Norwegian Roots in America

My name is Margy Sather Peterson. I am a retired music teacher, a Norwegian language student, a conductor of a women’s choir, a mother of three, and a grandmother of two. Since 2019, I have been researching my family history using websites like Ancestry, Newspapers, and Find-a-Grave.

Reconstructing a life through documents like church records, census reports, obituaries, and shared stories is incredibly exciting—especially when these ancestors lived so long ago! The lives of the female emigrants have turned out to be particularly fascinating. Recently, I organized a trip to my ancestors’ first American homes. That experience made their stories come alive—it was a highlight of my life!

Four Events That Sparked My Interest in My Norwegian Roots

As a child, when asked, “Where does your family come from?”, I learned to answer, “Norway and Sweden.” This was my first awareness of my cultural identity. Today, such a question might seem odd or even impolite, but in the 1950s and 60s, it was entirely normal.

In 2005, I received an invitation from a cousin living in Oslo. We embarked on a family heritage trip he had planned, and I realized that my family didn’t just come from Norway in general, but from specific places: Vestre Toten (Oppland), Modum (Buskerud), and Ringøy (Vestland). Recently, I also discovered that we have ancestors from Nes in Buskerud.

For Christmas 2019, I received an Ancestry subscription. During the COVID-19 pandemic, I had plenty of time to immerse myself in genealogy!

A childhood friend, who is an expert in genealogy, continuously encourages me and takes great interest in my discoveries.

Memories from My Childhood

I have no memories of my Norwegian grandparents, as they passed away before I was born. However, I gained insight into Norwegian language, culture, and traditions when I attended Skogfjorden, a Norwegian language summer camp in Minnesota, between the ages of 11 and 14. Later, I majored in Norwegian at Saint Olaf College. Until I turned 22, I thought everyone ate kjøttkaker, lefse, sandbakkels, krumkake, pickled herring, and lutefisk at Christmas!

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Visiting Our First American Settlements

Martell, Wisconsin, and the Decorah Area, Iowa

I gathered some “fun facts” about our family in Martell and invited relatives to join me on the trip. About ten of us participated. It was a powerful experience to stand in a row between the gravestones of my two great-great-grandmothers, Johanne and Anne Karine, who emigrated from Drammen in 1852 with their husbands and children. Both settled in Martell, Wisconsin. We also stood in a circle around the foundation of the house Johanne had built in 1855—a deeply meaningful moment!

For my trip to Calmar, near Decorah, I traveled with my cousin from Oslo and his wife. I hope to repeat this journey next summer with more relatives. This time, I created a two-day itinerary focused on Ingebor Olesdatter, my great-great-grandmother on my paternal grandmother’s side. She emigrated in 1845 at just 14 years old with her family. They initially settled in Muskego, Wisconsin. After she married and had her first child, the family traveled westward by wagon to Calmar.

Unfortunately, we were unable to see her house, as the current owner did not answer the phone. However, we visited her grave and imagined how Ingebor, her daughter Martha, and my grandmother traveled between each other by bicycle, wagon, train, or car.

Norwegian Cultural Activities Today

One of the best jobs I have ever had is conducting the women’s ensemble in Mindekirken’s Norwegian Culture and Language Program. Here, we find joy, meaning, and community. I started the choir in 2014 after singing with a Swedish group for five years. I could not have done this without resuming my Norwegian studies in 2008, and I still take weekly Norwegian classes.

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Norwegian Women in My Family Who Emigrated to America

It is rare to find obituaries from 1890–1920, but I found one for Ingebor and Johanne, as well as a mention of Anne Karine in her husband’s memorial.

Ingebor Olesdatter (1831–1918)

Ingebor traveled from Drammen via Hallingdal and emigrated to Muskego, Wisconsin, in 1845. After 1850, she was the only family member found in records—perhaps the others died of malaria or typhoid, which were common there at the time.

At Muskego Lutheran Church, she married a man from a nearby farm. The church still stands today at Luther Seminary in Saint Paul. Later, the family traveled by wagon to Calmar, near Decorah, as many Norwegians did.

Ingebor had eight children with her first husband and became a widow in 1870. She remarried and had two more children at the ages of 43 and 50. Her child-rearing years lasted 30 years, and her youngest two were the same ages as her daughter’s second and fifth children.  A long time to raise children! By 1857, she owned the farm, and a 1915 document indicates that a Norwegian school was established on the property.

She learned English before she died, but her obituary was written in Norwegian—a sign of how proud she was of her heritage. Her granddaughter Clara, my grandmother, married George Allen Sather, the son of Johanne and Anne Karine. Could they have known each other in Muskego?

Johanne Ottersdatter (1825–1892)

ohanne was born in Ton, Buskerud, and married Ole Anderson Sæter in Heggen Church in 1848. That same year, they had a son, Anders Oleson Sæter, my great-grandfather.

In 1852, the family emigrated to Martell, Wisconsin. During the journey, they had another son but later lost a four-year-old daughter and a seven-year-old son. What a difficult time that must have been! Still, seven of their children grew to adulthood.

Johanne and Ole helped new immigrants find housing and work and were involved in establishing Rush River Lutheran Church. She kept the family Bible in Norwegian, and their story can be found in newspapers from that time.

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Anne Karine Viger Jørgensdatter (1818–1887)

Anne Karine grew up in Modum, Buskerud, and married Peter Anderson in 1844, in the same church as Johanne. Both were connected to the Hovde farm. She had two children in Norway before the family emigrated in 1852 on the same ship as Johanne and Ole.

The family first settled in Muskego, where they lived for two years before finally making their home in Martell. Could she and Ingebor have known each other in Muskego?  I like to think that she and Ingeborg stayed in touch through letters. In Martell, Anne Karine and Peter had three more children. One of them married Anders Ole Anderson, Johanne’s son. My grandfather, George Allen, was their second child, and he married Ingeborg’s granddaughter, Clara.

Anne Karine is described as a devoted woman, but she was ill for a long time before she passed away. Her gravestone bears the name Anne Karine Hovde.

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_{Cover photo: 17-mai in Bergen. Photo private}