Renville County, Minnesota

The First Norwegian Settlers

Hans Halvorsen from Kongsvinger, Hellek (Helge) Pedersen from Numedal, Johannes Andersen from the Bergen area, and Tom Rude were the first Norwegians to settle near Franklin. They were followed by J. Gilbertsen from Valdres, Erik Løten from Trøndelag, C. Nelson from Ullensaker, Ole Anderson from Voss, Th. Tvedt, J. Tvedt, J. J. Tvedt, and Torkel Tvedt from the Bergen area, as well as Peder Nilsen and Mathias Johnson. The area was still heavily populated by Indians when the Norwegians arrived.

The Sacred Heart Settlement

In 1866, four families came by oxcart from Fillmore County and settled near Sacred Heart. They were the first settlers of Norwegian origin in that area. They were Thor Helgesen, Ole Kaggelien, who in America called himself Collin, Ole Halvorsen Rennehammeren, and Paul Pederson. Paul Pederson was from Strilelandet, while the other three were from Oppdal in Hallingdal. They therefore became the founders of the Oppdal settlement there. Before this settlement could be established, however, the Indians, who also had their homes and hunting grounds in the area, had to leave.

Pioneer Life

Wheat growing was the settlers’ principal source of livelihood. Their nearest market was New Ulm in Nicollet County. C. A. Mork of Hector recalled an incident from November 1873:

“In the middle of November 1873, my father and I drove toward the Mississippi River to get a load of wood. On the way back, we stayed overnight with an Irishman. We put the oxen in a roofless shed, which was the only shelter he had for them. At midnight, a violent snowstorm began and continued until the following day. When we got up in the morning, there was an inch of snow on the quilt that covered us, since this was a real ‘Irish’ house in which we were staying. The storm continued to rage, but even at the risk of our lives, we had to go out and look after the oxen. It was a terrible sight. The oxen were buried in snow, with only their heads and backs visible, and there was blood in their nostrils from the cold and exertion. We finally managed to get them out of the snowdrift, but we had to remain with the Irishman for another night, and the cold was intense. At last, we reached home with our suffering animals and our load of wood.”

Early Journeys to America

Mrs. Christensen, who lived near Hector, was among those who emigrated to America at a time when the journey could take as long as half a year. She spent twenty weeks at sea. P. C. Brevig from Foldereid in Namdalen, who later operated a bank in Sacred Heart, also had little good to say about the journey to America.

He recalled:

“When we arrived in Quebec, we were loaded into freight cars with planks for seats and a barrel of water standing in the middle of the floor for us to drink from. The barrel slid back and forth while the train was moving, so most of the water went where it was not supposed to go. After traveling in this manner for three days, we reached Sarnia, near Toronto, where we continued by steamboat. Something happened there that I will never forget. When we were far enough out on the lake that we could no longer see land, a fire broke out in a woodpile in the engine room and spread at a frightening speed. I cannot describe in words the panic among the poor emigrants, who were strangers to such things. Fortunately, through united effort, the flames were brought under control. The cries and lamentations stopped when we realized that we had been saved.”

The Hatuk Creek Settlement

The aforementioned P. C. Brevig, together with Benjamin Bjøraal, Christian P. Bjøraal, Christopher Anderson, Mathias Saglie, Nils Lien, Hans Bergh, Erik Synnes, Iver Mathisen, and Edward Mathisen, came with their families from Olmsted County to Hatuk Creek. After a similarly long and difficult journey, they settled there and became the first Norwegian settlers in that area.

Churches and Congregations

Vor Frelsers Congregation at Sacred Heart was established in 1868 by Pastor J. E. Bergh of the Norwegian Synod. It was the oldest Norwegian congregation in the county. As in many other new settlements, religious services during the first years had to be held in dugouts, sod houses, and log cabins until the settlers were able to build churches.

By about 1907, Renville County had nineteen Norwegian congregations and sixteen churches. Eight congregations belonged to the Norwegian Synod, seven to the United Church, and one to Hauge’s Synod.

Public Office

Erick Ericksen and Hans Grønerud were the first Norwegian county officials. They were elected in 1872, Ericksen as County Auditor and Grønerud as County Treasurer. The following year, in 1873, David Benson was elected to the State Legislature.

Newspapers

Sacred Heart Bladet, published partly in Norwegian and partly in English, appeared for a short time during the 1890s.

Norwegian Place Names

Norwegian place names included Reishus and Wang.

Sources:

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