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From: "Frank and Diane Olsen" <>
Subject: Re: [Oppland] Clay County South Dakota translation
Date: Thu, 2 Sep 2004 10:00:16 -0500
References: <BD5C726F.106DC%margit@eot.com>


For the time being, I need to unsubscribe. We are having major problems
with our Anit-virus program and I don't know how it would affect all the
people on this site. I have gained much history and interesting facts from
other.
Diane Olsen
----- Original Message -----
From: "Margit" <>
To: <>
Sent: Thursday, September 02, 2004 6:47 AM
Subject: [Oppland] Clay County South Dakota translation


> Translated from 'Nordmændene i Amerika' by Martin Ulvestad, 1907
> by Olaf Kringhaug
>
> Clay County
> The first Norwegian settlers - the first white men who settled in South
> Dakota (at that time a Territory which, so to say, was governed by the
wild
> Indians) were Sjur Halvorsen MyranÝ from Hallingdal, Lars A. TorblaaÝ from
> Ulvik, Hardanger, Ole Olsen GjeitliÝ from Voss and Elling Olsen Engum
> from Sogn. They settled in the area of Vermilion, Clay Co., S.D. in 1859.
> They came from Koshkonong, Dane Co., Wis., and crossed the Missouri at St.
> James, Nebr. It is said that Lars Torblaa was the first to set off across
> the river - in a wagon box. It is said further that he had a calf with
hin
> in the wagon box (This about the calf will have to stand for it self. All
> the rest is at least true.)
> But there were others who came to South Dakota at the same time as
> theaforementioned men, however they crossed the Missouri River 10 miles
> further east. They were Bottolf Larsen JordalenÝ, Ole BottolfsenÝ, Erick
> Olsen SellandÝ, Anders Olsen SellandÝ, Erik Johnson Lundeand Mikkel Rokne,
> all from Voss, as well as Aslak IversenÝ from Ulvik, Hardanger and Nils
> Ellingsen from Sogn. The following persons came also about the same time
or
> a little later, some of them, Simon Børjer, Christen Jordalen, Anders
> Ulvhund, Erik Nilsen Stalheim, Ole Lunde, Ingebrigt SiversenÝ, Joe FørdeÝ,
> Herman PedersenÝ and Knudt Ulvaaen, all or at least the most of the latter
> from Voss, Elling SandeÝ, Kolbein OlsenÝ and Sivert Olsen from Sogn,
> Steggen, Hans, Sivert, Helge and Halvor Myran as well as Tollev Leikvold,
> Ole Ellefsen and Andrew Hesla, all from Hallingdal and Thorbjørn Thompson,
> Thomas Thompson and Amund Hansen from Hardanger.
> And while we speak of South Dakota's first Norwegian settlement, the
> following information is of interest:
> Ole Olse (Gjeitli), Jr. writes that he was the first white child born
in
> the State - a fact that is confirmed by the South Dakota Historical
Society.
> He was born the 2nd March 1860. Once, he and his parents had to flee from
> their home to Council Bluffs, almost 200 miles, to avoid attack by the
> hostile Indians.
> O. C. Larsen writes that his father went by foot from Dubuque, Iowa to
> Vermillion, S. D. The distance one can calculate with help of the map
'Norge
> i Amerika'. One finds Dubuque on the eastern border of Iowa, therefore he
> walked through the large State of Iowa and a bit into South Dakota.
> Jacob J. Mortvedt writes that his brother froze to death in a snowstorm
> in 1868 (the first winter he was there). He went to the well for water but
> could not find his way back to the house, which was only 8 rods away.
> D. E. Oursland wrote, "Before I came here, there had been Norwegians
here
> for five years - and fought with the Indians. Some of the settlers had
been
> frightened away from here to Sioux City, but they came back after a time.
> But the most is written by H. K. Hansen; "A number of the first
settlers
> settled in a cluster on the lowlands by the Missouri River," he says,
"this
> was before the land was surveyed. When the surveyors had been their, it
> showed that most of the houses were on one and the same claim, and this
> belonged to an 'Østlending'. Then there was a bit of a quarrel. But during
> the night some of the houses were hauled away and other burned. Later they
> spread out over the County. A number took claims on higher land, but
others
> took land along the riverbank, where there was some forest.
> On the 20th of July, the Indians received their first compensation for
> the land. After that they let the whites settle there. Until then they had
> absolutely forbidden any. A young chieftain wished to kill all the whites
> and thereby fell into disfavour with another Indian, 'Gray-Face', who shot
> the chieftain on the spot. 'Gray-Face' later became a scout with a cavalry
> company. He killed more Indians himself than all of Harney's Army of 4000
> men, and was always the white's loyal friend and defender.
> Yes, there were truly many dangers that the new settlers had to
undergo.
