Some
Norwegian toward the end of the interview.English
Sponsor:
Funding for encoding this finding aid was
provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the
Humanities.
Biographical Note
Brynhild Kjøsnes Garberg was born on March
30, 1894 in Selbu, Norway, a small community in Trøndelag outside of Trondheim.
She was one of four children by Ole Kjøsnes and Sissel Kulseth. Her family
immigrated to America in 1907 two years after her brother, John immigrated.
Brynhild celebrated her 13th birthday aboard "The Baltic" on her way to
America. Brynhild's family settled in LaCrosse, Washington. After settling,
Brynhild attended school for one and a half years in Lacrosse. She was
confirmed in the Selbu Lutheran Church at age fifteen. Brynhild married Peder
Garberg on December 14, 1921. They lived with her family until they rented a
farm. They have four children, Clara, Irwin, Sadie, and Phyllis. In 1962, the
Garberg's moved to Spokane when owners of their farm sold it. She was around 40
years old when she received her citizenship.
Lineage
Full Name: Brynhild Kjøsnes Garberg. Maiden Name: Brynhild
Kjøsnes. Father: Ole Kjøsnes. Mother: Sissel Kulseth. Paternal Grandfather:
John Kjøsnes. Brothers and Sisters: Ragnhild Kjøsnes, John Kjøsnes, Regine
Kjøsnes. Spouse: Peder Garberg. Children: Clara Garberg, Irwin Garberg, Sadie
Garberg Allen, Phyllis Garberg Maynor.
Content Description
The interview was conducted with Brynhild Garberg on August 23, 1984 in
Spokane, Washington. The interview contains information on her family, her
family's trip to America, life in LaCrosse, Washington, her work on farms and
married life. The interview was conducted in English with some Norwegian
towards the end of the interview.
Use of the Collection
Restrictions on Access :
The oral history collection
is open to all users.
Restrictions on Use :
There are no
restrictions on use.
Administrative Information
Custodial History :
The Oral History collection
project was started during an experimental course on Scandinavian Women in the
Pacific Northwest. Students in the course were encouraged to interview women
and learn about their experiences as immigrants to the United States. The
project was continued and expanded with support from the president's office and
by grants from the L.J. Skaggs and Mary C. Skaggs Foundation, from the Joel E.
Ferris Foundation and the Norwegian Emigration Fund of the Royal Norwegian
Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The project was directed by Dr. Janet E.
Rasmussen. The collection was transferred to the Archives and Special
Collections Department.
Acquisition Information :
Related Materials :
To search and view Pacific
Lutheran University's digitized images, visit our
Digital Assets
Website
Processing Note :
The interview was conducted by
Janet Rasmussen using a cassette recorder. A research copy was also prepared
from the original. To further preserve the content of the interview, it is now
being transferred to compact disc. We deliberately did not transcribe the
entire interview because we want the researchers to listen to the interviewee's
own voice. The transcription index highlights important aspects of the
interview and the tape counter numbers noted on the Partial Interview
Transcription are meant as approximate finding guides and refer to the location
of a subject on the cassette/CD. The recording quality is good
The
collection was transcribed by Mary Sue Gee, Julie Peterson and Becky Husby.
Bibliography :
Rasmussen, Janet Elaine. New Land
New Lives: Scandinavian Immigrants to the Pacific NorthwestTacoma, WashingtonUniversity of Washington
Press1993
Additional Reference Guides :
Detailed Description of the Collection
The partial interview transcription highlights important aspects of the
interview. Numbers may be used as guides to important subjects. Two numbers
separated by a slash indicate that the first number is for cassette and the
second for CD.
Cassette
167, side 1
015: NAME
Brynhild Kjøsnes Garberg.
167, side 1
025: EARLY YEARS
Brynhild was born in Selbu, Norway. This is a small
community in Trøndelag outside Trondheim. Her birthday is March 30, 1894.
167, side 1
025: PARENTS
Her parents were Ole Kjøsnes and Sissel Kulseth; both were
born in Selbu. Her father worked for a lumber company marking lumber for people
working in the forest. Brynhild's parents owned their own farm. The farm mostly
produced hay. Ole and Sissel had four children, Ragnhild, John, Regine, and
Brynhild. Her brother came to America two years before the rest of the family
immigrated, because he followed his aunt when she was visiting Norway. Two
years later Brynhild, her parents, and her two sisters left for America.
167, side 1
100: AUNT
The aunt was Brynhild's paternal aunt. She immigrated to
America in 1901 and spent the first two years in Minnesota before she moved to
LaCrosse in 1903. Her aunt's name was Beret, and she was married to Peter
Wigen. They came early to the LaCrosse area, so there was hardly anyone in
LaCrosse when Peter moved there.
167, side 1
139: FAMILY
When Brynhild's brother went to America, her father did not
have any help at home, so her father quit farming and went to America as well.
The family kept in touch with Brynhild's brother by writing letters, and he
wrote back. Brynhild's grandfather came with the rest of the family. He was 80
years old when he left and he lived just a couple of years after they got to
America. None of her family was back in Selbu after they left. Brynhild's
paternal grandfather joined them on the trip; his name was John. Ole's mother
died before they immigrated, so Brynhild's grandfather lived together with the
rest of the family.
167, side 1
171: TRIP
Brynhild celebrated her 13th birthday on the way to America.
She had never been outside Selbu before she left for America. Did not know the
language, she started school without being able to understand the language.
She, however, liked the idea of immigrating to America. Brynhild
remembers that one of her neighbors died during the trip over the Atlantic and
she was buried when they got to New York. That girl was around 20 years old and
died from some illness. There were twenty-seven people from Selbu leaving at
the same time and all of them went to LaCrosse. The group went to Oslo
from Trondheim by boat and then on another boat from Oslo to New York via
England. The name of the boat from Oslo to New York was "The Baltic." There
were many immigrants on this boat. The family left Selbu on March 20, and
arrived in LaCrosse on April 14. Brynhild did not have a cake when she
celebrated her birthday at sea.
