USA > Minnesota > Otter Tail County > History of Otter Tail County, Minnesota : its people, industries, and institutions, Volume II > Part 33
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eldest, and James, the sixth child, are deceased. The living children, besides Mrs. Persons, are, Edwin, Mollie, Thomas, Anna and Rose.
Mr. and Mrs. John Persons have six children, Mary, Lillian, Myron, Anna, Edwin and John. Mary, born on June 23, 1874, is the wife of Frank Chase, of Todd county, Minnesota, and has eleven children, Pearl, Paul, Frank, Mary, Clara, Lloyd, Eunice, Melvin, Alpha, Irene and Fred. Lillian, born on November 19, 1877, was the wife of Adrian Chase and had two children, Lottie and Esther. She died on April 6, 1912. Myron, born on May 11, 1881, married Carrie Townley and has four children, Ruth, Ivis, Dorman and Lillian. Anna, September 6, 1886, is the wife of Roy Martin and to them have been born five children, Eva, deceased: Hazel, Cecil, Vera .and Edwin. Edwin, March 1, 1890, is unmarried. John, December 5. 1895, lives at home with his parents. The Persons family is highly respected by all of the people of Oak Valley township. Mr. and Mrs. Persons have reared an industrious and hard-working family and well deserve the respect and confidence of their neighbors.
OSCAR NORDMARKEN.
The name Trondhjem, given to the township in which Oscar Nord- marken resides, suggests the fact that the community was first settled by Norwegians, but there is nothing in the name to signify what feats of bravery were accomplished by those pioneers who met the dangers of both land and ocean in order that they might enjoy an independent life in a country where liberty and success go hand in hand. The story of the achievements of these men must be left to the biographer, who can do little more than outline the rugged course pursued by these men of Norwegian birth in the county in which they now reside.
Oscar Nordmarken was born on the 20th of November, 1873. in Trond- hjem township on the farm where he still resides. He is the son of Gilbert Nordmarken and Martha Haaogth, among the oldest settlers of that part of Minnesota in which their son now resides. No more tragie example of the pioneer days in that section of the country can be related than that of the struggles of Ole and Thora Haaogth, the parents of Martha Haaogth, who. after arriving in America, came to Minnesota for residence. The journey across the Atlantic in those days covered a period of sixteen weeks, during which perilous encounters were met and thrilling dangers passed. After remaining only a short time in Fillmore county, Minnesota, where they first settled upon their arrival in this country, Ole and Thora Hanogth, made a journey to Otter Tail county, during one of the most severe winters ever known in that locality. During a heavy snow storm which came up during the course of the trip, Ole Haaogth was frozen and died shortly after-
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ward, leaving his wife to meet the hardships of an unpopulated farm region, alone and unknown. She proved to be a woman of remarkable strength of character, however, and reared her family to respect the highest principles of right living. Her death was the culmination of a life of usefulness and unremitting toil. She died in Norwegian Grove township, where she had spent most of her days since the tragic death of her husband.
The parents of Oscar Nordmarken were born in Hadeland, Norway, his father's birth having occurred on the 29th of October, 1845, and his mother's on the 28th of March, 1842. Martha Haaogth came to America with her parents, in 1866, and lived with them in Fillmore county, Minnesota, where she met Gilbert O. Nordmarken, the man who later became her husband, and who had come to this country also in the year 1866, on the same ship. Gilbert Nordmarken rented a farm in Fillmore county during the first five years of his residence in America. His second move was to Otter Tail county, where he went by a team of oxen, in a covered wagon. In this locality he homesteaded two hundred acres of land in section 20, which was located in Trondhjem township. The character of the farm was wild with prairie vegetation and the first piece of labor was that of putting up a log cabin which was a task of strength and ability. As success came to Mr. Nordmarken, he began to buy by degrees, pieces of land in other commun- ities. One of the sections of land owned by him was located in North Dakota, near Mooreton and Granville.
To Mr. Nordmarken belongs the honor of having been a pioneer in the truest sense of the word. The hardships encountered by him in the early days of agricultural development can scarcely be comprehended by the mod- ern generation of men who are living in an age of comfort. The remark- able fact evident in the lives of these soldiers of the wilderness is that, not- withstanding their humble beginnings in the field of labor which they chose. they were able to reach a high place in the field of industry and were often looked upon later in life as men of wealth and prosperity.
