This Genealogist's Dream: Chester Fritz Library (52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2025 Week 19 Theme: "At the Library")

Accessing Norwegian bygdebøker (farm books) had been high on my wish list for many years. Farm books were compiled by respected historians over a century ago, using numerous sources, including kirkebøker (church parish registers), census, probate, tax, land and court records. Local residents were also interviewed at the time of the compilations. The result is a series of books (in the Norwegian dialect of each community) providing valuable information about the people living on farms in the various communities throughout Norway.

University of North Dakota
17 August 2017 photo by author

These treasured books are not easily obtained or accessed. Interlibrary loan is not an option. Although there are digitization projects that will make access easier in future, for my purposes in the early 2000's, a visit a brick and mortar library was required. The American libraries that include bygdebøker in their collections are few in number and are located in communities that had a sizeable settlement by Norwegian immigrants. It always appeared that the best bet for me was the Chester Fritz Library (Arne Brekke Collection) at the University of North Dakota.

Arne Brekke Collection in the Chester Fritz Library
photo 17 August 2017 by author

A road trip to observe the total solar eclipse in Grand Island, Nebraska in August of 2017 provided the perfect opportunity for a detour to Grand Forks, N.D. 

After determining my preferred date for a visit, I called the Library's archivist to discuss access. I didn't want to show up and discover that the library was closed or inaccessible to me for any reason. He was very helpful, assuring me that although he himself would be away, the library would indeed be open for business. I described what I had done to prepare for the visit and he confirmed my plan and advised me of opening hours and parking.

As for my preparation, I knew that I would need to know county, parish and farm names for any ancestors I wished to research in the farm books. That would be relatively easy if you just had one or two farms to investigate. With Norwegian ancestors on both my father's 100% Norwegian background and my mother's 38% Norwegian background,  I had dozens that I knew of from four counties (Buskerud, Nordland, Oppland, Telemark). But I had just one day allocated for research! (There are limits to how patient a husband might be left to explore Grand Forks on his own!)

Preparation for the visit included: 

• reviewing the bygdebøker information available on the Family Search research wiki
• printing reports from my database for the families to be researched for each Norwegian county, including parish and farm names as well as names and dates for relevant individuals 
• reviewing the information available on the Chester Fritz Library site and printing off the lists of relevant authors/titles/call numbers to enable efficient access
• purchase of a good USB memory stick for storing the documents scanned at the library

My husband dropped me off at 8:00 A.M. on 17 August 2017. A very helpful librarian gave me a quick orientation to the books and the scanner and I was off to the races! I was so fortunate that I was the only patron there all day and had lots of table space and immediate access to the high-quality scanner. I stopped for a quick lunch in the cafeteria to keep me energized. In truth, my success was feeding on itself to build momentum as the day went on.

Accessing the Farm Books photo by author 17 August 2017

When my husband picked me up at the end of the day, I felt very satisfied that I had found and saved everything I had hoped to find that day. He captured this picture of me getting into the car which speaks for itself about the kind of day I had had!

Photo of author after a day at the Chester Fritz Library
by Graham Barnard

Norwegian Ancestor Kittel Guttormsen (c1758-1836) (52 Ancestors 2020 Week 46) Theme: "Different Language"

 Having more than 50% Norwegian ancestry, it was clear to me from the beginning that at some point I would be faced with researching in Norwegian.  It turned out to be not only manageable but fairly accessible, even to someone with little knowledge of the language.

Complications with the Norwegian language arose because of Norway's history of being controlled by Denmark for several centuries until 1814. For a long time, Norwegian was much like Danish and then another version developed to move away from Danish and be more distinctly Norwegian. This resulted in a couple of variations of the Norwegian language, which have subsequently moved into a single form. As a result, modern Norwegian usage may be quite different from that found in the old church records. 

Another thing that distinguishes Norwegian is that is has 29 letters to its alphabet rather than the 26 we have in English. The additional three letters are all vowels (æ, ø and å) and occur after "z" - something to always keep in mind when searching an index for a word in alphabetical order! Although these additional Norwegian vowels do not appear on most keyboards, there are codes for getting these letters to type in computer programs.

To add additional challenge, the old style Gothic writing in the kirkebøker (church books) varies considerably in legibility and, even with the best penmanship, can be difficult to decipher.  See some examples further below.

Notwithstanding these challenges, it is important to recognize that you don't need to be fluent in a language to be able to read basic records. You can quickly pick up the basic words relating to gender, number, birth and baptism (døpte), marriage (viede, copulerede), death (døde), burial (begravede), censuses (folketellinger). Often, there is some similarity of the Norwegian word to its English counterpart.

In addition to using an online translator such as Google Translate, a Norwegian-English Dictionary can come in handy. Remember that you might find a Danish-English Dictionary of more use in some cases. For most basic research, a list of the usual Norwegian words used in genealogy is sufficient, such as the one at the Family Search wiki (see Resources below). 

