a trip to Norway in 1904 to try to improve his health but died in 1907 of stomach cancer, before the death of his parents. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 207.

1878, Austin Estensen (born Østen Ølsen Bøen) pioneers at Taopi Township, Minnehaha County, SD, NE ¼ Sec. 35. This was land he had acquired earlier. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 301. Gene Estensen Family.

1878, the following people came to Minnehaha from Harmony Township; Austin O. Estensen and Anne, Halvor Clauson and family, Claus and Maud Clauson, Claus, Karen, Marie, and Halvor Nilson, John and Nils Bakken Hill, Knut and Anne Rollag and Hanna. Gene Estensen Family.

1879, February 28, The Leganger congregation was established in the home of C. T. Austin, one mile from Colton. On December 3, it was decided to build a church on Austin Olsen's (Estensen) and Anne's land. It was built in 1881. In 1892, a new church was built across the road at Martin Austin's. Services were held here until 1918 when a new church was built in Colton. Pastor O.O. Sando died in 1903. His successor was Pastor P.C. Birkelo until 1912, then O. P. Vangeness until 1916. C. T. Austin was a leader in church affairs and his brothers Østein, Martin, and Gilbert lived in the Colton settlement. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 180 and 301. Gene Estensen Family.

1879, July, Torstein Østeinsen Bøen dies at Norseland. Gene Estensen Family.

1879, Land boom in North Dakota. Until 1920 Norwegians were the largest ethnic group in North Dakota. The Norwegians settled in Trail County and Griggs County. Towns like Fargo, Grand Forks, Hatton, Mayville, and Hillsboro took on a Norwegian flavor preserved to the present day. The author, Kristoffer Janson, went on a lecture tour of the Midwest and gave about 80 talks and lectures for Norwegian-Americans and other Scandinavians.

1880, The Danish Thingvalla Line established the first direct passenger route by steamship between Scandinavia and the United States. Many Norwegian emigrants booked passage on this line 941 Norwegians now lived in Bosque County in Texas. The Norwegian feminist Aasta Hansteen went to America and stayed in Boston and Chicago while working as a portrait painter

1880-1881, This was the winter of the great snow. See Sando, Chapter 6. Rølvaag had Per Hansa become a victim of the great storm. Lovoll, Odd, The Promise of America, p. 123.

1881, Gilbert Austin comes to Grand Meadow Township with wife Karen. They moved in with widower C. T. Austin in 1920. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 248.

1881, Austin and Anne Estensen move to Granite Falls, MN Yellow Medicine County, Stony Run Township after selling their land to C. T. Austin. Gene Estensen Family.

1882, June 22, John O. Estensen is married to Bertha H. Husevold. They eventually settle at Cyrus, Minnesota. His brother, and my g-grandfather, Austin follows him to the area. Gene Estensen Family.

1882, See Blegen for an account of the schooners traveling to South Dakota. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 505.

1883, Ole Thorson, at Olivia, Minnesota writes that the winter has been tough and "several hundred men and horses have frozen to death". Hale, Their Own Saga, p. 89.

1883, Spring, Austin O. Estensen moves from SD Territory to Granite Falls, MN. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 301.

1883, Noted skiers, four of them, from Norway move to Red Wing, Minnesota. They included Torgus and Mikkel Hemmestvedt, the pioneers of the American ski jump. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 575.

1884, In the spring Austin Tovsen and Kjistine Clausen sold their home in Fillmore County an went to Minnehaha County, Dakota Territory. For perhaps two years they lived with Charley and Anne, then bought in 1886 the farm of John and Karen Bakken Hill so that they became neighbors with their brothers and sisters and of her parents. Gene Estensen Family.

1884, The wonderful story, Foss, H. A., The Cotter's Son (Husmandsgutten) is run in serial fashion in the Decorah-Posten. Husmands-Gutten (The Cotter Boy), a male cinderella story of one who made good in America. Semmingsen, Norway to America, p. 138.

