History of Houston County, Minnesota, Part 88

Author: Franklyn Curtiss-Wedge
Publication date: 1919
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 1343

USA > Minnesota > Houston County > History of Houston County, Minnesota > Part 88

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of the most prosperous residents of his township and enjoys a high social position.

Arne Engen, who developed a farm in section 14, Wilmington township, where he resided for twenty years, or until his death on Jan. 21, 1890, was born in Norway, Jan. 1, 1847. As a young man he came to Houston county, Minnesota, and on his birthday, Jan. 1, 1870, was married to Sigri Halvor- son, daughter of Knute and Guro Halvorson. Taking land in section 14, Wilmington township, he set to work to develop a farm, and had a good farm of 121 acres when death called him from his labors. His widow being left with a family of four children, the eldest of whom, a girl, was only 13, and the youngest, Peter, but two, was obliged to rent out the farm for awhile, but her son Knute, on coming of age, took charge of it. On his death in 1915 another son, Ole, rented the place. But he soon died, and another son, Peter A., took over the management, first buying Ole's interest in the stock and later his mother's, and continued to make a home for his mother. Aug. 28, 1919, he bought the place. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Arne Engen were as follows: Margit (first), born Nov. 15, 1871, who died July 21, 1882; Guro, born April 15, who died Aug. 1, 1882; Pauline, born Jan. 8, 1875, who died Aug. 2, 1882; Sarah, born Jan. 21, 1877, now Mrs. Charles Eden, of Caledonia ; Ole (first), born Jan. 31, 1879, who died in March, 1882; Knute, born March 5, 1881, who died in 1915; Margit (second), born Dec. 15, 1883, now Mrs. Peiper, of Palisade, Minn .; Ole (second), born Nov. 21, 1885, who died in 1915; and Peter A., born June 1, 1888, who is now the proprietor of the home farm. As will be seen from the above record, of the nine children five died young, the three first born being carried off within ten days-a great domestic affliction-while Ole, the second of the name, passed away in his thirtieth year.

Peter A. Engen, a representative agriculturist of Wilmington town- ship, who is operating a good farm of 121 acres in section 14, was born in this township, June 1, 1888, son of Arne and Sigri (Halvorson) Engen. He was quite a young child when his father died, and the oldest living child in the family being a girl of 13, the mother rented out the farm, and it was operated by others for some twelve years. In the meanwhile Peter A. was acquiring his education, attending first the district school and afterward for two winters the Valder Business College at Decorah, Iowa. During the winter of 1905-6 he was clerk in a department store at Duluth, Minn. In the spring of 1906, however, he resumed agriculture, going to Anamoose, N. D., where he worked on a farm and in the fall was engaged in threshing. He then returned to Wilmington Township and for some time was employed in carpenter work. In the meanwhile in 1902 his brother Knute had come of age and taken charge of the home farm, where the family was now living. In 1915, however, Knute died, and Ole took up the management. But Ole's death soon followed that of Knute, occurring in the same year, and Peter A. then purchased his mother's and brother's interest in the stock and equipment and took over the management of the farm, which he has since operated and which he purchased Aug. 28, 1919. Of its total area of 121 acres, 105 are now under the plow, and the buildings are all in good condi- tion. Mr. Engen has proved himself a good practical farmer, one of the

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leading branches of his work being the breeding of graded Shorthorn cattle and Poland-China swine. He is a Republican in politics, but has hitherto confined his political activities to casting his vote. In 1917 Mr. Engen was married to Cecelia Myhre, daughter of Andrew and Sophia Myhre, who were neighbors, residing less than a mile away, and the wedding trip was from her home to where they began domestic life together. Mrs. Engen was educated in the public schools and at the Winona State Normal School, and was a teacher for eight years before her marriage. Mr. and Mrs. Engen are the parents of two children : Sigrid M., born May 1, 1918; and Arleine S., born June 28, 1919. The family worships at the Norwegian Lutheran Evangelical church in Wilmington.