English-Norwegian-Danish Dictionary compiled by Haldor Hanson, Chicago:
John Anderson Publishing Co., Publishers Skandinaven, 1912

Because the state Lutheran Church was mandated to keep all the vital records for Norway, excellent records are available well back into the 1600s. When I first started researching my Norwegian ancestors, it was necessary to scroll patiently through microfilms, sometimes several for each parish, by ordering them from Salt Lake City. Subsequently, most church records and several censuses have been freely obtainable online from the National Archives of Norway (Arkivverket). 

I have conducted research on dozens of my Norwegian ancestors with the very basic Norwegian language skills I have picked up. As an example, this week's story will focus on one of my mother's Norwegian paternal ancestors. 

Kittel Guttormsen is my 4X great grandfather. Norwegian naming practices also vary from what we are used to in the English/American world where we tend to have a given first name, sometimes a middle name and always a surname, usually passed down from the father. In Norway, there was a given name and a patronymic name based on adding the suffix "sen" or "datter" to the father's first name.  Just from his name, we know that Kittel Guttormsen's father's first name was Guttorm. To get away from the problem of so many names being essentially the same, individuals could be differentiated by adding their (farm) location as an identifier. Hence, Kittel is sometimes known as Kittel Guttormson Opsahl. To add to the confusion, however, if a person moved during his lifetime, that part of the name changed accordingly!

Kittel was the second child born to Guttorm Bjørnsen Nareim and his wife Siri Kittelsdatter Mjøseng. (We can see that Kittel was named for his maternal grandfather, a common practice.)  At the time of his birth in about 1758, his father was farming Nareim farm in Sigdal parish, Buskerud. Kittel was baptized there on 15 July 1759.

Døpte (Baptism) record for Kittel Guttormsen from the Sigdal Kirkebok

In 1778, Kittel's father bought half of the Nedre Opsal farm in Lier parish some 30 miles distance from Nareim farm in Sigdal parish. After the father's death in 1784, widowed mother Siri transferred half this land to Kittel and the other half to his brother Gullik. The farm book describes a lot of financial transactions, including mortgage loans and payments made, values for the property and earnings. Apparently there was a mill on the property valued at 500 dlr. 

On 24 July 1792, Kittel married Johanne Nilsdatter.

Copulerede (marriage) record for Kittel and Johanne from the Lier Kirkebok

The land transactions  remained convoluted and continued over the years. Complex descriptions in Norwegian are definitely beyond my current skill level with the language. The Farm Book describes the following according to Google Translate:

In 1792, Kittel sold in 1796 from a fehage, 1 lp.m which lay on the north side of the garden. In 1801, along with a part of Klemmetsdal, Gullik sold a small piece of wood, "located at the top of Opsalfjellet", to Asle Nilsen from Strømso. The owners of this piece of wood should answer 6 divorces. Annually, "all-time owners of Garden Opsal." In 1804, Kittel digged on Gullik's part of the garden for 600 dlr, and then took the mortgage for the entire purchase price. In the beginning of the 1800s he entered into contact with the other users at Nedre Opsal regarding the dragon horse . Kittel took a mortgage loan of 100 spd. In 1819. The following year, debt grew by 170 spd. In 1823 he issued a joint for 800 spd. and the livestock of the son Gunder Kittelsen. . .

You can see Google Translate does not provide a nice comprehensible translation. Norwegian friend Ragnild assures me that Norway does not have dragon horses and this should have probably been translated as a draw horse for pulling loads. Goodness knows what answering 6 divorces really should have said!

Aside from all these property transactions, Kittel and Johanne also raised their family. They had sons Gunder (my 3X great grandfather) and Nils and daughters Ingebor, Siri, and Anne. 

Gunder and  Johanne and their first three children show up in the 1801 Norwegian census living at Opsahl farm in Lier, Buskerud.

Folketellinger (census) from 1801 for Lier, Buskerud

Kittel died 25 February 1836 and was buried at Tranbye on 10 March. 

Døde og begravede (death and burial) Lier Kirkebok 1836
accessed from the Norwegian Digital Archives

Understanding just a few basic words in Norwegian took us all the way from Kittel's baptism to his burial. Now I must expand my language skills to figure out what that translation about the 6 divorces really meant!

Some Resources:

• FamilySearch.org research wiki for aids to researching in Norway, accessible online at https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Norway_Genealogy and for a list of the more common Norwegian words used in genealogy at https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Norwegian_Genealogical_Word_List
• Thomsen, Finn A., Genealogical Maps & Guide to Norwegian Parish Registers, Thomsen's Genealogical Center P.O. Box 588, Bountiful Utah 84010, 1988
• Norwegian Digital Archives accessible online at https://www.digitalarkivet.no/en/
• Bjerkås, Ola, Liers Historie Bind III Gårdhistorie, Utgitt av Lier Bygdeboknemnd (Farm Book for Lier, Buskerud)

Carl Johan Nelson (1839-1911) (52 Ancestors 2020 Week 45) Theme: "Bearded"

When I sit to spend time on my family history, my Dad's two sets of grandparents watch over my shoulder, as if trying to ensure that I tell their stories fairly. They gaze at me rather sternly, seemingly rebuking me for some failure on my part. How I would love to have a nice chat with them to get more detailed stories in their own words so that I could truly do them justice!

