Let's take a look at the happenings of Rosewood and Thief River Falls seventy-five years ago.
JUNE 1922
Rosewood News
The lively men of Rosewood met at the bank to discuss plans for the fourth of July. They plan street attractions during the day and a baseball game in the evening. The day promises to be successful.
Rosewood News
The Rosewood baseball team won 14-9. Adolph Haugen could not pitch and the catcher broke his thumb.
Rosewood News
A surprise party was held at the Mrs. Thea Nelson home last Sunday afternoon and despite all the disagreeable weather it was well attended. A cash gift of $60 dollars was given.
Rosewood News
Swen Swenson came home last Saturday from a month’s tour to Seattle where he was looking for a place to move with his three girls. They will move in the future.
Rosewood News
Assessor Olaf Opseth is assessing
Paving plans for Knight and Horace Ave abandoned.
William Herron, 70, falls off dray wagon and fractures skull. He had been a resident of TRF for 23 years.
Charlie Knox, for whom the Knox School is named, was married in Minneapolis. The old timers will recall his bride was a school teacher in this city when Knox was a resident here.
Rosewood News
Budge Bulden and the rest of the carpenter crew for the Soo Line were hear last week to lay in new planks for the platform, re-roof part of the depot, and other general duties.
Rosewood News
The east side resident along Main Street have decided to lay cement walks from the railroad property to the street going east and work will commence this week.
Rosewood News
Two dentists representing the New York Dentist Co were in town to see if Rosewood should be put on the list to visit.
Rosewood News
Big 4th planned. Senator Naplin to start out the party, followed by games. At 3p the Rosewood Tigers will meet the TRF Seconds and at the same time a four piece orchestra from TRF will play and dancing will be for afternoon and evening. There will be fireworks. Confection stands and shady resting places will be scattered through the village for the comfort of visitors.
Rosewood News
Enroute home from Hazel, where they had spent a social day at the home of Mr. and Mrs. John Sjorberg, Mr. and Mrs. Carl Bloom and son, Laverne, and Mr. Axel Bloom, last Sunday evening had the misfortune of driving off one front wheel on the latter’s Ford coupe when returning home. One of the members, young Laverne, was thrown violently against the wind shield and received a very nasty gash from his forehead to his lip,, necessitating his being taken to the TRF hospital were he was sewed up.
Think about hobbies and sports your family had; do you follow in their foot steps? How about family members who have scars, do the scars have a story? Make me what to look again at LaVerne Bloom's picture and see if I can see the evidence of the accident. My grandfather had a scar on his face and I have recently learned why. I knew the 147 stitches in daddy's leg was from a saw dropping on his leg in about 1942 or so. Give it some thought, won't you?
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Friday, June 29, 2007
Pros and Cons of the Electronic Era
Let's run a little comparison check. In the early 1900's, the group of spinners took their equipment outside and a picture of them was taken in the snow because there was not flash cameras. That camera must have been the talk of Rosewood!
The early lives of the children of Lloyd and Ella were photographed outside. It almost seemed like they loved the outdoors! Later, these children would take pictures of their children with cameras with flash bulbs, and later built in flash with automatic winding! PROGRESS!
Their children are taking pictures with digital cameras and sending them without the labor of have pictures processed. INSTANT! MARVELOUS! UNBELIEVABLE!
Except, of course, if you are in a remote area taking pictures of graves and the battery fails. Which teaches all of us doing genealogy to have a loaded other camera with us. Even of it is a wind yourself the low action film. After all, just how much movement does a grave have?
The next comparison is correspondence. We know from previous posted that Knute Ranum actually wrote a letter to someone in Norway. We know from previous posts that if you try to dry stamps by rubbling them on your head, they will stick. How many of you have actually sat down and written a letter recently? I have done it once of late and found my brain two paragraphs ahead; it was painfully slow but in this case, I felt the need to be personal.
We have talked about handwriting before and as Ryen mentioned, computer skills are now more important. And I will agree, until you are in a hotel somewhere which advertises WiFi and the computer isn't sitting on top of a router that keeps you connected.
The next comparison is telephones. The neighbors had a crank phone in the '40's. We had a modern phone which also hung on the wall. In the early news papers as well as pictures of Thief River Falls telephones were available. Businesses listed there numbers, one was 62. Pictures show telephone poles.
The Anderson children had the option of buying their phones! Ours was called the secretary. It was that 1970 orange with a cork board and a box inside to put the newspaper. How unique to have a phone with a long cord. Ours was fifteen feet; I stretched it to twenty.
How 'uptown' to have a cordless phone and walk about without a cord! And answering machines without tape! By this time every phone was your own purchase.
The cell phone my boss first had was the size of a shoe box. Can you believe that? When the smaller ones came out he cautioned us not to use it much because it cost 10 cents a minute. It was an on call only phone. Try getting in some remote area in the middle of the night with no signal.
And so we are now the cell phone society. Ever watch two people in a cafe talking on each a phone? Are they talking to each other or someone else? Do you carry your phone to the bathroom? Do you 'never leave home without it'? Oops, that is a charge card.
And so, once again, while having a detailed discussion, I could only get a signal if I stood with my nose against the window. I turned my head twice and twice lost the party. Yes, there is an old reliable on the desk as I keyboard. It is hard wired to the wall.
I say to all of you to be ready to use a pen and paper, a hard wired phone, and a camera with no frills in your adventures of finding ancestors! Or by a converter and plug it into the cigarette lighter socket. Let me see, one for the phone, one for the camera, one for the computer, and one for the GPS to find your way to that little cemetery 20 miles down a gravel road to a priceless image of days gone by.
And one more thing, put on your glasses before you put those little packets in your coffee, what you think is creamer will most likely be sugar.
Have a sweet day
e
The early lives of the children of Lloyd and Ella were photographed outside. It almost seemed like they loved the outdoors! Later, these children would take pictures of their children with cameras with flash bulbs, and later built in flash with automatic winding! PROGRESS!
Their children are taking pictures with digital cameras and sending them without the labor of have pictures processed. INSTANT! MARVELOUS! UNBELIEVABLE!
Except, of course, if you are in a remote area taking pictures of graves and the battery fails. Which teaches all of us doing genealogy to have a loaded other camera with us. Even of it is a wind yourself the low action film. After all, just how much movement does a grave have?
The next comparison is correspondence. We know from previous posted that Knute Ranum actually wrote a letter to someone in Norway. We know from previous posts that if you try to dry stamps by rubbling them on your head, they will stick. How many of you have actually sat down and written a letter recently? I have done it once of late and found my brain two paragraphs ahead; it was painfully slow but in this case, I felt the need to be personal.
We have talked about handwriting before and as Ryen mentioned, computer skills are now more important. And I will agree, until you are in a hotel somewhere which advertises WiFi and the computer isn't sitting on top of a router that keeps you connected.
The next comparison is telephones. The neighbors had a crank phone in the '40's. We had a modern phone which also hung on the wall. In the early news papers as well as pictures of Thief River Falls telephones were available. Businesses listed there numbers, one was 62. Pictures show telephone poles.
The Anderson children had the option of buying their phones! Ours was called the secretary. It was that 1970 orange with a cork board and a box inside to put the newspaper. How unique to have a phone with a long cord. Ours was fifteen feet; I stretched it to twenty.
How 'uptown' to have a cordless phone and walk about without a cord! And answering machines without tape! By this time every phone was your own purchase.
The cell phone my boss first had was the size of a shoe box. Can you believe that? When the smaller ones came out he cautioned us not to use it much because it cost 10 cents a minute. It was an on call only phone. Try getting in some remote area in the middle of the night with no signal.
And so we are now the cell phone society. Ever watch two people in a cafe talking on each a phone? Are they talking to each other or someone else? Do you carry your phone to the bathroom? Do you 'never leave home without it'? Oops, that is a charge card.
And so, once again, while having a detailed discussion, I could only get a signal if I stood with my nose against the window. I turned my head twice and twice lost the party. Yes, there is an old reliable on the desk as I keyboard. It is hard wired to the wall.
I say to all of you to be ready to use a pen and paper, a hard wired phone, and a camera with no frills in your adventures of finding ancestors! Or by a converter and plug it into the cigarette lighter socket. Let me see, one for the phone, one for the camera, one for the computer, and one for the GPS to find your way to that little cemetery 20 miles down a gravel road to a priceless image of days gone by.
And one more thing, put on your glasses before you put those little packets in your coffee, what you think is creamer will most likely be sugar.
Have a sweet day
e
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Try to visualize your ancestors with this story:
From the Warren Register Newspaper, 1887:
An amusing incident occurred in the postoffice recently. Stamp Clerk Lemcke had just sold a natty old gentleman a dollar's worth of "2's"
The old gentleman was wondering where to put them when he accidentally put his damp fingers on the sticky side of the stamp and they began to stick together.
"Say, how do you keep these things from sticking together?" he asked.
"Rub them on your head, " the clerk replied.
"Ah! that's a new scheme, " said the purchaser of the stamps, and he removed his hat and began to rub them over his bald head.
"The longer we live the more we learn, " he said, smiling, as he allowed the stamps to remain on his head while he paid for them and put some papers back into his coat pocket. The stamps stuck.
"There, now that's"--he said as he reached up and tried to remove the stamps. They were sticking closer than a brother to a shiny white scalp. He tore one of them off, and he said it brought the skin. The clerk could not contain himself and the bald headed old gentleman slapped his hat over his head and hurried out the door grumbling.
See far!
e
An amusing incident occurred in the postoffice recently. Stamp Clerk Lemcke had just sold a natty old gentleman a dollar's worth of "2's"
The old gentleman was wondering where to put them when he accidentally put his damp fingers on the sticky side of the stamp and they began to stick together.
"Say, how do you keep these things from sticking together?" he asked.
"Rub them on your head, " the clerk replied.
"Ah! that's a new scheme, " said the purchaser of the stamps, and he removed his hat and began to rub them over his bald head.
"The longer we live the more we learn, " he said, smiling, as he allowed the stamps to remain on his head while he paid for them and put some papers back into his coat pocket. The stamps stuck.
"There, now that's"--he said as he reached up and tried to remove the stamps. They were sticking closer than a brother to a shiny white scalp. He tore one of them off, and he said it brought the skin. The clerk could not contain himself and the bald headed old gentleman slapped his hat over his head and hurried out the door grumbling.
See far!
e
The Great and Power Zodiac!
Our lesson for today is to discover with whom you share your zodiac sign.
Kelsie Hagen, Vince Hagen, and Lisa Arnold Hamlin, Ella Lundberg Ranum, Jeannie Reiter Anderson are ARIES. Are they Outgoing.* Lovable.* Spontaneous.* Not one to mess with.* Funny.* EXCELLENT kisser.* EXTREMELY adorable.* Loves relationships.* Addictive. * Is one of a kind.* Very romantic.* Most caring person you will ever meet!* Very creative.* Extremely random
Our TAURUS people are Jessie Delfin, Jaeme Thomae, Jordan Hagen, and Bridget Watne they are Aggressive.* Loves being in long relationships. * Likes to give a good fight for what they want.* Extremely outgoing.* Loves to help people in times of need.* GOOD kisser.* GOOD personality.* Stubborn but a caring person.* One of a kind.* Not one to mess with.* Usually are the most attractive people.
Dick Anderson, Susi Anderson Delfin Upuni, Ralph Friesner, Keith Hagen, Nels Rye, and Richard Lloyd Anderson are GEMINI Nice.* Love is one of a kind.* Great listener.* Lover not a fighter, but will still knock you out.* Trustworthy.* Always happy.* Loud.* Talkative.* Outgoing.* VERY Forgiving.* Loves to make friends * Has a beautiful smile.* Generous.* Strong.*
For those who are , CANCER - * Most AMAZING kisser...Very high appeal.* Love is one of a kind.* Very romantic.* Most caring person you will ever meet!* Very creative.* Extremely random and proud of it.* Freak.* Spontaneous. * Great at telling stories.* Not a fighter, but will knock your lights out if it comes down to it.*We do not have any cancers in this study.
We have a roaring society in our tree! LEOS include: Nina Mellem Anderson Bloom, Stan Ranum, Lynelle Schneider Dickey, Elodee Ranum Anderson Johnson,, Nita Hagen Anderson Watne, Bob Anderson, Nenna Arnold and Judy Anderson Arnold Sorum. Great talker.* Attractive and passionate.* Laid back.* Knows how to have fun.* Is really good at almost anything.* GREAT kisser. * Unpredictable.* Outgoing.* Down to earth.* Addictive.* Attractive.* Loud.* Loves being in long relationships.* Talkative.* Not one to mess with.* Rare to find.*
VIRGOS are said to be dominant in relationships.* Someone loves them right now. * Always wants the last word.* Caring.* Smart.* Loyal.* Easy to talk to.* Everything you ever wanted.* Easy to please.* Does this describe Lloyd Anderson, Pauline Mellem, Larry Gene Schneider, Jeremy Delfin, Phil Lundberg, and Paul (Bud) Anderson?
