PAST EVENTS

June 2008

June 25th was N-AGA’s Silver Anniversary. Twenty-five years ago on June 29, 1983, our forerunner, the “Norwegian Interest Group” was founded. N-AGA member/genealogist Marilyn Sorensen presided over the meeting and also gave a report on the recently concluded successful MGS meeting (6/14). Celebration alimentation for the anniversary included cakes and cookies.

May 2008

The meeting of May 28th was a Norwegian genealogy research night. Members were asked to bring a research problem along and do a little digging, or to come and share their knowledge with others who are just getting started with their research.


N-AGA members Barbara Horn and Dolores Barron provided volunteer staffing support for the MGS library prior to our meeting.

April 2008

At our meeting of April 28th, we were very fortunate to have Judge John Tunheim as our speaker. A United States District Court Judge, Judge Tunheim has a unique and diverse background and could probably have spoken on any number of topics that would have interested N-AGA members. However, in light of his recent role as an active advisor in helping Kosovo reform and restructure their judiciary system and his current work in helping draft a constitution for an independent Kosovo, his lecture focused on that experience and about similarities and differences between the Kosovo constitution and the Norwegian constitution.


Judge Tunheim also is President of the Norwegian-American Historical Association (NAHA) and was born and raised in Newfolden, a very Norwegian community in the Red River Valley. He has authored a book (1984) which was a study of immigration and settlement in northwestern Minnesota called A Scandinavian Saga.


N-AGA member Barbara Horn provided volunteer staffing support for the MGS library prior to our meeting.

March 2008

Our presenter for the March 26th N-AGA meeting was Dan Karvonen, Ph.D. from the University of Minnesota Department of German, Scandinavian and Dutch. Dan’s topic was "Genetic Genealogy - How and Why to Get Your DNA Tested." Dan shared his experience in having his DNA tested and participating in the National Geographic's Genographic Project as well as the Family Tree DNA country and surname projects. He told what to expect from DNA test results, how to interpret them, and what the results can tell you about your "deep" ancestry. Even though Dan’s educational background is not in genetics, he applied his enthusiasm, his personal experience, his interest in heritage, and his teaching skills to this topic that's got him hooked, and surely infected some others too.

February 2008

February 27th was another N-AGA research night. Members were asked to bring a research problem along and do a little digging, or to come and share their knowledge with others who are just getting started with their research.

January 2008

January 30th meeting was a genealogy research night. Members were prodded to collect their notes, their questions, and their dead-ends and bring them along in search of illumination. Only about a dozen attendees were present, but three were there for first time. N-AGA members Bob O'Neil and Dixie Hansen spent most of the evening helping one of them locate his farms on the detailed maps and showed him the online parish records.

December 2007

Our annual Christmas meeting and game night was held on Boxing Day, December 26th. It was a chance to participate in a no-pressure, light-spirited "How Norwegian Are You?" quiz which included a rating system based on the number of correct answers. Members were asked to tell about their favorite old holiday tradition or (since families evolve and change over time) the best new tradition their family has adopted in recent years, or even the strangest/most non-traditional Thanksgiving or Christmas they ever celebrated. Post-holiday conversation with fellow N-AGA Members, accompanied by cookies, candies, or morsels of any kind left-over from the holidays rounded out the evening’s fare

November 2007

Our November 28th meeting was the first ever in our new location in South St. Paul. A bit of technical debugging was required, as might be expected, but then JoEllen Hargo from the Minneapolis Public Library gave a great presentation. She talked about the resources of the Minneapolis Public Library, an often overlooked source for genealogy in general (including classes offered), Norwegian genealogy, and also library resources of interest to family historians, accessible both in the library and over the Internet from home.

October 2007

Our October 24th meeting was our last-ever MGS Branch Meeting in the Golden Valley MGS building which has served us so well for the last 10 years. Very befitting the circumstances was a top notch talk provided to us by Lyn Lacy on the amazing story of Borghild Dahl. Borghild Dahl (1890-1984) was a local author of children’s stories who, rising to the challenges of mid-life blindness, provided a remarkable example of the Norwegian-American influence/work ethic. Dahl’s books include, I Wanted to See, Stowaway to America, Homecoming, Karen, Marit, Cloud Shoes, Rikk of the Rendal Clan and others.

September 2007

Our speaker on September 26th was Liv Marit Haakenstad, who shared information with us on emigration from Norway, about the most-used traveling routes from Norway, about UK and the companies who transported emigrants, and about what happened to immigrants when they arrived in New York. She gave us a PowerPoint presentation based on recent immigrant research in England, assisted by a Scottish woman in Norway, a member of Liverpool Family History Society, and a guide at a museum in Liverpool. The Scottish woman was the first one to find some more about occupations and Norwegians in England. This was brand new information!