My Dad, Ken Bardahl, really appreciated family history. When he found these two pictures at the Bardahl homestead farm, abandoned  and unframed, he scoured the antique and collectibles shops until he found the two domed-glass frames. After Dad passed away, my siblings graciously agreed that I should take possession of these treasures, and that's how they come to watch over my shoulder, admonishing me to get their stories right.

 

Although both of Dad's grandfathers are bearded in their photographs (as was the fashion in the late 1800s), this time it's Carl Nelson's turn to be featured. Dad never met this maternal grandfather who appears in the top picture on the left. In fact, he only ever met one grandparent, namely Anna Elton Bardahl, and that just during one visit when Dad was 4. The stories about his other grandparents can be found here: 

• Karen Nilsdatter (upper picture, right)
• Anna Elton (lower picture, left)
• Hans Bardahl (lower picture, right)

Carl Johan Nelson c.1890
(No picture has been located for Carl without his beard)

Carl was born 26 August 1839 in Norderhov, Ringerike, Buskerud, Norway to Nils Olsen and Guri Larsdatter. His parents never married, and his baptism was unusually delayed, for almost a year, until 8 June 1840.

Baptism and birth record for Carl Nelson from the Norwegian kirkebok for Norderhov, Buskerud

As was traditional, he was confirmed into the state Lutheran church when in his mid-teens. On 25 June 1854, his confirmation appears in the Kirkebok for Norderhov.

1854 Confirmation record for Carl Nelson from the Norwegian Kirkebok for Norderhov, Buskerud

The next time we find Carl in an official record is in the 31 December 1865 folketelling (census) for Norway. He is unmarried, 27 years old and working as a hired man on the farm of Anders Engebretsen in Norderhov. Living conveniently nearby, listed on the same page in the census, is a 24 year-old woman named Marie Nilsdatter. 

Carl married Karen Marie Nilsdatter on 3 July 1866 at Norderhov. Their daughter Gunhild (Julia) was born the following month. They were only married a few months when Carl, Karen and Gunhild joined thousands of their countrymen in emigrating to America. Bundling up their possessions and leaving all they knew to sail across the Atlantic in the dead of winter must have been challenging and at least a bit scary. 

Uttflyted record from the Norderhov Kirkebok
showing the family leaving the parish for America

At first, they settled in Salem Wisconsin but soon moved to Douglas County, Minnesota where they remained for 9 years.  While there, Carl became a naturalized American citizen on 3 October 1872.

1872 Carl Nelson American Naturalization

(It is interesting to note that in making this application, Carl had to renounce all allegiance to the King of Sweden and Norway. Norway at that time was under the reign of the King of Sweden in a rather complex relationship between the countries.)

Carl and his family made one final move in 1876 to the area of Erdahl, Grant, Minnesota where they lived out their lives.

Carl Nelson's land just southeast of Erdahl, MN
Erdahl Plat 1900

Carl and Karen had a family of 8 children, 7 daughters and one son. Most of the children were born during their time in Douglas County, MN, but the two youngest, Josephine and my grandmother Louise, were born after the move to Grant County.

Carl and Karen's Family c.1890 with identification of some of his daughters in Carl's fine handwriting
(Note the daughters' surnames are all given as Carlsdatter in the Norwegian patronymic tradition)

The following photograph is from 1898 at Carl's farm at Erdahl where he appears in his trademark beard working the land with son Nels.

1898 image of Carl (right) with son Nels, farming at Erdahl

One final photograph shows an apparently older Carl on his own, once again in his signature full beard.

Carl Nelson c.1910

Carl died at the age of 72 at 2:00 a.m. on 4 December 1911, after an illness of more than a year. From his obituary, we learn that "Mr. Nelson was an old member of the Pomme de Terre lake congregation of the Synod Lutheran Church, and took an active part in its work. His death is a distinct loss not alone to the congregation but also the community of which he was a part." His funeral was on Friday, 8 December and interment in the Synod Cemetery.

1992 - Carl's grandson Ken Bardahl and his wife Elinor visit Carl's grave

Some Resources:

• BBC History Magazine article on the History of Beards accessed 18 October 2020 at https://www.historyextra.com/period/victorian/a-brief-history-of-beards/
• Norwegian digital archive records for Norderhov, Buskerud Kirkebøker (church books) accessed online at https://media.digitalarkivet.no/en/kb/browse

Knud Aslaksen Aakre (1710-1768) and Steinar Aslaksen Aakre (1698-1763) (52 Ancestors 2020 Week 33) Theme: "Troublemaker"

First, just to be clear: Knud and Steinar were NOT troublemakers.

Instead, I've chosen to write about a fight between brothers, a story as old as Cain and Abel. Sometimes family feuds can end in unwelcome estrangements with one party or the other feeling like the odd man out or the "black sheep" or "the trouble maker" of his family. But, more often than not, if one brother is attacked by an outsider, his brother will be the first to come to the rescue. 

