The land that Thorinus and Pauline owned

This is for Saturday, June 9 posting.





Sometimes one has to be a seasoned never-give-up-before-you-give-out, I- will -try- again sort of person. Sometimes the answer to the question is right in your face. Sometimes one needs to think not so hard and not so what you know, rather in the realm of possibilities. Genealogy is like that.

I know, and have known for some time that most of the information on the Internet regarding genealogy has probably been keyed in at some off shore place by people that speak English as a second language and are literal about what they see. Do you know any Americans who would enter millions and millions of names to make the information available for pennies?

And so if it is the keying in, or the person who, in person at the land office who didn't understand a person's name or spelling thereof, one just has to take the name and play with it. In teaching genealogy, I have encouraged the people to try alternate spellings, to try parts of the name, to try mel* and see what happens. Try soundex. Try different sources to see if you can get just a piece of the thread. So, you see, I KNOW all this, but when it came to finding a land patent for Thorinus and Pauline Mellem, I let myself forget my own lessons.

I found myself talking to the folks at Warren. I wanted to do a blanket search on the Mellem land in New Solum. We all knew they were the pioneer homestead people. We needed that document. If they weren't the first settler's on the land, a search would show just who did own it first.

When the package arrived I was so excited to be able to trace OTHER parcels of land from land patent to present. I was deflated when I saw the first document naming Thorinus and Pauline was when they sold the land to their son. That meant the original patent was still out there.

I got out of my mental sod house and started doing what I was teaching others, I used alternate sources to see if I could find it that way. It is important to any of you looking for the land patents to know the search is very rigid, there is no mel*. You must submit a name spelling that THEY have.

Ancestry. com has the land patents. I found Thorinus and Pauline using Mel* and soundex.

And so it is when hunting for ancestors.





I found it, his name was listed as MELUM!





According to the certificate, on January 31, 1891, Thorinus and Pauline were granted homestead rights in parts of section 10,4, and 3. Part of this was Marshall County and part of it was Pennington. It was the "STRIP" between Marshall and Polk County. The Township numbers are 155 and 154.





In 1924, Thorinus and Pauline sold the land to his son, Carl for the sum of three thousand dollars. That is all the 160 acres he was 'given' in the Homestead Act of 1862.





Apparently, Carl put the land in his children's names. Maybe it is assumed they are part of it because it states heirs.





On the 17th of June, 1943, Alice, the oldest, was living in Spokane, Washington and sold the land to Minnie Mellem, her mother, for a sum of $1.00 except for a small parcel of land in northeast corner thereof described by meters and bounds as follows:





Beginning at the northeast corner of the SE 1/4 SW 1/4 of said section 3, thence running west 31 rods, (16.5 feet x 31=511.5 feet), along the forty line, thence south 8 rods, (16.5x8=132 feet), along the quarter line to the place of the beginning.





Then, on November 20, 1943, Sylvia Mellem, sold her share back to her mother.





On June 3, 1946, Chester Mellem who lived in Washington, Minnie Mellem, and Fern Mellem, sold their shares to Helmer Kalbakdalen from Walsh County, North Dakota. He too, had an exception to the land mention above. He paid $4,600 for it.





Now, that little parcel may have been where Nina and Olaf lived. It was always sectioned off.





Remember that Carl died April 04, 1938. I expected to see probate papers with the packet I got from the recorder's office in Warren, MN.





In looking over the paper work which I received, I see that EMIL MELLUM bought his land from John and Hilda Sagmoen in 1920 for $1348 dollars. This parcel land butts up against the T Mellem land.



Now what I need to do is send pink and yellow carnations to Berna at the recorder's office and find out about the little parcel of land set aside.



I have sent a copy of the land patent and a New Solum Township map with a print out of exactly what the land is to the grand children of Nina and Olaf. Anyone else want a hard copy, it is available by request.



And a special note to Shirley. It is people like you that give this blog the kind of color and life it requires to survive. I strongly encourage you and others to write away and as much as you can when ever you can. You see, this way we learn from one another and if I am off, I am put back on course. It helps my focus to keep my challenge. I salute you,--Shirley--are you listening?



To all of you. Something wild and crazy is about to happen. In 1985 or so, I opened the drawer on Ella Anderson's credenza. I offered to take all the pictures back and book them for her. One picture had a name and one had a date, the rest we sorted according to finishing, grouping families together as we thought. Rachel and Ryen remember the pictures spread out on the living room floor as we quality checked the finish types.



The four books were shipped to Ella. It was a rewarding labor of love. The books are in the possession of Shirley at the time of the writing. I will meet with her in Grand Forks and she will allow me to take the books to Fargo with me to scan and use in this blog. Yes, Kelsey, even the pictures of the dead people. Who is Kelsie? Kelsie, are you there?



This open gesture on her part will blow the blog out of the marsh. There are so many neat photos in those books that we will share. Pictures, I am certain the Anderson kids have looked at over the over and will remember. We will need your help to identify some of the photos.



I am off to fish, see you Monday!



Walleyewoman? Na..Bassbrass!



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