Rachel Anderson Thomae, Ryen Anderson, Bobbie Jo Schneider, Kaitlin Delfin, Shalin Anderson, Thorinus Mellem, Larry Schneider, Matthew Dickey and Dorothy Anderson Schneider. are LIBRAS. Nice to everyone they meet.* Their Love is one of a kind.* Silly, fun and sweet. * Have own unique appeal.* Most caring person you will ever meet!* However not the kind of person you want to mess with...you might end up crying.
Julia Olette Rye, Clara Jenson, and Julia Clara Ranum were all SCORPIO; as is Brenda Hagen Friesner * EXTREMELY adorable.* Intelligent.* Loves to joke.* Very good sense of humor.* Energetic.* GOOD kisser.* Always get what they want.* Attractive.* Easy going.* Loves being in long relationships.* Talkative.* Romantic.* Caring.
SAGITTARIUS people are spontaneous.* High appeal.* Rare to find.* Great when found.* Loves being in long relationships. * So much love to give.* Not one to mess with.* Very attractive.* Very romantic.* Nice to everyone they meet.* Their Love is one of a kind.* Silly, fun and sweet.* Have their own unique appeal. * Most caring person you will ever meet!* Not the kind of person you wanna mess with because you might end up crying. This group includes: Ella Rye Anderson Steinhauer, Josh Schnieder, Hannah Opseth, Olaf A Anderson, and Henry T Rye
The CAPRICORN group includes: Shirley Anderson Hagen and Benhard Ranum. Love to lust.* Nice.* Sassy.* Intelligent.* Sexy.* Irresistible.* Loves being in long relationships. * Great talker.* Always gets what he or she wants.* Cool.* Loves to own Gemini's in sports.* Extremely fun.* Loves to joke.* Smart.
Josephine and Andrew Lundberg where both AQUARIUS , as are Bailey Watne. and Ron Arnold Trustworthy.* Attractive* GREAT kisser.* One of a kind.* Loves being in long-term relationships. * Extremely energetic.* Unpredictable.* Will exceed your expectations.* Not a Fighter, but will knock your lights out if it comes down to it.
PISCES Andrew Opseth, Marissa Dickey, and Knute Ranum are under this sign. Was he caring and kind?* Smart.* Center of attention.* High appeal.* Has the last word.* Good to find, hard to keep. * Fun to be around.* Extremely weird but in a good way.* Good Sense of Humor!!!* Thoughtful.* Always gets what he or she wants.* Loves to joke.* Very popular.* Silly, fun and sweet.
Now, it is time for this Leo to flick my tail, shake my mane and roar. Don't tell anyone this: I am only part roaring lion, another part of me is a momma cat laying in the sun beams and another is a poor starving kitten that doesn't have sense to come in out of the rain. In that stage, I need someone to open the door and pick me up and stroke me.
Kelsie Hagen, Vince Hagen, and Lisa Arnold Hamlin, Ella Lundberg Ranum, Jeannie Reiter Anderson are ARIES. Are they Outgoing.* Lovable.* Spontaneous.* Not one to mess with.* Funny.* EXCELLENT kisser.* EXTREMELY adorable.* Loves relationships.* Addictive. * Is one of a kind.* Very romantic.* Most caring person you will ever meet!* Very creative.* Extremely random
Our TAURUS people are Jessie Delfin, Jaeme Thomae, Jordan Hagen, and Bridget Watne they are Aggressive.* Loves being in long relationships. * Likes to give a good fight for what they want.* Extremely outgoing.* Loves to help people in times of need.* GOOD kisser.* GOOD personality.* Stubborn but a caring person.* One of a kind.* Not one to mess with.* Usually are the most attractive people.
Dick Anderson, Susi Anderson Delfin Upuni, Ralph Friesner, Keith Hagen, Nels Rye, and Richard Lloyd Anderson are GEMINI Nice.* Love is one of a kind.* Great listener.* Lover not a fighter, but will still knock you out.* Trustworthy.* Always happy.* Loud.* Talkative.* Outgoing.* VERY Forgiving.* Loves to make friends * Has a beautiful smile.* Generous.* Strong.*
For those who are , CANCER - * Most AMAZING kisser...Very high appeal.* Love is one of a kind.* Very romantic.* Most caring person you will ever meet!* Very creative.* Extremely random and proud of it.* Freak.* Spontaneous. * Great at telling stories.* Not a fighter, but will knock your lights out if it comes down to it.*We do not have any cancers in this study.
We have a roaring society in our tree! LEOS include: Nina Mellem Anderson Bloom, Stan Ranum, Lynelle Schneider Dickey, Elodee Ranum Anderson Johnson,, Nita Hagen Anderson Watne, Bob Anderson, Nenna Arnold and Judy Anderson Arnold Sorum. Great talker.* Attractive and passionate.* Laid back.* Knows how to have fun.* Is really good at almost anything.* GREAT kisser. * Unpredictable.* Outgoing.* Down to earth.* Addictive.* Attractive.* Loud.* Loves being in long relationships.* Talkative.* Not one to mess with.* Rare to find.*
VIRGOS are said to be dominant in relationships.* Someone loves them right now. * Always wants the last word.* Caring.* Smart.* Loyal.* Easy to talk to.* Everything you ever wanted.* Easy to please.* Does this describe Lloyd Anderson, Pauline Mellem, Larry Gene Schneider, Jeremy Delfin, Phil Lundberg, and Paul (Bud) Anderson?
Rachel Anderson Thomae, Ryen Anderson, Bobbie Jo Schneider, Kaitlin Delfin, Shalin Anderson, Thorinus Mellem, Larry Schneider, Matthew Dickey and Dorothy Anderson Schneider. are LIBRAS. Nice to everyone they meet.* Their Love is one of a kind.* Silly, fun and sweet. * Have own unique appeal.* Most caring person you will ever meet!* However not the kind of person you want to mess with...you might end up crying.
Julia Olette Rye, Clara Jenson, and Julia Clara Ranum were all SCORPIO; as is Brenda Hagen Friesner * EXTREMELY adorable.* Intelligent.* Loves to joke.* Very good sense of humor.* Energetic.* GOOD kisser.* Always get what they want.* Attractive.* Easy going.* Loves being in long relationships.* Talkative.* Romantic.* Caring.
SAGITTARIUS people are spontaneous.* High appeal.* Rare to find.* Great when found.* Loves being in long relationships. * So much love to give.* Not one to mess with.* Very attractive.* Very romantic.* Nice to everyone they meet.* Their Love is one of a kind.* Silly, fun and sweet.* Have their own unique appeal. * Most caring person you will ever meet!* Not the kind of person you wanna mess with because you might end up crying. This group includes: Ella Rye Anderson Steinhauer, Josh Schnieder, Hannah Opseth, Olaf A Anderson, and Henry T Rye
The CAPRICORN group includes: Shirley Anderson Hagen and Benhard Ranum. Love to lust.* Nice.* Sassy.* Intelligent.* Sexy.* Irresistible.* Loves being in long relationships. * Great talker.* Always gets what he or she wants.* Cool.* Loves to own Gemini's in sports.* Extremely fun.* Loves to joke.* Smart.
Josephine and Andrew Lundberg where both AQUARIUS , as are Bailey Watne. and Ron Arnold Trustworthy.* Attractive* GREAT kisser.* One of a kind.* Loves being in long-term relationships. * Extremely energetic.* Unpredictable.* Will exceed your expectations.* Not a Fighter, but will knock your lights out if it comes down to it.
PISCES Andrew Opseth, Marissa Dickey, and Knute Ranum are under this sign. Was he caring and kind?* Smart.* Center of attention.* High appeal.* Has the last word.* Good to find, hard to keep. * Fun to be around.* Extremely weird but in a good way.* Good Sense of Humor!!!* Thoughtful.* Always gets what he or she wants.* Loves to joke.* Very popular.* Silly, fun and sweet.
Now, it is time for this Leo to flick my tail, shake my mane and roar. Don't tell anyone this: I am only part roaring lion, another part of me is a momma cat laying in the sun beams and another is a poor starving kitten that doesn't have sense to come in out of the rain. In that stage, I need someone to open the door and pick me up and stroke me.
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
The Altar at Rindal Church
If this doesn't stir some sort of spirituality in you, nothing will. There is something about these old churches that just say there is something bigger in the universe than oneself. Every time I visit this place, I am intrigued with all the sermons, baptisms, funerals, and weddings that have taken place here. Open the little side door and walk in. No matter what the season or the weather, the air seems inviting.
Walk to the front. If you play the piano or pretend to, it doesn't matter. It is willing to have you sit and play and listen to that old ring of an upright. My son, Bud, played it years ago, and I play it whenever I am there.
My grandparents were long standing members. My grandparent's good bye was said at this church. Daddy and I sat in the front row under the pulpit, holding hands and listening to a hell fire and brimstone sermon when Grandma was buried. We agreed that sort of sermon was not in order for her but we had asked an "old time preacher' to do the service; what can you expect? When Grandpa was buried eleven years later, the minister was more loving.
While standing at the altar looking toward the front door, look up. Yes, there is a choir loft. The walls are a soft sea foam green, the pews are natural wood, and the altar, as you can see, is white.
The basement has memories. They used to have fancy work auctions there. It was so fun to listen to Selmer Haugen auction items. He was a big man with a pendulous abdomen and a jolly laugh. One year, I got a hand made clown stuffed with cat tail fuzz. I was so proud to have something from that auction!
Each spring, ancestors, gather to clean the church and cemetery. The day is complete with a pot luck in the basement. A cemetery committee was formed several years ago. Trees were planted and a well was dug to water the trees. Someone was hired out of the funds to mow. Daddy sent out letters to all the ancestors and the money came to cover the costs. My dad was humble, he did the work and gave the credit for the project to his dad and the generations which came to help.
I don't know where the church was moved from. I do know the original cemetery was somewhere else because Siri Ranum, my great grandmother, was moved to Rindal in 1902. She is one of the many people buried under the massive tree right inside the cemetery.
If you have family buried in some little cemetery with a high steeple church, may I encourage you to go there? Step inside, walk on the talking floors, play the piano, and get the feel for what it must have been like for folks to come together to pray and sing. What was religion like then? Is it like the recent email I got from cousin Patrick?
Patrick wrote:
A Church goer wrote a letter to the editor of a newspaper and complained that it made no sense to go to church every Sunday. "I've gone for 30 years now," he wrote, "and in that time I have heard something like 3,000 sermons. But for the life of me, I can't remember a single one of them. So, I think I'm wasting my time and the pastors are wasting theirs by giving sermons at all."
This started a real controversy in the "Letters to the Editor" column, much to the delight of the editor. It went on for weeks until someone wrote this clincher: I've been married for 30 years now. In that time my wife has cooked some 32,000 meals. But, for the life of me, I cannot recall the entire menu for a single one of those meals. But I do know this.. They all nourished me and gave me the strength I needed to do my work. If my wife had not given me these meals, I would be physically dead today.
Likewise, if I had not gone to church for nourishment, I would be spiritually dead today!" When you are DOWN to nothing.... God is UP to something! Faith sees the invisible, believes the incredible and receives the impossible!
Maybe that is what envelopes me at Rindal.
e
Monday, June 25, 2007
Benhard and Julia Ranum, Part 2
Benhard and Julia (Opseth) Ranum
on June 24, 1911 Benhard Ranum was married to Julia Opseth, daughter of Andrew and Hannah Opseth who lived at Rosewood. They lived with her folks about a year and then took a homestead in the Mud Lake area and lived there three years, but did not "prove" up. They sold their rights to Charlie Nelson, the road master on the Wheat Line of the Soo Railroad.
on June 24, 1911 Benhard Ranum was married to Julia Opseth, daughter of Andrew and Hannah Opseth who lived at Rosewood. They lived with her folks about a year and then took a homestead in the Mud Lake area and lived there three years, but did not "prove" up. They sold their rights to Charlie Nelson, the road master on the Wheat Line of the Soo Railroad.
They moved back to New Solum Township and built a house on Section 10, the Strip, about a mile southeast of Rosewood where they lived 28 years. Mr. Ranum continued to do carpenter work. He remembers burning limestone near the Louis Halvorson place to make lime for white washing.
In 1948 Mr. and Mrs. Ranum retired to Thief River Falls but Mr. Ranum still wanted to build houses and so built nine in Thief River Falls after he was 70 years old.
e
Sunday, June 24, 2007
May I Introduce Mr. and Mrs. Benhard Ranum?
This is a proud day for me. It is a day I remember every year. My grand parents were married on June 24, 1911. Grandpa was 31 and would turn 32 in December; Grandma was 25 and would have a birthday in October. Two of the children's grandmothers were born on the 24th of October, both of them were named Julia, both had maiden names that started with "O" and married men with last names beginning with "R". Can you tell I love trivia?
