WILLMAR – Willmar was a center of Norwegian history, heritage and community Aug. 6-9 as the third annual Flere Lag Stevne brought more than 100 descendants and friends of Norway to west-central Minnesota.
“Flere Lag Stevne” means “Meeting of Many Lags” and is the annual conference of five Norwegian “Bygdelags” or community organizations that today offer their members a place to pursue their passion for genealogy and history and to keep their Norwegian traditions and heritage alive.
The lags represented in Flere Lag Stevne were Tronderlag of America, Romerikslaget I Amerika, Gudbrandsdal Lag National, Nord Hedmark Og Hedemrken Lag and Solorlag of America. As a group, the lags represent regions in central Norway.
The four-day event included several seminars on genealogy, travel and Norwegian history. The theme of this year’s event was “A frying pan in one hand, a hoe in the other: Norwegian women settlers,” and several of the seminars focused on these lesser-known pioneer women and their stories.
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“We decided that it is time to focus on women and their contribution,” said Norma Barnes, Chair of the Flere Lag Stevne 2024 Steering Committee.
One of the seminars during Flere Lag Stevne was led by Jill Wohnoutka, director of the Kandiyohi County Historical Society. She told stories of some of the Norwegian women who came and helped build communities in the county.
In her presentation, Wohnoutka introduced the audience to several Norwegian women settlers. In some cases, Wohnoutka had very little to tell, based on what she could find in county history books, census records and newspaper archives.
“The topic is sensitive. Women hide and are difficult to find during research,” says Wohnoutka.
The women who came to the Kandiyohi district all lived in a time of hard work and uncertainty. Among them was Joran Paulson, who was born in Honefoss, Norway on June 12, 1796, and at some point emigrated to the United States and settled in Arctander Township.
Towards the end of her long life, she lived with her son, Jorand Paulson. She died on October 18, 1897 at the age of 101 and is buried in West Norway Lake Cemetery.
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“She was the oldest resident of the district at the time,” said Wohnoutka.
Some of the women could not even sign their names for posterity, but they continued anyway. Mary Gordhamer, who was born in Norway in 1811, became a settler in Arctander Township in 1884. Gordhamer could not leave a signature on the land register documenting her claim. Instead, she left a simple mark that was witnessed by other people.
“That’s her ‘X.’ So she didn’t know how to spell her name, so she had to make an X,” Wohnoutka said. Gordhamer died in 1900 and is buried in East Norway Lake Lutheran Cemetery.
Another interesting pioneer was Christine M. Johnson of Lake Lillian Township. Johnson was born in 1854, died in 1901, and is buried in the Tromso Cemetery. During her lifetime, Johnson operated a mercantile business and was postmistress for Lake Lillian.
“For a woman, especially at that time, I thought that was pretty remarkable,” Wohnoutka said, adding that she hopes to continue researching Johnson’s story. “Leave it to Lake Lillian, they were always the trendsetters.”
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The last woman Wohnoutka spoke about is probably one of the most famous – if not the most famous – settler in Kandiyohi County – Guri Endreson.
Their family cabin, built in 1858, still stands today. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is owned by the Kandiyohi County Historical Society. The cabin is an example of Scandinavian architecture and also tells the story of a family that came to Minnesota in search of a better life but found themselves in the middle of historic events.
The cabin was the site of a Dakota attack on white settlers during the Dakota War in 1862. Endreson’s husband and one of her sons were killed in the attack and her daughters were kidnapped. The girls later escaped and were reunited with their mother and younger sister.
“Guri returned to the hut in 1866 and lived there,” said Wohnoutka.
There are likely many more stories about women settlers buried in family archives or hidden between the lines of news reports and land records. Wohnoutka said she hopes to continue her research.
Shelby Lindrud/West Central Tribune
“There is much more to do now,” said Wohnoutka. “We need to find more women in history.”
In addition to the seminars, Flere Lag Stevne also featured a silent auction, vendors, a bus tour to some of the historical sites in the area and a well-equipped laboratory for genealogy research. Each of the lags brought their books and family histories, so visitors had the opportunity to read books they may not have had access to before. Researchers were also present in the laboratory to help and encourage people with their family history research. It is important to continue to preserve this history so that it is preserved for the next generations.
“I have to give a lot of credit to the genealogists and helpers who bring these large – bygdeboker, as they are called – local histories,” said Barnes. “They show the history of the inhabitants of each farm in the area. There are usually several volumes covering a municipality.”
Running Flere Lag Stevne requires a lot of work for a group of dedicated and passionate people. Every year a steering committee made up of members from the five lags is responsible for planning the annual meeting.
Before 2022, Stevne was held either by single groups or by two or three groups. However, as membership numbers declined and costs increased, the decision was made to organize the meeting of many lags.
The first meeting was held in Rochester, while last year the group traveled to the Fargo-Moorhead area. The goal is to hold the meeting in a different region of the Midwest each year, as most of the lags’ members call this area home. The next meeting is planned to be near LaCrosse, Wisconsin.
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This year, Willmar was chosen not only because it has the space needed to host such an event, but also because it has a rich Norwegian-American history.
“I had heard of this county before and knew that many Norwegian immigrants had come to this area,” Barnes said.
Between 1880 and 1905, most of Kandiyohi County’s residents were of Scandinavian descent, with families originating from Norway and Sweden. According to the 1905 Kandiyohi County History Book published by the county’s Old Settlers Association, the forerunner of the Kandiyohi County Historical Society, 4,205 people living in Kandiyohi County in 1880 were of either Norwegian or Swedish descent. The next largest group was from Great Britain, with 206 people.
Even in the 21st century, the descendants of Norwegian and Swedish immigrants represent the largest ethnic group in the country.
Shelby Lindrud/West Central Tribune
“It was still this stronghold of Scandinavia,” said Wohnoutka. “And that includes women,” pointing out that in 1880, 4,748 women lived in Kandiyohi County.
Barnes hopes that the participants of this year’s Flere Lag Stevne had a great time and were able to get closer to their Norwegian past.
“It’s fun. People are here to have fun and learn from each other,” Barnes said. “It’s about the camaraderie and community you have with people who share a common heritage.”
