My grandmother Louise was the youngest in a family of 8 children born to Carl and Karen Nilsdatter Nelsen. Carl and Karen were born, raised and married in Ringerike, Buskerud, Norway. First child Gunhild Julia was born there prior to their emigration to America in 1867; the other 7 were American-born. Carl, Karen and Julia first went to Salem, Wisconsin where they stayed just 3 months, then moved on to Douglas County, Minnesota for about 9 years. The family now consisted of four (Carl, Karen, Julia and Nels) when enumerated for the US Census in Alexandria, Douglas County on 24 June 1870. They were living there on 3 October 1872 when Carl became an American citizen. He was 33 years old.
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| Carl's American Citizenship |
In 1876 Carl and Karen moved about 20 miles from Alexandria to Erdahl, Grant County, Minnesota and made that their home for the rest of their lives.
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| Carl and Karen with Carl's handwriting about the family |
Earlier this year, I posted a story about 5 of the 8 siblings - those who migrated to Canada as a family group around 1910. This week's focus is on the 3 who chose to remain closer to home in the United States. Although they also made their own decisions and lived their own lives, they did not all desert Carl and Karen. Both parents ultimately died in Erdahl at the age of 72, he in 1911 and she in 1915.
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| Carl and Karen's grandson Ken Bardahl and wife Elinor visiting the Nelsen Erdahl MN gravesite |
Here are the three daughters who lived out their lives in the United States:
1. Gunhild (Julia) Nelson (1866-1959)
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| Julia Nelson |
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| 1884 marriage of Andrew Lee and Gunhild (Julia) Carlsdatter (Nelsen) |
Julia and Andrew established their home in close proximity to her parents, as clearly indicated by their adjacent entries in the 1900 census for Erdahl, Minnesota. At this time, she had given birth to 9 children with 5 still living. Julia and Andrew's children listed in the census are Clara, Charles, Marie, George and William.
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| 1900 US Census for Albert and Gunhild/Julia highlighted in green with her parents and 4 of her siblings just below |
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| Julia with her grandson George c1938 |
In 1909 Julia married her second husband, Iver Oiaas. A few months' later, the census had them in Erdahl township. After both her parents died, Julia and Iver are found in the 1920 census in Ironton Village, MN, some 115 miles from Erdahl. Iver passed away in 1938, leaving Julia widowed once again.
Julia was living with her youngest daughter Edna Lee Starkel in Portland, Oregon at the time of her death on 27 October 1959 at the age of 93. She was survived by 2 sons and 2 daughters, 7 grandchildren and 2 of her siblings - Selma Nelson Gilbertson of Langdon, N.D. and Louise Nelson Bardahl of Canada. She was buried back in her home town of Erdahl next to her first husband and near the burial locations of her parents.
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| Julia and Andrew's Headstone, Erdahl, MN. Photo courtesy T. Burt of Findagrave.com |
3, Olava (Lottie) Nelson (1870-1949)
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| Lottie Nelson |
Lottie married Jesse S. McNish of Chemung, N.Y. on 30 December 1898. Jesse was almost a decade older than Lottie. According to the Grant County Herald of 5 Jan 1899, "The bride is one of the best young ladies and has a host of friends. The happy couple will spend their honeymoon in California." They did not return to live in Erdahl.
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| 1900 census Cavalier County, ND for Jesse and Lottie, married 1 year |
Census records have them living in Cavalier County, ND in 1900, in Walsh County ND in 1910 and 1920 and in Sherburne, MN. in 1930. Land records with the US Bureau of Land Management show Jesse purchasing lands in ND in 1902.
There is no record of any children. Having moved away from her parents and siblings so early, one wonders how Lottie filled her life with meaningful relationships and activities in a time when women had few options.
Lottie died at the age of 78 in January of 1949 and Jesse followed her just a few months later.
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| Jesse and Lottie's stone in Big Lake Cemetery, Sherburne MN photo from findagrave by kandota. |
3. Hannah Nelson (1875-1945)
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| Hannah Nelson |
Hannah was the 6th child born to Carl and Karen. On 20 August 1896, when she was 21, she married Albert Helgeson. They had three daughters (Ruby, Mildred, Lila) born between 1899 and 1904 in North Dakota. There seemed to be magnets in Cavalier Counties and in the Fargo areas of North Dakota that so often drew members of the Nelsen family there. It is unclear just how close together they may have been while there.
In 1910 the family was in Crookston City, Polk, Minnesota at the time of the census. Albert was a travelling salesman in the machinery business. Ten years later they were enumerated in Fargo, N.D. By 1930 and still in 1940 they were living in Los Angeles.
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| Helgesen Dohlen Family Photo c. 1940: Albert Dohlen, Hannah Nelsen Helgesen, Ross Dohlen, Lila Helgesen Dohlen, Newell Dohlen and Albert Helgesen - photo provided by Ross's wife Barbara in June 2006 |
Hannah died of pneumonia in Los Angeles, California in 1945 at the age of 69. Albert lived until 1956; both are buried in Inglewood Park Cemetery in Los Angeles County, California.
Conclusion:
From the time of the family's emigration from Norway in 1867, family members continued to migrate and set up their own homes and families throughout the United States and Canada. Whether sticking closer to home or moving farther afield, home and family remained a central focus for their lives.