Benhard referred to Julia as "no spring chicken". Ah, to be 25 again!
Benhard had become known as a carpenter; he went where the work took him. Julia had lived in the city of Thief River Falls as domestic help before she married as is stated in the city directory.
They were married in the Rindal Church where they were members. They would live with her parent's, Hannah and Andrew Opseth for the first year, as was common in those days.
I had hoped as a small child, to be married in her dress. I just knew something so beautiful must be carefully tucked away. Like any other pioneer spirited woman, Julia cut it up and remade it into something else.
I will offer three pictures of them before I go on to the Henry Rye marriage. Two of the wedding including Julia's sister and her husband Harvey Skinner as part of the wedding party, one of the their fifth wedding anniversary. Oh! Wouldn't this be a good time to share the altar at Rindal Church?
e
Friday, June 22, 2007
The Candy Store
PUBLISH DATE JUNE 23, SATURDAY
Please think about your child hood candy store. For me, it was Woolworth because they had bins of candy and their was a server behind the counter. I loved chocolate covered peanuts but since you only got a few for a dime, I bought red hots, which were the best buy for the nickel. Greg could put a whole bag in is mouth at one time! The clerk didn't like to wait on kids so we would tap loudly on the glass with the edge of our nickel. And she also always waited on the adults first.
When I stayed with Grandma Mae and Grandpa Phil, I would get a nickel for a popsicle after I had rested. The Mom and Pop store was across a vacant block. I liked grape the best and rootbeer the least. Everyone else must have liked the flavor in that order because rootbeer was all they had, that and banana.
One of the funniest stories I ever heard was when Melvina and Cliff Rye went into the store at Rosewood. It was operated by a man who couldn't speak;h; he may have had a stroke but Mel didn't know that. Cliff told Tom that he wanted two pops. Mel, of course, asked what flavors they had. And Tom couldn't tell her. So Cliff said she would have grape. MEL HATES GRAPE!
The bank in Rosewood had become the store. It even had gas pumps after the garage across the street shut down. I remember the pumps because Daddy would stop and get a couple dollars worth of gas when he went on one of his adventures back to boy hood. Maybe Stolas didn't have it then but it gave Daddy a chance to look the place over and chatter with the locals.
Right after he cut his leg with a saw, Mother, Daddy, Greg, Harry, his brother and his wife Lil and Bruce moved into the bank turned store. That was around Thanksgiving of 1941. There are several references to the bank being built. I will need to get that together for all of us to remember.
But for those of you who have long memories OR are older, there was, at one time a real store in Rosewood. It was run by the Voldness'. See the gas pumps? Look at those cars? Can you tell me the year? Imagine how cold those cars were in the winter! No wonder everyone wore fur coats.
And even if you were too poor to get candy, you weren't too poor to wish for it. Besides one could always collect and sell pop bottles for 3 cents each....or was that how one got money for the movies?
e
The Spinners
There is much to be said about coming together to work. Here are a group of women from the New Solum area, that indeed got together. The cross over of denominations was almost non existent. In times of joy or pain, or in this case, women working together, there was no denomination.
I adore the idea their central focus was spinning!
I am pleased to announce this photo includes:
Back L to R Julia Opseth Ranum, Caroline (Lena) Lappegaard Mellem, Annie Holten,
Front: L to R Hilda Sagmoen, Nina Mellem Anderson Bloom, Christine Paulson, and Julia Olson Rye.
Think of it! Four of these ladies are related to YOU! Any one out there remember seeing this done? Me? Only at a pioneer festival, and she was making yarn out of cat hair!
Happy spinning!
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Nina Mellem
NINA MELLEM ANDERSON BLOOM
As you remember, Nina was the ninth child of Thorinus and Pauline Mellem. She was born in Rosewood, New Solum Township on July 29, 1891.
We know that she played with my grandmother, Julia Opseth and her sister, Hilda as the Mellem’s lived across the road from the Opseth’s.
We don’t have a lot of information about her teenage life. We do know that she met Olof Adolph Anderson in her youth and married him as a fifteen year old in March of 1907.
My favorite picture of her is one my grandmother owned. When I looked at the pictures in the old photo album, I always thought she was so pretty. I am certain you think the same.
As you remember, Nina was the ninth child of Thorinus and Pauline Mellem. She was born in Rosewood, New Solum Township on July 29, 1891.
We know that she played with my grandmother, Julia Opseth and her sister, Hilda as the Mellem’s lived across the road from the Opseth’s.
We don’t have a lot of information about her teenage life. We do know that she met Olof Adolph Anderson in her youth and married him as a fifteen year old in March of 1907.
My favorite picture of her is one my grandmother owned. When I looked at the pictures in the old photo album, I always thought she was so pretty. I am certain you think the same.
Speaking of old photos, this is the day I 'motor' to Grand Forks to meet Shirley and pick up the old albums. I am hopeful Kelsie, who is thirteen is able to accompany Shirley and Keith. I have thought alot about being thirteen myself. I wonder what she does at this age? ME? Feed 25 horses, 5 pigs, 1 steer, and 1, 000 chickens. For fun? Ride my bike to town to swim, ride horse back, and go to camp. In a few months, I will tell you about the lost swimming suit!
Ernie Johnson, Sr.
When Ernie Johnson was inducted into the Braves’ Hall of Fame on August 24, 2001, it was an award honoring his more than 50 years as a member of the Braves’ family.
Some speakers at the ceremony mentioned his playing career, highlighted by a stellar 1.29 ERA during the 1957 World Series against the Yankees; others spoke of his 35 years in the broadcast booth, keeping listeners entranced during periods when the Braves' performance ranged from worst -- to first.
But Ernie’s true place in Braves’ history can’t be measured in balls and strikes or games behind the mike. There is no statistic that takes the measure of a man’s heart, and what he has meant to his fans, his friends and colleagues, and his family.
Ernie was born in what he calls “God’s country” -- Brattleboro, Vermont, in 1924. His parents, Thorwald and Ingeborg Johnson, were Swedish immigrants, and his dad was a woodworker by trade. Ernie was an outstanding high school athlete in baseball and basketball who had his choice of possible professional careers. He chose baseball.
In 1942, he began his pro career with Hartford, a Braves’ farm club, but he would miss the next three years after he joined the Marine Corps, serving in Okinawa during World War II. Some of his war memorabilia is currently on display in the Braves Museum at Turner Field, and the Marine Corps flag flies atop the flag pole in his front yard.
Back in Brattleboro when the war ended, Ernie was about to enter a storybook romance that continues to this day. He met Lois, a cheerleader at his old high school, and the rest is Johnson history.
“What do you do?” Lois asked him on their first date.
“I play baseball,” came the reply.
“I know, but what do you do for a LIVING?”
They were married on November 15, 1947.
Ernie pitched for the Braves in “middle relief” from 1950 until 1958. He was traded to the Baltimore Orioles, where he pitched in 1959, and released at the end of the season. The Cleveland Indians picked him up, but released him before the 1960 season, and his playing days were over.
The end of his playing career, however, became the stepping stone to his broadcast career.
His smooth voice and knowledge of the game earned him his first television job as the host of a baseball show called “Play Ball!” on a local Milwaukee station. From there, he was hired as the color commentator on Braves radio in 1962.
Play Ball!
Ernie Johnson Jr.
ATLANTA — Ernie Johnson Jr., the studious host of TNT's Inside the NBA, is fanatical about his job.He arrives at least eight hours before the tip-off of the network's first game to crunch numbers and pore over piles of newspaper clippings. Then, he'll color code his research with multihued pens, which he stacks by the dozens in a straight line on top of his desk.
But this particular night, he's delving deeply into a subject he's anything but obsessed about — himself.
"Hey, man, I heard that you referred to me as 'the coolest Caucasian on the planet,' somewhere on your Web site," Johnson says to his friend, Atlanta-based rap artist Chuck D of Public Enemy, who'd dropped by TNT's studios to hang out with Johnson and star analysts Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley. "Did you really say that?"
And Ernie Johnson, Jr. says this about his wife, Cheryl:
After you meet Cheryl," Johnson said proudly, "you'll want to write about her rather than me. She's a real dynamo."
In 1991, Cheryl's drive, determination and strong convictions changed the Johnson's' lives forever. They already had two children, Eric, now 17, and Maggie, 15. But after seeing a story on 20/20 about the horrifying treatment of Romanian orphans, Cheryl suggested that she and Ernie adopt one those children. So, in the middle of the NBA playoffs, she embarked on a two-month trip to Romania, where she fell in love with a 3-year-old boy, Michael, who'd been abandoned in a park. He had multiple medical problems.
"We were going to adopt a girl, between the ages of 6 and 18 months, without any physical handicaps," E.J. recalled. "Then, after the fourth day there, Cheryl phoned and said, 'I saw this boy, and he's everything we said we couldn't accept. But I can't live the rest of my life wondering what happened to him.'
"And I said, 'Bring him home.'"
WOW. If that doesn't make you proud to be related, I don't know what will!
Shirley Mae Anderson Hagen is the second cousin of Ernie Johnson, Jr.
e
Reverend Olaf A Anderson's Hymnal
This is the inside cover of Olaf Adolph Anderson's song book. Shirley scanned it for me the early part of last December. It is an important part of history for all of us. It is a part of Olaf. It wasn't like she had it laying on her table, she had given it to Shalin, the oldest child of her youngest child, Juanita. The family worked it out so she could scan it to share with everyone.. Thanks to all for sharing.In yesterday's post, I asked Shirley about the picture of Olaf with the open book was the book she had. She stated, "The book shown here seems somewhat bigger than the songbook I gave Shalin. The songbook was maybe 5"-5 1/2" high."
Shall we guess these songs were not in English? Don't you wonder what songs were his favorites which are listed as numbers on the page? Pick a book, any book, does that page give you inspiration as Olaf's song book encouraged himself and others?
Shirley's post goes on to say, "As far as I know, Bob is the only one to have contacted Ernie Johnson". Bob did connect with Ernie sometime in the late seventies or early eighties. He may still have the letter. I know it was an important connection for him. He saw him on TV announcing the Braves game.
"I think Ernie is a sportscaster in Atlanta? I've seen him announce several times on TV. Mom said the first time she heard him she was walking through the living room..she stopped short almost recognizing the voice that was coming from the TV. I can't say that I noticed any likeness in their voices". To clarify: Ernie Johnson, Jr. was born in 1956.
"Grandpa Olaf never met his sister Ingeborg. He came to the US before she was born..then when she came to the US, he had already moved to MN. I think I remember hearing that Olaf was 18 yrs older than Ingeborg.It says (from the newspaper) that Olaf was buried on Oct 4, 1917. I think Dad died on Oct. 4, 1967. I can still remember Mom saying after Dad died that Olaf died in '17, Newell in '27 and Dad in '67. "
This information is important to all of us because it gave us a link of information. Shirley googled Ernie Johnson, found the son, which led us to Ernie, which led us to a place to write to his family.
As Ben Franklin said, "Energy and persistence conquer all things." Thanks, Shirley!
e
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Life of Olaf Adolph Anderson
Study this picture carefully. Look at the background. Judy, is this the table you have? Shirley, is this the song book? Look at the ink well. Did he own that many books? Was this picture taken at Risberg's Theological Seminary, Chicago?
Is the document in front of me stating his intention to become a citizen of the United States bona fide? Did he renounce, forever, all allegiance and fidelity to the King of Sweden on October 23th of 1886? Did he really emigrate to the United States through Quebec?
We know he had a sister in Vermont. She had a son named Ernie, who was part of the Atlanta Braves Baseball Organization. Did any of the Rosewood Anderson's keep in touch with this part of the family?
Let's review what we have learned from the newspaper. Think about how he would have traveled.
The Rosewood News mentioned him consistently starting in March of 1916. He is referred to as Rev OA Anderson; Nina is Mrs. Rev. OA Anderson.
Reverend Anderson had a church in Plummer. He would leave Rosewood on Friday and return on Monday or Tuesday. The Rosewood News referred to the church as the Congregational Church. The News refers to people visiting the parsonage of Rev OA Anderson.
March 1916
"Rev OA Anderson and J Albert Peterson visited at the Styrlund home Tuesday afternoon."
"Rev OA Anderson, having spent Sunday with his congregation at Plummer, arrived home again on Tuesday."
April 1916
"Rev. OA Anderson delivered an interesting message to an attentive congregation at the Congregational Church on Sunday evening."
"Services were held at the Congregational Church last Sunday with Rev. OA Anderson."
May
"Mrs. Rev OA Anderson was entertained at the John Sor's home."
"Rev. OA Anderson returned home after a week absence to the northern part of the state."
"Services were conducted at the Congregational Church on Sunday, Rev OA Anderson, officiating."