Probably no greater example of success through difficulties can be given than that of the life of Gilbert Nordmarken. One of the first disappoint- ments of his life occurred when the house he had labored to build was totally destroyed by a storm. For three consecutive years his crops were ruined by swarms of grasshoppers. Once during these years of hopeless striving, he succeeded in saving part of the crop, which he carried many miles to a market. At the time of the sale it was discovered that the grain was so full of grasshopper wings as to render it of no value. In relating the incident in later years, Mr. Nordmarken often referred to it as the greatest disappointment of his life. But he was not a man to be conquered by despair. He looked about him at the resources of the community and
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turned loss into gain. For the greater part of that winter he kept his family by killing game. The following years of his life were filled with success and happiness. In 1897 he retired to Fergus Falls, where he and his wife ved until they passed away. He often returned for short visits to the farm he had made and looked upon its prosperity with satisfaction.
Gilbert Nordmarken was one of the first chairmen of the board of supervisors and had a prominent part in the laying out of the roads in the township where he lived. He and his wife were enthusiastic members of the Lutheran church, where for twenty years Mr. Nordmarken served as minister. A strange coincidence brought the death of Mr. and Mrs. Gilbert Nordmarken in the same year, she having passed away on the 4th of October. 1914, and he on the 13th of the following month. Of the children born to this couple the following facts are given: Tena, who married A. J. Moen at Battle Lake, died in 1912: Mollie died in infancy; Oscar is the subject of this sketch: Oliver resides in Minot, North Dakota; Alfred, a twin brother to Oliver, is living at Minneapolis; Minna, who married N. G. Lelovold, is living in Granville, North Dakota; Mollie married A. S. Karry and resides in Wolf Point, Montana.
Oscar Nordmarken received his early education in the schools of Trond- hjem township and later at the high school in Fergus Falls. While he was fully appreciative of the educational advantages received, he owed the greatest influence on his character to the early discipline of the farm on which he was reared. For some years after he finished the high school course, Mr. Nordmarken rented the home place and farmed until 1902, when he went to North Dakota for the purpose of homesteading one hundred and sixty acres of land in Ward county. He remained on the claim for two years and at the expiration of that time returned to the homestead of his father, which he rented until 1905. In that year his ventures in the field of agriculture had proven so profitable that he was able to purchase the home place, which covered two hundred and forty acres of land. He has improved the farm since the time of the purchase and has turned his attention to general farm- ing. Mr. Nordmarken is a man of broad mind and wide interests; his chosen line of work has in no way made him narrow, for he has reached out into other fields. For seven years he acted as manager of the Rothsay Tele- phone Company and was also director in the Farmers Elevator Company. at Rothsay, which he helped to organize. In 1893 he helped organize the Trondhjem Co-operative Creamery Company, and after its organization acted as director of the concern for a number of years.
In his political interests, Mr. Nordmarken is an independent voter. He has served in a number of political offices, among which are justice of the peace, constable and road supervisor, and in these positions of trust he
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strengthened the faith of the public at large in his ability and competence. On the 11th of January, 1899. Oscar Nordmarken was united in mar- riage to Annie Freng, a native of Pelican Rapids, and the daughter of Christian and Helga Freng, natives of Norway, and numbered among the oldest settlers in the Norwegian colony of Minnesota. Since the death of his wife, Christian Freng has made his home with his four sons in Canada. The children born to Mr. and Mrs. Nordmarken are Gordon, Harry and Alide, all of whom are living in Trondhjem township.
ALBERT C. CARPENTER.
Albert C. Carpenter, of Dead Lake township, Otter Tail county, Minne- sota, is an agriculturist of ability and honesty, and is much respected in his locality. He first saw the light of day on May 3, 1860, in Freeborn county, Minnesota, and is the son of Willard L. and Prudah M. ( Bullock ) Carpen- ter, both natives of Jefferson county, New York, near Ellisburg.
