Houston County, Minnesota - Biographical sketches, 1919 (part 11 of 21)

Peter C. Onstad, residing in section 25, Black Hammer township, proprietor of one of the best farms in the southern part of Houston county, was born in section 23, this township, June 20, 1880, son of Christen P. and Oline (Solberg) Onstad. He was reared on his parents' farm, known as the Oak Grove Stock Farm, also a fine estate, on which he obtained a thorough knowledge of agriculture. Up to the age of 15 he attended district school, and resided at home until 1901, when, at the age of 21, he went to Pierce county, S. D., where he homesteaded 160 acres of land. In 1903 he retumed home and rented the old Solberg farm in section 25, Black Hammer township, operating it under rental for five years. While living on that farm he was married, Nov. 22, 1905, to Jorgina, daughter of Ole and Nettie Suldahl, of Black Hammer township, her parents having come to this county about 1868 from Norway, settling on a farm in Black Hammer township where they lived until 1912, when they moved to Sprmg Grove village where the mother died in the fall of 1918, the father now making his home with his daughter, Mrs. Peter Onstad. In 1908 Mr. Onstad bought his present farm of 215 acres, of which he now has 140 acres under cultivation, and which lies three miles north Spring Grove village. It is a very productive farm, well fenced, and well watered, and with the buildings in excellent condition. The latter include a good eight-room frame house, with a separate summer kitchen ; a frame bam, 40 by 60 by 16 feet in dimensions with full stone basement, and a complete James equipment; a stave silo, 14 by 32; machine shed, 30 by 30; hoghouse, 24 by 60 ; granary and buggy shed, 24 by 30, and poultry house 14 by 36 feet in size. The farm is well stocked with Shorthorn cattle and Poland-China hogs, besides other good stock, Mr. Onstad keeping pure-bred sires both in cattle and swine. He is doing a large and successful business and is also a stockholder in the Spring Grove Co-operative Creamery, of which he has been treasurer for the past six years ; the Spring Grove Hospital and the Spring Grove Stock & Grain Co., being also a member of the Equity Shipping Association. His religious affiliations are with the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church, he having been treasurer of the Black Hammer Congregation for some years. Mr. and Mrs. Onstad are the parents of seven children : Mildred, bom Nov. 23, 1907 ; Christian Orlando, Oct. 8, 1908; Rosalie Constance, Oct. 27, 1911; Oswald Sylvester, Nov. 9, 1912; Paul Jerome, Oct. 25, 1914 ; Amold Henry, Oct. 13, 1916 ; and Lyla Virginia, bom April 22, 1919.

William C. Glasrud, who owns and operates a farm of 240 acres in Black Hammer township, residing in section 21, was born on this farm March 20, 1890, son of Peter and Sigri (Qually) Glasrud. His parents were among the pioneers of Houston county, the father coming to America in

1853, and residing until 1856 in Yorkville, Wisconsin, when he came to Houston county, Minn. In 1872 Peter Glasrud bought the farm on which his son William C. now lives. He died in 1892, being survived by his wife, who is now living in Spring Grove village. William C. Glasrud acquired his education in the school of his district and in Spring Grove village, being a student in the village school for two years. He has always remained on the home farm, which he has operated on his own account since 1908. Besides being one of the oldest, it is also one of the best in the township, the land being rich and the buildings in good condition. The equipment is also adequate and of modem type. In his stock raising operations Mr. Glasrud gives the preference to Hereford cattle and Duroc-Jersey hogs. In addition to this property, he owns another farm, one of 200 acres, a few miles north of his own location, 75 acres of it being under cultivation, which he is renting out to a tenant. He is also a stockholder in the Spring Grove Creamery and hospital. Industrious and progressive, he is respected for his abilities and is popular as a man and citizen. In politics he is a Republican. Mr. Glasrud was married Dec. 31, 1912, to Lillian Virginia, daughter of A. J. and Randi Johnson of Spring Grove township. He and his wife are members of the Black Hammer Congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church.

Fritz H. Engelhart, for many years a prominent resident of this county, first of Yucatan township, and then of Black Hammer township, was an honest hard-working man, had his. part in the developing of the county, and left a heritage of honor to his large family of children. He was bom Sept. 26, 1845, in Hasbergen, Amt-Haja, Hanover, Germany, and there received his schooling. As he approached the age of military induction, he left his native land, and for four years worked in a sugar house in England. Then he came to America and worked two or three years as a farm hand in New York State. It was in 1867 that he came to Houston county, where for a while he was employed as a farm hand in Yucatan township Here he met Adelia Cutting, a daughter of Enos and Adelia (Cutting) Adams, who had come from Erie county. New York, and located in Yucatan township with the earliest pioneers. After marrying this young lady, Mr. Engelhart bought a farm of 120 acres in the same township. But in 1885 he sold out, and purchased 120 acres of partly improved land in section 1, Black Hammer township. Beginning with nothing, the industry and frugality of this, couple built up a good place. At first they lived in temporary buildings, but as time progressed they built a comfortable one and a half story frame dwelling, upright and wing. Here Mr. Englehart labored and wrought until his death on April 10, 1910. Thus left a widow with twelve children, Mrs. Englehart took up the burdens of operating the tarm and raising her family. With the aid of her children she operated the place successfully and continued the improvements started by her husband, still further developing the place by erecting a good frame barn, a granary, a machine shed and other necessary farm buildings. In 1913 she rented the farm to her son, Bay, who now occupies a part of the homestead. The Engelhart farm is located eight miles northwest of Caledonia and eight miles north of Spring Grove. It is well equipped and well stocked, and aside from general fanning a specialty is made of Shorthorn cattle and Poland- China swine. The twelve children of Mr. and Mrs. Engelhart are : Bay, John, Alice, Jane, Adelia, Mary, Fritz, Florence, Enos, Wanda, Claus and Esther. Bay, as noted, operates the home farm. John is a carpenter and lives at home. Alice, who is a graduate of the advanced courses of the Winona Normal School, is the wife of Bern Clemmenson, of Black Hammer township. Jane is the wife of Emil Heidtke,*of Wykoff, Minn. Adelia is the wife of Robert Rowe, an evangelist with headquarters at Spokane, Wash. Mary is the wife of Tollif Brevig, a farmer of Black Hammer township, whose place is a mile north of the Engelhart homestead. Fritz is a thrifty farmer of the same township. Florence is the wife of William Brossard, a farmer of Pleasant Lake, N. D. Enos is with the colors and has seen service in France. Wanda is the wife of Edward Brandt, of WykofF, Minn. Claus and Esther are at home. Mrs. Engelhart is one of the most energetic women of the community, a hard worker as she always has been, and she is highly honored for her accomplishment in raising so splendid a family, a real asset to the county. Mr. Engelhart was originally a member of the Lutheran church, but after his marriage became a Presbyterian, which church has since been the family faith.

Christen P. Qnstad, who spent his life in Black Hammer township, succeeding to the farm of his parents in section 23, was born on the above mentioned farm. May 19, 1856, son of Per and Randi Onstad. The parents, who came from Norway in 1850, homesteaded 160 acres, the land being then wild, and built a log house, which was their home for a number of years. Later the father, who had been a carpenter in Norway, built a substantial house, for which he hewed the timber himself and which, with some additions, is the family dwelling-place today. He died on March 27, 1876, his son, Christen P., then becoming owner of the farm. The latter, who was educated in the district school, took an active part in the development of the farm and made many improvements on it. By an additional land purchase he increased its area to 320 acres and put all in a state of cultivation except twelve acres. It is now one of the model stock farms of the county, the equipment being of the best and the buildings substantial and well lighted. Mr. Onstad served his township as supervisor, assessor and in other capacities, in politics being a Republican. His death, which occurred March 6, 1900, removed from life's activities one of the most useful and respected citizens of Black Hammer township. He was a prominent and consistent member of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church.

Mr. Onstad was married, June 27, 1879, to Oline Solberg, daughter of Helge E. and Kari Solberg, of Black Hammer township, this county. Eleven children were the fruit of this union, namely : Peter Cornelius, born June 21, 1880, now a prosperous farmer in this township; Henry Orlando, born Sept. 15, 1881, who died April 2, 1883 ; Rhoda Alete, born May 3, 1883, now Mrs. Haakon Stenehjem, of Plentjrwood, Mont.; Henry Orlando (second), bom Sept. 22, 1884, now living on a part of the home farm ; Carl Johann, bom Jan. 27, 1886, a prosperous farmer in Black Hammer township ; Arthur Julius, bom July 31, 1887, who is now operating the home farm on rental from his mother, with whom he shares the profits ; Edwin Gerhard, born

Dec. 17, 1888, a farmer in Aznoe, Mont. ; Ida Otine, bom Sept. 8, 1890, who is a teacher residing at home ; Nina Christina, born Jan. 8, 1892, who died in infancy ; Timan Melvin, born April 2, 1893, now living in Montana ; and Nora Alvina, born Feb. 6, 1895, is residing at home, the latter being a school teacher. After her husband's death Mrs. Onstad, with the aid of her children, operated the farm, which is known as Oak Grove Stock Farm, until 1912, making many improvements on it. The buildings she erected include a modern frame barn, 32 by 70 by 14, on a full nine-foot stone basement with cement floor, James stalls and mangers and other up-to-date equipment, together with a cream room, a hog house, 18 by 40 by 8 feet, with cement floor; a granary, 18 by 24 by 10; machine shed, 18 by 36 by 10; double corn crib, 18 by 24, with an eight-foot drive; a stave silo, a garage and a steel windmill. The buildings are all in excellent condition, and the farm is a model estate of its kind with beautiful surroundings.