John Dretvig, the founder of a good farm in sections 21 and 22, Spring Grove township, which is now owned and operated by his son Albert J., was born in Norway in 1835. As a young man he came to the United States on the same vessel with Ole Suldahl, another Norwegian emigrant. He was united in marriage in Winneshiek county, Iowa, to Olive Nytroen. There he and his wife resided for some years, but were unable to make much progress. About 1882 with their son Albert, then about 5 or 6 years old and who was their only child, they came to Houston county, Minnesota, and took a tract of land in section 19, Spring Grove township, where they en- deavored to establish a home. Bad fortune, however, still pursued them, as a succession of crop failures forced Mr. Dretvig to give up that farm and remove to sections 21 and 22, where he bought 113 acres, with some small improvements, including a frame house. Here he met with greater success, clearing his land and in time erecting a good two-story frame house of nine rooms, consisting of an upright and wing. He also built a frame barn, granary, two machine sheds, poultry house, corn crib, a woodshed and a milk and cream house. Subsequently Mr. Dretvig sold 21 acres of the farm, leaving it with its present area of 92 acres. Of this 70 are now under cultivation, the rest being in timber and pasture. In 1892 Mrs. Olive Dretvig passed away on the home farm. Mr. Dretvig survived her about fifteen years, dying in 1907. He had been retired from active work for about nine years, having rented the farm to his son in 1899, and shortly before his death he transferred the property to him.

Albert J. Rood, the present proprietor of a good farm in sections 21 and 22, Spring Grove township, which was established by his parents, was born Oct. 5, 1876, son of John and Olive Dretvig Rood. He was educated in the district school, which he attended up to the age of 15 years, and re- mained at home with his parents, whose only child he was, assisting his father to develop the farm. Renting the farm from his father in 1899, he was married on June 29, the same year, to Helene Marie, daughter of Jacob and Ingaborg Rosten, of Winneshiek county, Iowa. In 1899, just previous to his father's death, he became the owner of the farm, which he is operat- ing successfully, giving particular attention to the raising of Shorthorn cat- tle and Poland-China swine, having full-blooded sires for his herds. In addition to a good set of buildings, he has a full and adequate equipment of tools, teams and machinery, the farm being a well-improved piece of agri- cultural property. Mr. Rood is a shareholder in the Spring Grove Stock &

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MR. AND MRS. JOHN DRETVIG ALBERT J. ROOD AND FAMILY

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Grain Company, the Farmers' Co-operative Creamery, of the same place, and the Spring Grove Hospital, being also a member of the American So- ciety of Equity. Previously a Republican, in 1916 he became a nonpartisan. He and his wife are the parents of one child, Olive I., who was born Oct. 3, 1904. Mr. Rood and his family are members of the Spring Grove congre- gation of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church.

Carl Wilhelm Gjerdingen, who for many years owned and operated a productive farm of 137 acres in section 19, Wilmington township, three miles southeast of Spring Grove village, was born in this township, in sec- tion 30, Jan. 16, 1878, son of Ole N. and Bolita Gjerdingen. The first 27 years of his life were spent on his parents' farm. He was then married, Sept. 24, 1905, to Henrietta Emelia, daughter of Nels and Ingre Hefty, of Wilmington township, and about the same time he bought and commenced operating a farm of his own. On this place 115 acres are under the plow. The buildings include a good two-story frame house of nine rooms, a frame granary, barn, tool shed, hog house, poultry house and corn crib. A sys- tem of running water is provided for the buildings, and the farm is well fenced and provided with a full operating equipment of high quality. It is well stocked with grade Shorthorn cattle and Duroc swine, with full-blooded sires for the herds. In addition to his farming interests Mr. Gjerdingen has acquired stock in the Spring Grove Hospital. He has served for the last six years as treasurer of his school district, and in politics is a Repub- lican. Energetic and enterprising, he has made good progress in business affairs and is numbered among the prosperous men of the community. He and his wife have one child, Ole Bernhard, who was born April 12, 1906. The family are members of the Spring Grove congregation of the Norwe- gian Evangelical Lutheran Church. In March, 1919, Mr. Gjerdingen retired from active farming and removed to the village of Spring Grove, where he now resides.