"Mrs. Rev OA Anderson and Mrs. T Mellem visited with relatives in Rosewood Saturday."
July 1916
"A business meeting at the Rev OA Anderson parsonage Tuesday evening for the purpose of arranging an ice cream social in connection with the Congregational Church."
August 1916
"Rev OA Anderson in Viking this week."
September 1916
"Rev OA Anderson spent the day with relatives in Viking."
October 1916
"Joel Shoberg was a guest at the Rev. OA Anderson parsonage last week".
November 1916
"Rev. OA Anderson gave a short speech and many English songs were sung."
"The Peter Mellem's visited the Rev. OA Anderson parsonage."
"Religious meetings by Rev OA Anderson were conducted at the Bredeson Church on Saturday and Sunday."
"Reverend OA Anderson returned home from West Valley last weekend."
December 1916
"Rev OA Anderson left Friday to spend time with his Plummer congregation."
"Rev Olaf Anderson arrived home from Plummer on Tuesday."
April 1917
"Rev OA Anderson returned on Tuesday morning after a few weeks mission tour in the Rainy River region. He had also passed the previous Sunday with his congregation at Plummer, Minnesota."
"Rev OA Anderson spent Thursday in Viking, MN visiting."
"Services were conducted at the Congregational Church on Sunday evening with Rev Anderson officiating. The text was taken from St. John, 21:1-14"
"Rev OA Anderson spent Tuesday at Viking attending to business matters and also visiting relatives, returning the same evening."
"John Bloom and T Mellem sided up the west wall of the Congregational Church on Saturday. The reason it wasn't sided was because an addition had been considered."
May
"Rev OA Anderson was host in the parsonage for Rev. AK Voss of International Falls, Minnesota."
"Rev. Olof Anderson left on Friday evening for an over Sunday stay with his congregation at Plummer."
"Rev, OA Anderson arrived home from his tour to Plummer Tuesday morning."
"Rev OA Anderson was a caller at the Sor home."
June
"Rev OA Anderson left Tuesday for Red Lake Falls for a stay in the interests of his ministerial duties."
"Evangelists lead services for this week at Congregational Church."
Carl Mellem and Minnie Holson marry. Ceremony was performed by Rev. OA Anderson.
July
"Rev OA Anderson spent Friday visiting the SS Norgaard and E. Nelson families in Viking."
September
"Rev OA Anderson of the Congregational Church spent Sunday at Plummer, where he also has a congregation."
The Congregational Church installed a new oil stove on Thursday
Rev Olaf Anderson spent Saturday visiting with friends and relatives in Viking.
October 11, 1917 Newspaper
News of Rosewood
The funeral of Rev OA Anderson was held from the Congregational Church last Thursday. About 200 attended. The services were conducted by Rev Drotts.
Mrs. Anderson and her youngest son, Lloyd, went to Viking on Tuesday to visit relatives for a couple of weeks.
November 1917
11 22 1917 paper
Church has interim pastor as they search for a replacement for Rev. OA Anderson who died unexpectedly.
Olaf Adolph Anderson died in Koochiching County in the township of Manitou on October 1, 1917. He was born on December 3, 1871. He died of pulmonary tuberculosis, which he had for ten years. He did not die in a hospital. . He was buried at Wildwood Cemetery on October 4, 1917.
His father is listed as Andreas Nelson from Dalsland, Sweden. His mother is considered "unknown". Nina Anderson, his wife, provided the information.
THE WARREN REGISTER
COUNTRY CORRESPONDENCE
Rev. Olof A. Anderson, pastor of the Congregation Church at this place, died early Monday morning at the home of P. Olson north of Birchdale, where he was spending a vacation with friends. He has not been strong for a number of years, having been suffering form weak lungs and throat affection. A telegram was received by his relatives on Monday, stating his departure, and an undertaker was sent there to remove the body, which will rest at the Wildwood Cemetery here.
Rev. Anderson was born at Dalsland, Sweden, December 3, 1871, graduated from Risberg's Theological Seminary, Chicago, 1905, for few years traveled in the interest of the Red River Valley Mission Society, from where he came to this place and founded the Congregational Church in 1912 and has been its pastor.
He leaves to mourn him a widow and two boys, besides a number of relatives in Vermont and numerous friends. He has accomplished a commendable work at this place and the whole community will grieve for him.
Reverend Anderson had a church in Plummer. He would leave Rosewood on Friday and return on Monday or Tuesday. The Rosewood News referred to the church as the Congregational Church. The News refers to people visiting the parsonage of Rev OA Anderson.
March 1916
"Rev OA Anderson and J Albert Peterson visited at the Styrlund home Tuesday afternoon."
"Rev OA Anderson, having spent Sunday with his congregation at Plummer, arrived home again on Tuesday."
April 1916
"Rev. OA Anderson delivered an interesting message to an attentive congregation at the Congregational Church on Sunday evening."
"Services were held at the Congregational Church last Sunday with Rev. OA Anderson."
May
"Mrs. Rev OA Anderson was entertained at the John Sor's home."
"Rev. OA Anderson returned home after a week absence to the northern part of the state."
"Services were conducted at the Congregational Church on Sunday, Rev OA Anderson, officiating."
"Mrs. Rev OA Anderson and Mrs. T Mellem visited with relatives in Rosewood Saturday."
July 1916
"A business meeting at the Rev OA Anderson parsonage Tuesday evening for the purpose of arranging an ice cream social in connection with the Congregational Church."
August 1916
"Rev OA Anderson in Viking this week."
September 1916
"Rev OA Anderson spent the day with relatives in Viking."
October 1916
"Joel Shoberg was a guest at the Rev. OA Anderson parsonage last week".
November 1916
"Rev. OA Anderson gave a short speech and many English songs were sung."
"The Peter Mellem's visited the Rev. OA Anderson parsonage."
"Religious meetings by Rev OA Anderson were conducted at the Bredeson Church on Saturday and Sunday."
"Reverend OA Anderson returned home from West Valley last weekend."
December 1916
"Rev OA Anderson left Friday to spend time with his Plummer congregation."
"Rev Olaf Anderson arrived home from Plummer on Tuesday."
April 1917
"Rev OA Anderson returned on Tuesday morning after a few weeks mission tour in the Rainy River region. He had also passed the previous Sunday with his congregation at Plummer, Minnesota."
"Rev OA Anderson spent Thursday in Viking, MN visiting."
"Services were conducted at the Congregational Church on Sunday evening with Rev Anderson officiating. The text was taken from St. John, 21:1-14"
"Rev OA Anderson spent Tuesday at Viking attending to business matters and also visiting relatives, returning the same evening."
"John Bloom and T Mellem sided up the west wall of the Congregational Church on Saturday. The reason it wasn't sided was because an addition had been considered."
May
"Rev OA Anderson was host in the parsonage for Rev. AK Voss of International Falls, Minnesota."
"Rev. Olof Anderson left on Friday evening for an over Sunday stay with his congregation at Plummer."
"Rev, OA Anderson arrived home from his tour to Plummer Tuesday morning."
"Rev OA Anderson was a caller at the Sor home."
June
"Rev OA Anderson left Tuesday for Red Lake Falls for a stay in the interests of his ministerial duties."
"Evangelists lead services for this week at Congregational Church."
Carl Mellem and Minnie Holson marry. Ceremony was performed by Rev. OA Anderson.
July
"Rev OA Anderson spent Friday visiting the SS Norgaard and E. Nelson families in Viking."
September
"Rev OA Anderson of the Congregational Church spent Sunday at Plummer, where he also has a congregation."
The Congregational Church installed a new oil stove on Thursday
Rev Olaf Anderson spent Saturday visiting with friends and relatives in Viking.
October 11, 1917 Newspaper
News of Rosewood
The funeral of Rev OA Anderson was held from the Congregational Church last Thursday. About 200 attended. The services were conducted by Rev Drotts.
Mrs. Anderson and her youngest son, Lloyd, went to Viking on Tuesday to visit relatives for a couple of weeks.
November 1917
11 22 1917 paper
Church has interim pastor as they search for a replacement for Rev. OA Anderson who died unexpectedly.
Olaf Adolph Anderson died in Koochiching County in the township of Manitou on October 1, 1917. He was born on December 3, 1871. He died of pulmonary tuberculosis, which he had for ten years. He did not die in a hospital. . He was buried at Wildwood Cemetery on October 4, 1917.
His father is listed as Andreas Nelson from Dalsland, Sweden. His mother is considered "unknown". Nina Anderson, his wife, provided the information.
THE WARREN REGISTER
COUNTRY CORRESPONDENCE
Rev. Olof A. Anderson, pastor of the Congregation Church at this place, died early Monday morning at the home of P. Olson north of Birchdale, where he was spending a vacation with friends. He has not been strong for a number of years, having been suffering form weak lungs and throat affection. A telegram was received by his relatives on Monday, stating his departure, and an undertaker was sent there to remove the body, which will rest at the Wildwood Cemetery here.
Rev. Anderson was born at Dalsland, Sweden, December 3, 1871, graduated from Risberg's Theological Seminary, Chicago, 1905, for few years traveled in the interest of the Red River Valley Mission Society, from where he came to this place and founded the Congregational Church in 1912 and has been its pastor.
He leaves to mourn him a widow and two boys, besides a number of relatives in Vermont and numerous friends. He has accomplished a commendable work at this place and the whole community will grieve for him.
Monday, June 18, 2007
Update on Hannah Opseth
On May 29, I posted a question about Hannah Nordhagen Opseth and how she was related to the Nordhagen's from Kelliher, MN.
I am happy to announce I received her death certificate from the Minnesota Historical Society today, AND Ole was her father.
Ole Nordhagen Year: 1845-1856 the father, came to America and settled in Wisconsin. The family members who came with him were his wife, Margith and their children Ole and Mari.
Ole the child, is Hannah Nordhagen's father. Huzzah! Mystery solved
e
Sunday, June 17, 2007
Lundberg, Part Two
TO PUBLISH TUESDAY, JUNE 19
Today we will talk about Philip Lundberg, his wives and his children.
He is the oldest son of Andrew and Josephine. He was born in Grantsburg, Wisconsin on September 20, 1888 and died on October 19, 1958 in Thief River Falls, MN. He is buried at Greenwood Cemetery next to his second wife, Mary Jane, (Mae).
Philip married Clara Jensen in Thief River Falls, MN on November 12, 1912. This bit of information was a three line column in the Thief River Falls Times. Clara was born on November 11, 1894-October 26, 1972. Her parents were Anton Jensen and Synneva Vigoren, both Minnesota born parents.
Anton and Synneva had ten children. They lived in Becker County where they farmed and Anton had a saw mill. The house was a log cabin and later it was added on to and sided. I was the home of Carl and his wife. She didn’t know much about the Jensen’s, as Carl was the youngest child and didn’t have the information I had hoped to glean at our meeting and the letters we shared during the time I knew her. She was not well enough to drag out old picture books. Our letter visits were a joy to both of us. Clara was the oldest child and Carl, her husband, was the youngest, a difference of nearly 20 years. Her name was Viola.
Clara and Philip had four children:
Lloyd C Lundberg July 30, 1913-March 29, 1935
Viola Jeanette November 6, 1915-
Cleve Clifford February 27, 1920- March 1, 1920
Ella Deloris March 22, 1924-November 17, 2002
Lloyd was called “Bootsy“. He was last seen on March 29, 1935. He was found on April 27, 1935 near a haystack north east of Thief River Falls in a decomposed state. The top of his head was blown off by a shot gun. The shot gun lay across his lap. The coroner considered it accidental.
“Bootsy” was twenty one when he died. He has a long list of diagnosis’. They include:
Artheriosclerosis starting in 1915
Iterstitial Nephritis starting in 1921
Gallstones on May 1, 1923
Attacks of epilepsy
Run over by a street car at a week old
Peritonistis
Cerebral hemorrhage July 5, 1927
Gastroenteritis since 1934
Mother didn’t say much about him except he had bright red hair and freckles.
The next child, Viola had a child named Sally Constance, who she gave up for adoption. When Philip died, Stan Ranum, Ella’s husband, hired a detective find her but she elected not to come home for the funeral. When she was pregnant with Connie, Philip would not let her live at home. She did not wish to be found again. Connie has tried numbers of times to find her but she changed her social security number and we do not know if she is living or where she is buried. We do know she was married a couple of times to a Hirschman and Bambia. If anyone has any thoughts about finding her, let me know. Connie would like the closure. Connie Lives in Nevada.
Cleve lived three days. His death certificate states he was born with bronco pneumonia. It states In untero. He died at the Swedenborg Hospital in Thief River Falls which was located on Red Lake Boulevard near Third Street.
Their last child, Ella Deloris, was born in Thief River Falls. We will share pictures of her as we moved along in the history of the families, she married Stanley Ranum from Rosewood, Minnesota.