Arthur Julius Onstad, a prominent farmer of Black Hammer township, was born in section 23, this township, July 31, 1887, son of Christen P. and Oline (Solberg) Onstad. He was reared on his parents' farm and up to the age of 17 attended district school. Then going to Houston village, he entered the store of his uncle, J. P. Onstad, who was engaged in a general mercantile business and worked for him one year as a clerk. At the end of that time he returned to the home farm and resumed agricultural work. In 1912 he rented the farm from his mother and is now operating it on shares, owning one-half the stock, tools, teams and other equipment. Industrious and enterprising and a thorough master of agriculture in all its branches, he is showing good ability as a manager, making the farm yield a satisfactory profit. He is also a shareholder in the Spring Grove Stock & Grain Company and the Spring Grove Hospital, and takes an active interest in all movements for the benefit of the community in which he lives. Religiously he is a member of the Black Hammer congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical church, and in politics is a Republican.

On April 3, 1917, Mr. Onstad was married to Agnes Susanna, daughter of Anton and Randi Johnson, of Spring Grove township. He and his wife have one child, Randi Oline, who was born March 22, 1918.

Adolph Boardman, an early settler in Houston county, who established a farm in section 8, Black Hammer township, was a native of Quebec, Canada, and came to Houston county, Minnesota, in 1867, locating in Houston village, where he followed his trade, which was that of a blacksmith. He was accompanied by his wife Mary, who was born in County Monaghan, Ireland, and whom he had married in Boston, Mass. In 1875 Mr. Boardman gave up his shop and moved to Black Hammer township, buying 80 acres of partly improved land in section 8. His career as a farmer was but short, for he died in 1878, leaving his wife with six children : Edward, now living in Minot, N. D. ; Adelia, deceased ; Louis, a resident of Canton, Minn. ; Peter, residing at Overly, N. D. ; Louisa, now Mrs. Henry Simpson, of Black Hammer township ; and George A., who is now proprietor of the old homestead. After Mr. Boardman's death his widow became the wife of Terence Munyon, whom also she has survived. She is residing with her son, George A., on the rtome farm.

George A. Boardman, an enterprising representative of the farming industry in Black Hammer township, residing in section 8, was born on his present farm, Nov. 1, 1875, son of Adolph and Mary Boardman. When he was 3 years old his father died, but his mother and the children continued on the farm, and until the age of 16 he attended the district school. From that time on he was self-supporting, but attended school for two years more in Tyler, Minn. On Nov. 28, 1899, he married Ellen, daughter of Patrick and Ellen Callahan, of Tyler, her parents having removed to that place from Albany, N. Y. In 1903 Mr. Boardman returned to Houston county and bought the old home farm in section 8, Black Hammer township, where he has since remained. He also rents an adjoining tract of 60 acres belonging to his mother, who lives on the farm with him. About 90 acres of his land are under the plow, and he is raising graded Holstein cattle and Poland- China swine with profitable results. He has made some important improvements on the place, having erected a frame barn, 24 by 82 by 16 feet, with an eight-foot full basement ; a tile silo, 12 by 40 ; a modern corn crib and hog house, 12 by 54, with the crib above and hog house below, and with cement feeding floor 24 by 52 ; also a machine shed and poultry house combined, 18 by 50 ; and a stone cream house, 12 by 12 by 8 feet in size. His teams, tools and other equipment are also of good quality. In addition to his interest in the farm Mr. Boardman owns stock in the Yucatan Creamery. In politics he is a Democrat, and in religion a Catholic, worshiping with his family with the Prebble congregation in Fillmore county. Four children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Boardman : Leo, Jan. 23, 1901 ; Florence, July 6, 1904 ; Celia, Nov. 10, 1906 ; and Rose, May 27, 1910.

Oscar K. Bagley, who for the last fifteen years has been engaged in the mercantile business at Black Hammer, in Black Hammer township, and is also the owner of a good farm property, was born near Mabel, Fillmore county, Minn., Sept. 23, 1873, son of Ole 0. and Ingeborg (Texley) Bagley. His parents were born in Norway. The father, Ole 0. Bagley, came to America in 1843, locating first at Koshkonong, Rock county, Wis., whence in 1857 he removed to Fillmore county, Minnesota, where he bought a tract of government land, paying $1.25 an acre, and began the work of improving it. In 1862 he enlisted in the army and served against the Indians at New Ulm and elsewhere during the great outbreak of the savages that year, and afterward against the Confederates, his service lasting three years. After his return home he resumed work on his farm, which he developed into a good piece of agricultural property, finally retiring from active industry. He is still living, being now a resident of Mabel. His wife died Nov. 17, 1915. Oscar K. Bagley, after acquiring the elements of knowledge in the district school, attended for two winters the Valder Business College at Decorah, Iowa, completing the business course. With that exception he remained at home, working on the farm. On Jan. 22, 1896, he was married to Martha, daughter of Iver and Kari (Lunde) Berquam, of Caledonia township, Houston county, and he and his wife began domestic life on a farm at Springwater, Winneshiek county, Iowa. In 1899 he removed to Newberg, Fillmore county, Minn., where for three years he was engaged in the grocery business until April 1, 1903, when he came to Black Hammer, buying out the mercantile business of H. B. Hanson, which he has since conducted with profitable results. In 1911 Mr. Bagley bought the Onstad farm, just east of Black Hammer church, in sec. 22, an improved farm of 100 acres, of which 85 acres are under cultivation, though the buildings are but ordinary. It is, however, a productive farm, and he has it leased out to a tenant, retaining the pastureland, which he uses in grazing the stock which he buys, fattens and ships to market. A Republican in politics, Mr. Bagley has served as township treasurer for the last four years, and is also treasurer of his school district. An industrious and enterprising man, he has been successful and is highly esteemed throughout the community. He and his wife are the parents of eight children : Irving, born Jan. 31, 1897 ; Clara, Oct. 25, 1898; Edna, Jan. 2, 1901; Milton, July 16, 1905; Milo, Oct. 18, 1907; Victor, June 6, 1910; Ruth, Oct. 23, 1912; and Viola, June 26, 1916.

Simon O. Hauge^ a highly respected and successful farmer of Black Hammer township, was born in Norway, Dec. 25, 1859, the son of Ole and Ella (Norberg) Hauge, who brought him to America when he was a baby and settled in Badger Valley, this county. Later they bought 80 acres on Sheldon Ridge, in Sheldon township. Simon O. helped his parents in their pioneer endeavors and attended school until he was about 15 years of age. After his marriage he continued on the home farm until 1884. Then he went to Hamlin county. South Dakota, and homesteaded a quarter section of land. But successive crop failures there turned his footsteps once more homeward and he resumed his work on the home farm. In 1897 he purchased 200 acres in sections 5 and 6, Black Hammer township. No buildings had been erected and only a few acres improved. The farm is now one of the best in the community. It is located fourteen miles from Houston village and twelve miles from Spring Grove, Houston and Rushford. One hundred acres are under the plow and 100 acres in pasture and timber land. The buildings which Mr. Hauge has erected are all in good condition and include a comfortable eight-room house, a frame barn, 40 by 60 by 10, on a full stone, eight-foot basement ; a granary, 16 by 30 by 8 ; a poultry house, 30 by 16 feet ; a double corn crib, 18 by 30 feet, with an eight-foot drive between ; a machine shed and garage, 24 by 84 by 10 ; a woodshed, 18 by 24 feet ; and a hog house, 16 by 30 by 8 feet. The farm is well tilled and productive and well equipped with tools and machinery. Aside from successfully raising the usual crops, Mr. Hauge has a fine herd of some fifteen pure bred Poll- Angus cattle, the milk and cream of which he sells to the Yucatan Creamery Association, of which he was at one time manager and of which he has been for some time a director. He also has a fine drove of Poland-China swine.

Mr. Hauge was married March 14, 1879, to Hattie G. Weisland, daughter of Gunder and Annie Weisland, and this union has been blessed with twelve children, of whom eight are living. They are : Ole, Ella, Gunder, Andrew, Gena, Thomas, Sarah and Rinus, living; and Hannah (first), Hannah (second) , Alvin and Martin, deceased. Ole was bom Dec. 25, 1880, married Helma Clauson, of Alamakee county, Iowa, lives in Pekin, N. D., and has four children. Ella was born Nov. 1, 1882, married Iver Gustad, resides in Houston, and has eight children. Gunder was bom April 28, 1884, married Carrie Engen, lives in Buxton, N. D., and has two children.

Andrew was born Dec. 29, 1885, and lives in Bucyrus, N. D. Martin was born Dec. 8, 1887, and died June 28, 1919. Hannah (first) was born Dec. 8, 1992, and died when 2 years of age. Gena was born May 16, 1893, married Conrad Buross, lives in Fillmore county, and has one son. Hannah (second) was born April 5, 1894, and died June 15, 1898. Thomas was bom Jan. 21, 1896, and lives at home. Sarah was born Nov. 8, 1898, married Christian M. Westby, and lives in Yucatan township. Alvin was bom March 24, 1902, and died in infancy. Renus was born July 17, 1903, and lives at home.

Mr. and Mrs. Hauge are both much interested in education, and Mr. Hauge has served on the school board, in which capacity his judgment and good sense have been of much service. Both are also prominent in the affairs of the South Fork Congregation of the Norwegian Lutheran church, in which Mr. Hauge is a trustee.

Austin Burtness, one of the pioneers of Black Hammer township, was bora in Norway, Nov. 14, 1828, and came to the United States in 1848, when in his twentieth year. His first location in this country was at Rock Prairie, Wis., where he had two brothers, but from there he went to St. Paul, in which city he resided for some years. In 1857 he came to Houston county, Minnesota, and bought a tract of wild government land in section 27, Black Hammer township, for which he paid $1.25 an acre. Here, in pioneer fashion, he built a small log house and began the task of developing a farm, persevering with good success until his death at the age of 60 years on April 29, 1889. Mr. Burtness married Helene Leren, who was born in Norway, March 19, 1831, and who came to America in 1851. She is now living at Harmony, Minn., and the old homestead is the property of their son, H. A. Burtness.