Nels Hefty, one of the original pioneers of Houston county, for many years a resident of Wilmington township, was born in Hallingdal, Norway, Oct. 1, 1833. He came to America at the age of 19, landing in this country with but $25 in cash. His first settlement was made in Illinois, but in 1854, having by that time saved $200, he came to Houston county, Minnesota, and bought 160 acres of wild land near the old Wilmington Church, where he built a small log house and barn. With this for a nucleus he proceeded to develop a farm, subsequently erecting frame buildings, including a house and two barns, besides others. He also increased the area of his farm by the purchase of 120 acres adjoining, making 280 in all. In early days he hauled his grain and other products to Brownsville, Minn., and Lansing and New Albin, Iowa, making use of ox teams. His labors were a factor in the development of the county, helping to change it from a wilderness inhab- ited only by savages into the flourishing and wealthy section of the state which it is today. Like nearly all of the original pioneers, Mr. Hefty has passed to his reward, dying at Spring Grove, March 27, 1908. He retired in 1902 and moved to Spring Grove village, where his final years were spent in the quiet enjoyment of a fair competence, won by long and unremitting industry and the exercise of a prudent frugality, though he was not back-

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ward when called upon to aid a worthy cause, giving both of his time and means. One of the founders of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church in Wilmington, he served as trustee for several years and took a prominent part in its good works. Mr. Hefty was married in 1859 to a Miss Sigerdson, who was born in Telemarken, Norway, Feb. 25, 1840, and who when ten years old came to America with her parents and two brothers, one of whom, Reier, now lives in Waukon, Allamakee county, Iowa. The children born to Mr. and Mrs. Hefty were as follows: Ole, born Feb. 15, 1860, who died in infancy ; Inger Olina, born July 1, 1863, who died at the age of 6 years; Margit, born Dec. 31, 1865, who married Olaus Sannes of Wilmington township and died in 1892; Inger Oline (second), born Sept. 27, now Mrs. Edward Evenson of Wilmington township; Theodore Olaus, born Sept. 28, 1870, who resides at. Wolcott, N. D .; Ingeborg Maria, born Jan. 13, 1873, now Mrs. Peter Dille of McIntosh, Minn .; Tilla Cecelia, born April 13, 1876, who died unmarried in 1893; Henrietta Emelia, born June 22, 1881, now Mrs. C. W. Gjerdingen of Wilmington township, and Nora Elida, born Nov. 3, 1886, who is the wife of Almer Frederickson of McIntosh, Minn. The mother of these children, now 80 years old, is residing with her daughter, Mrs. Gjerdingen.

Gerhard A. Roverud, one of the proprietors of the Spring Grove Lum- ber Company, and a leading citizen of the village, was born in Spring Grove township, two miles north of the village, Feb. 2, 1889, son of Andrew K. and Elida M. Roverud. From the age of seven years to that of 15 he at- tended the district and village schools, finally graduating from the eighth grade on a state examination. While going to the village school he resided on his parents' farm, walking back and forth most of the time, and doing the farm chores at night and early in the morning, his time being thus fully occupied. His summer vacations he spent working full time on the farm. After his graduation in June, 1904, he remained with his parents until the fall of 1905, when he went to work as a farm hand in Black Hammer town- ship, and was thus occupied for a year. Then in the fall of 1906 he rented a farm in that township, which he operated until Christmas, 1908. That winter he entered the Lutheran Academy at Albert Lea, Minn., taking the business course, from which he was graduated in June, 1909. A month after his graduation he took a position with H. J. Blexrud, a general merchant of Caledonia village, with whom he remained until Jan. 1, 1910. He then entered the employ of N. T. Newhouse, a general merchant of Spring Grove, as clerk, and continued with Mr. Newhouse until May 15, 1911. In September of the year last mentioned Mr. Roverud bought an interest in the Spring Grove Lumber Co. with N. O. Onsgard and M. K. Storlie, and has since been connected with this concern, which is one of the most prominent of its kind in southern Minnesota. He is also a share- holder in the Spring Grove Stock and Grain Co., the Root River Electric Co. and the Minneapolis Realty Co. As one of the leading business men of the village, he has taken an active part in promoting its general interests, and is a useful member of the Commercial Club. He has also served two. terms as a member of the village council, and in politics is a Republican. He owns and occupies a substantial and comfortable residence. Mr. Ro-