August 2007

Genealogy done in Gudbrandsdal was the theme of the August 29th meeting. N-AGA genealogist Marilyn Sorensen was co-leader along with Rev. James Olson (president of the Gudbrandsdalslag) on a 16-day genealogy seminar/tour to Gudbrandsdal in June on 2007. All tour participants were members of Gudbrandsdalslag. Marilyn’s talk, accompanied by a PowerPoint presentation, was called “Norwegian Genealogy Seminar, a Look Back,” and it was indeed a look back on a very successful, very intensive, very well organized trip through the valley of Gudbrand with stopping points of interest to all tour members. Marilyn discussed the highlights of this research trip, which spanned 8 archives (including 4 in Oslo and 2 in Hamar), and involved unique presentations, special opportunities for research, visits with relatives, and a rich learning experience for everyone involved. It should be noted that the archives visited included national, regional, city and town (kommunes/small town areas), public as well as private, libraries and museums.

July 2007

Our speaker for July 25th was Duane Swanson from the Collections Management/Reference section of the Minnesota Historical Society. Duane, who has been a presenter to N-AGA before, is a Government Records Specialist and a great resource person for all genealogical questions. Duane’s presentation was entitled “Using the Minnesota Birth Certificate Index.” His main agenda items were the birth certificate project itself, what the index includes (and doesn’t include), searching the index, info contained on a certificate, searching strategies and special cases. Some interesting points were as follows:

June 2007

June 27, 2007 was N-AGA’s 24th Anniversary, an event traditionally celebrated with cake and coffee. Also members were invited to bring and talk about an artifact of Norwegian content or one of unknown identity. This idea was popular last year and deemed worthy of an encore. Time before and after the meeting was available, as always, for genealogical research.

May 2007

The meeting for May 30th was a special class for N-AGA members called “Technology Use in the Library,” conducted by Diane Lovrencevik of the Irish Genealogy Group. As she described it, genealogy is getting more digital everyday and researchers need to utilize the technology at the MGS library. Diane covered some common but not-quite-easy everyday tasks that users often have trouble with. She addressed questions such as:

Diane demonstrated in don’t-be-afraid-to-try-it language how to handle some of those often befuddling tasks. Class size was limited to 12, so N-AGA members in attendance either negotiated for computer terminals or shared them in such a way that all benefited.

April 2007

On April 25th Dr. William Halverson, a preeminent Edvard Grieg scholar and brother-in-law of N-AGA member Alan Sortland, addressed the N-AGA membership on the subject of “Edvard Grieg’s Family Tree.”  The Grieg family name (originally Greig) took its origins from the Scottish MacGregor clan, and after relocation to Bergen, Grieg’s ancestors included fish export businessmen, two British Consuls in Bergen, and a conductor of the precursor to the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra.  2007 is the centennial of Edvard Grieg’s death and well deserving of his remembrance.  Bill spoke of Grieg as if he had been with him at the time of childhood playmates, through the times of teenage adolescence and maturing adult, and into the ripening years.  Bill plied us with a unique combination of Grieg’s musical selections and stories throughout his life, as recorded in letters and other sources.  The music included the imitative Larvik’s Polka, followed by the raw bone saliently original Gamle mor (Old mother) from Opus 33 and the beautiful and internationally renowned Jeg Elsker Deg (I love thee).  Grieg’s marriage to his first cousin Nina Hagerup was unblessed by both sets of parents, but it proceeded anyway.  His “immortal” mother-in-law saw him as someone who was valueless and only wrote music that no one wanted to listen to.  Grieg’s life included medical impairments, an issue of stature, and social ridicule, but most notably included self-discovery followed by launching into the remarkable musical career that came to define our Norwegian musical heritage.  Dr. Halvorson’s presentation was world class and truly an encore performance.

March 2007

Our speaker for March 28th was JarleHjartåtaker, a medical doctor who has worked for the Government of Norway in the Hordaland area and now is in private practice in Øystesse.  His practice covers Norheimsund and the area along the Hardangerfjord as well as the Samnanger and Voss areas.  Dr. Hjartåtaker’s presentation centered on the Norwegian Medical System, and he offered some ideas on how the US medical system could work a little better  He was educated in Holland and has been serving Norwegian patients for over twenty years.