The paternal grandparents of Albert C. Carpenter were George and Kaziah (Macumber ) Carpenter, who were natives of Vermont, but removed in 1830 to Jefferson county, New York, where they settled on a farm in the southern part of the county and remained there until 1844. At that time they removed to Kenosha county, Wisconsin, where they purchased land and engaged in agricultural pursuits until 1855, when they changed locations to Freeborn county, Minnesota. George Carpenter purchased land and cul- tivated the same until his death, in 1879. He served his country in the War of 1812. Kaziah ( Macumber ) Carpenter passed away in 1865. They were the parents of five children and were both members of the Baptist church. The names of the children follow: Rebecca, Phoebe, Willard L., Azubah and Washington G. Rebecca became the wife of Samuel Reynolds and they lived in Wisconsin, where her death occurred; Phoebe married Stephen Barber, and they also lived in Wisconsin, where she died; Azubah was united in marriage to Lemuel E. Bullock, a native of Jefferson county, New York, and her death occurred in Becker county, Minnesota; Washington G. is a veteran of the Civil War, having served in the Ninetieth Regiment, Minnesota Volunteer Infantry, and a former resident of Otter Tail county, Minnesota, but now living in Eland, Wisconsin, where he is retired.
The maternal grandparents of Albert C. Carpenter were Asa and Sarah ( Blanchard ) Bullock, both natives of Vermont and early settlers in Jefferson county, New York, where they were neighbors of George and Kaziah ( Macumber ) Carpenter. Asa Bullock had been a messmate of George Carpenter during their service in the War of 1812, both having been members of Belknap's Company. Asa Bullock was a shoemaker by trade, but after his removal west, he settled in Lake county, Illinois, and engaged
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in saw-mill work. In 1855 he removed the family to Freeborn county, Minnesota, where his death occurred soon after, in 1859. Sarah ( Blanchard) Bullock, his wife, passed away in Illinois, before their removal to Minne- sota. They were the parents of ten children, Asa, Sarah, Nathan, Cyrus, Joel, John, Maria, Lemuel E., Prudah M. and Harrison. Asa was a farmer of Freeborn county, Minnesota, where his death occurred in 1864; Sarah became the wife of Reuben Babcock, and died at her home in Freeborn county, Minnesota; Nathan was a farmer, living in Freeborn county, and his death occurred in 1878; Cyrus, a veteran of the Civil War, was a mem- ber of the Tenth Regiment, Minnesota Volunteer Infantry, and died in Becker county, Minnesota; Joel was also a soldier, in the Fifth Minnesota, and passed away in 1895, while a resident of Dead Lake township, Otter Tail county, Minnesota; John died in Illinois, just after having reached his majority: Maria died at the age of sixteen years; Lemuel was also a soldier in the Civil War, in the Tenth Minnesota, and his death occurred in the state of Oregon; Prudah M., the mother of Albert C. Carpenter, passed away on October 1, 1906, and Harrison, a soldier in the Civil War and comrade of old Judge Baxter and Mr. Niebles, served in the Fourth Minne- sota, and his death occurred in the state of Washington.
Willard L. Carpenter, father of Albert C. Carpenter, was born on November 10, 1832, and removed to the west with his parents, who settled in Freeborn county, Minnesota, where he remained until his marriage to Prudah M. Bullock, whose birth occurred on December 23, 1835, and who also removed west with her parents. After their marriage, they resided in Oakland township, Freeborn county, until 1879. at which time they settled on seventy-four acres of homestead land in section 20, of Dead Lake town- ship, Otter Tail county, Minnesota. This land was entirely unimproved and almost surrounded by the waters of Dead Lake and formed a peninsula into the lake. A log house was built and improvements were begun. The original house of logs stood on the site of the present home. It was while engaged in the cultivation of this farm that his death occurred, on October 19, 1912. He was a stanch Republican and was elected to office while a resident of Freeborn county. He, as well as his wife, was a member of the Baptist church and was also a member of the Good Templars. They were the parents of only one child, Albert C.
Albert C. Carpenter received his education in the public schools of Freeborn county, Minnesota, and in the graded schools of Austin, of the same state. His early life was spent on the home farm and he removed to Otter Tail county, Minnesota, with his parents, in 1879, and continued to assist his father in the duties of the place until his father's death, at which time he assumed the entire charge and is still cultivating and managing the
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homestead. He is a breeder of Shropshire sheep and keeps a herd of eighty- six always on the place. Politically, he is a stanch Republican and has held the office of township clerk for the past ten years and has acted as supervisor for the period of two terms.