Mother didn’t say much about her childhood. She did go to school at Northrop, I did find a picture of Viola as a second grader at Northrop. Remember Viola was born seven years before Mother. So Lundberg’s were living in TRF in 1922. Most likely near Northrop which was in the north part of town.
Mother wasn’t in school yet when Clara left the kids with Philip. I had a real problem with this for some time. How could a mother leave her children? It wasn’t until I connected with Connie that I learned that Philip was in bed with the house keeper, Mary Jane , (Mae),Wynkoop when Clara came home from the café where she worked.
We do know that Mary Jane Johnson was previously married to Victor Wynkoop who died in 1927. The Johnson's were living in Akeley, MN at the time of the meeting. According to census records, Victor Wynkoop was born in Illinois. It states he is a widow. One can not tell if the ten year old, Harry, is his son or his brother.
That probably gives us the window of about 2 ½ years, as Mary Jane, known as Mae and Philip were married on April 3, 1930 in Chicago, Illinois.
There is a picture of Philip, Mae, and Ella when Mother is about six. It appears to be taken in Thief River Falls near the Chief Coulee. The house where she lived has long since been torn down and replaced by a warehouse.
Let’s use 1928. That makes Bootsy 15, Viola 13, and Ella 4. Philip was working for the county and certainly had more cash flow than Clara. It appears Clara moved to Hennepin County to live with her sister.
Why did Philip and Mae move to Chicago? There where jobs on the railroad. Philip, of course, had family living there. We know that his youngest brother, Kenneth lived in the Chicago area.
It is not known when the family moved back to Thief River. We do know they were living in Minnesota when Connie was born in August of 1933. We do know that Mother was going to school at Northrop.
I do remember Viola visiting Philip after he had his stroke which happened in 1949. I remember I thought it odd that she had a son named Gregory; my brother's name was also Gregory. Viola gave Philip a picture of her son which hung in a prominent place in his bedroom. The child was dark headed with glasses. He wore a striped tee shirt. We think he was born in 1940. Viola did have another child, Earl Kester who Connie did find. He was born in 1936.
Clara Jensen Lundberg went on to marry Joe Henry. The lived near Barnesville. I remember it being Dent or Downer. They had one child, Joann who was born on February 28, 1932 and died of leukemia at the age of 57. She had no children. After Joe died, Clara married William Chapman in 1966. Once again she would become a widower. Clara is buried at Lake View Cemetery near Pelican Rapids, MN.
Today we will talk about Philip Lundberg, his wives and his children.
He is the oldest son of Andrew and Josephine. He was born in Grantsburg, Wisconsin on September 20, 1888 and died on October 19, 1958 in Thief River Falls, MN. He is buried at Greenwood Cemetery next to his second wife, Mary Jane, (Mae).
Philip married Clara Jensen in Thief River Falls, MN on November 12, 1912. This bit of information was a three line column in the Thief River Falls Times. Clara was born on November 11, 1894-October 26, 1972. Her parents were Anton Jensen and Synneva Vigoren, both Minnesota born parents.
Anton and Synneva had ten children. They lived in Becker County where they farmed and Anton had a saw mill. The house was a log cabin and later it was added on to and sided. I was the home of Carl and his wife. She didn’t know much about the Jensen’s, as Carl was the youngest child and didn’t have the information I had hoped to glean at our meeting and the letters we shared during the time I knew her. She was not well enough to drag out old picture books. Our letter visits were a joy to both of us. Clara was the oldest child and Carl, her husband, was the youngest, a difference of nearly 20 years. Her name was Viola.
Clara and Philip had four children:
Lloyd C Lundberg July 30, 1913-March 29, 1935
Viola Jeanette November 6, 1915-
Cleve Clifford February 27, 1920- March 1, 1920
Ella Deloris March 22, 1924-November 17, 2002
Lloyd was called “Bootsy“. He was last seen on March 29, 1935. He was found on April 27, 1935 near a haystack north east of Thief River Falls in a decomposed state. The top of his head was blown off by a shot gun. The shot gun lay across his lap. The coroner considered it accidental.
“Bootsy” was twenty one when he died. He has a long list of diagnosis’. They include:
Artheriosclerosis starting in 1915
Iterstitial Nephritis starting in 1921
Gallstones on May 1, 1923
Attacks of epilepsy
Run over by a street car at a week old
Peritonistis
Cerebral hemorrhage July 5, 1927
Gastroenteritis since 1934
Mother didn’t say much about him except he had bright red hair and freckles.
The next child, Viola had a child named Sally Constance, who she gave up for adoption. When Philip died, Stan Ranum, Ella’s husband, hired a detective find her but she elected not to come home for the funeral. When she was pregnant with Connie, Philip would not let her live at home. She did not wish to be found again. Connie has tried numbers of times to find her but she changed her social security number and we do not know if she is living or where she is buried. We do know she was married a couple of times to a Hirschman and Bambia. If anyone has any thoughts about finding her, let me know. Connie would like the closure. Connie Lives in Nevada.
Cleve lived three days. His death certificate states he was born with bronco pneumonia. It states In untero. He died at the Swedenborg Hospital in Thief River Falls which was located on Red Lake Boulevard near Third Street.
Their last child, Ella Deloris, was born in Thief River Falls. We will share pictures of her as we moved along in the history of the families, she married Stanley Ranum from Rosewood, Minnesota.
Mother didn’t say much about her childhood. She did go to school at Northrop, I did find a picture of Viola as a second grader at Northrop. Remember Viola was born seven years before Mother. So Lundberg’s were living in TRF in 1922. Most likely near Northrop which was in the north part of town.
Mother wasn’t in school yet when Clara left the kids with Philip. I had a real problem with this for some time. How could a mother leave her children? It wasn’t until I connected with Connie that I learned that Philip was in bed with the house keeper, Mary Jane , (Mae),Wynkoop when Clara came home from the café where she worked.
We do know that Mary Jane Johnson was previously married to Victor Wynkoop who died in 1927. The Johnson's were living in Akeley, MN at the time of the meeting. According to census records, Victor Wynkoop was born in Illinois. It states he is a widow. One can not tell if the ten year old, Harry, is his son or his brother.
That probably gives us the window of about 2 ½ years, as Mary Jane, known as Mae and Philip were married on April 3, 1930 in Chicago, Illinois.
There is a picture of Philip, Mae, and Ella when Mother is about six. It appears to be taken in Thief River Falls near the Chief Coulee. The house where she lived has long since been torn down and replaced by a warehouse.
Let’s use 1928. That makes Bootsy 15, Viola 13, and Ella 4. Philip was working for the county and certainly had more cash flow than Clara. It appears Clara moved to Hennepin County to live with her sister.
Why did Philip and Mae move to Chicago? There where jobs on the railroad. Philip, of course, had family living there. We know that his youngest brother, Kenneth lived in the Chicago area.
It is not known when the family moved back to Thief River. We do know they were living in Minnesota when Connie was born in August of 1933. We do know that Mother was going to school at Northrop.
I do remember Viola visiting Philip after he had his stroke which happened in 1949. I remember I thought it odd that she had a son named Gregory; my brother's name was also Gregory. Viola gave Philip a picture of her son which hung in a prominent place in his bedroom. The child was dark headed with glasses. He wore a striped tee shirt. We think he was born in 1940. Viola did have another child, Earl Kester who Connie did find. He was born in 1936.
Clara Jensen Lundberg went on to marry Joe Henry. The lived near Barnesville. I remember it being Dent or Downer. They had one child, Joann who was born on February 28, 1932 and died of leukemia at the age of 57. She had no children. After Joe died, Clara married William Chapman in 1966. Once again she would become a widower. Clara is buried at Lake View Cemetery near Pelican Rapids, MN.
Thus ends the introduction of the great grand parents and beyond.
e
The Lundberg Side, Part One
FOR PUBLICATION ON JUNE 18
LUNDBERG
There isn’t a lot know about the LUNDBERG side of the family. Much of it has to do with Mother, who just plain didn’t want to talk about “that stuff”.
Here is what we can confirm:
John Schlehr was born in Sweden. He married Elizabeth Giller from New York.
One of their children was Josephine. Josephine was married to Andrew Lundberg.
Andrew Lundberg and Josephine married August 30, 1886. We do know that in 1892, Andrew filed for Homestead in Wisconsin at Eau Claire. It was for 160 acres.
The census 1910 the family was living in Frazee, Becker County, Minnesota
Family listed with last name of LEADLEY
Andrew; August 30, 1886-January 7, 1934 is buried in Greenwood Cemetery in Thief River Falls, MN
Josephine; January 25, 1870-June 3, 1916 in Thief River Falls, MN buried at Greenwood Cemetery.
Phillip Arthur, the oldest 1888, born in Wisconsin.
Carrie (spelled Cavia) E 1894
Marie (spelled Mary) 1899
Christine 1901
Bessie 1902
Edward 1905
Kenneth 1907
Rose May 8, 1890-June 30, 1940 married Frank Botel of Los Angeles.
Louise
Who was Mrs. Clarence Ringstrand of Forestville, California?
Which one was Mrs. Arthur Casta, from San Francisco, California?
In the 1920 Census
Andrew was living in Koochiching County of Minnesota. It is stated that he is a logger and a farmer. The last name is listed as SUNDBERG
Edward, and Kenneth were, as teenagers, living with him.
Bessie was living with
Louise, who was married Frank Schmidt, he was born in 1896.
Christine was nineteen and teaching
Georgine was also living with the Schmidt’s.
This part of the family were living in Thief River Falls, MN
We do know the family was living in Thief River Falls at the time of Josephine’s death, as related in the obituary:
Mrs. Andrew Lundberg, 319 LaBree Avenue North, a resident of this city for the last 3 ½ years, dropped dead Saturday at 10:30 from heart failure. Funeral services were held from the Swedish Evangelical Church in this city Monday afternoon, June 5. Interment was made in Greenwood Cemetery.
Mrs. Lundberg was born January 25, 1870 in Buffalo, New York, making her age at death, forty-six years, four months, and nine days.
She came to this city in October 1912, and has ably assisted her husband in conducting a restaurant at the above named address. (The café was where the Starkow Clinic was when I lived there).
To the marriage union were born ten children:
Philip Lundberg
Mrs. Frank Schmidt, (Louise)
Mrs. Leon Johnson, (Carrie)
Mrs. Frank Botel, (Rose)
Marie
Christine
Bessie
Edward
Kenneth
Georgine
The obituary states the only other survivor is her husband, Andre Lundberg. Notice the spelling variation
Because of the obituary and the census, I was able to find the three additional children.
Land grants led me to his homestead filing.
Andrew died in Chicago at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Hearter. I do not know which daughter this is.
His obituary states, Funeral services were conducted yesterday for Andrew Lundberg, a former resident of this city from Larson’s Undertaking Parlors. Interment was in Greenwood Cemetery.
Mr. Lundberg was born in Skaane, Sweden on January 17, 1864. He came to Wisconsin in 1885 and later moved to this vicinity where he lived until four years ago when he returned to Wisconsin. His home at the time he died was Superior; however, he was living at the home of his daughter in Chicago.
Those who mourn his departure are five daughters and three sons, Phil Lundberg being the only one who resides locally. His wife passed away nineteen years ago.
Andrew is buried in the same plot as Josephine.
I am hopeful to find additional information!
e
LUNDBERG
There isn’t a lot know about the LUNDBERG side of the family. Much of it has to do with Mother, who just plain didn’t want to talk about “that stuff”.
Here is what we can confirm:
John Schlehr was born in Sweden. He married Elizabeth Giller from New York.
One of their children was Josephine. Josephine was married to Andrew Lundberg.
Andrew Lundberg and Josephine married August 30, 1886. We do know that in 1892, Andrew filed for Homestead in Wisconsin at Eau Claire. It was for 160 acres.
The census 1910 the family was living in Frazee, Becker County, Minnesota
Family listed with last name of LEADLEY
Andrew; August 30, 1886-January 7, 1934 is buried in Greenwood Cemetery in Thief River Falls, MN
Josephine; January 25, 1870-June 3, 1916 in Thief River Falls, MN buried at Greenwood Cemetery.
Phillip Arthur, the oldest 1888, born in Wisconsin.
Carrie (spelled Cavia) E 1894
Marie (spelled Mary) 1899
Christine 1901
Bessie 1902
Edward 1905
Kenneth 1907
Rose May 8, 1890-June 30, 1940 married Frank Botel of Los Angeles.
Louise
Who was Mrs. Clarence Ringstrand of Forestville, California?
Which one was Mrs. Arthur Casta, from San Francisco, California?
In the 1920 Census
Andrew was living in Koochiching County of Minnesota. It is stated that he is a logger and a farmer. The last name is listed as SUNDBERG
Edward, and Kenneth were, as teenagers, living with him.
Bessie was living with
Louise, who was married Frank Schmidt, he was born in 1896.