February 2007

On February 28th, N-AGA members had their first ever research evening utilizing the recently installed online resources.  As part of the general meeting, Jim Lavalle, who is leading the expanded technology effort at the Minnesota Genealogical Society, gave a general overview of the "online system" in the building, and then N-AGA members proceeded upstairs to the MGS library where Jim continued with a hands-on presentation.  Following that, Dixie Hansen gave examples of usage of online resources such as ancestry.com, heritagequest, rootsweb, and others, all tailored to Norwegian ancestral searches.  Of particular interest was the accessing of the Norwegian Digitalarkivet and other Norwegian sources.  Dixie facilitated her presentation with her LCD projector/screen so that all members could view the image on the computer terminal.  A rapt audience illustrated the power of the online capability to hold current members and hopefully gather new ones.

January 2007

Are Norwegians gutsy or nutsy?  Who else would sail an 18-ft boat shaped like an egg from Norway to America 100 years ago?  Well, Ole Martin Brude, motivated by so much tragic loss of life at sea, did exactly that in order prove the seaworthiness of a small craft which became the forerunner of today’s lifeboats.  His design was ingenious and revolutionary, and it worked.  Ole Brude is a legend in the Norwegian branch of the family history of our January 31st presenter, Paula Brugge.  Paula is currently the Associate Director of Admissions at the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities, and her strong academic background is in Scandinavian Studies.  Her great story, narrative plus supporting visual presentation was entitled Ole Martin Brude – Across the Atlantic in an Egg.  It recounted the amazing winter time voyage of his craft (named "Uræd" or “Unafraid”) and its crew from Aalesund, Norway, to St. John’s, Newfoundland, and on to Gloucester, Massachusetts.  A dozen of Paula’s family members were on hand to relive the adventure.
Hent de norske genserne dine!  It was N-AGA’s annual January tradition, Norwegian Sweater Night, again.  The ratio of Norwegian sweaters to attendees was almost one-to-one.  Several group photos were taken to record our wearable pride

December 2006

We relaxed between Christmas and New Year with a game of Norwegian Bingo and other easy going activities.  The game was led on December 27th by N-AGA member Joy Sundrum and included the unexpected use of Norwegian in the Bingo calls.  We all paid more attention and learned a lot about our oral and aural abilities with Norwegian.

November 2006

Don’t you wish your basement or attic could magically produce a box full of letters exchanged between a new Norwegian immigrant in America and the family members who remained behind in Norway?  This happened to our speaker for November 29th, Kristie Nelson-Neuhaus, whose great grandmother was a Norwegian immigrant, living in North Dakota from 1892 to 1923.  She was also a very organized person.  The great grandmother’s letters have been captured and published as Live Well: The Letters of Sigrid Gjeldaker Lillehaugen.  Kristie highlighted selected letters and the stories woven through them.  As in everyone’s immigrant background, moments of joy are balanced by moments of tragedy.

October 2006

Our speaker on October 25th was rosemaling specialist Judy Kjenstad.  Judy is a Twin Cities artist who has studied decorative folk art painting for over 20 years, including a commission for the mural exterior of Ingebretsen's.  She is a Vesterheim Gold Medal rosemaler who has worked on such large-scale designs as the Epcot Center Norway Pavilion in Orlando, Florida, and the Black Forest Inn in Minneapolis.  She has taught Norwegian and Swedish painting at numerous locations, including the Norwegian American Museum, and has exhibited her work in the “Norwegian Folk Art: The Migration of a Tradition” exhibit.  Judy also loves to play the nyckelharpa.

Judy’s presentation, supported by excellent slides, traced the origins of rosemaling and its growth and development along the Oslo to Trondheim route.  The heyday of rosemaling was 1750-1850 with most work done by Guild Artists.  All known rosemalers in Norway were men, but in Sweden a few women excelled.  12-13 styles can be identified, but two had distinct characteristic features.  The Telemark style featured predominantly red coloring with a “C” scroll acanthus leaf.  The Hallingdal style did not use the C scroll and had many flowers.

Judy also brought along many large ale bowls which she had decorated.  Thoughtful words on the drinking theme surrounded the brims.  Many N-AGA members brought in rosemaled pieces for Judy to identify the style or other elements of particular interest.  It was a fascinating evening devoted to this unique skill of our Norwegian ancestors, a skill that began as a means to earn a living but now continues primarily as a wonderful avocation.

September 2006

On September 27th President Bob O’Neil laid the groundwork for an interesting story connected to his recent trip to Norway.  On that trip Bob was in the home of Tor Øvsthus in Førde, Norway where he heard the story of the wallet that got separated from its owner several generations ago as the owner emigrated to America.  The wallet remained in the possession of the Øvsthus family in Norheimsund, Norway for 100 years.  Tor Øvsthus then decided to try to find the rightful owner (owner’s descendant).  Bob O’Neil then introduced Don Maage of Fridley who related the story of how his great grandfather’s wallet came to him.  Bob also presented Don with a history of the farm of Don’s ancestors back in Norway.  The farm name was Måge in the flyke of Hordaland.  This story has been written up in the Minneapolis Star Tribune by Chuck Haga, who is also part Norwegian.  The remainder of the evening was a research night.