Helge A. Burtness, a well known and respected farmer of Black Hammer township, residing in section 28, was born on his present farm, Jan. 8, 1862, son of Austin and Helene (Leren) Burtness. In common with most farmers' sons in early days, he acquired his education in the district school, which he attended up to the age of 15 years. He was also well trained in agriculture, assisting his father until the latter's death, at which time he purchased the home farm, then containing 142 acres. Since then he has increased its area to 202 acres, of which 140 are under cultivation, the rest of the land being in pasture and timber. The property is in first-class condition, the farm being well fenced and the soil very productive, while the buildings are substantial and of modern type. The latter include a comfortable two-story, ten-room frame house, a good barn, granary, corn crib, machine shed, shop and garage. One pleasing feature of the farm is a fine apple orchard. The stock consists chiefly of Shorthorn cattle and Poland- China hogs. With two others Mr. Burtness owns a threshing outfit, threshing for themselves and their neighbors generally. In addition to his direct farming interests Mr. Burtness is also a shareholder in the Spring Grove Creamery, the Spring Grove Stock & Grain Company, the Spring Grove Equity Shipping Association and the Spring Grove Hospital. In politics a Republican, he has served for some twenty years or more as a member of the town board, of which he is now chairman, was town assessor for three years, and has also for many years been a member of the school board. In 1885 Mr. Burtness was married to Carrie Bergsrud, daughter of Helge and Marit Bergsrud, of Black Hammer township. He and his wife are the parents of eight children : Helen L. M., born May 21, 1887 ; Austin H., Dec. 29, 1889; Henry M., July 1, 1892; Minerva E., July 31, 1894; Lloyd O., Feb. 2, 1899; Selma C, Aug. 21, 1901; Julia O., April 11, 1904; and Thora A., May 18, 1907. Austin H. married Julia Storlie, a daughter of K. C. Storlie, of Spring Grove. Henry M. served in France during the great war in the Medical Corps, having enlisted in June, 1918. Mr. Burtness and his family are members of the Black Hammer congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church.

Erick Gunderson Pladsen, who became a factor in the development of Black Hammer township by developing a good farm from wild land, was born in Norway, where he grew to manhood and married Inger Torkelson. In 1876, with his wife and two children, he emigrated to Minnesota, settling in Black Hammer township, Houston county, where he bought 80 acres of wild government land in section 12, made a small clearing and erected a small log house. He was very poor, but had a yoke of oxen, with which he began the improvement of his place, both he and his wife working hard. Making gradual progress, he was able in time to purchase another tract of 80 acres adjoining his farm on the west, and also to erect comfortable buildings, including a frame house, a barn, granary, machine shed and other outbuildings, also putting up a steel windmill. He also brought a considerable portion of his land under cultivation. On this farm he died in November, 1911, a well known and respected citizen of his township. His wife is still living, being now (1918) 68 years of age. They were the parents of eleven children, the four eldest born in Norway, where Gunder, the first born, died. The others were: Gunder (second), now a farmer at Isabel, S. D.; Torkel, deceased; Bertha, now Mrs. Frank Bobbins, of Stockelle, Mont.; Albert, now proprietor of the old home farm ; Andrew, a farmer in Buffalo Springs, N. D. ; Matilda, now Mrs. Christ Grondal, of Isabel, S. D., where her husband is engaged in farming; Bemt, now working around Spring Grove, Minn.; Olaf, deceased; Theoline, a resident of Minneapolis; and Edward, now in the United States service.

Albert Pladsen, a well known farmer and prominent citizen of Black Hammer township, where he is operating the old Pladsen farm established by his parents in section 12, was born on this farm, Feb. 9, 1881. He has always resided on it, assisting his father until the latter's death in 1911, since which time he has operated it on his own account. It became his property a year or two ago and he now has about 100 acres under the plow, and in addition to grain is raising Shorthorn cattle and Poland-China hogs. The farm is well provided with good buildings and is well fenced. The land is very productive, and Mr. Pladsen's full equipment of tools and machinery, together with his expert knowledge of agriculture and stock raising, enables him to work it to its full capacity. He has made some valuable improvements on the place and is enjoying a prosperous career, owning a good Maxwell automobile. In politics he is a Republican. His religious affiliations are with the Norwegian Evangelical church of Black Hammer township.

Peder S. Hoiland^ a pioneer, was bom in Voss, Norway, Sept. 15, 1828, and was there married. In 1858 they came to America and located at Koochinong, Wis., where he had a brother, Lars. In 1860 Mr. and Mrs. Hoiland set out for Houston county, driving an ox team and a few young cattle. Coming directly to Spring Grove they bought 120 acres in section 27, from Andrew Bjonstua. A small log house had been built on the place and a few acres had been broken. Into this cabin they moved with their daughter, Margaret, now Mrs. T. A. Thompson, of Lac qui Parle county, Minnesota, whom they had brought with them from Norway. Here they lived and labored for many years, developing a farm from the wilderness. In 1899 they sold the place to their sons, John P. and Stork, and purchased a farm in section 16, in the same township, to which they moved. There they lived until Mr. Holland's death. May 5, 1901, when his wife moved back to the old home where she died in February, 1907. Mr. and Mrs. Hoiland were the parents of ten children. The oldest daughter has abready been mentioned. Stork died in 1903. Karine is the wife of Amund Bergh of Rossea county, Minnesota. Olaus lives on the old home farm. Emma died in 1892. Martin lives on the home farm. John P. owns the home farm. Three died in childhood.

John P. Hoiland was bom on section 27, Spring Grove, where he still resides, March 5, 1861, son of Peder S. and Margarite Hoiland, the early settlers. He was reared on the home farm which he assisted in grubbing, breaking and developing. In 1899 he and his brother. Stork, bought the place, John P. taking the south eighty. No buildings had been erected on this tract, until two years before, when in anticipation of this move, he had built a small frame house 14 by 24 by 12. In 1913 he replaced this with a two-story frame dwelling of nine rooms, 24 by 28 by 16 feet. In 1907 he built a good frame bam, 30 by 50 by 18 feet. He has a granary, 14 by 20 by 10 feet, a machine shed, 18 by 24 feet, a work shop 10 by 12 by 8 feet, a good com crib, and other buildings. To his original purchase, Mr. Hoiland has added two adjoining forties, so that he now has a good farm of 160 acres, seventy-five of which are under the plow. The farm is unusually productive, and is worked with intelligent care. The teams, tools, machinery and equipment are of the best and everything about the place bespeaks the thrift and energy of the owner. Aside from raising the usual crops, he has a herd of some thirty graded Red Poll cattle, and about one hundred head of Duroc-Jersey swine. A man of much public spirit, he has become a shareholder in the Stock & Grain Co. of Spring Grove and in the Farmers' Co-operative Creamery there. Mr. Hoiland was married June 18, 1887, to Marit, daughter of Hans and Martha (Lere) Qven, of Spring Grove township, w)iere she was born July 24, 1867. Mr. and Mrs. Hoiland have three children, Andrine Marie, Peter and Hannah. Andrine Marie was bom Aug. 26, 1887, and married Ole Swenson. She and her daughter, * Annie Odella, bom March 30, 1908, made their home with Mr. and Mrs. Hoiland until she married Benjamin Keume, and took up her residence on Looking Glass Prairie, in Iowa. Peter, bom Aug. 5, 1891, works with his father. Hannah, bom Nov. 23, 1900, attends the Spring Grove high school. The family faith is that of the Norwegian Lutheran church at Spring Grove.

Embrick Benson (Bennid)^ one of the earliest settlers in Spring Grove township, who developed there a fine farm of 279 acres, was bom in Sigdal, Norway, June 24, 1829. In 1842, when he was a boy about thirteen years old, his parents came with their family to the United States, settling at Muskego, Wis., where they remained until 1850. They then removed to Washington Prairie, Allamakee county, Iowa, where in 1854 the subject of this sketch was married to Kjersti Ruen. She was bom in Hadiland, Norway, June 4, 1833, and had come to America in 1850, her family settling in Racine county, Wisconsin, whence, like the Benruds, they had removed to Allamakee county, Iowa. At the time of his marriage Embrick Benson Benrud moved with his wife to Spring Grove township, Houston county, Minnesota, taking a tract of wild land in section 13 one and a half miles southeast of the village. There they remained until 1899 when they removed to Spring Grove Village. Of the wild tract on which he settled Mr. Benrud developed the farm of 279 acres above mentioned, which is today one of the best farms in this part of the county. Their early accommodations were crude and primitive, but in time he erected a comfortable twostory, frame house, a good frame barn, and other buildings. After retiring from the farm he and his wife resided in the village for over eleven years, being among its most honored residents. There also they celebrated their golden wedding. Early in February, 1911, both were taken sick and on February 10 Mr. Benrud passed away, his wife being united with him in death but nine days later. For fifty-eight years they had lived happily together, and not for long were they separated. Nine children were bom to them, namely: Gunder, now deceased; Annie, now Mrs. O. B. Nelson of Spring Grove township ; Peter, who resides at Verona, N. D. ; Clara, who married Peter Qually; Eddie, wife of Gustav Gilbertson of Spring Grove township; Helene, now Mrs. Charles Smerud of Solway, Minn.; Hustava, now Mrs. Ole Hendrickson, of Chaseburg, Wis.; and Adolph, who is the present proprietor of the old homestead.

