Polk County, Wisconsin

Early Norwegian Settlement

James D. Reymert from Farsund was the first Norwegian settler in Polk County. He settled at St. Croix Falls in 1859 as an agent for a large land company. There was considerable activity while Reymert was there, and for a time it appeared that St. Croix Falls might develop into a large city. Within two years, however, the land company went bankrupt and Reymert moved away. He was otherwise a prominent figure. For more information about him, see the sections on Waukesha and Racine Counties. When Reymert came to Polk County, the population consisted primarily of Indians and Yankees.

Dresser Junction and Deer Park

In 1868, John Vold came from Janesville in Rock County and settled in the vicinity of Dresser Junction, where he was the first settler. He was originally from Mostadmarka in Strinda Parish in what is now part of Trondheim. That same year, Ole Sundlie and B. O. Solum, both from Soknedalen near Trondheim, and L. L. Selvig from Sande near Drammen came to the Deer Park area, where they became the first settlers.

Cushing and North Valley

The first Norwegian settler in the vicinity of Cushing and North Valley was Nils Gullicksen (Grette) from Våle near Holmestrand. He recalled emigrating with his entire family in 1869. They first came to Chicago, where they stayed for several weeks with his brother-in-law, Carl Meierhoff. In July they continued westward by horse and wagon and, after three weeks and two days, reached St. Croix Falls.

Gullicksen described the journey as extremely difficult, especially because the family neither understood nor spoke English. Milwaukee caused them particular trouble, as they had difficulty finding the correct road out of the city. At night they slept either in or beside the wagon, and almost every night they encountered thunderstorms. The unfamiliar intensity of the American thunder and lightning frightened both the children and the adults.

The roads were extremely poor, and the bad weather made travel even more difficult. When the family finally reached the area where they intended to settle, there were no other people nearby. Since they had come there to establish a home, they remained and began building a log cabin. Once the cabin was completed, Gullicksen recalled, they began to feel at home. 

Later that same year, Ole L. Rolstad, Tosten Johnson, Johannes Gudminnsen, and Ole O. Eng, all from Solør, settled nearby. They had come from Madison, Wisconsin, and their arrival finally gave the Gullicksen family neighbors.

Other Early Settlements

Also in 1869, Anders Paulsen from Hadeland settled at Star Prairie. Ole Grønlund from Modum was the first Norwegian settler at Laketown, where he settled in 1870. That same year, Georg Gillicksen from Hardanger settled in the vicinity of Deronda. In 1872, Ole Gillicksen from Voss settled near Richardson. In 1873, B. Torgesen from Øvre Telemark settled in the Pineville area. Tore Bjørnson from Lesja, Gudbrandsdalen, came in 1876 and settled at Clam Falls, where he later served as postmaster. In the vicinity of Amery, the first Norwegian settler was J. Djønne from Hardanger. Logging and mixed farming became the principal sources of income in Polk County.

Churches and Congregations

Østre Emanuel Congregation was established at Deer Park in 1870 by Pastor Ole J. Hagestad of the Norwegian Synod. It was the first Norwegian congregation in Polk County, and the congregation built the first Norwegian church there in 1871. By 1905, Polk County had twelve Norwegian congregations and nine churches. Seven congregations belonged to the United Church, four to the Lutheran Free Church, two to the Norwegian Synod, and one to the Methodist Church. 

Public Office

James D. Reymert, mentioned above, represented Burnett County in the State Legislature as early as 1862.

John A. Hansen of Rye was the first Norwegian to hold public office in Polk County itself. He was elected Supervisor in 1872.

Norwegian Place Names

A post office named Hansen, after John A. Hansen, existed in Polk County for a time.

Sources:

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