August 2006

As in August of 2005, Professor Odd Lovoll of St. Olaf College was again our speaker.  On August 30th he gave a presentation entitled "A Place Called Home: Norwegians in Small-town America," a theme digested from his latest book, Norske småbyer på prærien (Norwegian Small Towns on the Prairie).  The English version, entitled Norwegians on the Prairie: Ethnicity and the Development of the Country Town, was published August 1st by the Minnesota Historical Society Press.  The three small towns studied and featured are Starbuck, Benson, and Madison, plus there are references to a few other towns, including Milan, Dawson, and Glenwood.

July 2006

On July 26th N-AGA member and Valdres Samband bygdelag member Aaron Hanson showed an excellent video he made chronicling the highlights of a trip that the Valdres Samband took to Valdres in 2004. The video showed members attending events like the Welcome Reception and going on tours in Valdres.  The tours showed many of the historic sites, such as stave churches, runestones, and a stone bridge. Aaron is a good source for information on the Valdres Samband and bygdelag activities.

Aaron also had an unexpected connection to N-AGA’s august August speaker, Odd Lovoll.  Aaron was Dr. Lovoll’s research assistant for the book he recently wrote about Norwegians on the prairie, and he traveled with Dr. Lovoll to Madison, Benson, and Starbuck.  It was a personally exciting experience for him since both his parents went to Benson High School and his Norwegian ancestors settled around Benson and Starbuck in the 1870s.

June 2006

June 28, 2006 was a research night, and we also celebrated N-AGA's 23rd anniversary.  Besides the traditional cake and coffee, several members brought and talked about an artifact of Norwegian content or one of unknown identity.  This idea was engaging and was deemed worthy of a revisit next year.

May 2006

On May 31st Lori Ann Lahlum gave a presentation on "Norwegian Immigrant Women in the Upper Midwest.”  It was no easy life, but it had its rewards.  Lori gave this talk as part of the opening event for a temporary exhibit featuring Norwegian immigrants to Dakota County in conjunction with the 2005 Dakota County Fair.  It was extremely well received and highly recommended.  Dr. Lahlum is an assistant professor in the Department of History at Minnesota State University, Mankato.

April 2006

On April 26th N-AGA was treated to a presentation by Eric Dregni.  Eric is a freelance writer from Minneapolis where he lives with his wife, Katy, and two sons Eilif and Otto. He is the author of nine books, including five books on motorscooters and Minnesota Marvels: Roadside Attractions in the Land of Lakes published by the University of Minnesota Press. Eric received a Fulbright Fellowship for creative writing which was to take him and his family to Trondheim for a year.  In fact, the notice of winning the Fulbright Fellowship arrived the same week that his wife’s pregnancy test came back positive. The arrival of the new baby in Norway and the generous Scandinavian health care became the material for an article Eric wrote for The Rake and The Viking.  He also recently recounted his experiences in Norway in an article for the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

Eric’s immigrant ancestor was his great-grandfather "Drægni", who fled Norway in 1893 when Norway was the poorest country in Europe.  By contrast, Eric got to experience Norway as Europe’s richest land, but of course the old customs and traditions continue.  Eric told us of the much-obeyed Janteloven (Jante’s Law), and of the mørketid (the dark time).  He also told us of his experience in tasting such things as rakfish (fermented fish), klippefisk (dried cod), and tran (cod liver oil), and his experience of discovering his great-grandfather’s house in Lusterfjord and its sad fate.  Other tales involve travels to Sweden for cheap salami, to Oslo for the Nobel ceremony, and to the Lofoten Islands where he had a fan club of cats.  His talk was accompanied by slides he has taken and it was an engaging event!

March 2006

The topic for our N-AGA meeting on March 29th was the story behind the writing of a Norwegian bygdebok, but not the typical story of Norwegians from a community in Norway writing their own bygdebok.  This story is about a collaborative effort between a Norwegian and a Norwegian-American.  The Minnesota-born American is our own Apple Valley resident, Margaret (Peggy) Miller, and Peggy is doing the family lineage part of the bygdebok, a truly phenomenal and monumental effort.  A Norwegian in Norway is doing the farm anecdotes, histories, etc.  So how did this happen?

Peggy began in 1979 by looking for pictures of her Norwegian forbearers and tracing her family line that goes back to Sømna in Nordland.  Her effort grew from documenting her own family genealogy to covering the whole parish.  From her home and from the LDS library in Crystal, she has constructed the genealogical lines of the people in Sømna.