In 1895 Albert C. Carpenter was united in marriage to Ellen Grover, daughter of Thomas J. Grover, an old settler of Freeborn county, Minne- sota, having settled there in 1856. He had formerly lived in the state of Iowa, where he had moved from Wisconsin. After residing for a period of twenty-five years in Freeborn county, the family removed to Dead Lake township, Otter Tail county, Minnesota, and there he died. Ellen Grover was a native of Freeborn county. Both Albert C. and Ellen (Grover) Car- penter are members of the Baptist church and lend their active support to that denomination. Albert C. Carpenter is highly respected by his fellow citizens, and this respect is but just and fitting, for his life has been replete with unselfish service to those around him.
ARNT MONSON.
Arnt Monson was born at Hedmarken, Norway, July 25, 1850. His parents, Peter and Karen (Erickson) Monson, were hardworking, honest people, who were born, grew up and married in Norway, where the former was employed on the large farm of a neighbor. When the son, Arnt, was seventeen years of age the family, who had friends near Christina lake, bought their tickets from New York to this county, taking up a homestead claim of one hundred and sixty acres on the line between Douglas and Otter Tail counties. This was after a tempestuous and almost fatal voyage. The little band of emigrants was shipwrecked in the sailing vessel named "Hone- par." Three weeks after they set sail, a terrific storm came up and nearly capsized the boat and for three weeks the frightened passengers drifted. finally being picked up by steamers and landed at Limerick, Ireland. It required four weeks to repair the vessel, and when it finally arrived in Quebec nineteen weeks had elapsed since it had embarked from Christiania. After the delay of another week, while their boat was quarantined, they traveled by way of the lakes and overland to St. Paul, Minnesota, and thence to this county. Here they began clearing the land and erecting the buildings necessary for pioneer life.
Mr. and Mrs. Peter Monson were devout members of the Lutheran church of Ashby. They lived industrious lives in their new home until they died, the father in 1897, and the mother five years later. Their chil- dren continued to live in this country. They are Ludvig, who died a young man: Arnt, the subject of this brief review; Edward, who lives east of Thief River Falls; Hedvick, who married Nils Woodstrom and lives nine
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miles from Crookston, Minnesota: Maria, who is Mrs. Arstlach Langlee. who lives near Thief River Falls, Minnesota; Hans died on his father's farm near Ashby, Minnesota: the youngest child was a daughter, who died in infancy.
Arnt Monson received such education as was afforded by the schools . of his native land, this ending when he left Norway with his parents. Dur- ing the first five years of his residence in this country, he worked on the railroads in Minnesota. In 1872 he came home to Otter Tail county, where he lived one year. In 1875, on January 1, he was married to Mary Thomas, a native of St. Croix county. Wisconsin, having been born near Centerville. She is the daughter of Christian and Elizabeth (Hanson) Thomas, who came to America from Norway about 1853 and settled in Wisconsin. They later took up a homestead in St. Olaf township, Otter Tail county, and here they spent the remainder of their lives.
In 1876 Mr. and Mrs. Monson took up a homestead of eighty acres in section 4. Folden township, and the following year, with their first born child, moved to their new home. That this was in the early history of the county, is indicated by the fact that they came in wagons drawn by oxen, there being no railroads in the county. Their first home was a log cabin whose roof was constructed of bark which they obtained in the woods. This crude home stood next to where the more modern residence now stands. Two years later Mr. Monson bought eighty additional acres in section 3. adjoining his farm, and these he cleared and improved until 1885, in which year he built a modern home, and a barn in 1800, these having been kept in good repair.
To Mr. and Mrs. Monson were born seven children, namely: Elise. the deceased wife of Edward Olson, of Almora, who died at the age of thirty-six : Emma, who died at the age of twenty-two; Ludvik, formerly a teacher and lawyer, but now farming in Alberta, Canada: Oscar, who attended Northwestern College in Fergus Falls, now also lives in Alberta: Effie, who stays at home; Hilda, who died at the age of nine, and Agnes, who was educated in the Henning schools and also in the Dryton schools of North Dakota.
Mr. Monson has had other interests besides farming. He is a share- holder in the Farmers Co-operative Creamery Company, at Vining, and also in the Farmers Elevator Company, in Vining and Henning. He has been township supervisor for the past twenty-five years and has served as school treasurer since the organization of the district, in 1885. He also was cen- sus enumerator for the years 1890 and 1900. He generally votes the Republican ticket.