167, side 1
234: PAYING FOR THE
TRIP
Her mother liked leaving Selbu, but
Sissel's mother was still living in Selbu. Brynhild remembers saying good-bye
to her grandmother. The family had saved money for the trip. Her father worked
on other farms and they sold the farm, which had hay, cows, and cattle.
Brynhild also worked on the farm helping to rake hay and she herded cattle in
the forest as well.
167, side 1
254: SCHOOL IN
NORWAY
Brynhild went to school in Norway.
They had twelve weeks of school a year.
167, side 1
263: BROTHER AND
SISTERS
John was about 18 when he came to
America and started working for his aunt and uncle. Ragnhild also worked for
the aunt and uncle when the family came to LaCrosse. Regine was two and a half
years older than Brynhild, so Regine did not go to school in LaCrosse; she was
through with school before she got here. The whole group that came to LaCrosse
with Brynhild's family found jobs right away.
167, side 1
290: LIVING IN
LACROSSE
The first house the family lived
in was quite small. They bought the house from her uncle and it was close to
the farm her uncle owned. The house had five rooms downstairs and three
upstairs. It had a wood stove in the kitchen and a little pantry. The family
got water through a windmill pump.
167, side 1
309: LIFE ON THE
FARM
Brynhild feels that the temperature
is higher in the area now than it was before. The family arrived in April and
they stayed at her uncle's place for the summer. Brynhild played with his two
twin girls. Her uncle had two older boys as well. Brynhild started the first
grade in the fall but she could not understand anything. The Wigen girls knew
both Norwegian and English so they taught Brynhild to speak English, and they
explained to her what the teacher said. She attended school another one and a
half years. However, she did not feel comfortable with the English language
after this period.
167, side 1
330: NORWEGIAN
LANGUAGE
The family spoke Norwegian at
home. Brynhild's mother understood English, but she never spoke it. Her father
had hunted with Englishmen in Norway, so he learned quite a bit on those
trips.
167, side 1
337: TRIP TO
LACROSSE
The family had food on the boat.
They went through Ellis Island for immigration. After that was accomplished,
they took a train from New York. Her grandfather was old and the family had to
go with him, which meant that they lost touch with the rest of the group.
However, when they got on the train they met the rest of the group again.
167, side 1
351: ARRIVAL IN
LACROSSE
When the group arrived, all
twenty-seven came together and received coffee and lunch from the editor of the
"Clipper" a local newspaper in LaCrosse. The editor was not Norwegian.
167, side 1
364: CONFIRMATION
After attending school for one and a half years, she
was confirmed at age fifteen. Brynhild was confirmed in LaCrosse in the Selbu
Lutheran Church. The Norwegian Pastor, J.K. Lerohl who preached in Norwegian.
She remembers that she received some cards for confirmation and a new set of
clothes.
167, side 1
381: FARMING
Father liked farming in America, but it was hard work,
especially during harvest. They came in April, so the harvest came quickly
after they arrived. Her father mostly had wheat in his fields. Brynhild's uncle
had a big farm and cattle as well. Brynhild did not know what she was going to
do, so after confirmation she continued to stay at home and helped with the
housework. The family stayed in LaCrosse, and did not travel much around. She
never had a paid job; she worked at home her entire life.
167, side 1
405: HUSBAND
Brynhild and Peder were married on December 14, 1921. Her
husband came from Norway. He worked on the farm as a hired man, while her
brother John was called to service in World War I. Her brother was stationed in
Germany and he was not wounded. After John returned from the war, he came back
home to help with the farm.
167, side 1
434: MARRIAGE AND
CHILDREN
They lived at Ole and Sissel's
farm when they first married. Then they rented a farm. Brynhild and Peder have
four children. Clara is the oldest and lives in Pennsylvania. Irwin, Sadie and
Phyllis live in Spokane.
167, side 1
454: AFTER FARMING
They moved from LaCrosse to Spokane in 1962. The
people who owned the farm sold it, so Brynhild and Peder had to move. They
bought a house in Spokane and moved there.
167, side 1
462: VISITING
NORWAY
Brynhild and Peder were in Norway
once, in 1964. She did not see many differences and she recognized places from
before she left.
167, side 1
469: CONTACT WITH
NORWAY
She does not receive many letters
from Norway. She used to get some letters from cousins in Norway but they have
died now.
167, side 1
474: CHRISTMAS
CELEBRATION
They serve "rømmegrøt" (cream
porridge) and lefse. The children know some Norwegian language; they can
understand it, but cannot speak it.
167, side 1
484: NORWEGIAN
LANGUAGE
She has not used the Norwegian
language much. She is still able to speak a few sentences. (This passage is
spoken in Norwegian).
167, side 1
489: CITIZENSHIP
PAPERS
Brynhild received citizen papers
after a test in Colfax. She was still living in LaCrosse at the time and she
was around 40 years old when she got her citizenship. Husband received his
papers first, so she went Colfax by herself.
167, side 1
502: LACROSSE
LaCrosse was Norwegian. Many Norwegians lived in the
area. The church was Norwegian. Some Swedish and Danish families lived in the
area as well.
167, side 1
515: PARENTS VISIT
Parents went back to Norway for a visit after
spending 10 years in America.
167, side 1
520: BROTHER AND
SISTERS
All her siblings settled in
LaCrosse. All three married and had their own farm.
Subjects
This collection is indexed under
the following headings in the online catalog. Researchers desiring materials
about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these
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