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MR. AND MRS. KNUT WILHELMSON MR. AND MRS. C. A. SUNDET

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verud was married Dec. 26, 1912, to Celia Madeline Newhouse, daughter of N. T. Newhouse, his former employer. They have one child living, Nor- vin Arthur, who was born June 1, 1914. Mr. Roverud and his family are members of the Spring Grove congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran Church, which he has served as trustee and auditor, holding the latter position at the present time. A man of good business ability, he has done his share towards making Spring Grove what it is today, one of the most flourishing villages of its size in this corner of the state.

Knute Wilhelmson, one of the hardy Norwegian settlers in Spring Grove township in the latter sixties, was born in Norway, June 29, 1836. He grew to manhood in his native land and there learned the trades of stone mason and plasterer. In 1866 he came to the United States, and in the following year was married in Spring Grove township, Houston county, Minn. With his wife Ingebor he took a rented farm adjoining Spring Grove village on the south and established his home in a small log house, beginning the cultivation of the land. After remaining at that location for a few years, he bought a farm of 78 acres in section 23, Spring Grove township, two miles south of the village, the property being partly im- proved, as 25 acres of the land had been broken, and there was a log house and a log stable on it, both having straw roofs. This place he made his permanent home, increasing the cultivated area of his land, and in time erecting some good buildings, including a frame barn, 30 by 50 by 14 feet, with a full stone basement of eight feet, and a granary, 16 by 22 by 12 feet, besides log and straw sheds. When not busy with his farm work he took contracts for masonry and built many stone basements for farmhouses, besides erecting some of the brick store buildings now standing in Spring Grove village. After having enjoyed a fairly prosperous career, Mr. Wil- helmson died on his farm Oct. 7, 1893, at the age of 57 years. His wife, who was born in Norway May 5, 1838, survived him a little more than seven years, passing away Jan. 1, 1901. They were the parents of five children: Anna, now Mrs. George Melbostad, of Winneshiek county, Iowa; Julius Wil- helm, the present proprietor of the old homestead, which he has enlarged and improved; Bernt, a railway employee residing at Staples, Minn .; Bo- litta, now Mrs. Albert Smerud, of Perley, Minn., and Christina, wife of Hans Bjertness, of North Dakota.

Julius Wilhelm Wilhelmson, a thriving farmer of section 23, Spring Grove township, proprietor of the farm established by his parents some 45 years ago or more, was born in a log cabin on a farm previously occupied by the parents, in the immediate vicinity of Spring Grove village, Jan. 11, 1871, son of Knute and Ingebor Wilhelmson. Not long after his birth the family moved to the farm on which the subject of this sketch is now living, in section 23, and in this vicinity he was educated, attending the district school until reaching the age of 17 years. Before he was that old, how- ever, he had begun to assist his father in the development of the home farm, on which he gained a practical knowledge of agriculture in its dif- ferent branches. In 1898, some five years after his father's death, and two or three years before that of his mother, he bought the farm, of which he still remains sole proprietor. When it became his property it contained