My 6X great grandfather Knud was born at Drangedal, Telemark, Norway just months before hisÈ soldier father Aslach Steinersen died. There is some confusion as to how much older his brother Steinar was; it seems likely that he was born in 1698 but was not baptized until the month after his parents married in the autumn of 1708. The boys' mother Aaste Aasulfsdatter, left widowed with two young sons to raise, remarried to a widower named Erik Person.  

1710 Baptism record for Knud Aslaksen
Drangedal, Telemark Kirkebok

No doubt the boys were best buddies during their childhood years, but the story that remains about them involves a life-threatening attack by one brother on the other. (This is where I wish my Norwegian language skills were better than they really are. I'm afraid I'm missing some crucial details and would welcome input from anyone who can read more into the following story than I can.)

Here is the Norwegian version from page 361 the Drangedal farm book:

Dei to brørane hadde ein gong vore saman I eit brudlaup i Sannidal. Der hadde Steinar I fylla og I vanvare stukke bror si med kniven. Steinar blei då arrestera og sett under tiltale. Då ;lensmannen kom til brudlaupsgarden, låg brørane og heldt om livet på hinannan og gråt. Knut bad for bror sin. Det blei vitna at dei alltid hadde vore gode vener. Knut sveiv lenge millom liv og død. Men han kom seg att. Seinare lived dei som grannar og gode verner all sin dag. 

My understanding is that the brothers ended up in a knife fight at a wedding at Sannidal. Another account of this story indicates that a knife fight had erupted between Steinar and another man. When Knud came to intervene, Steinar would not calm down and ended up injuring Knud with the knife. By the time the sheriff came on the scene, the two brothers were crying with relief that they were both still alive and hadn't killed each other. Steinar was arrested and imprisoned, but Knud forgave his brother and must have agreed with the testimony of neighbours that there was no bad blood between the brothers. Knud lay a long while hovering between life and death but did eventually recover. The brothers lived as neighbours and good friends for the rest of their lives. 

Knud's survival was likely crucial for the very existence of my mother's line of the Torkelson family who descend through Knud's great great granddaughter Signe Knutsdatter Tveitane. 

It isn't clear just how old the brothers were when they got into this fight, but my guess would be youthful high-spirits at a local wedding, indeed perhaps fueled by spirits. Both men ended up marrying (Steinar in March of 1728 and Knud in January of 1730) and having families. We descend through Knud's daughter Maria Knudsdatter Aakre who was born in 1742. 

The brothers probably thanked their lucky stars for the rest of their lives that things had not turned out worse. I wonder how often the story was revisited over the years, perhaps with many embellishments.

Steinar died at age 65 and was buried at Drangedal 20 June 1763. No doubt he was much missed by younger brother Knud. 

Steinar's burial record from 1763

Two possible death/burial records have been located for Knud. The first of these was for 14 November 1767 - it refers to him as being crippled, which is certainly a possible result of the fight, but the age (52?) appears to be wrong.

1767 Death record for a Knud Aslaksen

It is also possible that the first is a record of his death and the second (below) is for his burial date. Sometimes, Norwegian burials were postponed for months until the ground thawed in spring.

The second record that might be his death or burial is from 18 March 1768 and, given his stated age and farm name, is likely correct:

.

1768 death/burial of Knud Aslaksen

Not troublemakers, but normal brothers who were capable both of endangering one another's lives and also of defending and supporting one other when push came to shove.

Some Resources:

• Telemark Farm Book: Drangedal med Tordal ei Bygdesoga av Olav Sonnes, I Kommission Hos H. Holms /Bokhandel, Drangedal 1924.
• Kirkeboker for Drangedal, Telemark, Norway available online at the Norwegian Digital Archives: https://media.digitalarkivet.no/en/kb/browse

Torkel Jorgenson Heimdahl (1822-1873 ) (52 Ancestors 2020 Week 30) Theme: "The Old Country"

Norway was the "Old Country" for a majority of my ancestors. After leaving Norway, most immigrants remained in America but the call of the "Old Country" led one family back across the Atlantic, at least for awhile.

Torkel Jorgenson (my 2X great grandfather on my mother's father's side) was born 1 October 1822 at Treungen, Nissedal, Telemark, Norway and baptised there when he was just five days old. His parents were Jorgen Torkelson and Birgit Targiesdatter. 

klokkerbøker baptism record for Torkel Jorgenson 1822 

The Norwegian kirkebøker contain all the vital statistics, including vaccinations for smallpox which were required starting in 1810. Torkel was vaccinated on 25 July 1822 by Bjorn Olson when he was just under 10 months old. 

Torkel's father Jorgen was the klokkar (sexton) who would have been in charge of keeping the klokkerbøker versions of the kirkebøker for Nissedal parish for the time period so we no doubt looking at his handwriting in the above record of his son's birth and baptism.  He would have been a well educated man and no doubt a respected member of the community. However, Jorgen died in January 1839 when son Torkel was just 17 years old; Torkel was confirmed in the state Lutheran Church just a few months after losing his father.

3 November 1839 Confirmation record for Torkel Jorgenson Hjemdal (note that baptism and immunization dates are included in the Confirmation record) 

The family story was that son Torkel had been a school teacher in Norway, but according to the Nissedal, Telemark Bygdebok, he was a klokkar like his father. In addition to his church position, he was also a farmer.

