Grundy County, Illinois

Early Norwegian Settlement near Morris

The first Norwegians in the vicinity of Morris were Lars Sheldal, Rasmus Sheldal, and Halvor Osmundsen. A visitor who met Osmundsen in 1860 recalled that he still wore Norwegian wooden shoes and a red cap, even though he was already becoming a prosperous man. Peder E. Ericksen and Nels Olsen, both from Bergen and veterans of the Civil War, were the first Norwegian settlers at Grand Prairie. They traveled on foot from Morris toward Dwight, crossing swampy country where the grass grew as high as six feet and no roads had yet been established. They eventually claimed land in the area.

Churches and Congregations

The county had eight Norwegian congregations and four churches. Five congregations belonged to the United Church, two to the Norwegian Synod, and one to the Methodist Church.

Sources:

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