Adolph Benson, a leading representative of the farming interests of Spring Grove township, residing in section 13, is proprietor of one of the best farms in the southem part of Houston county, a farm established by his parents sixty-five years ago, when the seeds of civilization were being planted here by the first white settlers. His parents were Embrick and Kjersti (Ruen) Benson (Benrud), of Norwegian birth, who on coming young to this country with their respective families, had settled first near Racine, Wis., thence removed to Allamake county, Iowa, and from there, where they were married, had come to Spring Grove township, Houston county, Minnesota. Adolph, who was the youngest of his parents' nine children, attended the district school up to the age of fifteen years and daily assisted his father in the work of the farm, where he has always resided. In 1898, a year before his parents' retirement and removal to the village of Spring Grove, he bought the property, and has since conducted it on his own account, engaged successfully in general farming, including dairying and stock raising, in all of which branches of agricultural work he is proficient. Of an enterprising and progressive spirit, he has made a number of improvements on the place, having improved the house and barn and built corn cribs, a feed house, machine shed and other necessary structures. The bam now measures 34 by 60 by 16 feet, having a full eight-foot basement, while the house is a two-story building of eleven rooms. The farm is in a good state of cultivation, and is well stocked with grade Hereford cattle and Poland-China swine. Mr. Benson having a herd of from thirty to thirty-five of the former, including ten or twelve milch cows, while of the latter he has from 100 to 125. He is also a shareholder in the Spring Grove Farmers' Co-operative Creamery, the Spring Grove Stock and Grain Company and the Spring Grove Hospital. On May 18, 1898, he was united in marriage with Maria, daughter of Ole K. and Margaret Blexrud of Spring Grove township. Their only child, Emil, was bom March 8, 1899, and is residing on the home farm. Mr. Benson and his family are members of the Spring Grove congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church. In politics he is a Republican. The son of hardy and industrious pioneer settlers, he has worthily maintained the family traditions and has advanced in worldly circumstances through persevering industry. Neither are his interests wholly selfish, for he has always been ready to lend a helping hand to whatever was for the good of the community in which he resides, and as such is a respected citizen of his township.

Quel E. Ovestrudy who died on his farm in section 26, Spring Grove township, on Jan. 16, 1913, was well known throughout the southwestern part of Houston county as a successful farmer and worthy and reliable citizen. He was bom at Orfordville, Wis., Nov. 5, 1853, son of Erick and Mary (Trosteun) Ovestrud. He acquired his primary education in the common schools of Wisconsin and was later a pupil for some time at St. OlafF College at Northfield, Minn., subsequently teaching school for several terms. In 1879 he came to Spring Grove, Houston county, and entered the employ of T. T. Bergh, with whom he remained for some time. Afterwards he was engaged in the farm machinery business for a period and also spent ten years as a stock buyer. On May 15, 1880, Mr. Ovestrud married Berget Sagdalen, daughter of Knut and Margaret Sagdalen of Spring Grove township, and he and his wife began domestic life in Spring Grove village. In 1895 he bought his father-in-law's farm in Spring Grove township, three and a half miles south of the village, in section 26. It was his wife's birthplace, and was a good farm of 160 acres, with a comfortable two-story residence, a good bam and other buildings. Its location was but two miles north of the Iowa State line. Mr. Ovestrud had previously had some experience in mercantile business, having been clerk for a time in a general store at Northwood, Iowa, and conducted a restaurant in Spring Grove in addition to the other occupations above mentioned, but he now devoted all his attention to farming in its different branches, including dairying and stock raising. His cattle were grade Shorthoms, and his swine of the Poland-China breed, and he kept improving his herds by the use of full-blooded sires. He also improved the farm in various ways, and his buildings and operating equipment were adequate and of modem type. His activities were continued up to 1910, when he suffered a paralytic stroke, after which until his death he was an invalid. He was a man widely known and highly respected, and was a useful and prominent member of the Spring Grove congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church, to which his family also belonged. At one time he was manager and secretary of the Spring Grove Stock and Grain Company, holding that position at the time he took up his residence on his farm, and continuing to do so for several years, driving to and from town. His political principles were those of the Republican party. He and his wife were the parents of eight children: Eddie, born Jan. 3, 1882, who died in infancy; Edmund, bom Nov. 5, 1884, who was graduated from the Spring Grove high school, and the University of Minnesota, and is now principal of a public school at Hills, Minn., spending his summers on the home farm ; Clarence, bom Sept. 8, 1886, now a farmer residing at Bow Bells, N. D. ; Melvin, born March 17, 1889, who was graduated from the Spring Grove high school and the University of Minnesota and is now a mechanical engineer ; Mathilda, bom May 22, 1891, who died in infancy; Millie Belinda, bom Jan. 31, 1893, who was a pupil for three years in the Spring Grove high school and is now residing at home with her mother ; Geneva Eliza, bom March 16, 1895, who was graduated from the Spring Grove high school and is now a teacher; and Ernest, bom March 10, 1897, who has operated the home farm since he was fourteen years of ago.

Albert E. Vik, a successful young business man of Spring Grove Village, was born in Spring Grove township, Jan. 14, 1885, son of Endre A. and Kjerste (Traan) Vik. He received his preliminary education in the district schools, and his higher education in the Breckenridge Academy at Decorah, Iowa, and in the Valder Business College in the same city,* where he took the full commercial course. In the spring of 1903 he entered commercial life in the employ of his uncle, K. A. Vik, who had a store at Decora. The next year he retumed to Minnesota and started work in the general store of Ole Lees at Newhouse. In 1907 he determined to try his fortunes in North Dakota, but after a few months came back to his native township of Spring Grove. In April, 1908, he established a restaurant and confectionary business in Spring Grove Village. Two years later he sold out and went to North Dakota, where he homesteaded 160 acres of land near Esmond. There he built a small house and bam, and cultivated the requisite number of acres. In January, 1914, he rented this land and retumed to Spring Grove. Here he discovered that the business he had established had passed through three hands. This he purchased and still conducts. He also retains possession of his North Dakota farm, which he rents. He is doing a good business, and is regarded as one of the popular young men of the village. Mr. Vik was married, June 10, 1908, to Minnoe Landson, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. J. 0. Landson, of Spring Grove township. This union has been blessed with three bright children, Morris Carlton, bom Nov. 4, 1911, Alvin Manuel, bom July 17, 1914, and Ernest, bom March 5, 1918.

Endre A. Vik, agriculturist, musician and church worker, was bom in Norway, Sept. 7, 1855, son of Ame N. and Ragnel Vik. He received a good education in his native land, being trained especially in music. At the age of twenty-two he determined to try his fortunes in the new world. Accordingly, with a steamship ticket and $1.50, but with courage and resolution, he boarded a boat for the New World. June 18, 1877, he landed in New York, and by the aid of his fellow countrymen, made his way westward. When he reached Decorah, Iowa, he had been without food for three days. Friends there assisted him on his way to Newberg, in Fillmore county, this State, where he worked as a farm hand for four years. He then came to Riceford and worked on the farm for Rev. E. P. Jenson one year. His musical ability then attracted the attention of Rev. E. P. Jenson, of Riceford, who took him into his home as an assistant about the church and parsonage. In 1885 he purchased ninety-eight acres of partly improved land in sections 7 and 8, Spring Grove township. In the meantime he, in December, 1882, had married Kjerste Traan, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Gunder Traan, and on their advice borrowed money and built a comfortable home which he and his family now occupy. He also bought a splendid team of hones, which he planned would be a help for years to come. But both horses sickened and died, entailing a serious loss. Badly hampered by this loss» but undiscouraged, he and his wife set out to recoup their losses. By frugality, industry, and intelligence, they prospered, and won their place as substantial and respected citizens of the community. Sixty acres of their farm is now under the plow, and general farming is successfully conduefefe' From time to time suitable buildings have been erected, and in 1914 they constructed a sightly and commodious bam which now adorns the property, a frame structure with full basement. The farm is well equipped wif% tools and machinery. But in winning this material success Mr. Vik has not forgotten the higher things of life. For nearly a quarter ^ of a century his voice has been a factor in religious worship in Riceford, w Newburg and Black Hammer Norwegian Lutheran churches. Not only this, but he is also a musician of ability with both the organ and the violin, ^ and this ability he has transmitted to his children, several of whom are ^ vocal and instrmnental musicians whose talents have added greatly to the religious and social life of the community. Since early boyhood Mr. Vik 4 has been a deep Bible student and is an authority on many theological W subjects. It is therefore natural that he should be a prominent member of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church, and that he should many ^ times represent that organization in Synodical gatherings and conferences. W In the cause of religion he has been generous both in means and service. Mr. and Mrs. Vik are the parents of six children, Gustav A., Albert E., Anna Randina, Elena Christina, Sarah Georginia and Emma Bethena. Gustav A. Hves in Fillmore county. Albert E. is in business in Spring Grove Village. Anna Randina is at home as is Elena Christina. Sarah Georgina is now Mrs. Alfred Haugstad of Spring Grove Village. Emma Bethena is now Mrs. Julius Haugstad of Isabella, S. D.

