Fjeld Township is a blog about ancestors from Nelson County, North Dakota. Field is an actual township in this county. It is a blog about my Norwegian ancestors, who settled in Nelson County and the ancestors of others who settled in Nelson, North Dakota. Along with random acts of genealogical kindness, you can expect to see information regarding Norway and Norwegian ancestors.
This morning, for the first time in ages, I noticed a little leaf attached to my great grandfather, Ole Martinsen Fjeld (1892-1954), on the Ancestry website. It turns out, the little leaf hinted at an entry for the 1920 U.S. Census. My Fjelds were listed as "Feld" in the 1920 census, which, actually, is a close approximation of how "Fjeld" is correctly pronounced in Norwegian.
Interestingly, they are not enumerated as "Feld," but are indexed by Ancestry as "Feld." In the actual document, the surname is spelled correctly - F-j-e-l-d. At this point I'm just happy they weren't listed as Felt or, worse, Fert (or Fart), as some regional pronunciations of Fjeld can sound, to the untrained ear, as ending with a sound approximating an English r or rt.
Indexes don't always make family research easier.
Members of the Martin Olsen and Kari Knudsdatter (Ruse) Fjeld Family listed in the 1920 Census are:
On occasion I spend so much time on one small branch of the family tree that I forget where I am at or what I have done with other branches of the family tree. In other words, I manage to create my own genealogical disorientation, in the worst cases imagining brick walls that don't exist or nonexistent vacuums of information.
In recent months I have spent so much time on the Mellom and Fjeld branches of my tree that the Stigen and Renden branches have languished. I returned to my Stigen and Renden branches this weekend and found them lacking in vital information and, at first, assumed I had been unable to find any information or had found all the information humanly possible due to Bruflat parish records having been destroyed during World War II.
Then a little light bulb turned on in my head. Karoline Knudsdatter Renden (a.k.a. Caroline Amb) had been born in Bruflat, Sør Aurdal in 1864 and was - so far as I was aware - the firstborn child of Knud Knudsen Renden and Maria Olsdatter Laglund (a.k.a. Maria Olson or Maria Solibråten)... but what if I was wrong? Maria Olsdatter was born in Stange, Hedmark, Norway and it was still a mystery to me how she met Knud Knudsen Renden of Valdres. I had assumed that Maria Olsdatter moved with her family to Valdres before meeting Knud Knudsen. However, what if Knud Knudsen had moved to Stange and later returned to Valdres? It was certainly a possibility. If I was lucky, this was exactly what happened because the time period from the 1850's to 1866 would have been when this couple was married and these are precisely the Bruflat records that were destroyed during World War II.
Simply looking sometimes assists. I looked at the records for Stange from the 1850's and 1860's, reasoning that marriages often took place in the bride's parish and, guess what?
I got lucky.
I found the marriage of Knud Knudsen Renden and Maria Olsdatter in the Ottestad Church records, the same church in which Maria Olsdatter was baptized 30 years previous. The marriage occurred on 30 December 1862 in the Ottestad church in Stange, Hedmark, Norway. I came away with a bonus - the name of the bruk on which the bridegroom was born. Kulhuusbraaten, for those who are interested. The parish records of Sør Aurdal list only the main farm, Landsend, as his birthplace in the baptismal records. In addition, at the time of their marriage, the couple was living on the Hosmestad, or Hemstad, farm in Stange, Hemstad being the bride's mother's farm.
After this success, I thought there seemed to be a rather large time gap between the birth of my ancestress, Ragnhild Knudsdatter, and her brother, Knud Knudsen, so I endeavored to research the existing Bruflat records further and found a second brother, Ole Knudsen, born 4 April 1869 and died 2 February 1877 on the Renden farm.
Further research in the Stange parish records revealed no children born to Knud Knudsen and Maria Olsdatter from 30 December 1862 to 2 January 1864, when Karoline Knudsdatter was born. (Karoline's birthdate is known from her 16 June 1878 confirmation record.) Of course, this appears logical, as Maria Olsdatter would have to have become pregnant around the beginning of April 1863 to give birth in January of 1864. I found no other children born to Knud Knudsen and Maria Olsdatter between the birth of Karoline and the birth of Ragnhild in 1865; I also found no children born to this couple between the birth of Ragnhild and the birth of Ole and between the birth of Ole and the birth of Knud. Nor were there any births recorded from the time following Knud's birth to the family's immigration in March of 1882. They appeared to have left around the same time as my Fjelds - March of 1882. The immigration of the Rendens is listed on page 631 of the Sør Aurdal 1877-1885 Ministerialbok. The Fjelds are found on the same page of the same book.