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78 acres, to which he has added by purchase a tract of 32 acres adjoining, thus making its present area 110 acres, of which 70 are under cultivation, the remainder consisting of timber and pasture land. The soil is fertile and produces good crops. Of an enterprising and progressive spirit, Mr. Wilhelmson has added to the number of buildings on the place, in 1911 erecting a modern, two-story frame house, consisting of an upright wing and containing seven rooms. In 1912 he continued his building operations, putting up a stave silo, 12 by 24 by 6 feet in size, and following it with two poultry houses, 10 by 12 and 12 by 16; a machine shed, 22 by 36; a shop, 12 by 16; pump house, 10 by 10; buggy shed, 12 by 16; hog house, 10 by 36, and a garage, 12 by 16, in which he houses his fine automobile. Some good buildings had been put up on the original farm by his father, and on the 32- acre tract which Mr. Wilhelmson himself purchased there is a good frame house, a frame barn, well house and granary, so that his place is now well provided with buildings. He has also a good working equipment, and in addition to raising various crops, is doing a successful business as a breeder of registered Shorthorn cattle, having a registered bull; graded Shorthorns, of which he has now a herd of 25 or 30, with full-blooded sires; a good grade of swine, and full-blooded White Wyandotte fowls, of which he keeps from 150 to 200. A part of his business consists of dairying, for which he uses from 10 to 15 milch cows. In addition to these self-operated interests, Mr. Wilhelmson is a stockholder in the Spring Grove Stock and Grain Company, the Bee Co-operative Creamery, the Spring Grove Hospital, and the Spring Grove Belgian Horsebreeders' Association. A Republican in politics, he has been supervisor on the town board two terms, being chairman of the board for one term. Mr. Wilhelmson was married, Nov. 16, 1899, to Gena, daugh- ter of Christian and Ingebord (Ellingson) Sundet, of Wilmington township, Houston county, and who was born March 23, 1874. Mr. and Mrs. Wilhelm- son have three children: William, born March 11, 1901; Ingeman, born Jan. 8, 1904, and Inga, born Jan. 12, 1908. The prosperous circumstances in which Mr. Wilhelmson now finds himself, though due largely to his own exertions, illustrates the manner in which most of the flourishing com- munities in the Northwest have been built up-by the strenuous labor and patient endurance of privation by the native or foreign born pioneer settlers who have developed the land from the primeval wilderness, raising crops and erecting barns and farm buildings, and at their death passing the work on to their children, who have continued it with splendid results. Mr. Wil- helmson's own parents started in debt, even for their passage money across the ocean, and it was many years before they found themselves in com- fortable circumstances, and he, himself, in his youth, shared in their labors and privations. He is now reaping the fruits of their toil and his own and is numbered among the most prosperous and influential citizens of his township. He and his family are members of the Spring Grove congrega- tion of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church, in which he has served almost constantly as an official.

Swen Aslesen, who died at his home in section 27, Wilmington town- ship, Dec. 5, 1906, was one of the leading representatives of the agriculutral interests of this township, and for many years one of its most prominent