Torkel was the oldest of 6 children. In 1852, two of his younger sisters left for America. 

On the day after New Year's Day 1856, at age 33, he married Signe Knutsen Tveitane. Their first child, (and only son) Jorgen Torkelson, was born on November 30 of that year; other children followed at two-year intervals: Karine, Berget, Jorgene (my great grandmother), Signe, Kari and Turi. 

The family emigrated from Telemark in 1862 to the United States. The parish records tell us that they left on 4 April 1862 for "Amerika"; Torkel was 40 at the time and the oldest three of their children came with them. Mother Signe was pregnant with Jorgena who was born 12 October 1862 after their arrival in Wisconsin. Next daughter Signe was also born in America in March of 1864. 

One of Torkel's sisters remained in Norway and married, but the remainder of the family all emigrated with Torkel and Signe in 1862. Included in this family migration was his widowed mother Bergit Tarjiesdatter.

It isn't certain what prompted Torkel to make an unusual move - back to the comfort of the Old Country with his wife and growing family. The family story had always been that he had developed tuberculosis. The Nissedal bygebok tells a more complex tale of land transactions and Torkel, as the oldest son, appears to have taken the Heimdal land over again for a period of time. The 1865 Norwegian census conducted on the last day of the year finds the family living back at Heimdal Sondre, Nissedal, Telemark. 

The Nissedal Bygdebok tells us that Torkel made a final sale of the Heimdal land in the Old Country in 1869. I have not located any other records that show them leaving Norway or arriving once more in America, but daughter Turi was born and baptised in Lake Mills, Iowa in July of 1870. (Poor Signe was probably once again pregnant on a cross-Atlantic journey!)

For the longest time, we had thought that Torkel had died in Norway of tuberculosis in about 1867 and that his widow and children had decided to head back to America to join some of her family in Iowa after his death. For this reason, it was a surprise when we actually found Torkel's death record showing his death in January of 1873 in Lake Mills, Iowa. 

#44. - Death Record for Torkel in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America Records 1875-1940 for
Lake Mills, Iowa, Winnebago Lutheran Church (accessed via Ancestry.com)

Signe soon remarried (12 November 1873) to a man named Kittil Aaneson. The family photo that we have is from this marriage, with no known photograph of Torkel. 

 Torkel's widow Signe (remarried to Kittil Aaneson, seated center)
Torkel's children left to right standing: Turi. Bergit, Jorgen,
Jorgene (my great grandmother), Karine
Seated left is daughter Signe and on right is Kari.

Torkel is buried in the cemetery at Winnebago Lutheran Church, Lake Mills, Iowa, far from the Old Country of his birth.

Winnebago Lutheran Church, Lake Mills, Iowa
Photo courtesy Diane Gravlee of Find a Grave website

Some Resources: 

• Norwegian kirkebøker and census records for Nissedal, Telemark are available online at the Norwegian Digital Archives: https://www.digitalarkivet.no/en/
• Nissedal Bygdesoge Gard og aett Treungen sokn, Kjell Åsen; utgjevar Nissedal Bygdesgogenemnd 1978.

Jon Gudbrandsen Haugerud (1690-1773) (52 Ancestors 2020 Week 28) Theme: "Multiple"

When I first encountered the 1773 burial record for my 6X great grandfather Jon Gudbrandsen Haugerud, I was struck by the multiple deaths on his record page in the Norderhov, Buskerud, Norway kirkebok. During the month of June alone, there were some 40 people buried in this small rural area. (To demonstrate the significance, it seems just 4 births/baptisms were recorded during the same period.) These multiple deaths were a mystery that called out for further investigation.

Burial of Jon Haugerud 6 June 1773 Buskerud, Norway (orange highlight)
(Other burials during the same month period in yellow)

The kirkebøker (church books) provided the official state record of vital statistics. The one for this parish lists things chronologically for the year 1773. These 2 pages record everything that was going on in the church for approximately the one-month period of June 1773. The number of deaths and burials indicated in yellow is substantially greater than any births/baptisms, marriages or other events. (The previous page was just as dismal with some 50 deaths recorded and just 4 births and a couple of marriages. I cannot help but wonder how many of the June deaths might be attributable to being infected while attending one of those burials the previous month.) An examination of the ages of the dead indicates that folks were dying in all age groups from infants through the elderly. Jon, who died at age 84, would seem to be about the oldest and could well have died of natural causes. But what was going on to cause such widespread death across all ages?

Being in the middle of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic immediately brings to mind the possibility of some sort of epidemic sweeping through my Norwegian ancestors' community. And that is, in fact, exactly what was going on.

Those of us alive in 2020 feel we are going through unprecedented times and, certainly, we are the first to encounter COVID-19 and for most of us, this is an entirely new experience in seeing much of the world shut down in an attempt to curb the death toll and keep our health care systems from being overwhelmed. However, our ancestors also lived or died in many earlier plagues and epidemics over the centuries. The one sweeping through much of Europe in the early 1770s was the one evidenced on the page in the above church book. My 6X great grandfather Jon may or may not have died as a result. 