For her efforts she has she received two remarkable distinctions--one the Sømna Kulturpris, being only the second woman to receive the "prize" and the only non-Sømna-born person; and the St. Olav Medal in 1993 for her work on the Sømna books. She is a skilled reader of "churchbook script," and she has a fantastic memory for names and relationships.  She allowed that her secret for reading the handwriting in the church books is that if you just look at it long enough (or maybe revisit it a day or two later), then it starts to come clear!  Peggy was also featured in the February 2006 Avisen in the article entitled “Leif, Marilyn, Mr. Skille and I.”

February 2006

Leslee Lane Hoyum, the co-founder and current president of Lakselaget, ("salmon society") was our engaging speaker on Wednesday, 22 February 2006.  Lakselaget (http://www.lakselaget.org/) is a very interesting organization of professional women and college and university students who are also Norwegian, of Norwegian descent, or are interested in contemporary Norwegian issues and all things Norwegian

Leslee described the background for the relatively recent founding of Lakselaget, its purpose, current membership, inter-generational efforts, scholarship programs, and future plans. Lakselaget has monthly meetings with a variety of speakers, delectable salmon, and good conversation about swimming upstream.

Leslee Hoyum is currently the media and public relations director for the Minnesota Department of Revenue.  Her educational background is in communications with a minor in Scandinavian studies, and she has done graduate work at the University of Oslo.  Her genealogical roots, both maternal and paternal, go back to Norway, and she has made numerous trips to our favorite land.  She has been heavily involved in many different organizations with a Norwegian connection, among them, Sons of Norway, Mindekirken, Solørlag, Nordmanns-Forbundet, Norwegian American Chamber of Commerce, Viking Age Club, and many more.

January 2006

Our very short notice, just-flew-into-town, guest speaker for January 25th was Luci Baker Johnson.  Luci is the daughter of NAGA member Eunice Baker, and she is a Seattle resident, very active in Norwegian-American organizations and events there.  Luci shared with us a large research project she has undertaken regarding three Norwegian men, two artists and one architect, who built the first Norway Hall in Seattle and provided the Norwegian art work for the same.  It’s a marvelous building today with an intriguing past.  Luci also provided tips and resources for doing Norwegian genealogical research in the Pacific Northwest, should we need to be tracing family members there.

Luci is the Historian for the Leif Erikson Sons of Norway Lodge #2-001. This lodge has 1630 members and a 103 year history.  She spoke of how many Sons of Norway lodges kept very good historical records, including member names and addresses, obituaries and sometimes member photos with names.  All this data might be of use in gathering family history.

Luci is also a contributing writer for the Western Viking, the weekly Norwegian-American Newspaper with world wide coverage -- a 114 year old publication that comprises six of the 562 Norwegian newspapers which have existed in America, including Decorah Posten, Ved Arnen, Minneapolis-Tidende, Minnesota Posten, Washington Posten, Norrona and Skandinaben.

December 2005

The annual N-AGA fun-and-games night was the event for December 28th.  Members were challenged by two quizzes with Norwegian content, written by N-AGA program coordinator Dick Lundgren.  The first was the warm-up quiz, roaming over various elements of Norwegian Food and Lore.  The second, more challenging, one was called “Who Wants to be a Norwegian Millionaire?” and questions increased in difficulty as the value in Kroner went up.  Fun and refreshments were had by all, and some learning may have taken place.

November 2005

Our speaker on Wednesday, 30 November 2005 was Roger R. Hellesvig, AKA Ole Olesen, who, using an immigrant trunk as a focal point, described what it was like to immigrate in the 1800s. Ole described vividly the tough choices our immigrant ancestors had to make when they came to America. He also told about some of the traditions that went along with items in the immigrant’s trunk.

Robert Hellesvig is a living historian and teacher, with broad experience as an historical interpreter and educator.  He is a graduate of Concordia College in Saint Paul and did graduate work at Mankato State University and Hamline University.

October 2005

Our presenter for the Wednesday, 26 October 2005 meeting was Patricia Allred.  Pat is very well versed in the historical and genealogical connections between Norway, Iceland, and Ireland. She has done research at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.  Her essay on the topic, “The Icelandic-Norwegian Connection,” used images, stories, and genealogy. 

The two “cousin” cultures of Norway and Iceland overlap in several ways. Historically the exodus of Norwegian families to Iceland resulted in a New Country, but also extended their own. In Iceland the ties to their homeland and its values were treasured and preserved in Genealogy and Sagas. Literature and Art maintained these intertwined roots. Icelander Snorri Sturluson’s Heimskringla presents a History of Norway that still fascinates after 1000 years, and contains the ancestry of all Icelanders (many Norwegians too).