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and popular citizens. He was born in Norway in 1849, and was a child when he same to America with his parents, and a brother, Ole, who is also now deceased. The first settlement of the family in this country was made at Pine Creek, in Allamakee county, Iowa, where, however, they remained but a few years, crossing the state line into Wilmington township, Houston county, Minnesota. Here, in section 27, the father homesteaded 160 acres of wild land on which were no buildings, and, being very poor, he split rails many winter days for fifty cents a day. At other times he cleared his land, and in time built a small frame house and a frame barn. Here young Swen grew to manhood, with little opportunity for attending school, but learing much about agriculutre and the care of stock. No notable event interrupted the regular current of his life until his marriage, Dec. 4, 1870, to Kari Gar- ness, daughter of Bjorn and Cecelia Garness, and who came to this country with her parents when five years old, growing up in Fillmore county, Minn. For the first two years after his marriage Mr. Aslesen rented the home farm from his father, but in 1873 he bought it. It had been then increased to 180 acres, and had the house and barn already mentioned. Besides im- proving the house, Mr. Aslesen erected other buildings and further de- veloped the place into one of the best farms in the township. Besides rais- ing the usual crops, he was a successful breeder of Black Angus Poll cattle, Clydesdale horses, Shropshire sheep and Poland-China hogs. In addition to his Wilmington township farm, Mr. Aslesen bought 160 acres of wild land at New Ulm, Minn., and had it cleared and developed, this land still belonging in the estate. He also bought 160 acres near Aberdeen, S. D., and 160 acres near Brotton, S. D. That near Aberdeen, however, he sold before his death, at which time he was the owner of 620 acres. His widow, though suffering much from rheumatism, with the aid of her three sons, John, Anton and Martin, operated the farm until the fall of 1917, when she left it to take up her residence in Spring Grove village. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Aslesen are: John O., born Feb. 7, 1880, who has always remained at home except for six years, which he spent on the South Dakota farm and is now a carrier on Route No. 4 out of Spring Grove; Anton, born Feb. 24, 1885, who has remained on the home farm where he is now living; Theo, born in January, 1890, who married Morris Meyers, and died May 6, 1918, at her home in Lewistown, Montana; Clara, born July 1, 1892, now residing in Montana; Martin, born Jan. 15, 1894, who remained at home until the farm was rented out in 1917 and is now engaged in prospecting at Fertile, Minn. Mr. Aslesen was a member and liberal supporter of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church, to which his family also belong. He was a progressive citizen, interested in everything concerning the good of the community in which he lived, and his loss was greatly regretted throughout Wilmington township and the vicinity.

Ole P. Lansverk, who became a resident of Wilmington township in 1857 at the age of seven years, and for a number of years was one of its prominent and useful citizens, was born in Muskego, Wis., June 8, 1850, son of Peder N. and Kari Lansverk. The parents were natives of Nor- way, the father born Oct. 2, 1820, and the mother April 27, 1824. They were married in their native land and came to the United States in 1845, 42

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settling in Muskego, Wis. In 1857 they came to Houston county, Minn- esota, settling in section 30, Wilmington township. Thus their son Ole P. found himself in the locality in which he spent the rest of his life. Here he grew to manhood, and was married, July 5, 1873, to Karan Gjerdingen, who was born in Norway, Oct. 26, 1847, and who come from that country alone at the age of 18 years to Spring Grove, Houston county, Minn. A strong and vigorous girl, she had worked the first summer in the harvest field for Ole Svartebraaten, west of the village, earning $2.00 a day. Mr. Lansverk himself was never strong, but in spite of this handicap he made a success of his life. On his marriage he purchased 140 acres adjoining the Gjerdingen farm and began domestic life in a log house. This he subsequently rebuilt and improved, and in time he developed his farm, among his other activities setting out an orchard. He was also one of the organizers of the Farmers' Fire Insurance Company, and performed useful service in raising funds for the Lutheran College at Decorah, Iowa, a work facilitated by his personal popularity. At the time of his death, which occurred May 23, 1899, he was not quite 49 years old. He and his wife were the parents of seven children: Peter, born March 22, 1869, now a prosperous farmer of Cheyenne, N. D .; Clara Wilsine, born May 22, 1876, who died in infancy; William Cornelius, born Sept. 26, 1878; Kari Ovidia, born Oct. 27, 1880, now Mrs. Teddy Olson of Kilbourn, Wis .; Ida Natalia, born Jan. 25, 1883, now Mrs. Martin Ike of Black Hammer township; Carl Nelius, born June 27, 1885, who is a farmer in Spring Grove; and Nils Oscar, born Jan. 9, 1888, who is engaged in operating the home farm. Mrs. Lansverk, who resides on the farm with her son Oscar, is still strong and in the enjoyment of good health. She kept her children together after her husband's death and has had the satisfaction of seeing them all but Clara W. grow to useful manhood or womanhood.

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History of Houston County, Minnesota, Part 88

Author: Franklyn Curtiss-Wedge Publication date: 1919 Publisher: Number of Pages: 1343

Author: Franklyn Curtiss-Wedge
Publication date: 1919
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 1343