Christine was nineteen and teaching
Georgine was also living with the Schmidt’s.
This part of the family were living in Thief River Falls, MN
We do know the family was living in Thief River Falls at the time of Josephine’s death, as related in the obituary:
Mrs. Andrew Lundberg, 319 LaBree Avenue North, a resident of this city for the last 3 ½ years, dropped dead Saturday at 10:30 from heart failure. Funeral services were held from the Swedish Evangelical Church in this city Monday afternoon, June 5. Interment was made in Greenwood Cemetery.
Mrs. Lundberg was born January 25, 1870 in Buffalo, New York, making her age at death, forty-six years, four months, and nine days.
She came to this city in October 1912, and has ably assisted her husband in conducting a restaurant at the above named address. (The café was where the Starkow Clinic was when I lived there).
To the marriage union were born ten children:
Philip Lundberg
Mrs. Frank Schmidt, (Louise)
Mrs. Leon Johnson, (Carrie)
Mrs. Frank Botel, (Rose)
Marie
Christine
Bessie
Edward
Kenneth
Georgine
The obituary states the only other survivor is her husband, Andre Lundberg. Notice the spelling variation
Because of the obituary and the census, I was able to find the three additional children.
Land grants led me to his homestead filing.
Andrew died in Chicago at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Hearter. I do not know which daughter this is.
His obituary states, Funeral services were conducted yesterday for Andrew Lundberg, a former resident of this city from Larson’s Undertaking Parlors. Interment was in Greenwood Cemetery.
Mr. Lundberg was born in Skaane, Sweden on January 17, 1864. He came to Wisconsin in 1885 and later moved to this vicinity where he lived until four years ago when he returned to Wisconsin. His home at the time he died was Superior; however, he was living at the home of his daughter in Chicago.
Those who mourn his departure are five daughters and three sons, Phil Lundberg being the only one who resides locally. His wife passed away nineteen years ago.
Andrew is buried in the same plot as Josephine.
I am hopeful to find additional information!
e
Friday, June 15, 2007
I am off to the library, Part Two
PUBLISH DATE 6/16
Happy Birthday to
Susi and to her brother Richard!
This library is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Carnegie Library, owned by the City of Lawrence, Kansas was built in 1904 and is located on the northwest corner of 9th and Vermont Streets in downtown Lawrence. The City has completed stabilization and structural renovation work.
This was Rachel's first library. We went to story hour in the basement once a week. The room was filled with wiggly three year olds who would rather browse the stacks and use the bathrooms than listen to a marvelous lady named Mary tell stories.
Yes, it is another product of the generous donations by Andrew Carnegie. In his time, he would sponsor over 3,000 libraries. All he expected was the land would be donated and the building would be maintained. A grant for $27,000 was given; the building cost less than $28,000.
The library in the picture above was replaced by a new, modern library in 1972. Rachel had given up wiggling by now and had no patience for the three year olds that were wiggling. Bud was two, he would soon find the "gut book" and look at the over lays of organs and muscles.
It was in this library that Rachel met the book Policeman Small, Flicka, Ricka, and Dicka, and Snip, Snap, and Sner. Bud would start reading the Dr. Suess books, and Ryen read the Berenstein Bears. My favorites of all the children's books has and always will be the stories about Frances the badger. The episode about eating is my favorite.
Rachel would float from one section to another as her reading improved. Mary, the beloved story teller, helped us direct Rachel to the best books for her abilities. The limit for books out of the children's library was 10; just enough to fill a beer flat. She would read all the way home and by the next day, she was ready to go back to the library. There was some discussion in the fall that she had really read 250 books on the summer reading program.
Mary said she was ready for chaptered books. She led us to the fiction and once, again, she loaded up her beer flat. I remember specifically when the new leather bound copies of Frank Baum books arrived. Rachel was the first one to check them out. I have visions of the two of us sitting on her yellow sleigh bed reading chapters.
Bud was challenged to read his books for the summer reading program. We took him to the baseball and sports books. The idea was you read or you don't play ball. He may or may not have read them. He did play ball.
If Ryen ever went to the Lawrence Public Library, I really don't remember it. I know Rachel seemed to go from the children's department to the Spencer Library at KU.
I have my own ideas about the survival of libraries. If you look in the stacks for up to date information, it just isn't there. Who wants to read about sites for genealogy in old books or old magazines for that matter. I took 13 copies of a computer orientated magazine home recently. I selected 30 web sites, 10 of them were not found.
Libraries are limited. Everybody wants access to reliable information. The Internet is a gateway to unlimited data and information about government, business, and the community. Multiple information providers on the Internet make fact checking easy and reliable. No single person, such as a librarian, can or should be relied upon to verify accuracy. Single sources for information verification are inefficient and potentially dangerous.
Lawrence wants a new library. Fargo moved their books to several satellite stations and tore down their old, built in 1970's, and just now have a plan.
I have taken my library business to Moorhead, MN. There are no people in the stacks. There are retired gents and homeless reading the newspapers. People are clamoring for the computers; a few of them are silver haired. I read an article from another city which stated, "Don’t expect kids, seniors, and everyone else to trudge downtown for the convenience of librarians".
The point is well taken. However, as an activity person for several years, I will tell you that senior-seniors are willing to accept emails from their children but not write back. In my time at the Manor, I rolled many chairs to the computers. A few caught on, short term therapy patients used in daily but the senior-seniors had lost the passion for learning something new.
For all who read fiction, the library still has its merits. Rachel browsed her grandmother's book shelf in the early eighties. She read Girl of the Limberlost. The book is a fiction about self reliance. The girl was deeply wounded by her embittered mother's lack of sympathy for her aspirations, Elnora finds comfort in the nearby Limberlost Swamp, whose beauty and rich abundance provide her with the means to better her life. The library offers this fiction, not in the hard back cover like Rachel read but on video cassette or large print!
In the early publications of the Thief River Falls News, when they listed new books, Girl of the Limberlost was one of the books!
Mary was Rachel's mentor; Mary at Moorhead was my mentor. My Mary emailed yesterday, "and I got some good news also!! I got accepted into the Master's program for Library Science @ the University of Denver for this fall, so I'll (sadly!) be leaving the library in the middle of July already! I'm excited to go, but very sad to leave!!See you soon -Mary"
Like Anne from Ohio says, "The only thing that stays the same is everything keeps changing".
e.
Happy Birthday to
Susi and to her brother Richard!
This library is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Carnegie Library, owned by the City of Lawrence, Kansas was built in 1904 and is located on the northwest corner of 9th and Vermont Streets in downtown Lawrence. The City has completed stabilization and structural renovation work.
This was Rachel's first library. We went to story hour in the basement once a week. The room was filled with wiggly three year olds who would rather browse the stacks and use the bathrooms than listen to a marvelous lady named Mary tell stories.
Yes, it is another product of the generous donations by Andrew Carnegie. In his time, he would sponsor over 3,000 libraries. All he expected was the land would be donated and the building would be maintained. A grant for $27,000 was given; the building cost less than $28,000.
The library in the picture above was replaced by a new, modern library in 1972. Rachel had given up wiggling by now and had no patience for the three year olds that were wiggling. Bud was two, he would soon find the "gut book" and look at the over lays of organs and muscles.
It was in this library that Rachel met the book Policeman Small, Flicka, Ricka, and Dicka, and Snip, Snap, and Sner. Bud would start reading the Dr. Suess books, and Ryen read the Berenstein Bears. My favorites of all the children's books has and always will be the stories about Frances the badger. The episode about eating is my favorite.
Rachel would float from one section to another as her reading improved. Mary, the beloved story teller, helped us direct Rachel to the best books for her abilities. The limit for books out of the children's library was 10; just enough to fill a beer flat. She would read all the way home and by the next day, she was ready to go back to the library. There was some discussion in the fall that she had really read 250 books on the summer reading program.
Mary said she was ready for chaptered books. She led us to the fiction and once, again, she loaded up her beer flat. I remember specifically when the new leather bound copies of Frank Baum books arrived. Rachel was the first one to check them out. I have visions of the two of us sitting on her yellow sleigh bed reading chapters.
Bud was challenged to read his books for the summer reading program. We took him to the baseball and sports books. The idea was you read or you don't play ball. He may or may not have read them. He did play ball.
If Ryen ever went to the Lawrence Public Library, I really don't remember it. I know Rachel seemed to go from the children's department to the Spencer Library at KU.
I have my own ideas about the survival of libraries. If you look in the stacks for up to date information, it just isn't there. Who wants to read about sites for genealogy in old books or old magazines for that matter. I took 13 copies of a computer orientated magazine home recently. I selected 30 web sites, 10 of them were not found.
Libraries are limited. Everybody wants access to reliable information. The Internet is a gateway to unlimited data and information about government, business, and the community. Multiple information providers on the Internet make fact checking easy and reliable. No single person, such as a librarian, can or should be relied upon to verify accuracy. Single sources for information verification are inefficient and potentially dangerous.
Lawrence wants a new library. Fargo moved their books to several satellite stations and tore down their old, built in 1970's, and just now have a plan.
I have taken my library business to Moorhead, MN. There are no people in the stacks. There are retired gents and homeless reading the newspapers. People are clamoring for the computers; a few of them are silver haired. I read an article from another city which stated, "Don’t expect kids, seniors, and everyone else to trudge downtown for the convenience of librarians".
The point is well taken. However, as an activity person for several years, I will tell you that senior-seniors are willing to accept emails from their children but not write back. In my time at the Manor, I rolled many chairs to the computers. A few caught on, short term therapy patients used in daily but the senior-seniors had lost the passion for learning something new.
For all who read fiction, the library still has its merits. Rachel browsed her grandmother's book shelf in the early eighties. She read Girl of the Limberlost. The book is a fiction about self reliance. The girl was deeply wounded by her embittered mother's lack of sympathy for her aspirations, Elnora finds comfort in the nearby Limberlost Swamp, whose beauty and rich abundance provide her with the means to better her life. The library offers this fiction, not in the hard back cover like Rachel read but on video cassette or large print!
In the early publications of the Thief River Falls News, when they listed new books, Girl of the Limberlost was one of the books!
Mary was Rachel's mentor; Mary at Moorhead was my mentor. My Mary emailed yesterday, "and I got some good news also!! I got accepted into the Master's program for Library Science @ the University of Denver for this fall, so I'll (sadly!) be leaving the library in the middle of July already! I'm excited to go, but very sad to leave!!See you soon -Mary"
Like Anne from Ohio says, "The only thing that stays the same is everything keeps changing".
e.
Thursday, June 14, 2007
I'm going to the library........
I started thinking about libraries when I read about them in the Rosewood News.
October 1920
Rosewood News Library association formed
As mentioned in last week’s issue, a meeting was called at the business rooms of the Farmer’s State Bank last Friday evening and a library association was formed. The Association is directly connected with the State Traveling System and will secure all their books from this source. Books will include generally fiction and reference for adults, juvenile books and Scandinavian books and books in the Scandinavian language, besides other topics such as history, general science and domestic problems which may be secured by application. The library board consists of ten members, vie: As Holm, Herbert Carlson, Anton Gulseth, Joel Shoberg, LL Furon, Benhard Ranum, Mrs. B Ranum, Mrs. Eva Carlson, JS Sorenson and Alex Hellquist. Mrs. AS Holm is the librarian. The first set of books is expected about December 1. It will include 39 adult books, 20 juvenile and 6 Scandinavian books. All books will be kept at the Farmers State Bank and may be borrowed without cost by application to the library.
December 1920
Rosewood News A number of new library books have been received for the public school library at District 41. These books are mostly juvenile fiction are free to use by the school as well as the public within the district.
January 1921
Rosewood News Will all those who borrowed books from the Minnesota Traveling library prior to January kindly return them at once. The rules with this library state that no book shall be retained longer than two weeks, but certain parties seem not to be aware of this fact. Books may be renewed if required but must be brought in for renewal. The library, located in the Farmer’s State Bank is open Monday, Wednesday, Friday from 1-4 in the afternoon.
Around 1900 or so, Thief River Falls had an idea that a library was needed. It would be a source of information. The first library board was appointed. The first library was on Second Street in a store front and no rent was paid. The money gathered was used to buy books.
A year later, a small one story building was erected near the old fire station at First Street and Main Avenue. It was on the north side. They hired a librarian for $14 a month. Up until this time it was a private venture.
The city took it on a few years later and was in a basement of a city owned building.
It was known that Andrew Carnegie was offering money to build libraries and a grant was received to build the ‘new library’ at the Northeast corner of Main Avenue and First Street.
I am certain the same librarian was there the entire time I was going to and being scolded for talking in the library. Or, was that I the school library?