September 2005

The N-AGA meeting on Wednesday, 28 September 2005 was a research and collaboration effort.  Members did some genealogical digging on their own families and helped fellow members initiate their own research.

August 2005

N-AGA was honored on Wednesday, 31 August 2005 to have as our speaker Odd S. Lovoll, Professor of History and King Olaf V Professor of Scandinavian American Studies at St. Olaf College in Northfield.  In this year of the centennial celebration of Norway’s independence, Dr. Lovoll’s talk will center on the interest and involvement of American immigrants of Scandinavian heritage in the momentous events that were occurring in their homeland at that time.  Dr. Lovoll had published an article in the July 30, 2005 Olso Dagbladet on the same subject.  You can read it at http://www.dagbladet.no/kultur/2005/07/30/438745.html.

Odd S. Lovoll earned his doctorate in U.S. History, specializing in immigration history, at the University of Minnesota. He has served on the faculty of St. Olaf College since 1971 and been publications editor for the Norwegian-American Historical Association since 1980. In 1992 he was appointed to fill the King Olav V Chair in Scandinavian-American Studies. Since 1995 he has held an appointment as Professor II in History at the University of Oslo and teaches there in the fall semester. His published works include A Folk Epic: The Bygdelag in America (1975), The Promise of America: A History of the Norwegian-American People (1984), A Century of Urban Life: The Norwegians in Chicago before 1930 (1988), and The Promise Fulfilled: A Portrait of Norwegian Americans Today (1998), in addition to a large number of articles dealing with Scandinavian-American topics. In 1986 Lovoll was decorated by H.M. King Olav V with the Knight's Cross of the Royal Norwegian Order of Merit and in 1989 he was invited to occupy a seat in the history section of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters.

July 2005

Pastor Jens Arne Dale talked about the importance of the centennial of Norway’s independence from Sweden, and he provided the background for the events which lead up to the peaceful dissolution of the union.  In particular, Norway’s separate Consular system was a main issue. Pastor Dale is competing his three years as Pastor at Mindekirken Church, and returning to Norway.  N-AGA  is proud to have had him as a very interesting and entertaining speaker, and all N-AGA members collectively wish him the best.

June 2005

N-AGA celebrated its 22nd anniversary on Wednesday, 29 June 2005.  The event was commemorated with cake and coffee.  The cake was an ingenious array of individual cupcakes, uniquely colored and arrayed to replicate a Norwegian flag.

Dixie Hansen inspired us to resurrect our immigrant ancestors.  We took our Norwegian ancestral names and told our personal stories as if we had lived it.  Dixie represented her great-grandmother, Ragnhild Marie Jonsdatter Tøfthaug Steivang (just call her Hilda) and she was prepared to tell a bit about herself... where she lived, about all of her unruly kids, what she did in her spare time (hah!) and when she came to Minnesota.  Being your forefather in a role playing situation adds an interesting dimension to our genealogical reality.

May 2005

The speaker/musician/entertainer was Karen Solgard.  With stories and the music of her Hardanger fiddle, Karen recreated the scenes and moods and humor of the traditional Norwegian wedding of our ancestors.  She drew on her recent presentation at the Minnesota Historical Society called “The Norse Fiddle, Bridal Crown, and Kransekake.  More information about Karen can be found at http://mnfolkarts.org/karen_tork/karen_tork.html.

April 2005

Professor Gracia Grindal presented a lecture on Wednesday, 27 April 2005 on the Lutheran Parsonage tradition and how it came from Norway to America as demonstrated in the lives of Linka Preus and Elisabeth Koren.  These two immigrant women, wives of prominent early pastors in the Norwegian-American church, brought some of the old world parsonage traditions with them but, by necessity, had to adapt to a somewhat different life in America.  They left a record of their interests, observations, and acculturation through diaries and letters and, in the case of Linka Preus, through her pencil drawings, which depict various aspects of life at Luther College and the Decorah area in the 1850s and 1860s.

Gracia M. Grindal is a Professor of Rhetoric at Luther Seminary. She has spent a lifetime learning about the history of Norwegian hymnody.

March 2005

On Wednesday, 30 March 2005, Deb Nelson Gourley told us about her new bilingual English/Norsk book Astri, My Astri: Norwegian Heritage Stories, a gem of a genealogical find.  Deb’s interest in her Norwegian roots was sparked (almost literally) when, at the age of 8, she rescued an old family immigrant trunk from a pile of scrap lumber on a wagon bound for the burn pile. The trunk raised many more questions than it answered. Who made it and when and why?  What was the funny kind of painting on it?  Who was the girl whose name was on it?  Where did she come from?  Who was she in the family history?  What happened to her?  Some years later, Deb made her first trip to Norway and began, in earnest, the rewarding unraveling of a rich family history.