Henry O. Tollefsrud, proprietor of one of the best farms in Spring ^ nynvp township, situated in sections 26 and 27, was bom on the original homestead, which it includes, Sept. 14, 1865, son of Ole and Louise ToUefsrud. The parents were natives of Norway who came to Houston county, Minnesota, at an early date, taking a tract of wild land in section 26, Spring Grove township. This land they developed into a good farm on which they both finally died, the father, who was born April 28, 1831, at the age of seventy-two years, on Oct. 19, 1903; and the mother, who was bom March 7, 1827, and who for sixteen years previous to her death was a sufferer from rheumatism, on Nov. 15, 1906, at the age of seventy-nine. Their children, eight in number, were : Ole, Ame, Henry O., Tollef , Marie, Christine, JuUa and Telia. Marie is now the wife of Gemevald Ingvalson, Christine the wife of Ole Hanson, and Telia the wife of O. K. Wold, of Mabel. Julia is residing on the home farm. Henry O. Tollef srud acquired the elements of knowledge in the district school, which he attended up to the age of fifteen years. His industrial education was very thorough and comprised an initiation into all the mysteries of farm life and labor, in which he soon became expert. He has never wandered away from the scenes of his youth but has remained on the home farm, which he assisted to develop, and which is now his property. He has much improved the original place, however, and has increased its area, in 1890 buying 195 acres of land, of which he has 150 under the plow. An old frame house, formerly used by the family as a dwelling for about ten years, is now converted into a machine shed, as in 1901 Mr. ToUefsrud built a modem two-story frame house of eight rooms, with a detached summer kitchen, which makes a very comfortable home. He has also erected a frame bam, 32 by 86 by 16 feet, with a full eight-foot basement and concrete floors ; a granary 14 by 18 ; a well house, engine house, corn crib and tool house, while he has a good general operating equipment. For the past fifteen years he has been a breeder of registered Shorthom cattle, of which he now has from twenty-five to thirty head, and he also raises Poland-China and Chester-White hogs. Always a hard worker, Mr. ToUefsmd has made progress in the world and has become prosperous. In addition to his direct farming interests, he is a shareholder in the Spring Grove Stock and Grain Company and the Farmers' Cooperative Creamery of Spring Grove. In politics he is non-partisan, having formerly been a Republican. The American Society of Equity numbers him among its members. Mr. Tollef srud was married Dec. 20, 1890, to Christine, daughter of Knute and Berget Wold. She died in 1892, after having been the mother of two children; namely: a daughter, who is now Mrs. Ben Bergrud of Winneshiek county, Iowa; and one who died in infancy. On Sept. 15, 1898, Mr. ToUefsrud married Oline, daughter of Ole and Thore Olsgard, of Spring Grove township. The children of this marriage are: Leonard Kornelihus, bom Oct. 2, 1899 ; Oscar Olvin, bom March 9, 1901 ; Henry Oberlin, bom Dec. 22, 1902 ; Henry O., born April 15, 1904, and Louise Theoline, bom Feb. 7, 1907. Of these children Henry Oberlin died in infancy. The others are living, Leonard K. being now a student in the Spring Grove high school. Mr. ToUefsrud and his family are members of the Spring Grove congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical church, and are people who occupy a respected place in the community of which they are members.

Helge T. Haugen, a prosperous farmer residing in section 1, Spring Grove township, on the farm formerly owned by his father-in-law, Ben. E. Henderson, but which is now his own property, was born in Wilmington township Houston county, Minn., Oct. 27, 1868, son of Torger and Kjerste Haugen. The parents, natives of Norway, were among the early settlers in this county. Helge T. Haugen attended the district school up to the age of fifteen years, and for some years after that continued to reside with his parents. He worked for others until his marriage, which took place Nov. 8, 1893, uniting him with Ingre Helga Amelia, daughter of Ben. E. and Anna (Olson) Henderson. He and his wife began domestic life on a forty-acre farm in Wilmington township, which, however, they later sold, and until 1897 operated rented farms. In that year Mr. Haugen bought his fatherin-law's farm in section 1, Spring Grove township, a farm of 102 acres, on which he and his wife are now living, Mr. Henderson residing with them for several years. Mrs. Henderson died in 1887. Mr. Haugen has now seventy-five acres of the land under the plow and is cultivating it with profitable results, the rest being in timber and pasture. He is living in the original log house built by Mr. Henderson, which is a very comfortable dwelling, and is provided with running water, as also is the barn, the latter being a structure 30 by 66 by 20 feet in size. Among the other farm buildings are a com crib, 18 by 24 ; two tool sheds, 14 by 24 and 18 by 24 ; granary, 18 by 24 ; and poultry house, 12 by 30. All the buildings are in good condition and the farm is well fenced. Its location is in a beautiful valley one and a half miles north of Spring Grove village. Mr. Helge is successfully raising Shorthorn and Red Poll cattle and Poland-China swine. He is a stockholder in the Spring Grove Stock and Grain Company, and the Farmers' Cooperative Creamery and the Hospital, both of the same place. Politically he is a Republican and he and his family are members of the Spring Grove congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church. Honest, industrious and thrifty, he is respected in the community and recognized as a good and reliable citizen. He and his wife are the parents of two children, Benjamin Tillman and Harold Alton. Benjamin Tillman, who was bom Oct. 24, 1895, after attending the district school, spent two years in the high school. Beginning industrial life in a drug store as clerk, he has been for the last three years an employee of the Onsgard State Bank at Spring Grove. Harold Alton, bom Jan. 29, 1908, is residing on the home farm.

Ben E. Henderson, one of the old pioneers of Spring Grove township, who is still in good health and active for one of his years, was born in Ring Ger Aget, Norway, Oct. 9, 1843, son of Helge and Kari Henderson. In his sixteenth year, in the spring of 1859, he accompanied his parents to America, the family landing at Quebec, Canada, after a seven week's voyage, and coming directly to Houston county, Minnesota. On arriving here, or soon afterwards, they settled on a farm of forty acres just north of Spring Grove village, where they remained until about 1875. The parents subsequently died at the home of their son Ole in Spring Grove township, the mother, July 17, 1887, and the father Jan. 13, 1889. Their family numbered in aU six children: Ole, Mari, Kjerste, Inga, Ben E. and Gunhild, of whom Ben E. and two sisters are now living. Ben E. Henderson, who had attended school in Norway, was a well grown boy when he arrived in Houston county, and soon found work as a farm hand. In that occupation he continued until 1866, when he was married, Oct. 7, to Anna Olson, daughter of Helge and Anna Olson. In the same year he bought forty acres of land in section 1, Spring Grove township, of which tract ten acres were broken, and on this he built a log house, which is still standing, and he and his wife began domestic life in this primitive residence. To this farm he has since added until he now has 102 acres in it. He also owned a farm in Black Hammer township, and in 1908 took a homestead in Haaken county, South Dakota, later buying another quarter section of 160 acres, so that at the present time he owns a half section there. For some ten or fifteen years Mr. Henderson was engaged in the marble business in Rushford, Minn., in partnership with Joseph Peasley, but finally sold his interests to his partner and returned to his farm, which he had rented out in the meanwhile. His principal work while in that business was as salesman, Mr. Peasley attending to the manufacturing of the goods. On Oct. 14, 1887, Mrs. Anna Henderson died on the home farm, but Mr. Henderson continued to reside on it until 1907, when he sold it to his son-in-law, Helge T. Haugen. The next two years he spent in South Dakota, but returned to Spring Grove, this county, in 1909, having finally retired from farming. Mr. Henderson is a Republican in politics, and on one occasion he ran for the office of county treasurer on the Democratic ticket, being defeated by only seven votes though the county is strongly Republican. He is a prominent member of the Spring Grove congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church, which he has served in various capacities. He still resides on the old farm now owned by his son-in-law, and on which he erected good buildings. Of the land seventy-five acres are under the plow. Seven children were bom to Mr. and Mrs. Henderson, as follows : Caroline, bom Feb. 14, 1868, who died Dec. 17, 1868, at the age of ten months and three days ; Caroline (second), born March 5, 1869, who became the wife of Bemt Ness, but died March 17, 1890 ; Anna Hehne, born Feb. 16, 1872, now deceased ; Ingre Helga Amelia, now the wife of Helge T. Haugen, proprietor of the old Henderson farm ; Hannah Christine, born Dec. 15, 1874, who is the wife of Peter Bergrud of South Grove; Annette, bom Oct. 27, 1877, who died at Vermillion, S. D., Oct. 24, 1886 ; and Adoline Brocilia, born Feb. 25, 1879, who died Oct. 24, 1886. As one of the oldest pioneers of Houston county now living, and a man who has always done his full duty as a citizen, Mr. Henderson is widely known and highly esteemed. Few men of his years can be found so strong and active, which is doubtless due to the inheritance of a good constitution and the healthful, though strenuous life he has led, free from dissipation or excess.

Thor B. Kolsrud, one of the extensive farmers of Spring Grove township, is proprietor of the Hillsdale Stock Farm, three miles south of Spring Grove, as good a place as can be found in the community. He is doing his share in the development of the county and is highly regarded by all who know him. Bom August 4, 1860, the son of Bear and Joroud (Olestaater) Kolsrud, he was reared on the home place in section 26, Spring Grove township, and educated in the district schools, also studying a few months each in Spring Grove Village and in Decorah, Iowa. When he was but eighteen his father died and the care of the farm descended to him and his brother, Gilbert, then sixteen years of age. In the fall of 1885 a division of the property was made, Thor B. taking 170 acres in sections 25 and 26, the southern half of the old home. Since then he has purchased 240 acres more, making a fine farm of 410 acres. Some years ago he built a brick house, 26 by 30 feet, two stories, to which he has since added a wing 20 by 20, thus giving him a comfortable sightly thirteen-room house. He also built a barn 40 by 60 by 20 feet, with a full stone basement of eight feet. In 1912 he built a swine house, 26 by 80 feet, with a cement feeding floor. Among his other buildings are a stone silo, 14 by 38 feet, and a machine shed 16 by 50 feet, together with a shop, 12 by 14 feet. The farm is well equipped with teams, tools, machinery and implements and is well fenced. About 200 acres are under the plow, and the remainder in pasture and timber. For the past fifteen years Mr. Kolsrud has been a breeder of registered Hereford cattle, and now has a herd of thirty pure breds and forty good grades. His drove of Poland-China swine headed by several pure blooded sires numbers about 100. Mr. Kolsrud has stock in the Spring Grove Stock & Grain Co., in the Spring Grove Farmers' Co-operative Creamery and in the Spring Grove Hospital. He has been the treasurer of his school district for fifteen years. Mr. Kolsrud was married April 12, 1883, to Mary Kroshus, born April 11, 1860, daughter of Andrew and Thurine (Hackness) Kroshus, of Spring Grove, and this union has been blessed with seven children : Josephine Adelia, born Feb. 3, 1884 ; Theoline Belinda, born Aug. 5, 1889 ; and now wife of Henry Rank of Black Hammer township ; Bernard, bom Sept. 27, 1891 ; Arthur, bom Jan. 21, 1893, and died in infancy ; Anna Marie, born June 9, 1894, and now a teacher in North Dakota ; Amos, bom June 6, 1896; and Oscar, born Sept. 5, 1899. The family faith is that of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church.