I apologize for not posting an entry for more than a month. Certain economic necessities have made writing impossible of late, but I believe things are winding down now.
Last time, I promised a continuation on the paternal ancestry of the descendants of Ole Andersen Melom (born 1807 on Granum farm in Bruflat, Sør Aurdal, Norway) and Anne Knudsdatter Espelien (born 2 April 1808 on Espelien farm in Bruflat, Sør Aurdal, Norway). Although I have had many items I could have chosen to write about in the interim, I have chosen not to write about these new discoveries until I have posted the second part of this particular entry. I apologize in advance if this entry is too long, but here we go...
The Paternal Heritage
So that no one has to go back and read the previous entry on the subject, I will start by listing the children of Ole Andersen Melom and Anne Knudsdatter Espelien:
Knud (1829-????)
Ingri (1832-1916)*
Anders (1839-1893)
Ole (1844-1912)*
Maria (1847-????)
Anders/Andreas (1849-????)
Tollef (1853-1936)*
* Immigrated to the United States
Other researchers have listed a daughter, Anne, as well, but I have no information regarding Anne as of yet.
Following the paternal heritage of this family, Ole Andersen Melom was the son of Anders Halvorsen Melom (nee Kringli) and Ingri Olsdatter Granum (1777-????). I am not aware of any other children born to this particular couple as I have not done enough in depth research on this particular family. My only excuse is lack of time and the fact that 18th century research is more difficult than 19th century research.
In any case, I do know the identities of Anders Halvorsen's parents. Anders Halvorsen was born on Kringli farm to Halvor Andersen Kringli and Berit Eriksdatter Espelien. So here we see another connection to the Espelien farm! Anders Halvorsen was baptized in the Bruflat church on 24 November 1771 (Aurdal Ministerialbok 1763-1781, page 141). Anders was confirmed in Bruflat in 1785 (Aurdal Ministerialbok nr. 6, 1781-1804, page 161). The family is still living on Kringli farm, but this would not last into the 19th century...
By the time of the 1801 Norwegian Census, we find Anders Halvorsen, his parents, and his siblings living on the larger Lie farm in Bruflat, Sør Aurdal, Norway. Children of Halvor Andersen Kringli Melom and Berit Eriksdatter Espelien listed in the 1801 Census are:
Anders (1771-????)
Thor (1783-????)
Knudt (1785-????)
Erik (1787-????)
Gulbrand (1789-????)
Thidemand (1793-????)
Further research yields the marriage of Halvor Andersen and Berit Eriksdatter, which occurs 6 October 1771 in Bruflat Church with banns 8 September 1771 (Aurdal Ministerialbok nr. 5, 1763-1781, Trolovede, page 233). It is here we discover Berit Eriksdatter hails from the Espelien farm.
Digging further into the past, we discover Halvor Andersen's baptismal record. Halvor Andersen was born on Kringli farm to Anders Halvorsen Kringli and Marthe Nielsdatter and baptized in Bruflat Church on 4 September 1742, information which can be found in the Aurdal Ministerialbok nr. 4, 1730-1762, Fødte og Døpte, page 245. This brings us to the end of my research so far.
Where in the United States did the Meloms immigrate?
Ingri Melom, having married Ole Knudsen Fjeld circa 1856, immigrated with her children to Nelson County in North Dakota, where she (and her children) can be found in the 1885 Dakota Territory Census. Her two eldest sons, Knud Olsen and Ole Olsen immigrated to the United States before the rest of the family and resided in Arctander, Kandiyohi, Minnesota, where they are enumerated in the 1880 U.S. Census. The latter married Randi Jensdatter Iverbakken in Kerkhoven, Swift, Minnesota on 12 June 1881. After Ingri Melom and the rest of her children immigrated to the United States in the Spring of 1882, the family resided in Nelson County, North Dakota, with some eventually taking up residence in Ward, Grand Forks, or Traill Counties. Inger Fjeld married the author, Hans Andersen Foss of Normanden fame, and lived in Minnesota as well. The couple may have been married in the Knud Knudsen Renden household, which served as a church until Our Savior's Lutheran Church was built near Kloten in Field Township, Nelson, North Dakota. Some of the Fjelds are themselves descendants of Knud Knudsen Renden, through his granddaughter, Oline Stigen, a daughter of Ragnhild Renden.