For more information, visit Deb Gourley’s website at www.astrimyastri.com.

February 2005

The presentation for Wednesday, 23 February 2005 was "Trolls, Nisser, and Huldre: The Supernatural Creatures of Norwegian Folklore."  Marte Hvam Hult, Ph.D., explained how the imagination of our ancestors invented the creatures to fill their stories. Oral tradition and later written literature fleshed out the ancient characters of the supernatural. The artistic capabilities of our ancestors brought visual life to the supernatural beings through marvelous imagery. Even music embellished the personalities and activities of the creatures of our heritage.  Many of Norway's greatest artists have used these folk creatures in their works, and it isn’t all just trolls.  There are nisser, water sprites, changelings, draugs, huldre and more!  Dr. Hult has her Ph. D. in Scandinavian Languages and Literature from the University of Minnesota, and she is the author of Framing a National Narrative: The Legend Collections of Peter Christen Asbjørnsen.

January 2005

Dave Ringstad regaled us with the interesting story of Knute Nelson and his 1882 Congressional Campaign.  Knute Nelson was the first Norwegian-American to serve in the United States congress and senate.  He was also the first Norwegian governor of Minnesota.  His first campaign for congress was in 1882.  The campaign was a humorous, outrageous, hard fought battle between two Republicans and one Democrat in northern Minnesota.  It was fun to gain insight on how some of the Norwegian cultural traits of our ancestors such as modesty, politeness, decency, etc. (recognize them in yourself?) played themselves out in a political campaign.

Nelson was born in Voss in 1843.  He and his mother came to Chicago in 1849.  Later he fought in the Civil War and served in the Wisconsin legislature before moving to Alexandria, Minnesota in 1871.

By the way, N-AGA Secretary Dixie Hansen officially declared the January N-AGA Meeting (now and forever more) as “Norwegian Sweater Night.”  Remember that for future years and future group photos.

December 2004

The program for Wednesday, 29 December 2004 was an interesting and informative video provided by N-AGA program coordinator Dick Lundgren.  It was called “The Falun - Röros Expedition, A Historic Journey with Horse and Sled.”

The historic background >> For over a thousand years they trudged through the winter landscape, steam rising off the horses broad backs, fur clad men urging them on as they pulled the heavily loaded sleds along the winter trail. Like today's truck drivers hauling goods across the country, these trail drivers transported goods from Dalarna in Sweden, via the mountain market town, Röros, to the ice free port of Trondheim, Norway and back again. There were no roads, no railways, but the one-horse drawn sleds that glided through the snowy woods and across the frozen lakes could carry the valuable but heavy loads of iron and iron goods to Trondheim and from there out into the world.

The modern re-enactment >> On February 2, 2003, 30 men and women, from the Dalarna Femund Forkörarförening (The Trail Drivers Club) left the city of Falun in Sweden, with 17 horses pulling old-style sleds, and drove out into the forest. Eighteen cold, foggy days later a group of tired but happy trail drivers arrived at the historic market in Röros, Norway, welcomed by thousands of happy market goers.

This video allowed us to ride the ancient trail and experience the beauty of the Scandinavian countryside, the camaraderie and laughter along the way, and the music of the Dalarna Femund Trail Driver Players.

November 2004

Research night.

October 2004

N-AGA member Judy Larsen created the frolicking game of Fylke Feud for Wednesday, 27 October! Contestants joined forces with fellow-fylkers and matched their wits and knowledge of things Nordic against those competitive guys and girls from the next valley over. Collective team wisdom produced good answers, bad answers, and weird answers! There were winners and losers, arguments and back-slapping and even oofdas, fun and prizes!

September 2004

Our presenters on Wednesday, 29 September 2004 were Tom and Sandra Robinson.  Sandra’s aunt, Rakel Erickson, learned folk tales on her mother's knee, and now in her 90s Rakel has published two books titled Folkeminnevitskap and Folkeminnevitskap II.  They are wonderful collections of Norwegian Folktales and Legends retold by Rakel in English. 

August 2004

Professor Robert Karlén spoke about the music of our Norwegian ancestors and how it evolved from very early church music and folk tunes to capture and define the Norwegian national identity in the 19th and 20th centuries.  Dr. Karlén is a retired professor of music at Augsburg College.

July 2004

John and Jan Dalby shared their long-time and genealogically important project of recording Minnesota cemeteries.

June 2004

N-AGA Anniversary night!  The main ingredients were cake, fellowship, and some research.

