Alberta Province, Canada

Early Norwegian Settlement

Alberta had the largest Norwegian population among the Canadian provinces and territories covered in the account. The first Norwegian settlement in Alberta was established in the Calgary area in 1880. Among its founders were Bernt Thorp, Conrad Anderson, Nils Anderson, J. Næss, L. Pedersen, Ole Foss, and S. Soly, all from Fredrikstad; Hans Green, A. Hurom, and Hans Olsen, all from Kristiania (Oslo); Theodor Strøm from Hedemark; C. Andersen from Lister near Farsund; as well as Gilbert Berg, Peder Eide, and Charlie Hommer. They settled in an area already inhabited by Indians and Canadians.

New Norway

The Norwegian settlement at New Norway was established in 1893 by Even O. Olstad from Hedemark and Gullik Iverson from Numedal. Both came there from Polk County, Minnesota. They were soon followed by Peder O. Haukedal, who had been born in Ringerike, and many other Norwegian settlers.

The Bardo Settlement

In 1894, another Norwegian settlement was established at a place initially known as Northern. The settlement and its post office were later renamed Bardo, reflecting the Norwegian origins of many of its founders. Among the first settlers were Martin Finseth, Nils Jevning, P. B. Anderson, J. Lerbakmo, H. Haugen, I. Johnson, and L. Johnson, all from Bardu in northern Norway; N. Mosland from Kristiansand; P. Flaaten from Hallingdal; P. Moen from Gudbrandsdalen; H. Simonson and A. Erickson, both born in Wisconsin; and T. Owelsen and S. Simonsen from Telemark. Most of them came to Alberta from Minnesota. Livestock and poultry raising, together with mixed farming, were the principal sources of income. Some settlers also tried washing for gold in the Saskatchewan River, although with varying success. Wetaskiwin and Edmonton, approximately forty-five miles away, were their nearest markets. Unlike many earlier Norwegian settlements, where oxen had been used almost exclusively for plowing and transportation, the settlers here used horses.

Olds

The same year that the Bardo settlement was established, Peter Petersen came from Assiniboia and settled at Olds. He was originally from Lode, Jæren. Other Norwegians gradually joined him. Among them was Samuel Garborg from Jæren, a brother of the Norwegian author Arne Garborg.

Stony Creek

The Norwegian settlement at Stony Creek, in the vicinity of Duhamel and Skaffe, was established in 1895. Its founders included Lars O. Bjaaland from Upper Telemark, John E. Spokkeli, Peter Skaffe, and Ole J. Statlemo.

Lacombe and Blind Man River

Martin Eid from Sør-Aurdal, Valdres, was the first permanent Norwegian settler in the vicinity of Lacombe at Blind Man River. He settled there in 1896. Iver Olsen, Hans Ebeltoft, Søren Nygaard, H. M. Lien, and possibly several others had arrived somewhat earlier, but had subsequently moved away.

Claresholm

The Norwegian settlement in the vicinity of Claresholm was founded by Ole Amundsen, who came from Devils Lake, North Dakota, together with I. Ugland, John B. Hall, and another Norwegian-American named Ole Ødegaard. Two men from Sogn, Thom Thompson and Amund Thompson, were also among the early settlers. Some worked as tradesmen in Claresholm, while the others were farmers.

Burnt Lake

B. L. Johansen was the first Norwegian settler at Burnt Lake. Oluf Normann from Malvik Parish had also lived there for several years by 1905. Swedish settlers, however, formed the majority population in the area.

Markersville

The first Norwegian settlers in the vicinity of Markersville included Ole, Nils, Knud, John, and Petter Engeseth from Volda, Sunnmøre; Petter Thompson from Gudbrandsdalen; and John Tingstad and Ed Anderson, whose places of birth in Norway is unknown. These and several of the other Norwegian settlements described above were still comparatively new in 1905.

Nels Jevning’s Journey on the Red River

Nels Jevning contributed an account of an earlier pioneer journey. In 1876, he and his family were among five families who emigrated from Norway to the Red River Valley. Their destination lay about sixty-five miles north of Moorhead. When they reached Moorhead, they discovered that there was no railroad along the Red River and that steamboat traffic had been suspended because prolonged drought had left the river too shallow. The emigrants therefore improvised their own means of transportation. They purchased lumber intended for building a house and used it instead to construct a raft large enough to carry sixteen people and their baggage. The journey down the Red River took approximately a week. It was an anxious experience, particularly for the women and children, since news had recently spread that General Custer and his men had been killed by Indians under Sitting Bull. Although Indians were frequently seen in the Red River Valley, Jevning reported that none caused the emigrants any harm. At one point, the raft drifted so close to shore that a tree branch knocked the stovepipe into the river. One of the men aboard dived to the bottom and recovered it. On another night, the swift current turned the raft toward shore, and for a time it appeared that they would run aground. Fortunately, the raft broke free and the travelers eventually reached their destination safely. Jevning recalled that the dark nights on the Red River were experiences that the women and children in particular never forgot.

Prairie Fire

Jevning also recalled a dangerous prairie fire during the year after the family came to Canada. Driven by a powerful wind, the fire moved so rapidly that even a fast horse could scarcely have outrun it. The settlers worked with all their strength to prevent the flames from reaching their homes. They succeeded, and no lives or property were lost in their immediate neighborhood. Jevning remembered smoke so dense that both the sky and the sun appeared darkened, while the roar of the flames sounded like thunder. He acknowledged that the account might seem unbelievable to someone who had never witnessed such a fire, but insisted that everything he described had actually occurred.

Churches and Congregations

The first Norwegian congregation in Alberta was established at Northern, later Bardo, in 1895 by Pastor B. Anderson of Hauge’s Synod. He was also the first Norwegian pastor to settle in Alberta. By 1905, Alberta had twenty-two Norwegian congregations and four churches. Eleven congregations belonged to the United Church, five to Hauge’s Synod, four to the Lutheran Free Church, and two to the Baptist Church.

Norwegian-Canadian Press

The newspaper Ebenezer began publication at Wetaskiwin in 1904.

Public Office

Ole Bredesen of Edberg and other Norwegians held public office in Alberta.

Norwegian Place Names

Several Norwegian place names had become established in Alberta by 1905. In addition to Bardo and New Norway, the post offices of Molstad, Viking, and Skafse had Norwegian origins.

Sources:

[Ulvestad, Martin. Nordmændene i Amerika. Utg. History Book Company's Forlag. Minneapolis, Minn. 1907.]