Bear Kolsrud, the pioneer, was bom in Norway in 1816, and was there married in 1848 to Joroud Olestaater, who was bom in 1820. In 1848 they set out with their two daughters, Gertmde and Anna, and found their way to Rock county, Wisconsin, where they stopped for a short time. From there they started for Houston county. The trip was made in true pioneer style, the ox cart which brought their goods being a primitive vehicle with wheels sawed from logs, and with a wooden axletree. They drove two cows, and the wife walked most of the way, carrying a baby. Upon their arrival in Spring Grove they had but seventy-five cents. They settled on forty acres of govemment land in section 26, and moved into a dugout. In this dugout the twins, Anna and Gumbjor, were bom. These twins died of tjrphoid at the age of ten years. Bear Kolsrud devoted the remainder of his life to the development of his farm. He added to his possessions until he owned 410 acres, on which he made many improvements. After a useful life he died in 1878. His wife died in 1907. They were the parents of three sons and five daughters, all of whom are dead except Thor B.

Andrew P. Kroshus, one of the earliest pioneers of Spring Grove township, was born in Norway, and was there reared to young manhood. Then resolving to try his fortunes in the New World he set sail for America and landed after a long voyage of fourteen weeks aboard a sailing vessel. Coming at once to Wisconsin, he found employment in the Putnam sawmill at Muskego, some eighteen miles from Milwaukee. There, in addition to board and room his monthly wages were $6 the first year, $11 the second year, $16 the third year and $24 the first four months of the fourth year. He was offered $30 to remain, but having saved practically all his earnings he decided to start farming. Accordingly in the fall of 1853 he set out on foot and after a walk of 275 miles, found a friend, John Kroshus, living in Spring Grove township. He bought John's claim of 200 acres for $150, and remained with him that winter, getting out rails, and making a few improvements. In the spring he walked back to Muskego, married, bought a yoke of oxen and an old wagon, and brought his wife back here. He gradually increased his holdings until he was the owner of 313 acres of good land. He died Nov. 12, 1882. Thurine Haakeness, the wife of Andrew P. Kroshus, was bom in Norway, June 18, 1834, and was brought to this country by her parents, who set sail from Christiania, Norway, in a small sailing vessel loaded with iron, April 14, 1840, and landed at New York, Oct. 14, 1840, after a voyage of six months. From New York they went by rail to Albany, then by Erie Canal to Buffalo, thence by the lakes to Milwaukee, where they were met by friends who took them to Muskego in an ox cart. That fall, in company with Torger Aastensen Luraas, they built a single room log cabin, 14 by 14 feet. Mr. Haakeness had but twenty-five cents when he reached Muskego. Mr. Luraas had but $6. But they had brought tools and axes with them from the old country, and with these set out with a will to better themselves. The first winter, the two families of fourteen people lived in the single room. In the spring of 1842 each family purchased a forty-acre tract of land. In 1853 the cholera epidemic swept iSbe community, and carried away Mr. and Mrs. Haakeness, after they had secured a pledge from the daughter Thurine that she would look after her brothgr, Mrs. Kroshus died in February, 1916. ^^--BBp Glaus A. Kroshus, an influential and energetic farmer of Spring Grove township, was bom Jan. 28, 1858, on the home farm in section 27, son of Andrew P. and Thurine (Haakeness) Kroshus. He received his early education in the district schools, and had the advantage of two winters at the Breckenridge Institute at Decorah, Iowa. With this preparation he taught school in his home district for six winters. In 1887 he married and moved onto 120 acres which he had secured from his father, in sections 28 and 34, and on which he had built a small frame house. To the operation and development of this farm he has since devoted his attention. To his original holdings he has added until he owns 289 acres, nearly all under the plow, and in addition to this he has 640 acres in North Dakota. The farm is well equipped with tools, implements and machinery. The modem two-story frame house was built in 1910, and the farm buildings consist of comfortable bams, granary, tool sheds, swine house and the like, together with a good garage. Mr. Kroshus carries on general farming and raises the usual crops. He has a herd of some fifty head of graded Shorthom cattle, and a drove of some 125 Duroc-Jersey swine. A prominent man in his community, Mr. Kroshus served several terms as town assessor, and he has been on the school board some thirty years. He has stock in the Spring Grove Stock & Grain Co. and the Farmers' Co-operative Creamery, both of Spring Grove, and is a member of the American Society of Equity. Mr. Kroshus was married March 31, 1887, to Christine Sagdalen, of Spring Grove township.

daughter of Knute and Margerite Sagdalen, early settlers. This union has resulted in six children, Andrew, Cora, Elmer Oberlin, Mabel Thurine, Geneva Evelyn and Carleton Orlando. Andrew was born June 28. 1888, and works with his father. Cora was bom Nov. 30, 1889, graduated from the Southern Minnesota Normal College at Austin, Minn., and is a bookkeeper for a firm in that city. Elmer Oberlin, who was in the automobile business in Spring Grove Village, died Jan. 9, 1919. He was bom in August, 1893. Mabel Thurine was bom Dec. 1, 1896 ; Geneva Evelyn was bom in July, 1900, and Carleton Orlando was bora July 20, 1906. The family faith is that of the Norwegian Lutheran church of Spring Grove.

Andrew K. Roverud, who was a resident of Spring Grove township for thirty-seven years, and was widely known as an industrious and successful farmer and reliable citizen, was born in Norway, Sept. 29, 1847. When twenty years old he accompanied his parents to Minnesota and they settled in Spring Grove Township, Houston county, taking a tract of wild land in section 2, on which a log house had been built. On this place Andrew spent the rest of his life, in his younger days assisting his father to develop the farm, which in time became his property. Later in life he erected a number of new buildings, including a good frame barn, granary, machine shed, stave silo and residence. The last mentioned, built in 1902, was a neat and commodious frame house of two stories, consisting of an upright and wing. In the fall of 1904 Mr. Roverud sold the farm to his sons, Conrad T. and Henry S., and it subsequently came into the sole possession of Conrad, who is now the proprietor. He continued to reside on it, however, until his death, which occurred Jan. 27, 1905. Mr. Roverud was married June 19, 1882, to Mrs. Bertha Elida Risty, widow of Ole Risty. The children of this union were as follows: Conrad T., born April 15, 1883, now proprietor of the home farm; Henry Sylvester, born Jan. 26, 1885, who is now living in Spring Grove township; Ida Georgine, born Jan. 17, 1887, who for some time kept house for her brother Conrad and then married Casper Sandeger, of Iowa ; Gerhard Antonius, born Feb. 2, 1889 ; Mollie Josephine, born Feb. 4, 1891, who is now Mrs. Alvin Anderson, of Spring Grove township ; Arnold Emil (first), born March 9, 1893, who died Feb. 5, 1895; Arnold Emil (second), born Feb. 15, 1895, now living on a farm at Humbolt, Minn.; and Edward Cornelius and Knute, who died in infancy. Mr. Roverud was a successful stock and grain farmer, whose labors added to the general agricultural wealth of the county, and in his own township he was esteemed as a reliable and useful citizen. His wife is still residing on the farm with her gon Conrad.

Conrad T. Roverud, proprietor of an excellent farm in section 2, Spring Grove township, two miles north of Spring Grove village, was born on this farm, April 15, 1883, son of Andrew K. and Bertha Elida Roverud. From his early years he was associated with his father in the development of the old homestead, which he bought in partnership with his brother, Henry S., in the fall of 1904. In 1909 the partnership was dissolved, Conrad buying his brother's interest, since which time he has been the sole proprietor. The farm contains 197 acres, of which area 150 acres are now under the plow.

To the substantial buildings erected by his father he has added, in 1916, a modern cement-block hog-house, 26 by 60 feet in size, with hip roof and cement floor. As a general farmer and stock breeder he is making good progress, breeding registered Shorthorn cattle, of which he has a herd of 25 to 30 ; also having a herd of about 27 Angus feeders, and a herd of 50 to 75 Poland-China hogs. He is a shipper of full-blooded sires through the north and west. His farm is well fenced and in a good state of cultivation, the land being fertile and productive. The buildings stand on elevated ground and command a beautiful view, the surroundings being picturesque. Mr. Roverud's equipment includes a fine automobile, and his teams, tools and machinery are fully adequate to all the purposes of modem and scientific farming. He is a stockholder in the Spring Grove Stock & Grain Company, the Spring Grove Farmers' Co-operative Creamery and the Spring Grove Hospital, of which last mentioned institution he is a director. In politics he is a Republican, while his religious affiliations are with the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church, he having been a trustee of the Spring Grove congregation for the last three years.

Mr. Roverud was married, June 17, 1918, to Anna M. Hensrud, a graduate nurse of Spring Grove. They have one child, Elida Mathilda, bom June 2, 1919.