I did NOT know how to read the card catalog. Who was this Dewey guy? How come he got to make the rules? Can you imagine some stern tight haired, pursed lipped old lady with fat ankles telling a short all hair and eyeball kid, “Each main class has ten divisions and each division has ten sections. Hence the system can be summarized in 10 main classes, 100 divisions and 1000 sections”, and said kid having a clue?
The building smelled of old paper and the lightening was poor. Where were the bathrooms? What was in the basement?
I would make a bee line for the corner and sit on the floor and read my Bible, it was called, The Wizard of Oz. Wandering through the library looking at the numbers wasn’t allowed. SHHHHHHH!
Many high school students joined library club. I wondered what that was all about. But you couldn't talk there either, so I opted to wander in the high school isles and get a feel for what Dewey did.
I learned that
100 was about life in philosophy and psychology, I always wondered why it was closest to the check out desk.
200 Religion
I met Normal Vincent Peale books in this section.
300 Social Science
The Amy Vanderbilt complete book of etiquette, yes, I can do that. Now, tell me again, which fork do I use?
400 Language
De norske settlementers historie and the 1930 Den siste folkevandring sagastubber fra nybyggerlivet i Amerika. Well, you know what I mean!
500 Science
If I ever loose Tom in the library, he will be here studying weather patterns. Just look for the well dressed man with a notebook and a pen in his pocket.
600 Technology
A friend knew I read five books from this section to learn how to plant a tulip.
700 Art and recreation
What was more important to a camping family than Woodall’s Campsite book?
800 Literature
I learned about this section when I was all caught up in poems by EE Cummings!
900 History
And where do you think the genealogy books are? If Tom can’t find me he can just come to the far corner and there I will be!
But wait, the Dewey guy must be in major trouble by now. Where is the computer stuff? Doesn’t it need a section all its own? What if I wanted one thousand and one computer words that I needed to know, where would I look? TRIPLE OTT! Take that Dewey!
Happy Reading!
e
Jung's Bakery
And Shirley wrote regarding Nina Bloom: One of the happy memories I will always remember is when she worked at Jung's Bakery, which was between Montgomery Ward's and Red Owl Grocery store. (Now Penney's and Napa Auto Parts).I can still taste those little, round powder sugar coated Russian Tea Cakes. They cost $.05 for 3 of 'em! MMMM good!
How fun to remember Jung's Bakery. It was an old building and when you walked in, the floor was some slanted and the wooden boards creaked as you walked across them.
I too, remember Nina at the bakery.
My recall is from past 1952 when I stopped reading the Times. If I would have read farther, I am certain it would have said, "Mrs. Carl Bloom is working at Jung's Bakery" in the Rosewood News!
Let's go back 50 years or so, and imagine a group of little girls dressed in brown dresses and beanies. It was winter. Our Brownie leader was Mrs. Kvivstad and she took us on several field trips. It was before permission slips and car pools. We simply walked from the Washington School where we had our meetings in the basement lunch room to Jungs, it was less than two blocks away.
I had just gotten a new storm coat. For those of you who do not know what a storm coat is, it is a very warm coat with a quilted lining. It had inserts in the sleeves near the wrist to keep the cold air from getting on your arm. The fabric was wool, often tweed. The collar was fake fur and it was belted at the waist. At that time, a coat was considered anything past your knees. So while Mother was wearing high heeled shoes, now called Stiletto Heels, in the early 1950s to align her body to make her bust stick out as well as her butt, I was wearing something that made me look like a teddy bear.
And it came to pass that the Brownie Troop went to Jungs for a tour. Nina Bloom asked if we would like to take our coats off. Being proud of my new coat, elected to wear it. It was really warm in the bakery! I was really warm in my storm coat. After the tour through the building, we were each offered a baked good from the class case.
It was late in the afternoon and the doughnuts were considered a day old by then, but I didn't learn about day old doughnuts until much later when Tim Albertson would ride his bicycle past our house on 21st Street with garbage bags full of doughnuts he had picked up outside the door at the doughnut store on 23rd Street. He used to use them to throw at his Doberman. The dog loved them.
One day I got curious. Although I wasn't going to Carol's Doughnuts for old pastry, I did want to see what he had. Tim stopped his bike, and opened one of the bags. The contents were pretty beat up but YUM they still tasted good.
Then, I remembered. I remembered I chose a jelly filled roll as my treat at Jung's that day. I took one bite and the jelly slid out of the pastry and landed between the ribbing on my inner sleeve and the cuff. Nina wiped out the jelly as best she could and I was thinking about how I was going to tell my mother about the jelly.
It didn't show that much, it was just really stiff. I decided not to tell anyone about it. And every day the rest of the winter, I felt that stiff part whenever I wore the coat. When I was sitting on the porch eating the doughnuts that Tim offered, I was NOT WEARING LONG SLEEVES! And, yes, I still love jelly filled pastry!
How fun to remember Jung's Bakery. It was an old building and when you walked in, the floor was some slanted and the wooden boards creaked as you walked across them.
I too, remember Nina at the bakery.
My recall is from past 1952 when I stopped reading the Times. If I would have read farther, I am certain it would have said, "Mrs. Carl Bloom is working at Jung's Bakery" in the Rosewood News!
Let's go back 50 years or so, and imagine a group of little girls dressed in brown dresses and beanies. It was winter. Our Brownie leader was Mrs. Kvivstad and she took us on several field trips. It was before permission slips and car pools. We simply walked from the Washington School where we had our meetings in the basement lunch room to Jungs, it was less than two blocks away.
I had just gotten a new storm coat. For those of you who do not know what a storm coat is, it is a very warm coat with a quilted lining. It had inserts in the sleeves near the wrist to keep the cold air from getting on your arm. The fabric was wool, often tweed. The collar was fake fur and it was belted at the waist. At that time, a coat was considered anything past your knees. So while Mother was wearing high heeled shoes, now called Stiletto Heels, in the early 1950s to align her body to make her bust stick out as well as her butt, I was wearing something that made me look like a teddy bear.
And it came to pass that the Brownie Troop went to Jungs for a tour. Nina Bloom asked if we would like to take our coats off. Being proud of my new coat, elected to wear it. It was really warm in the bakery! I was really warm in my storm coat. After the tour through the building, we were each offered a baked good from the class case.
It was late in the afternoon and the doughnuts were considered a day old by then, but I didn't learn about day old doughnuts until much later when Tim Albertson would ride his bicycle past our house on 21st Street with garbage bags full of doughnuts he had picked up outside the door at the doughnut store on 23rd Street. He used to use them to throw at his Doberman. The dog loved them.
One day I got curious. Although I wasn't going to Carol's Doughnuts for old pastry, I did want to see what he had. Tim stopped his bike, and opened one of the bags. The contents were pretty beat up but YUM they still tasted good.
Then, I remembered. I remembered I chose a jelly filled roll as my treat at Jung's that day. I took one bite and the jelly slid out of the pastry and landed between the ribbing on my inner sleeve and the cuff. Nina wiped out the jelly as best she could and I was thinking about how I was going to tell my mother about the jelly.
It didn't show that much, it was just really stiff. I decided not to tell anyone about it. And every day the rest of the winter, I felt that stiff part whenever I wore the coat. When I was sitting on the porch eating the doughnuts that Tim offered, I was NOT WEARING LONG SLEEVES! And, yes, I still love jelly filled pastry!
Murder Suicide Part Three
FOUR VICTIMS OF TRAGEDY BURIED
Thief River Falls News
Thursday May 28, 1914
Mrs. OK Olson still Alive with Five Wounds on Body—She Will Recover.
GILSOUL’S BODY BROUGHT TO THIS CITY SATURDAY.
Coroner’s Inquest Brings out Pathetic Incident Relative to Inga Olson’s Death.
The bodies of Mrs. Louis Gilsoul, Mrs. Ludwig Larson, and Inga Olson, the three women victims of last Thursday’s tragedy in eastern Marshall County, were buried at the Torgerson Cemetery last Saturday afternoon. Reverend Opdahl of Esplee conducted the services which were attended by practically every resident in the country for miles around. The body of Louis Gilsoul was brought to this city Friday night and buried in Potter’s Field Saturday afternoon at 2 o’clock. Aside from Coroner Halverson, Reverend JB Smith, and a distant relative of the deceased, no one was present at the burial.
Mrs. OK Olson, the fifth victim, is still alive and will recover. There are five wounds in her body resulting from the three shots that were fired at her. One bullet entered her elbow, passed through the muscles of the arm and lodged in her neck. Another struck her in the cheek and the third is lodged in her back about six inches below her neck and slightly to the right of the back bone.
At the coroner’s inquest it developed that Mrs. Olson was the second woman to receive shots. After being wounded she picked up her 16 year old daughter who was shot through the head and expired in her mother’s arms crying, “Mama, mama.”
The exact route taken by Gilsoul in reaching the Olson home still remains a mystery but it is believed that he got off the Soo train at Plummer and walked across the country to the scene of the shooting.
The coroner’s jury also brought out that fact that OK Olson’s brother, Knute, was also a witness to the crime. He was standing in the year, covered by Gilsoul’s gun part of the time, expecting to be shot at any minute and was paralyzed with fear. According to his story, Gilsoul went about the shooting in a cool and deliberate manner, cursing his victims before shooting them and continually glancing over his shoulder to see that no one approached him from behind.
Eno Olson, the son of the family, who shot at the murderer as he was entering the poplar thicket, was the last man to see him alive. He heard the shot that Gilsoul fired into his own body but could not see whether or not the man had committed suicide or was attempting to defend himself. Gilsoul took his own life about 10 o’clock Thursday morning. But he was not definitely known to be dead until about noon when Albert Arntz, who had just arrived on the scene, walked into the thicket and found the body.
If Gilsoul had not taken his own life it is doubtful if he could have escaped fro more than a few hours. Practically every man and boy present was armed with shot guns, revolvers, and rifles.
At the time the news of the shooting reached this city, Gilsoul was supposed to be at large. Sheriff LaBree, County Attorney Staton and Coroner HR Halverson left the city in the Halverson automobile at noon and were the first from town to reach the scene of the crime. Gilsoul’s body was lying practically on the line dividing Marshall and Pennington Counties. A coroner’s jury composed of Ed Larson, Albert Arntz, Anton Knutson, John Hoppe, Charles Johnson, and Edwin Olson, were drawn and witnessed sworn and examined. Eno Olson, Bernard Baker, and LJ Tenald were the only witnesses called.
The murder farm where the three women were killed was situated in Marshall County just one half mile north of where the body of Gilsoul was found. The Marshall County authority’s held the inquest the day after the murder. After the shooting the corpses were laid on chairs and covered with sheets presenting a gruesome spectacle to those who visited the place. Practically all of the relatives of the dead women were present but there was no crying or display of sorrow whatever. They answered questions in monotone, looked on the faces of the dead without change of expression and seemed not to fully realize the magnitude of the crime.
Dr. J Boderman, coroner of Marshall County held a post mortem examination of the three bodies finding the wounds in the following places.
Mrs. Ludwig Larson: Bullet hole passing completely through back part of neck. Bullet lodged in neck slightly below chin. Bullet through left breast very close to the heart probably cutting artery. Powder marks on back of right hand. Death instantaneous.
Inga Olson: bullet hole 2 inches above right ear. Lived a few seconds after receiving wound.
Mrs. Helen Gilsoul: Bullet hole 1 ½ inches above right ear also through center of breast. Powder marks on back of right hand. Instantly killed.
When Coroner Halvorson searched the clothing of Gilsoul, he found, besides the new .32 caliber Iver-Johnson revolver, a number of cartridges, pipe, tobacco, $5.73, knife, several receipts and a memorandum book. On one of the pages of the book was written, “May the 21, 1914. Now I am not going to Olson’s to hurt anyone, nor to get hurt, but to get my wife—they have stolen her from her home. L. Gilsoul.
On another piece of paper, part of which had been torn off and probably destroyed was written, “I will not write much now. I would like to speak with you sometime when you are alone. My love is ever for you.” Helen Burn this.
Thief River Falls News
Thursday May 28, 1914
Mrs. OK Olson still Alive with Five Wounds on Body—She Will Recover.
GILSOUL’S BODY BROUGHT TO THIS CITY SATURDAY.
Coroner’s Inquest Brings out Pathetic Incident Relative to Inga Olson’s Death.
The bodies of Mrs. Louis Gilsoul, Mrs. Ludwig Larson, and Inga Olson, the three women victims of last Thursday’s tragedy in eastern Marshall County, were buried at the Torgerson Cemetery last Saturday afternoon. Reverend Opdahl of Esplee conducted the services which were attended by practically every resident in the country for miles around. The body of Louis Gilsoul was brought to this city Friday night and buried in Potter’s Field Saturday afternoon at 2 o’clock. Aside from Coroner Halverson, Reverend JB Smith, and a distant relative of the deceased, no one was present at the burial.
