Kendall County, Illinois

Early Norwegian Settlement

Ole Olsen Hetletvedt, who had emigrated from Stavanger aboard the Restauration in 1825, purchased land in 1839 at the place where Newark later developed. He was the father of Colonel Porter Olsen of the 36th Illinois. At the time, the area was open prairie, and the settlers soon began growing corn. Daily wages were about fifty cents.

The first Norwegians in the vicinity of Lisbon included Erick Larsen Grove and Henry Munson from Voss, John Hill (Hilde) from Fjeldberg, and Severt Anderson (Sjur Arentson) from Øvre Severeide in Skånevik.

Churches and Congregations

Elling Eielsen was the first to preach among the Norwegian settlers at Lisbon. He worked there both before and after his ordination in 1843. The Lisbon congregation was established during his time in the settlement and built a church in 1846. It was the first actual church in Illinois built by and for Norwegians. The congregation remained without a resident pastor until 1854, when Pastor P. A. Rasmussen took charge. By 1905, Kendall County had seven Norwegian congregations and six churches. Four congregations belonged to the United Church, while three belonged to Hauge’s Synod.

Public Office

The first Norwegian known to have held public office in Kendall County was E. S. Holland from Etne. He was elected Justice of the Peace in 1875 and later became County Commissioner.

Sources:

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