Page:History of Goodhue County, Minnesota.djvu/402

 :;••!! HISTORY OF GOODHUE COUNTY settlements. It has been declared that Columbus visited Iceland in early life, and that he was familiar with the story of the discovery and settlement of the New England coast by the Norsemen. In 1619, a Norseman. Jens Munk, visited America at the head of a Danish expedition whose intention it was to take possession of a part of the country in the name of the king of Denmark. He returned to Norway in 1620, the only survivor of the attempt. In 1633, a Norwegian ship builder by the name of Hans Han- son Bergen, who had for a time resided in Holland, came to New Amsterdam, as New York was then called. It is also believed that there were some twenty other Norwegian settlers in that early colony. Clans Van Sande, the Indian interpreter of the New Amsterdam colony, was a Norwegian. July 4, 1825, a party of Norwegian Quakers left Stavanger, Norway, and in due time reached New York. What subsequently became of this party has never been positively established. In 1839 a large colony of Norwegians came to Wisconsin. With [Ins colony begins the story of modern Norwegian immigration to America, although from the settlement at New York down to that time there had been here and there individual Norwegians who took an active pari in public affairs, notably in the Moravian colony at South Bethlehem, Pa. It is possible that several Nor- wegians settled in Minnesota in 1851, but the real influx started in 1852-53. when Houston and Fillmore counties began to be populated. The first Norwegian in Goodhue county was Mat bias Pederson (Ringdahl), from Hadeland. Norway, who came to Red Wing in the winter of 1852-.)::. He did not, however, found any settle- ment. It was in 1854 that the Norwegians settled in two town- ships at the same time — Holden and Wanamingo — also occupying portions of Leon and later of Minneola. Following is a list of some of the early Norwegian settlers: Hans Ovaldsen, from Krageroe; Henry and Toege Nelsen Talla, from Lyster, Song; William Runningen, from Sandoekedal; Anders Baanhus, from Soevde, Telemarken ; John Stroemme ; Anders Hesjedalen and Haldor Eive, from Strilelandet ; Tosten Aaby, from Sigdal ; Bernt Sauland, from Jaederen ; Torbjoern Wraalstad, from Dramgedal; Nils Fenne, Syver Honedal, from Voos; Gunder Hestemyr, from Sandoekedal ; Olaf P. Ness, from Vik, Sogn ; Guttorm Otternes, from Aurland. Sogn; Mathias Ringdahl, Faaberg; Christian Lunde and Andreas Erstad, from Land; Tosten Guldbrandsen, from Gudbrandsdalen ; Ola and Aamund Ofteli, from Telemarken; Knut, Anders. Ole and H. K. Finseth, from Hallingdal; Jens Ottun, 0. J. Sortedal, Kolben Egtveit, 0. 0. Huset, Halvor Ener- sen, Torbjoern Enerson, Ole 0. Oakland, Ole J. Bakke, Tosten