Norway was mandating that the state Lutheran Church keep parish records starting in 1688.  Jon was born in Ådal, Buskerud, Norway in 1690 but the church records there do not begin until 1704 . He married Gjertrud Olsdatter on 27 October 1715. 

Marriage of Jon and Gjertrud, p. 124 of 1715 Norderhov Kirkebok
(In a page for a more typical year full of births and marriages and few, if any, burials)

 

Not much is known of their lives outside the few church records.Their son Jon Jonsen Haugerud born 1724 was my 5X great grandfather. Gjertrud died at age 70 and was buried 11 October 1766, perhaps fortunately being spared witnessing the widespread death that would decimate her community just a few years later.

An excellent article by John D. Post in the Summer 1990 edition of The Journal of Interdisciplinary History delves into the epidemic sweeping Europe at the time. It makes for fascinating and enlightening reading when viewed through 2020 eyes. 

An extended period of unfavourable weather with heavy and untimely precipitation had resulted in crop failures throughout much of Europe in the early 1770s. Food was in short supply and prices spiked. The countries with the largest increase in food prices suffered the most deaths. Many people became malnourished; some died of starvation. This coincided with a wave of disease that struck particularly hard in the German-language and Scandinavian countries. The diseases that were prevalent were typhus, typhoid fevers, dysentery and smallpox. We cannot know which of these contributed to the deaths shown for Norderhov in June of 1773.

To make matters worse, the Norwegian militia were mobilized for an impending war in Sweden, but then demobilized when things were resolved, resulting in many men returning home with disease to be spread in their local communities.

The data showed a significant increase (+111%) in the death rate in Norway in 1773 and a corresponding decrease in birth rate (-23.7%). This is consistent with what we see in the Norderhov church book record in June of 1773.

A few of Post's observations from his study of the European data from the 1770s are notable. Denmark fared better than its Scandinavian neighbours, perhaps because of the measures they adopted:  public granaries to cope with the food shortages, controlled movement of rural populations, price controls on food and compelling the more affluent to contribute to the support of the destitute. Post's conclusion was that the epidemic level in a country was associated most with the scale of social disarray caused by migration for work, vagrancy, poverty, crime and public disturbances even more than by lowered resistance to disease resulting from nutritional deficiencies. 

As the coronovirus pandemic of 2020 continues to unfold, the death toll is rising while more is being learned all the time about the effectiveness of various responses by health officials and governments around the world. We can only hope that we learn both from history and from our own unfolding experience. 

 Some Resources:

• Norderhov, Buskerud kirkebøker F/Fa/L0004: Parish Register (official) no. 4, 1758-1774, pages 249-252, available online through the Norwegian digital archives
• Post, John D., "The Mortality Crises of the Early 1770s and European Demographic Trends", The Journal of Interdisciplinary History, Vol.21, No. 1 (Summer 1990), pp.29-62; Published by the MIT Press and available online at https://www.jstor.org/stable/204917

Tora Iversdatter Kjerstein (1794-1861) (52 Ancestors 2020 Week 26) Theme: "Middle"

This week's theme had me stumped until I decided to see which ancestor lived closest to the middle of North America since all recent generations of my family have been widely scattered throughout the United States and Canada. There seems to be a bit of disagreement as to exactly where that is, but it is generally accepted as being in North Dakota. I did have ancestors in North Dakota, as it turns out, and other distant relatives living there now, including a second cousin once removed who farms near the area thought to be the "middle". Although we'd only met them previously one time at a family reunion in 2000, we had a most enjoyable visit on our road trip to view the solar eclipse in the summer of 2017.

That got me thinking about the other highlight of our trip through North Dakota: the Arne Brekke Collection in the Chester Fritz Library at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks. For decades, the pinnacle of my wish list of resources for review was the Norwegian bygdebøker for the regions in Norway where many of my ancestors originated. These books were put together over one hundred years ago by respected Norwegian historians to detail farm and family life; they contain a wealth of genealogical information about individual families and, along with census and church book records, form the backbone for Norwegian family history research. Having tried unsuccessfully to obtain any of these treasured books on inter-library loan, and not having any repositories near my home on the west coast of Canada, I had almost despaired of ever getting my hands on any of these.

Our proposed route to Grand Island, Nebraska for viewing of the solar eclipse provided an ideal opportunity for a day at the Chester Fritz Library, one of the best homes for a vast collection of bygebøker.  I knew that one single day would not really be enough but thought that my husband could easily find ways to entertain himself for a day and that, with careful planning, I could make significant inroads with my wish list. 

The website for the Chester Fritz Library makes it easy to plan a visit. They provide details of the farm books they have in their collection enabling a visitor to make note of call numbers and relevant farm names. I prepared a binder with details of the books I hoped to find, the farms, the relevant ancestral names and dates. I also communicated with the librarian in advance to be sure they were open during the summer and to let them know which day I would be there. I did bring along my laptop with my genealogical database in case it was needed, but I found my binder of material to be quite adequate for my purposes. I also brought along memory sticks for anything I was able to scan and save from the books.