As for Ingri's brother, Ole, he immigrated to Jackson County, Wisconsin in about 1879 and would eventually die in Eau Claire, Wisconsin in April of 1912. His children lived also in Trempeauleau, Barron, and Eau Claire, Wisonsin as well as Sheridan and Benson Counties in North Dakota. Ole married Anne Knudsdatter of Hestekind farm on 14 May 1869 in Bruflat Church (Sør Aurdal Ministerialbok, 1866-1872, page 62).
Their younger brother, Tollef, married Clara Amundson in Maple Grove, Barron, Wisconsin in 1894 and lived in Maple Grove until his death on 16 October 1936. So far as I know, Tollef's children remained in Maple Grove at least through the early part of the 20th century.
Since my last entry, I have made a bit more progress in the research on the Melom/Espelien branch of the family tree. I now have the branch back to the mid to early 1700's. I have a bit more on the Melom side than the Espelien side, but this is more the result of more work having been done on the Melom side than the Espelien side on my part.
The Maternal Heritage
Anne Knudsdatter Espelien was born 2 April 1808 on Espelien farm in Bruflat, Sør Aurdal, ValdresNorway and was baptized at the Bruflat church on 10 April 1808. Her parents are listed as Guri Andersdatter and Knud Andersen Espelien. All of this information can be found in the eighth entry on page 14 of the Sør Aurdal Ministerialbok 1807-1815. Further perusal of the Aurdal parish records reveal her parents were married 10 October 1800 and that Guri Andersdatter hailed from Øyen farm, a bruk of Nordre Hestekind. Parish records reveal that Guri Andersdatter was born on Øyen farm in April of 1781 and Knud Andersen was born on Espelien farm in 1769. Guri's parents are listed as Anders Knudsen Øyen and Barbro Engebretsdatter. Barbro Engebretsdatter can be found in the 1801 Norwegian Census living on Præstøen farm in Bruflat, Sør Aurdal in Valdres, Norway. She is remarried to Arne Halstensen Præstøen and her children by her previous marriage are also living on Præstøen farm, with the exception of daughter Guri, who is by then married to Knud Andersen Espelien and living on Espelien farm.
Children of Barbro Engebretsdatter and Anders Knudsen Øyen
Guri Andersdatter Øyen Espelien (1781-xxxx)
Sigri Andersdatter Øyen Præstøen (1786-xxxx)
Anne Andersdatter Øyen Præstøen (1790-xxxx)
Ingri Andersdatter Øyen Præstøen (1793-xxxx)
Knud Andersen Øyen Præstøen (1797-xxxx)
That is as far back as I have the Øyen line as of this writing. The Espelien line is a different story altogether.
Anders Knudsen Espelien, father of Anne Knudsdatter Espelien, was born in late February or early March of 1769. He was baptized 5 March 1769 at the Bruflat church. Parish records for the baptism reveal his parents to be Anne Knudsdatter and Anders Hendriksen Espelien. Anne Knudsdatter married Anders Hendriksen Espelien at Bruflat church on 19 October 1768, showing that pregnancy before wedlock was a problem that existed long before many people would prefer to acknowledge. According to the marriage entry (Aurdal Ministerialbok 1763-1781, page 226, fifth entry), Anna Knudsdatter lived on Breien farm at the time of her marriage. In fact, the Aurdal Ministerialbok from 1730-1762 reveals she was actually born on Breien farm sometime before 13 July 1748, the date she was baptized at the Bruflat church. Her parents are listed as Sigri Andersdatter and Knud Arnesen Breien.