> The prairies fire was one of the worst. During the first big fire, which
> occurred in the fall of 1861, there were many who lost their swine,
chickens
> and much more. Worst of all was to lose hay, so that they could not feed
> their livestock. Many moved away because of that and made a new settlement
> at Clay Creek. But a short time later the Indians broke out again, they
> charged through the Clay Creek settlement where they burned a number of
> buildings and drove off many horses and livestock. It was at this time
that
> a widow, Kjersti Pedersen, went from Vermillion to her claim at Clay Creek
> after her cattle, even though the men did not dare.'I must have my cattle,
> or I can't feed my children over the winter,' she said, and set off. At
> night she lay in the tall grass. The next day she came to Vermillion,
> following her cattle.
> When there came news that the Indians 'harried and burnt' in Yankton
> County and that they could expect them in Clay County at any time, Ole
Olsen
> Gjeitli was not at home. His wife, Torbjør, put a yoke on the ox, put her
> children in the wagon and drove toward Vermillion. When they had come
about
> half-way, a pin dropped out of the collar and the ox, who was not afraid
of
> Indians, went into a swamp and leisurely helped himself to water and
grass.
> Martha Odland was one of those, similar to Kjersti Pedersen, worried
> about her cattle for the sake of her children. She drove her cows through
> swamps and high grass. When she came to Vermillion, her feet looked like
red
> meat because she had made the trip without stockings or shoes.
> Ingeborg Lunde, the widow of Bottold Larsen was cooking dinner when two
> soldiers came riding in full gallop and cried, 'Flee for your life, the
> Indians are coming!' She dumped the pot in the fire to put it out and
fled.
> Most of the settlers fled right to Sioux City. There were some soldiers
> stationed at Vermillion at that time but just on that day, there were only
a
> pair who were guarding the camp. Two old Norwegians, Lars B. Jordalen and
> Bendik Olsen, felt they were too old to flee, so they crept into a tent
that
> belonged to some of the absent soldiers. When they returned in the
evening,
> Bendik, who had the best language skills said, 'We are Norwegians, we have
> entered your home, but we will go out again!' Bendik was one of those who
> believed that when one could speak his mother tongue, pure and clean, one
> could travel anywhere, even if it was to Constantinople.
> It has been claimed that Ole Bottolfsen was the first probate court
judge
> here, but this is not correct. Peder Nilsen from Christiansand was the
first
> to be elected to that office. This Peder Nilsen had a son by the name of
> Anton who enlisted in service during the Indian Wars in 1863. One day he
> went to an Indian camp to buy something but was shot by them before he
> entered the camp. The soldiers now stormed out and the Indians took
flight.
> They did not have time to scalp their victim. Peder Nilsen left South
Dakota
> and has likely found his grave long ago.
> I shall not give much place to the grasshoppers, but it is true that
they
> ruined our crops many years." (It should be noted that the author of this
> came to Vermillion in 1868 and has lived with the first settlers ever
since,
> so his account is absolutely reliable. Auth.)
> "And then came the memorable flood (in 1881)," he says, "The Missouri
> River's rise stopped at Vermillion, because of snow and ice that piled up
> there to a height of 40 to 100 feet and remained there until it melted in
> the spring. The flood was 4 to 14 feet deep on the farms in Clay County."
> Mr. Hansen concludes his writing so, "I have just spoken to O. C.
Larsen
> on the telephone and he told me that he is collecting statistics for you."
> It was this about the telephone that made me include his concluding
> remarks as well. It shows, namely, that the farmers down there have come
so
> far that they have telephones in their houses, despite all that they have
> struggled with. That they have large, fine houses and well cultivated
farms,
> I have seen with my own eyes. But it is not only in this settlement that
one
> finds such changes for the better. One finds it everywhere in Norwegian
> settlements in America. (This was written in 1905)
> As could be expected, the first Norwegian congregation in Dakota was
> formed in Clay County. It was established in 1864 under the name 'The
> Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran Congregation in Dakota Territory" The name
> was thus very comprehensive and the parish itself very large, for it
> stretched over the whole southern part of Clay County, well into Yankton
in
> the west and similarly well into Union County in the east. Most of the
> members, however, lived in Meckling and Norway Townships in Clay County.
> Their first meetings were held in a small farmhouse (belonging to Anders
> Ulvhund). The congregation was later divided into 3 parishes, 'Bergen',
> 'Vangen' and 'Brule Creek', the first in Clay County, the second in
Yankton
> and the third in Union County. Pastor Jens Krohn of the Norwegian Synod
had
> already viited this area in 1864. But Pastor Emil Christensen of the same
> synod settled here in 1867 and was the County's first Norwegian priest.
> Bergen parish built a church in 1871.(The state's first church we find in
> Yankton County).
> In 1905 there were 13 Norwegian congregations and 11 churches in Clay
C.,
> 5 belonging to The Norwegian Synod, 4 to The United Church, 3 to Hauge's
> Synod and 1 to Ellef Eielsen's Society.
> For information about Norwegian officials in County and State, see the
> section 'Norwergians in public positions in America' in my biggest book.
> Norwegian place names in Clay County: Norway (Township) and Komstad
(Post
> Office)
>
>
>
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>
> ==============================
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