Hans E. Lageson, for many years an active farmer in Spring Grove township, but now living retired in Mabel, Fillmore county, was born in Dane county, Wisconsin, Dec. 26, 1851, son of Elling and Martha Leageson. The parents, born near Margried, Norway, came to America in the spring of 1851, locating first in Dane county, Wisconsin, and coming thence to Houston county, Minnesota, in 1867. They settled on what is now the Peter A. Foss farm in section 33, Spring Grove townsnip, but which was then merely a tract of wild land. With hardly any resources they began the arduous work of pioneer farming, in which they were assisted by their son, Hans E., who was already a strong boy of 16 years when they arrived in this county. He had had but little schooling, as even in Dane county he had been obliged to spend most of his time working on the farm, and his opportunities were no better here, as there was even more for him to do. However, at the age of 17 he began working out as a farm hand and was employed in that manner for several years. On Dec. 18, 1876, he married, his bride being Isabelle, daughter of Bendik and Annie Larson, of Winneshiek county, Iowa, in which state she was born, March 17, 1856. After his marriage Mr. Lageson worked his father-in-law's farm for awhile; but in 1877 he moved to Houston county and bought 80 acres of partly improved land in section 31, Spring Grove township. This farm he worked until 1882, when he sold it to William Sinclair and moved to the Sever Hanson farm in section 34 of the same township. Later he sold this farm also and bought the Everett farm, consisting of 160 acres of improved land in section 32, Spring Grove township. Though improved, the buildings on the place were very ordinary, consisting chiefly of an old frame house and some straw sheds. Here he lived until 1910, and during his occupancy of the estate he made valuable improvements on it, erecting a comfortable frame house of two stories, with upright and wing, and containing nine rooms.

with a summer kitchen ; also a frame barn, 40 by 56 feet ; granary, machine shed and other buildings. His equipment was also good, and as a general farmer he was successful. His stock consisted chiefly of Shorthorn cattle and Poland-China hogs. In 1910 Mr. Lageson retired, selling a part of his farm to Ole ToUef srud, a neighbor. The balance of 120 acres he sold to his son, Gustave, in 1914. He still, however, owns a 40-acre tract in Spring Grove township, and is a stockholder in the Farmers Co-operative Creamery, of Mabel, and the Spring Grove Stock & Grain Company. In politics he has always been a Republican, while religiously he and his family are members of the Mabel congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church. To Mr. and Mrs. Lageson fourteen children have been born, thirteen of whom are now living: Albert, born May 31, 1877, is engaged in business at Mabel; Elizabeth Marie, born Sept. 20, 1878, resides with her parents; Bena Henrietta, born March 7, 1880, is housekeeper for her brother, Gustave ; Gustave, born Jan. 15, 1884, owns a part of the old homestead, which he rents to his brother Herbert, he himself operating a farm in Fillmore county; Sophia Matilda, born Feb. 10, 1885, resides at home with her parents ; Leonard, born Sept. 16, 1887, is a business man of Mabel ; Anna Louise, born June 20, 1889, is living at home ; Gertrude Aletta, born Feb. 4, 1891, is assisting her sister Bena keep house for their brother Gustave; Herbert, born Feb. 13, 1893, is a farmer in Spring Grove township; Bendik Algenus, bom Oct. 3, 1894, has been a musician in the United States army but is now residing at home; Frances Idella, born Sept. 23, 1896, is a student in the Mabel High School ; Elmer James, born July 8, 1898, and Franklin Mauritz, bom May 25, 1901, are also students in the Mabel High School; Gustave (first), born Feb. 19, 1883, died Feb. 25, 1884.

Oscar R. ToUefsrudy a representative of a well known and respected family of Spring Grove township, where he is operating a farm of 120 acres in section 32, was born in this section and township, March 29, 1889, son of Ole O. and Gurine Tollefsrud. He acquired his education in the district school and resided at home, except for one summer, when he worked for his brother Clarence. In 1908 he rented from his father a farm of 120 acres in sections 28 and 29, Spring Grove township, which he operated subsequently for five years. Then, being ready to establish a home of his own, he was united in marriage, June 25, 1913, to Emma Larson, daughter of Nels and Georgina (Kjome) Larson, of Spring Grove township. In the same year he bought his present farm in section 32, containing 120 acres, of which he has 100 acres under cultivation. The land is productive and his buildings include a good five-room frame house, consisting of an upright and wing ; a frame barn, 32 by 56 by 16 feet in size, with a full stone basement of eight feet and concrete floors ; a granary, 16 by 24 by 12 feet ; a hog house with cement feeding floor, 12 by 24, and a machine shed, 16 by 30 feet. The farm is only three and a half miles from Mabel village and five and a half miles southwest of Spring Grove village. Mr. Tollefsrud is engaged in breeding Hereford cattle from Shorthorns, having now about 25 to 30 head ; and also raises Poland-China hogs, having full-blooded sires for both his herds. He has a good operating equipment and is making steady progress, his wealth increasing from year to year. He and his wife are members of the Spring Grove congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church. In politics he is a Republican.

Albert M. Lien, a prosperous representative of the agricultural interests of Spring Grove township, residing in section 19, was born in section 21, this township, Aug. 27, 1882, son of Lars and Mattie Lien, the parents being natives of Norway and farmers by occupation. Albert M. was educated in the district school and remained on the home farm until arriving at the age of 20 years. In December, 1902, he married, his bride being Julia, daughter of Knute K. and Anna Storlie, of Spring Grove township. At the same time he began his career as an independent farmer on the Martin Holland farm in section 27, Spring Grove township. There he remained but one year, however, as in the spring of 1904 he moved to the Ed Quinrud farm in section 21, where he remained until 1907. On Jan. 2 that year he bought his present farm of 103 acres in section 19, an improved farm with good buildings, the latter including a comfortable two-story, tenroom frame house ; a frame barn, 31 by 48 by 16 feet, with a full eight-foot basement; a jrranary, 18 by 18, together with a hog house, corn crib, woodshed, poultry house and buggy shed. Mr. Lien, besides making improvements in the house, has built a tool shed, 16 by 32 feet in size, and now has 90 acres of his land under the plow. During the summer of 1918 Mr. Lien built a new modern barn, 31 by 84 by 14 feet, and eight-foot basement. The barn has cement floor and full modern equipment. The old barn has been torn down. The farm soil is fertile and in a good state of cultivation, and the place has a good equipment, including three work teams, an automobile and all necessary tools and machinery. In March, 1919, Mr. Lien purchased the 77 acres adjoining his original farm, with house, barns and other buildings standing thereon, so that he now owns 180 acres of as good land as is to be found in the township. Mr. Lien gives considerable attention to stock raising, having at present a herd of about 25 grade Black Poll cattle with a registered sire, and a herd of 50 Poland-China hogs with a full-blooded sire. Physically equipped for hard work, he is pushing his business and making good progress on the road to fortune. His farm is situated three and a half miles northeast of Mabel and six miles southwest of Spring Grove village, which latter place he makes use of as his market. Up to 1916 Mr. Lien was a Republican, but since then has been a nonpartisan. He and his wife are the parents of five children, bom as follows : Elvina Marinda, June 8, 1903; Luther Clifford, July 25, 1905; Norton Milford, Nov. 29, 1908; Harris Carlton, Jan. 4, 1913; and Frances Luella, Jan. 22, 1916. Mr. Lien and his family are members of the Spring Grove congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church.

Ole G. Gilbertson, a well known and respected resident of Spring Grove township, who is operating two adjoining farms in section 5, was bom in section 27, this township, Nov. 9, 1885, son of Gilbert and Mary (Lee) Gilbertson. Acquiring the elements of knowledge in the district school, which he attended up to the age of 14, he subsequently spent a winter in a school at Decorah, Iowa, another winter in one at Mabel, Iowa, and in

1906 went to St. Paul, where he was a pupil for some time in the engineering school and agricultural college. In 1908, having returned to Houston county, he leased the Ole Lee farm in section 5, Spring Grove township, formerly belonging to his maternal grandfather, who had settled on it in 1854. In the following year Mr. Gilbertson married Alina Haagen, daughter of Ole and Inga Haagen, of Black Hammer township, and he and his wife began domestic life on the Ole Lee farm. In 1914 he leased the C. P. Onsgard farm in the same section, and in the year following removed to it, but is operating both farms. The northeast comer of the Onsgard farm almost touches the southwest corner of the Lee farm, the two farms being separated from direct connection only by a road. They are provided with adequate buildings and a good equipment, and Mr. Gilbertson is meeting with good success in the breeding of Brown Levis cattle and Duroc- Jersey swine, having full-blooded sires for his herds. Since 1910 he has also operated a J. I. Case threshing outfit, for which he finds plenty of profitable work each season. In all he operates 350 acres of land. He and his wife are the parents of three children : Gennat, bom Oct. 17, 1910 ; Ernest, born Aug. 12, 1913 ; and Irene, born Nov. 20, 1915. Mr. Gilbertson and his family are members of the Ricef ord congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church. In politics he is a Republican. His maternal grandmother, Mrs. Sigrid Lee, widow of Ole Lee and one of the oldest pioneers of Houston county now living, resides with him and his wife on the farm.