University of North Dakota - Chester Fritz Library

17 August 2017 dawned bright and clear, an auspicious sign. My husband dropped me off at the university just after its 8 A.M. opening. The librarians were most helpful in getting me oriented with the library layout and their user-friendly and efficient scanning equipment. As the only member of the public visiting the library that day, I had full run of the stacks and scanner. 

Inside the Chester Fritz Library Arne Brekke Collection

It was very easy to find the books, but more difficult to ensure I was finding all the relevant farms for my families. (My father's came from Nordland, Oppland and Buskerud counties and my mother's from Buskerud and Telemark. Within each county there were many relevant farms and families. We are not talking about a single family here, but dozens!) I could see the route ahead of me: it was going to be a full marathon.

In the middle of the fun - stacks of bygdebøker and some of my prepared family tree background

The day flew past in a flurry of books being swept off the shelves, examined and pages flagged for trips to the scanner. I barely stopped long enough to find the cafeteria for a quick lunch. In the end, I did get through my lengthy list. I'm not sure when I've ever had a more satisfying and exhilarating day! 

My husband captured this shot of the happy researcher when he picked me up at closing time

Were there farms and families that I missed? Yes, absolutely. I continue to make discoveries that would have entailed scanning other pages. But I have a lot of material to show for my one day well spent. 

Of course the books are in Norwegian and, although I've learned the basics, I do not have the depth of linguistic skill to understand the complexities without resorting to dictionaries and online translators with their often rather bizarre results. Part of the problem is the changes to the Norwegian language over the years since the records were created. Here are a couple of examples of results I've obtained for other Norwegian ancestors with Google Translate: "In 1746 Kristoffer made an agreement with Trond Hamre about the change of power, but Trond had the right to renegotiate because they were drowning when they made an agreement in a bar of beer at Hamre." And another: "Knut carried the storage team in 1591. In 1599 he got into the place of the fox for a butcher's sauce. Marit, who used to be in 1612, might have liked Knut, and Herbrand might be the son." Sometimes one can hazard a guess, but at other times it's just plain bewildering!

Trying to pinpoint a "middle" of Norway for selecting a particular ancestor for this week's story is a bit tricky because of Norway's shape. I randomly selected an area from the interior of the southern bulb of Norway: Vang in Oppland.

 

Google Earth Image - Vang is marked with the red pin

The bygedbok for Valdres, Oppland included my Dad's paternal grandmother Anna Ericksdatter Elton's family in Vang. Surely something could be found relating to a "middle" in this family! Anna Elton's farmor (the Norwegian name for the grandmother who is the father's mother - as opposed to a mormor who is the mother's mother; such a useful distinction!) was a woman named Tora Iversdatter Kjerstein. Already we are talking about 2 farm books here: Elton (Eltun) and Kjerstein. (You can see how this multiplied into a full marathon, can't you?) 

According to the bygedbok, Tora (my 3X great grandmother) was the middle child of the 11 born to Ivar Torsteinsson Kjerstein and Anne Kristoffersdatter Leirol (yet another farm name to look up!). Just 3 of the 11 survived childhood; fortunately for those of us who descend from her, Tora was one of the survivors, still remaining in the middle. 

One must go from the general genealogy found in the bygdebok to the official kirkebøker for the actual records. Tora was probably born in July 1794 on the Kjerstein farm since she was baptized 20 July of that year at Vang, Valdres, Oppland.  

Baptism record in the Vang kirkebøker for 1794, p. 427

Tora was confirmed into the state Lutheran church in 1809 and married Andris Erikson Elton (often spelled Eltun) on 6 July 1815 at Øye Kirke. The church was about a mile from the Eltun farm land. She was 21 and her groom 29.

Øye Kirke i Vang
Photo courtesy John Erling Blad Wikimedia Commons

Andris "gjorde soldatteneste" according to page 269 of the Valdres bygdebok; Google translates this as "did the soldier thing"!  He had been running the Nordigarden farm at Eltun since 1806 and was probably well set up to start his own family. 

6 July 1815 marriage record of Andris and Tora from the Vang kirkebøker, p.194

Tora and Andris, like her parents, had a family of 11 children, many of whom died in childhood. Their oldest was Erick Anderson Elton, my 2X great grandfather. In 1838, his father turned over Elton farm to Erick, who ran it until 1853 when he sold to emigrate to America,

Tora predeceased Andris by about 8 years; she died 31 March 1861 and was buried 9 April at Vang, Oppland, Norway.

Death and burial records for Tora Iversdatter at age 67, Vang kirkebøker for 1861, p.172

The bygdebok listing for Tora's family enabled finding the records that give us a bit of a picture of her life. It would be nice to know more about her, of course. What were her skills? What did she love doing? Did she have any eccentricities? What sort of woman was she, this middle daughter who survived?

Resources:

• Valdres Bygedbok I, Del A, Skriftstyrar Ivar Aars, Gardar og Slekter i Vang av Anders Frøhom, Valdres Bygdeboks Forlag
• Vang, Oppland Kirkebok, LDS microfilm 125645 and available online through the Norwegian Digital Archives.
• Valdres Samband Genealogical Database (available to Valdres Samband members online) is another resource for the bygdebok for Vang.