1884, Den norsk-amerikanske Venstreforening (The Norwegian-American Liberal Society) was formed because "our old fatherland's independence and freedom are at stake" as stated in an appeal in Budstikken. Several other liberal societies came into being in the Midwest, and a fund drive was conducted. The society in Minneapolis sent 4,000 kroner to the Liberal (Venstre) party in Norway. Anders Beer Wilse immigrated to America and stayed until 1900. He worked as a railroad engineer and, in addition, became renowned for his work as a landscape photographer.

1885, Sondre Norheim came from Morgedal in Telemark to America. He is known as the father of skiing.

1885, January 3, Martin Tovsen Kaase married Anne Jonsdatter Kasen in the Greenfield parsonage by Rev. T. Larson. Gene Estensen Family.

1885, Martin Austin come to Grand Meadow and bought 160 acres from C. T. Austin. Wife Anne Johnson, daughter of John Johnson Kasen, died in 1919 (married January 3, 1885). Martin later married Aagot G. Kasen and they lived in Colton. It was to be the last emigration for this family. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 249.

1885, Tov Østensen (Tom Austin) and Astrid moved to Minnehaha County and lived with their older children. Martin is now 20 years old. They lived 17 years in a house built on son C. T. Austin's land. Then on 11-1-1911 they moved in with Martin Austin. Tov died in February of 1915 and Astrid December of 1918. Oien, Minnehaha County's Norwegian Pioneers, p. 249.

In 1886 the old system for numbering Norwegian farms and sub-farms was redesigned. During the following years all farms and sub-farms were evaluated and given relative values within every kommune based on size, topography and other factors. All farm land in whole Norway was given a total (tax) value of 500 000 mark, and after a rather complicated process a tax value was calculated for every farm in
the country. So if a farm had a value of 5 mark its cultivated area was roughly
1/100000 of the total cultivated area in Norway. When a farm with a tax value of 5 mark later on was divided the total value of the resulting farms should still be 5 mark. 1 Øre is 1/100 Mark. So Mark and Øre in this context is not a kind of currency, and it is not an area unit either, but a kind of a relative measurement of the value of farm land (for farming purpose). During a period of time also the relative values of farm land will change quite a lot. So the 1950 matrikkel was an attempt to adjust the old matrikkel values and also to correct the old farm lists from 1886 as to new information about
names and missing sub-farms and so on.

1886, in the Dakotas a drought begins, prices of wheat decline, and a depression ensues. Qualey, Norwegian Settlement in the United States, p. 134.

1887, May 21, Ole Østeinsen Bøen (Ole Estensen) dies at Norseland. He was my pioneer g-g-grandfather from Tinn in Telemark. Gene Estensen Family.

1887, Mikkel and Torjus Hemmestvedt, Norwegian champions, introduced ski jumping to the American public at Aurora's (Minnesota) first tournament on February 8. Lovell, Odd, The Promise Fulfilled, p. 241.

See the painting by Wilse of the Emigrants leaving the fjord. Lovell, Odd, The Promise of America, p. 6.

1887, Minneapolis Tidende was one of the three most important newspapers in the Midwest. It was published in Minneapolis until 1935 when it was taken over by Decorah-Posten. The first statue of Leiv Eiriksson was unveiled in Boston. Later many more were erected, in places like Chicago, Duluth, St. Paul, and Seattle. Leiv Eiriksson Day is celebrated every year in October. Andrew Furuseth became secretary in the Sailors Union of the Pacific Coast. He was called the Abraham Lincoln of the sea.
1888, Kvinden og Hjemmet was published in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, with Ida Hansen from Ringsaker as the editor of the magazine. In 1924, the magazine had 34,000 subscribers.

1889, Dakota became a state and was divided into South and North Dakota.
The Norwegian-American farmer, Hans Jakob Olson, was lynched in the vicinity of Blair, Wisconsin.

1889, H. A. Foss serialized his "Cotter Boy.." in Decorah Posten, increasing its circulation by six thousand. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 590.