Mr. Monson is a man upright and honorable in all the relations of life.
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That he is public spirited also is certain, because of the time and attention he has given cheerfully to matters concerning the locality in which he and his family have lived. He has been particularly interested in educational work, and has contributed much to the local schools.
SIMON SIMONSON.
Born in Norway, Simon Simonson had the spirit of the explorer, for in his youth he came with his parents and their family to this country and joined with them heartily in fashioning the new home environment which was to them a strange and uncertain experience. With but little to start upon, he has worked and saved and, like many other self-made men, can look back upon his early struggles with pride. As an early settler here he has by his toil and enterprise contributed to the material wealth of the county.
Mr. Simonson came from Gudbronsdalen, Norway, where he was born on October 21, 1863, the son of Eric and Annie (Carlson) Simonson, who were pious, industrious people, ambitious for the welfare of their children. He was born on May 7, 1829, and she on March 3, 1838. In Norway these young people grew up and were married and while they lived in that coun- try he was a laborer, but in order to better his economic condition, he and his little family set sail for America in 1866. They first settled in Menom- inee, Wisconsin, and lived there for four years, in 1871 coming to Otter Tail county in a wagon drawn by an ox-team, in company with his half- brother, a cousin and their families. They took up a homestead consisting largely of prairie land dotted with groves, this being a tract of eighty acres in section 32, township 132, range 37. They started their new life in a log cabin situated a few rods west of their present home. He was soon able to homestead eighty acres adjoining his home on the north, this giving him possession of one hundred and sixty acres. Later he built a larger log house than the one he formerly lived in and this has been remodeled and is still in use. Selling out to his son, Simon, in 1885, this successful farmer spent the rest of his life in retirement and has now reached the ripe old age of eighty- six, living at the home of his son, Simon. Both he and his wife were devout members of the Norwegian Lutheran church. She died on April 23. 1915. They were the parents of four children, namely: Simon, Johanna, the widow of Ole H. Ronning, who lives in North Dakota; Mary, the widow of P. T. Olson, living in Elmo township, near Wind river and about four and one-half miles northeast of her brother, Simon: Amund resides in Plaza, North Dakota.
Owing to the limited educational resources of his boyhood, Simon Simonson had not early advantages. His boyhood was spent on the farm and his schooling was such as was possible on the frontier in those early
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days. Having helped to manage the farm for a number of years, in 1885 he purchased it from his father. Thirty years ago he bought forty acres additional on the east of his land in section 33, and on the entire property became a well-known general and dairy farmer and stock raiser. He has erected modern barns and buildings and since 1913 has put up a silo, all of which are well painted and in good repair.
Mrs. Simonson is also a native of Norway and was the daughter of Iver Lukken, her christian name being Mary. She and Mr. Simonson were married in 1886. The brothers and sisters of the subject of this sketch are Annie, who died in infancy; Emma, who was born in 1888 and died on October 23, 1893; Rosa, who married a neighbor named Ole Hanson ; Ellen, Edward, Arthur. Selmer, Mable, Marvin, Raymond and Palmer.
Aside from his farming interests, Mr. Simonson has been identified with a number of business enterprises. He is secretary of the Farmers Elevator Company at Henning, treasurer of the Almora Co-operative Farm- ers Creamery Company, and has served as chairman of the board of super- visors and was assessor for a term of six years. As a Republican he has been a delegate to the county conventions a number of times. Both he and his wife are members of the Elmo Lutheran church, of which he is the secretary.
Mr. Simonson belongs to the thrifty, industrious, persevering type of men for which his native country is noted. Such men have been the found- ers of communities upon which civilization was later built up, leaving to the generations that follow inheritances in strength of character as well as in lands and other forms of material wealth.
A. G. ANDERSON.
Among the prominent citizens of Fergus Falls, this county, is A. G. Anderson, mayor of Fergus Falls in 1912 and, at present, president of the Fergus Falls Board of Education. Mr. Anderson, who was also appointed by Governor Eberhart as a member of the state efficiency board and who is treasurer of the Otter Tail County Agricultural Society, is a man of strong individuality, who is keenly interested in the public affairs of his home city. He is known far and wide as one who never hesitates frankly to state what he feels and believes to be right or wrong. Since March 26, 1902. he has been cashier of the Scandia State Bank.
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