Nils Olsen (1802-1892) and Guri Larsdatter (1807-1900) (52 Ancestors 2020 Week 22) Theme: "Uncertain"

We can thank the meticulous record-keeping of the Norwegian Lutheran Church for providing certainty for what would have been left uncertain in many societies. Birth records kept by the church indicated whether a child was born in or out of wedlock and both mother and father went on the record in either case.

Viker Kirke, Norderhov, Buskerud
 Photo by Tove Frovoll Thoresen, Wikimedia Commons

When my great grandfather Carl Johan Nelson was baptized in 1840, almost a year after his birth, the Norderhov, Buskerud church record indicates his status as the baby of unmarried parents Nils Olsen Sorgefoss and Guri Larsdatter Vesterneie.

1839 birth and 1840 baptism record for Carl Johan Nelson

Was it simply a matter of Nils and Guri being uncertain about making a commitment? The answer seems more complex.

Although the unmarried status of a child's parents was obviously of some significance, it was hardly unusual in Norway in those times. Most men didn't marry until they were 27 or 28 years old, and women a year or two younger. Given the number of years a fertile young person was likely to be single, coupled with lack of contraception, it isn't surprising that so many babies were born before their parents would marry. Traditionally, engagements could last for some time and once an engagement was announced, it was acceptable for the couple to behave as if married; as a result, many babies were born shortly after the wedding occurred. However, it does not seem that any engagement had been announced in the case of Nils and Guri. At the time Carl was born, Nils would have been about 37 years old and Guri about 32, certainly prime ages for having their babies.

So why were young people postponing marriage for so long in Norway at the time? I don't know the full answer but expect that it has a lot to do with their economic situation not being stable enough to provide for a family. In Norway in the mid-1800's, the burgeoning population and shortage of land and opportunities led many to head to America in search of a better life. Many of the Norwegian farmers were basically cotters renting just tiny plots barely large enough for a vegetable garden, let alone providing crops for sale. No doubt this left many young people, like Nils and Guri, stranded in an unmarried state for years longer than might have been ideal.

As it turned out, when Carl was born, he already had a couple of half-siblings. The church records show that Nils had fathered another son out of wedlock just a couple of years earlier. Young Martin Nelson had been born in the same community to the same father but a different mother, Berthe Halvorsdatter, early in 1838.

1838 birth and baptism record for Martin Nelsen, 1838 - Father was Nils Olsen Sorgefoss and mother was Berthe Halvorsdatter

Guri had also previously given birth to another son out of wedlock. Carl's other half-brother, Engebret  Nelson, had been born in 1833 to Guri and Nels Ericsen Honnefos.

Amid all this uncertainty of relationships, Carl's father Nils Olsen Sorgefoss married the mother of his other son Martin on 15 July 1842 and went on to have more children with her. They show up on Bergedal farm, Norderhov, Buskerud in the 1865 Norwegian census records as follows:

Nils Olsen, 60
Berthe Halvorsdtr., 47, his wife
Ole Nilsen, their son, 12
Johanne Nilsdtr, their daughter, 9
Berthe Maria Nilsdtr, their daughter, 5
Helle Nilsdtr, their daughter, 20, and her daughter Nikoline Nilsdtr, age 2

The census tells us that Nils had a cow, 3 sheep, barley, mixed grain and potato crops. (Oldest son Martin Nilsen would have been about 23 years old and living away from home by this time.)

No matter how understandable and how common their situation was, one cannot help but wonder at the difficulties these relationships must have caused them over the years.

It seems that Guri raised her two sons, Engebret and Carl, on her own. No evidence has ever been found for a marriage for Guri. She was living with son Engebret and his family in 1865 when the Norwegian census was taken. Engebret and Carl emigrated to America together with their wives and young children in 1867 in the midst of famine in Norway. It is hard to imagine they would have abandoned their mother unless she had other remaining family to provide support. No further record has yet been found regarding Guri's fate although her date of death is generally given as 31 December 1900 which would have made her an elderly 93 at the time of her death.

Any difficulties caused by the uncertainty in establishing his family did not seem to do Nils any long-term damage either. He lived to the advanced age of 90 years, dying in Norderhov, Buskerud 16 January 1892.

Some Resources:

• Norwegian Digital Archives for Norderhov, Buskrud - Norderhov kirkebøker (church books) various dates - records can be searched online through this site: https://media.digitalarkivet.no/en/kb/browse?counties%5B%5D=06&clerical_parishes%5B%5D=0613P&start_year=&end_year=&text=
• Norwegian Digital Archives for 1865 census for Norderhov, Buskerud - records can be searched online through this site: https://www.digitalarkivet.no/en/search/sources?s=&from=&to=&format=all&archive_key=&jt%5B%5D=7&m%5B%5D=0613
• "Norway Social Life and Customs" article in the Familysearch.org wiki located at this site: https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Norway_Social_Life_and_Customs