1889, Knud Langeland, the pioneer editor, produced his "Nordmændene I Amerika.

1889, Dakota Territory becomes the states of North and South Dakota. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 505. Also Norlie, The History of the Norwegian People in America, p. 186.

1889, Ole and Liv Bømogen, in America since 1860 and settled at Harmony, came to Burk Township in 1889. Ole died in 1899, Liv in 1893. Their daughter Gunhild married Ole Kasen, son of John J. Kasen who came over in 1843 to Muskego, then Harmony. Gene Estensen Family.

1890, Søren Tollefsen Bache died at Lier parish.

1890, The feeling of alienation and homesickness became a permanent feature in the writings about Norwegian emigrants. Skard, Sigmund, The United States in Norwegian History, p.136.

1891, Concordia College was established in Moorhead, MN.

1891, Final Decree for Ole Estensen on November 5th. Gene Estensen Family.

1892, More than 70% of the one-way tickets from Norway to America were purchased in America. This was often a source of cheap labor.

1892, Claus Lauritz Clausen dies in Paulsbo, Washington.

1892, Ellis Island replaced Castle Garden as a receiving and control station for immigrants. Knute Nelson from Evanger, Voss, was elected governor of Minnesota. From 1895 until his death he served as United States senator.

1893, Recession in America led to a reduction in emigration from Norway. Captain Magnus Andersen sailed a replica of the Gokstad ship, Viking to the World Fair in Chicago. "The Norwegian House" at the exhibition, built as a stave church, is now part of Little Norway, a Museum of Norse Antiques in a Norwegian Pioneer Homestead, 25 miles west of Madison, Wisconsin.

1894, En Saloonkeepers Datter (A Saloonkeeper's Daughter) by Drude Krog Janson was published in Minneapolis.

1895, Sons of Norway (Sønner af Norge) is established. Telelaget, Telemark to America Volume II, p. 3.

1895, Astrid's brother Ole Kjitilsen dies November 6 at Ridgeway. Wife Turid Torgiersdatter Mogen (Såheimsmogen) died January 15, 1881. Gene Estensen Family.

1895, Norwegian-American author Peer Strømme recorded these impressions of Tinn, Telemark in Varden, June 6: "Farther west the Vestfjord valley expands but the farms are still small and a person gets the impression that there is poverty everywhere". Norwegian-American Studies, Vol. 29, p. 72.

1895, Rasmus B. Anderson produced his "First Chapter of Norwegian Immigraton" drawing heavily on the works of Svein Nilsson, thus making Svein's work available in English. Blegen, The American Transition, p. 592.

1896, Sons of Norway was founded in Minneapolis. Semmingsen, Norway to America, p. 146.

1896, May 17, Six thousand people attended the unveiling of the Ole Bull statue cast and pay tribute to the sculpture Jacob Fjelde. Hansen, Carl, My Minneapolis, p. 160. The next May 17 the statue was dedicated at Loring Park. Jacob Fjelde had just died and there was great sadness at the initial unveiling. His son Paul, age three at his fathers death, would grow up to be a sculpture too. He did the Hans Christian Heg monuments. Hansen, Carl, My Minneapolis, p. 169.

1897, Daughters of Norway is established.

1897, Sondre Norheim, famous skier, dies at Denbigh, North Dakota.

1898, Olaf Ohman, a Swede discovered the Kensington Runestone. Norlie, The History of the Norwegian People in America, p. 62. See a picture at Lovoll, Odd, The Promise of America, p. 277.

1899, The first bygdelag was established on June 25 I Minnehaha Park, Minneapolis. This was for the Valdres folk. Telelaget, Telemark to America Volume II, p. 3.

1899, Thorstein Veblen publishes his Theory of the Leisure Class. Lovoll, Odd, The Promise of America, p. 323.

1899, Canton, in Lincoln County, South Dakota became a center of Norwegian-American life. An important newspaper was established here, as was Augustana College. O. E. Rølvaag came here to college in 1899.