May 2004

April 2004

Barbara Horn, N-AGA historian, discussed the Norwegian 1801 and 1865 Censuses on April 28th.  N-AGA has the 1801 census on microfiche and the 1865 census on microfilm.  Barb told us about the types of information available in each census.  Both censuses and others are searchable on the Internet. The URL is http://digitalarkivet.uib.no (Norwegian) or http://digitalarkivet.uib.no/cgi-win/WebMeta.exe?spraak=e (English).  There are advantages to using both the on-line transcription and the original microfilm. 

March 2004

On Wednesday March 31st travelogue guide Bill Handsaker presented a narrated photographic visit to our ancestral land. Bill traveled by ship up the coast from Bergen to Nordkapp and captured on film the spectacular coastal scenery that is unsurpassed anywhere. Then he returned south by car and completed the inland tour of Norway's incredible scenery, cultural monuments, and festivities.  Bill’s unique visual tour was augmented by an informative audio presentation of historical, geographical, and cultural background.  For those who have been to Norway, Bill's photos made you yearn to return. For those yet to visit the old country, this ingenious travelogue lit the fire for planning.

February 2004

N-AGA Librarian, David Cross, made a presentation on the MGS card catalogue system – how to navigate it and how to use it to find resources within our library.

December 2003

November 2003

N-AGA members challenged each other in a game of “NAGA Jeopardy!”  Everyone came away smarter and happier.

October 2003

Duane Swanson, Reference Specialist from the Minnesota Historical Society, gave a presentation entitled “Genealogical Sources at the Minnesota Historical Society.”  The breadth and depth of these sources indicates a potential gold mine of family history data waiting to be discovered in the MHS archives.

September 2003

On September 24th  N-AGA Secretary Dixie Hansen spoke about the Alien Registration Forms, covering such aspects as data usually provided, problems encountered by the recorders, varying degrees of completeness, fuzzy/funny penmanship, and perception of the need for doing the form in the first place.

August 2003

Mary Ann Olsen, Thelma Johnson, and Marion Auker presented information on Lutheran Church Altar Art on Wednesday August 27th. They featured the early Lutheran churches of the settlers and immigrants of Scandinavian descent, mainly in Minnesota and Wisconsin. 

July 2003

Our presentation for July, called Publishing Family Histories was given by Bergetta F. Monroe.  It was not the typical "how to" presentation but rather a family history publishing discussion.  The August issue of Family Tree magazine carried an article by Sharon DeBartolo Carmack entitled "Telling Time; Are You Ready to Start Writing?"  This article offered some great tips on how to start recording the story of your family, and Bergetta’s discussion moved the process to the publishing phase.

June 2003

Laura Aanenson, NAGA’s Communication Director, introduced the new N-AGA website, http://www.norwegianamerican.org.  Members had an opportunity to view the various areas of the website and to contribute ideas and content.

May 2003

Lee Rokke, editor of N-AGA’s newsletter, Avisen, gave a very interesting talk about the Rowberg file, located at NAHA at St. Olaf College in Northfield, MN.  The Rowberg file consists of about 200,000 (and growing) clippings of biographical articles on Norwegian-Americans from Norwegian-American newspapers, English-language country weeklies, church and lodge magazines. Many are obituaries, golden wedding celebrations, etc. For more details, see http://www.naha.stolaf.edu/genealogy/index.htm.

April 2003

Our speaker was Alison Purgiel, Reference Librarian at the Minnesota Historical Society.  Alison surveyed pre- and post-1906 Naturalization records in the Minnesota State Archives and offered strategies for using them in genealogical research.

March 2003

Debbie Miller, Reference Specialist at the Minnesota Historical Society gave an ethnically tasty talk about Norwegian Cookbooks.

February 2003

David Cross gave an overview of the MGS library and led mini tours of the collection.  David is the N-AGA Librarian and a member of the MGS executive committee.

August 2002

Thomas Reiersgord discussed the theory he has developed about the Kensington Rune Stone.  His theory is documented in his book, The Kensington Rune Stone: Its Place in History.

June 2002

Pastor Jens Arne Dale of Mindekirken, the Norwegian Lutheran Memorial Church in Minneapolis, spoke about the State Church of Norway and related topics.

May 2002

Debbie Miller, Reference Specialist from the Minnesota Historical Society, talked about MHS’s newly published book “Norwegians in Minnesota,” written by Jon Gjerde and Carlton C. Qualey, and with a foreword by Icelander Bill Holm.

April 2002

The meeting was a research night, supported by coffee and cookies.

February 2002

Mary Bakeman gave a presentation on the soon-to-be released 1930 census

January 2002

N-AGA genealogist Marilyn Sorensen gave a presentation on Internet Resources (and other resources) that can be helpful for US research before a trip to Norway