It was not so easy to find the baptism entry for her husband, Anders Hendriksen Espelien, since he was not born on Espelien farm. Rather, Anders Hendriksen was born on Ødegaard farm in April 1751 and was baptized 18 April 1751 in the Bruflat church. The story would be similar for Anne Knudsdatter Breien's father. People did move after all.
Anne Knudsdatter Breien's parents married 11 October 1743 at Bruflat church. The marriage entry lists the bride as Sigri Andersdatter Lunde so that we know she was living on the Lunde farm at the time of her marriage. We cannot assume she was born on the same farm, however, any more than we can safely assume Knud Arnesen Breien was born on the Breien farm. It's a good start, but not rock solid evidence. As it turns out, I have yet to find Sigri Andersdatter Lunde's baptismal entry. As for Knud Arnesen Breien, he was not born Knud Arnesen Breien. Instead, he was born on Brufladt farm and that is as far as I have gone on these lines.
Children of Sigri Andersdatter Lunde and Knud Arnesen Brufladt/Breien
Marthe Knudsdatter Brufladt/Breien (1744-xxxx)
Birthe Knudsdatter Breien (1746-xxxx)
Anne Knudsdatter Breien (1748-xxxx)
Marthe is the only one of their children born on the Brufladt farm. Sigri Andersdatter and Knud Arnesen may have had more children after 1748, but I do not know because I have not looked into the possibility yet.
Next time I will write about the Melom side of the family, since this entry has become excessively long. For those who are tired of reading the words "Bruflat church" and would like to see some pictures, here is a link to Mango Slice's photos of the church on Flickr:
It's true, there are a lot of Norwegians on Facebook (I looked), including a lot of Fjelds and Meloms. However, I recently joined Microsoft's Live Spaces and it appears there are lots of Fjelds and Meloms there as well. Most Meloms spell the name with two l's, however. Of course, there are lots of Stigens as well!
It has been awhile, but I have made a breakthrough in the Berthe Ellefsdatter conundrum. I have found her birth, baptism, confirmation, marriage, and death in the Norwegian parish records.
Berthe Ellefsdatter was born 5 June 1820 in Løten, Hedmark, Norway and baptized 25 June 1820 in the Løten church (Løten 1812-1832, page 119, line 28). According to the Løten 1814-1832 Ministerialbok (page 594, line 5), Berthe Ellefsdatter left Løten for Aamodt farm in Modum with her sister, Mari, on 13 February 1830. There is no mention of the girls' parents and the girls were living on different farms at the time - Berthe on Rokoeier and Mari on Bergseng, the latter being their mother's family farm. Berthe Ellefsdatter was confirmed in 1835 in Modum, Buskerud, Norway (Modum 1832-1841, page 573, line 17). She married Knud Knudsen Stigen on 14 June 1844 (Modum 1841-1850 Ministerialbok, page 287, line 30) in Heggen kirke and died 2 October 1883 (Snarum i Modum 1877-1889 Ministerialbok, page 275, number 4 under 1883).
Berthe Ellefsdatter can be found in both the 1865 and 1875 censuses living on Stigen farm in Snarum, Modum, Buskerud, Norway. Her sister, Mari, married Truls Pedersen Skretteberg on 26 January 1838 in Heggen Kirke, Modum, Buskerud, Norway (Modum 1832-1842 Klokkerbok, page 399, line 8; Modum 1832-1841 Ministerialbok, page 406, line 8) and lived on Krogen farm in Heggen, Modum, Buskerud, Norway for the 1865 census and on Skretteberg farm in Modum, Buskerud, Norway for the 1875 census.
The girls' parents are Ellef Hansen Aamodteie and Siri Olsdatter Bergseng and I have found birthdates, a marriage date, confirmations, etc. for these individuals as well as the names, marriages and birthdates of their parents. In fact, I now have their lines back to their grandparents.
New on Ancestry.com is the Roster of the men and women who served in the army or naval service (including the Marine Corps) of the United States or its allies from the state of North Dakota in the World War, 1917-1918, Vols. 1-4.
Whew! That's quite a mouthful.
Nonetheless, both brothers of my great grandmother, Oline Stigen, are found in the records. They can be found on pages 3108-3109. Listed is their birth dates, service dates, civilian occupations, induction dates, etc. Pretty much a summary of their military records.
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