Mrs. OK Olson, the fifth victim, is still alive and will recover. There are five wounds in her body resulting from the three shots that were fired at her. One bullet entered her elbow, passed through the muscles of the arm and lodged in her neck. Another struck her in the cheek and the third is lodged in her back about six inches below her neck and slightly to the right of the back bone.
At the coroner’s inquest it developed that Mrs. Olson was the second woman to receive shots. After being wounded she picked up her 16 year old daughter who was shot through the head and expired in her mother’s arms crying, “Mama, mama.”
The exact route taken by Gilsoul in reaching the Olson home still remains a mystery but it is believed that he got off the Soo train at Plummer and walked across the country to the scene of the shooting.
The coroner’s jury also brought out that fact that OK Olson’s brother, Knute, was also a witness to the crime. He was standing in the year, covered by Gilsoul’s gun part of the time, expecting to be shot at any minute and was paralyzed with fear. According to his story, Gilsoul went about the shooting in a cool and deliberate manner, cursing his victims before shooting them and continually glancing over his shoulder to see that no one approached him from behind.
Eno Olson, the son of the family, who shot at the murderer as he was entering the poplar thicket, was the last man to see him alive. He heard the shot that Gilsoul fired into his own body but could not see whether or not the man had committed suicide or was attempting to defend himself. Gilsoul took his own life about 10 o’clock Thursday morning. But he was not definitely known to be dead until about noon when Albert Arntz, who had just arrived on the scene, walked into the thicket and found the body.
If Gilsoul had not taken his own life it is doubtful if he could have escaped fro more than a few hours. Practically every man and boy present was armed with shot guns, revolvers, and rifles.
At the time the news of the shooting reached this city, Gilsoul was supposed to be at large. Sheriff LaBree, County Attorney Staton and Coroner HR Halverson left the city in the Halverson automobile at noon and were the first from town to reach the scene of the crime. Gilsoul’s body was lying practically on the line dividing Marshall and Pennington Counties. A coroner’s jury composed of Ed Larson, Albert Arntz, Anton Knutson, John Hoppe, Charles Johnson, and Edwin Olson, were drawn and witnessed sworn and examined. Eno Olson, Bernard Baker, and LJ Tenald were the only witnesses called.
The murder farm where the three women were killed was situated in Marshall County just one half mile north of where the body of Gilsoul was found. The Marshall County authority’s held the inquest the day after the murder. After the shooting the corpses were laid on chairs and covered with sheets presenting a gruesome spectacle to those who visited the place. Practically all of the relatives of the dead women were present but there was no crying or display of sorrow whatever. They answered questions in monotone, looked on the faces of the dead without change of expression and seemed not to fully realize the magnitude of the crime.
Dr. J Boderman, coroner of Marshall County held a post mortem examination of the three bodies finding the wounds in the following places.
Mrs. Ludwig Larson: Bullet hole passing completely through back part of neck. Bullet lodged in neck slightly below chin. Bullet through left breast very close to the heart probably cutting artery. Powder marks on back of right hand. Death instantaneous.
Inga Olson: bullet hole 2 inches above right ear. Lived a few seconds after receiving wound.
Mrs. Helen Gilsoul: Bullet hole 1 ½ inches above right ear also through center of breast. Powder marks on back of right hand. Instantly killed.
When Coroner Halvorson searched the clothing of Gilsoul, he found, besides the new .32 caliber Iver-Johnson revolver, a number of cartridges, pipe, tobacco, $5.73, knife, several receipts and a memorandum book. On one of the pages of the book was written, “May the 21, 1914. Now I am not going to Olson’s to hurt anyone, nor to get hurt, but to get my wife—they have stolen her from her home. L. Gilsoul.
On another piece of paper, part of which had been torn off and probably destroyed was written, “I will not write much now. I would like to speak with you sometime when you are alone. My love is ever for you.” Helen Burn this.
Murder Suicide Part Two
HUMBLE CABIN NEAR THIEF RIVER FALLS IS A CHARNEL HOUSE
From the Fargo Forum and Daily Republican
Friday evening May 23, 1914
THE DEAD
Miss Helen Olson aged 23
Miss Inga Olson aged 17
Mrs. Ludwig Larson, aged, 40
Fatally wounded, five wounds—Mrs. OK Olson, mother of the Olson girls.
Thief River Falls, MN, May 23. The humble home of OK Olson, a homesteader, living near Torgerson’s, Pilner Township, twenty miles east of this city was converted into a charnel house yesterday when three persons were shot down in cold blood and another fatally wounded with five bullets in her body as she lay on the floor of the blood drenched cabin.
The murderer, Tony Gilsaul, hounded into a clump of woods near the scene of the crime, ended his life with the weapon he had used in setting fancied wrongs he had sustained at the hands of the unfortunate family.
Crime Unparalleled
Gilsaul’s terrible crime is without parallel in this section of northern Minnesota. Jealous and an insane determinations to ‘get even’ with those he held responsible for separating him from pretty Helen Olson , the young woman it is said he had induced to leave her home and go to Canada with him two years ago are considered as the motives for the triple murder and suicide.
Act Deliberate
According to the statements from residents of the locality of the tragedy, Helen Olson, daughter of OK Olson a homesteader suddenly left for Canada with Gilsaul about two years ago and the two had lived there as man and wife; although it is stated they were not married. Recently a brother of Miss Olson, hearing of her life with the man with whom she had cast her unhappy lot visited Canada and his sister returned with him to her father’s home where she was welcomed and the past forgotten.
Elder Woman Riddled
Mrs. OK Olson, mother of the two girls was shot five times, once in the breast and left for dead on the floor of the cabin, died with the life’s blood of the other victims. At this time Knute Olson, a brother of the two girls arrived in the yard and hearing the shots, ran across the lot to a neighbor for a gun. He returned in a brief interval and met Gilsaul making a hurried fire but missed the fleeing man and then hurried to the nearest telephone to advise the authorities.
From the Fargo Forum and Daily Republican
Friday evening May 23, 1914
THE DEAD
Miss Helen Olson aged 23
Miss Inga Olson aged 17
Mrs. Ludwig Larson, aged, 40
Fatally wounded, five wounds—Mrs. OK Olson, mother of the Olson girls.
Thief River Falls, MN, May 23. The humble home of OK Olson, a homesteader, living near Torgerson’s, Pilner Township, twenty miles east of this city was converted into a charnel house yesterday when three persons were shot down in cold blood and another fatally wounded with five bullets in her body as she lay on the floor of the blood drenched cabin.
The murderer, Tony Gilsaul, hounded into a clump of woods near the scene of the crime, ended his life with the weapon he had used in setting fancied wrongs he had sustained at the hands of the unfortunate family.
Crime Unparalleled
Gilsaul’s terrible crime is without parallel in this section of northern Minnesota. Jealous and an insane determinations to ‘get even’ with those he held responsible for separating him from pretty Helen Olson , the young woman it is said he had induced to leave her home and go to Canada with him two years ago are considered as the motives for the triple murder and suicide.
Act Deliberate
According to the statements from residents of the locality of the tragedy, Helen Olson, daughter of OK Olson a homesteader suddenly left for Canada with Gilsaul about two years ago and the two had lived there as man and wife; although it is stated they were not married. Recently a brother of Miss Olson, hearing of her life with the man with whom she had cast her unhappy lot visited Canada and his sister returned with him to her father’s home where she was welcomed and the past forgotten.
Elder Woman Riddled
Mrs. OK Olson, mother of the two girls was shot five times, once in the breast and left for dead on the floor of the cabin, died with the life’s blood of the other victims. At this time Knute Olson, a brother of the two girls arrived in the yard and hearing the shots, ran across the lot to a neighbor for a gun. He returned in a brief interval and met Gilsaul making a hurried fire but missed the fleeing man and then hurried to the nearest telephone to advise the authorities.
Murder Suicide Part One
MURDER SUICIDE
Thief River Falls News
May 21, 1914
Louis Gilsoul Commits Triple Murder and Then Kills Self near Torgerson’s Post Office.
The dead are Mrs. Ludwig Larson, Helen and Inga Olson—-Mrs. OK Olson is mortally wounded.
Three women are dead and one mortally wounded at the home of OK Olson, five miles north of Torgerson’s Post Office in Marshall County. The cause of the tragedy was the jealous rage of Gilsoul, who was furious at the relatives of Helen Olson, with whom he ran away some two years since.
The women were shot to death with a 32 caliber revolver, and the same weapon ended the life of the murderer shortly after the triple killing.
Gilsoul appeared at the Olson home this morning at about 9:30, following Mr. Olson in from the field. He was met at the door by Mrs. Ludwig Larson, cousin of Helen Olson, who refused him admittance and threatened him with a pair of ice tongs. The man drew a revolver and shot Mrs. Larson through the breast as she ran into the yard, he fired a second time, the bullet penetrating her heart and killing her instantly. Gilsoul then entered the house and shot Helen and Inga Olson to death, the bullets penetrating the heart of Helen and Inga being shot through the head. Both were instantly killed, Mrs. OK Olson was next attacked and five bullets were fired into her body and she now lies at the point of death. During the course of the shooting the murderer was attacked by the family dog and the animal was also shot and killed.
It is reported that OK Olson fled at the first appearance of trouble and the only witness to the tragedy was a brother of Helen and Inga, a young man of about 22 years of age. The boy drove into the yard as Mrs. Larson was shot and immediately turned the horses and went for assistance, returning shortly, armed with a 30-30, he met the murderer about half a mile from the scene of the killing and fired a shot from his rifle at the assassin, who immediately turned into a clump of bushes. Shortly after his entering the brush, a shot was heard, and after some two hours, and after about 40 neighbors had gathered, the boy and one of the neighbors entered the hiding place of the homicide and found his lifeless body, the earlier shot having been turned upon himself and having pierced his brain.
In the man’s pocket was found a mailing tube, containing a marriage certificate on which was written, “This is to prove that she was my wife.” The reference was to Helen Olson, whom he had married subsequent to running away with her some two years ago. There was also a note in his pocket to his son by a former marriage, warning him not to follow in his footsteps.
Gilsoul is said to have a bad record and it is reported that he killed a Negro in Beltrami County a few years since.
Thief River Falls News
May 21, 1914
Louis Gilsoul Commits Triple Murder and Then Kills Self near Torgerson’s Post Office.
The dead are Mrs. Ludwig Larson, Helen and Inga Olson—-Mrs. OK Olson is mortally wounded.
Three women are dead and one mortally wounded at the home of OK Olson, five miles north of Torgerson’s Post Office in Marshall County. The cause of the tragedy was the jealous rage of Gilsoul, who was furious at the relatives of Helen Olson, with whom he ran away some two years since.
The women were shot to death with a 32 caliber revolver, and the same weapon ended the life of the murderer shortly after the triple killing.
Gilsoul appeared at the Olson home this morning at about 9:30, following Mr. Olson in from the field. He was met at the door by Mrs. Ludwig Larson, cousin of Helen Olson, who refused him admittance and threatened him with a pair of ice tongs. The man drew a revolver and shot Mrs. Larson through the breast as she ran into the yard, he fired a second time, the bullet penetrating her heart and killing her instantly. Gilsoul then entered the house and shot Helen and Inga Olson to death, the bullets penetrating the heart of Helen and Inga being shot through the head. Both were instantly killed, Mrs. OK Olson was next attacked and five bullets were fired into her body and she now lies at the point of death. During the course of the shooting the murderer was attacked by the family dog and the animal was also shot and killed.
It is reported that OK Olson fled at the first appearance of trouble and the only witness to the tragedy was a brother of Helen and Inga, a young man of about 22 years of age. The boy drove into the yard as Mrs. Larson was shot and immediately turned the horses and went for assistance, returning shortly, armed with a 30-30, he met the murderer about half a mile from the scene of the killing and fired a shot from his rifle at the assassin, who immediately turned into a clump of bushes. Shortly after his entering the brush, a shot was heard, and after some two hours, and after about 40 neighbors had gathered, the boy and one of the neighbors entered the hiding place of the homicide and found his lifeless body, the earlier shot having been turned upon himself and having pierced his brain.
In the man’s pocket was found a mailing tube, containing a marriage certificate on which was written, “This is to prove that she was my wife.” The reference was to Helen Olson, whom he had married subsequent to running away with her some two years ago. There was also a note in his pocket to his son by a former marriage, warning him not to follow in his footsteps.
Gilsoul is said to have a bad record and it is reported that he killed a Negro in Beltrami County a few years since.
Two years ago his wife was adjudged insane and committed to an asylum, and immediately thereafter he commenced paying attention to Helen Olson, who he induced to go with him to Canada. About two weeks ago Ludwig Larson and his wife went to the claim of Gilsoul in Canada and Helen returned with them to the Olson home.
The Olson home is about five miles north of the Torgerson’s post office and is in Marshall County, the clump of bushes were the suicide took place was just across the county line. The Marshall County coroner is holding an inquest as we go to press.
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