Die Lee, one of the earliest settlers in Spring Grove township, now passed away, was in his day a man widely known throughout the southwestem part of Houston county and was highly esteemed as a citizen of sterling character. He was bom in Norway, Aug. 20, 1825, and came to America in 1846, landing at New York on Aug. 10. Making his way quickly to Milwaukee, he there procured an ox team, with which he journeyed to Rock county, Wisconsin, arriving Sept. 4. In that locality he spent eight years, engaged in farming. Then in 1854 he came to Houston county, Minnesota, buying 80 acres of land in section 5, Spring Grove township. The township lines not having then been clearly established, however, Mr. Lee supposed himself to be a resident of Black Hammer township, and his neighbors being under the same misapprehension, he was twice elected chairman of the Black Hammer town board. After the township lines had been properly surveyed he was elected as a member of the Spring Grove town board, on which he served for several years. In the meanwhile he purchased additional land and continued the development of his farm, in time erecting a comfortable frame house and other buildings. The same farm now has an area of 270 acres, 120 acres being in Spring Grove township and the remainder in Black Hammer. For a number of years Mr. Lee used oxen for his farm work, as did all the other early settlers, horses being hard to procure and also requiring more care than oxen, and therefore being less fitted to pioneer conditions. The oxen, though slow, were hardy and patient animals and answered the needs of the pioneer farmer. During the Civil War period Mr. Lee was drafted for military service, but procured a substitute, which cost him $300, a sum of money then hard to procure. Had he been a single man he might have gone as a soldier, but he already had a wife and several children, having been united in marriage, March 4, 1854, to Sigrid Christianson, who was born in Norway, April 7, 1836, and who had accompanied her parents to Dane county, Wisconsin, in 1848, as a girl of twelve years, and later, in 1850, to Winneshiek county, Iowa, adjoining Houston county, Minnesota, on the southwest. Her parents later removed to Becker county, Minnesota, where they died. For a number of years after their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Lee with their growing family resided in the log cabin which was their first residence on the farm, but later removed to the frame house already mentioned. Although not physically strong and suffering for years from rheumatism, Mr. Lee made steady progress and at the time of his death in 1895, was the owner of a good farm. He served faithfully and efficiently in public office when caUed upon, and politically was aligned with the Republican party. A member of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church, he was one of the founders of the Riceford congregation, which he helped to support according to his means, and was prominently active in its work along religious and social lines. He was recognized by all as an honorable man, faithful to his obligations in all the relations of life, and a kind husband and father. His wife is one of the few original settlers of Houston county still living and is now over 80 years old. They had eight children, three of whom died very young. The others are as follows : Leve, now Mrs. Olaus Daaken, of Red River Valley, Minn.; Ole, a merchant at Newhouse, Spring Grove township, this county ; Mary, now Mrs. Gilbert Gilbertson, residing at home with her mother; Isabelle, wife of Nels Viker, of Fillmore county, Minnesota; Helena, wife of H. Olsgard, of Spring Grove township ; Sarah, wife of Hans Jacobson, of Caledonia ; and Christine, of Bagley, Minn.

Clarence O. Tollefsrud, proprietor of a good farm of 150 acres in section 32, Spring Grove township, which is the old homestead of his parents, was born on this farm, Jan. 11, 1878, son of Ole 0. and Gurine ToUefsrud. This place has always been his home except for one year, which he spent on the farm of an uncle. His education was acquired in the district school and in the school at Mabel, which he attended for one winter. Having received a good practical training in agriculture in its various branches, in 1909 he rented the farm from his parents and, after operating it three years under rental, bought it in 1912. He has now 110 acres under the plow, the rest of his land being in pasture and timber. The farm is productive, well fenced and well cultivated, and the improvements include the buildings enumerated as follows: A good two-story, eight-room frame house; a frame barn, 32 by 50 by 18 feet, with a full eight-foot basement; a machine shed, 16 by 30 by 8 feet ; granary, 16 by 24 ; poultry house, 12 by 14 ; workshop, 12 by 14 ; an old log corn crib built many years ago ; and a sheep shed, 14 by 24 feet. Mr. Tollefsrud raises Hereford cattle and Poland-China swine, having full-blooded sires for his herds, and also keeps Belgian horses, besides having a small flock of Shropshire sheep. Industrious and thrifty, he is doing a profitable business and ranks among the successful farmers of his township. He and his wife, Amanda, whom he married May 4, 1911, have had five children, one of whom died in infancy.

Andrew Johnson And Family

Those living are : Gladys Leona, born April 23, 1912 ; Amy Clarisa, born July 24, 1914; Verna Eldora, born May 14, 1916; and Eloen Arland, born April 21, 1918. Mr. Tollefsrud and his family are members of the Mabel congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church. Politically he is a Republican.

Andrew Johnson, a well known and respected citizen of Spring Grove township, residing in section 33, where he has a good 80-acre farm, was born in Valdres, Norway, March 4, 1864, son of John and Ingeborg Skaaren. He was but a few months old when his parents emigrated to the United States, accompanied by three children, Endre, Lars and Andrew, and settled immediately in Decorah, Iowa, where they remained for a year. Of these children Endre is now deceased, while Lars is still a resident of Iowa. Two other children were later born in the same state, Martin and Mary. From Decorah the family moved to Highland township, Winneshiek county, Iowa, the place on which they settled being only six and one-half miles southwest of Spring Grove village, Houston county, Minn. There the father, John Skaaren, died a few years ago, but the mother is still residing on the old farm. Andrew Johnson in his boyhood attended the school of that district as he found opportunity, for as his parents were poor he had to contribute his share of the general effort made by the family to improve their fortunes, and so to his lot fell more work than study. He remained at home until attaining his majority and then, feeling himself competent to support a family, he married, March 16, 1885, Louisa, daughter of Sivert and Martha (Larson) Gullickson, of Spring Grove township. That same spring he rented a farm near Mabel, in Fillmore county, where he and his wife began housekeeping. Their residence there, however, lasted but a year, as in the spring of 1886 Mr. Johnson bought his present farm of 80 acres in section 33, Spring Grove township, Houston county, on which stood a log house, while 25 or 30 acres of the land had been broken. With this beginning he started in industriously to develop his farm and improve his fortunes, and his career has since been one of steady progress. Though his farm is not a large one, the soil is fertile, and he now has a good set of buildings and a modern operating equipment. The original log dwelling has given place to a comfortable, one and a half story frame house, while in 1916 he built a frame barn, 30 by 50 by 14 feet, with a stone basement and cement floors, and a modern equipment for hitching cattle and calves. There is also a cream separator room and two box stalls. In 1917 he put up a triple-wall silo, 12 by 22 feet, and among the other structures he has erected are a tool shed, 22 by 28 feet, with a granary in one end ; a corn crib, steel windmill and hog house. His stock consists chiefly of grade Shorthorn cattle and Duroc-Jersey swine, which he is raising on a profitable basis. He is a member of the American Society of Equity. Formerly a Republican, he recently became a non-partisan. He and his wife have been the parents of eight children : Sivert, born March 5, 1886, who is now a farmer living near Pinewood, in the northern part of Minnesota ; Eddie, born Dec. 9, 1888, also residing near Pinewood ; Isabella, born Oct. 22, 1889, who is keeping house for her father, Mrs. Louisa Johnson having died Sept. 27, 1901; Annie, born Jan. 7, 1892, residing at home; Olof, born May 24,

1893, also at home ; Henry, born July 18, 1895, who resided at Pinewood, Minn. ; and Mabel and Cora, twins, bom Sept. 23, 1897, of whom Cora died at the age of two years, and Mabel is now residing on the home farm. Mr. Johnson and his family are members of the Highland (Iowa) congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church. This family gave two sons to the United States service during the great war, both being with the army in France. Henry took part in some of the heaviest fighting and was with the Army of Occupation in Germany.

Oscar L. Holam, who for the past fifteen years has owned and operated a farm of 160 acres in section 24, Spring Grove township, three and a half miles southeast of the village, was bom in Norway, March 30, 1868, son of Andreas and Caroline (Olson) Holum. The father was bom in 1847 and the mother in 1844. They came to the United States in 1871, when the subject of this sketch was three and a half years old, and in addition to himself, a sister, Oliva, came also from Norway. The first settlement of the family was made at Lansing, Iowa, where they remained for a year. Then they removed to Brownsville, Houston county, Minn., where they spent two years, at the end of that time removing to Spring Grove township, living a mile and a half northeast of Spring Grove Village, and the father working out as a day laborer. In 1878 the parents bought a farm at Sheldon, Minn., and to that place the family moved. There the mother is now living, a widow, Andreas Holum having died Aug. 3, 1909. They had in all eight children: Oscar L., the subject of this sketch; Axel, who died in Norway ; Oliva, now Mrs. Iver Sylling of Wilmington township ; Matilda, wife of Ingvald Doley, of Wiknington township; Nettie, wife of Andrew Johnson of Alban, Minn.; Mari, who resides with her mother at Sheldon, Minn.; Caroline and Constance, who are now deceased. Oscar L. Holum acquired his education in the common schools of Sheldon, Minn. He rer mained at home until 1890, and then coming to Wiknington township, Houston county, worked for three years, from 1890 to 1893, for Jacob Johnson as a farm hand. On Jan. 8, 1893, he was married to Oline, daughter of Ole and Randi Roppe of Spring Grove township, and he and his wife began domestic life on a farm of 200 acres at Sheldon, of which farm 100 acres were already under cultivation. After operating that place for a year, Mr. Holum sold it and rented a farm in Spring Grove township, which place he operated for eight years. He then bought his present farm of 160 acres in section 24, of which he now has 110 acres under the plow, and where he is carrying on diversified farming, keeping grade Shorthom cattle and Poland-China swine. He has an adequate equipment, which includes a Ford auto, and is a stockholder in the Spring Grove Hospital. In politics he is a Republican, while his religious affiliations are with the Spring Grove congregation of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church. Mr. and Mrs. Holum have two children: Caroline, bom Nov. 28, 1893; and Olaf, bom Sept. 22, 1895, both of whom are residing at home, Olaf being engaged in assisting his father on the farm.