Archival Collection

Collection Items

• Norwegian parchment, 1553

  A legal verdict from June 1553 written on sheepskin, the verdict decided legal ownership of a large estate between contestants Erik Bollsen and heiress Margaret Nilsdatter. The Oslo Courthouse jury found in favor of Bollsen, and each of the twelve jurors placed his seal in beeswax. All but one remains affixed to the parchment. 
  
  This parchment eventually landed in the hands of Axel T. Lindholm from Stillwater, Minnesota.
• 
  Ivar and Hulda Aas/Aus family papers, 1938-2021

  Biography/History:
  Records of the Ivar and Hulda Aas/Aus family. Includes information on Ivar, Hulda, and children Hans and Berit. Ivar Asbjørn Aas (1906-1993) was born in Ski, Norway, on December 2, 1906. He married Hulda Unhjem in 1938. Hulda was born in Ørsta, Norway, on December 20, 1909. They had two children, Hans Magnus Aas who was born in Ørsta on March 14, 1941, and Berit Marie Aas, who was born in Mysen on March 6, 1947.

  In 1947, the family immigrated to Brooklyn, New York, where Ivar was an associate pastor at Trinity Lutheran Church. In the 1950s, the family moved from Brooklyn to settle in Minneapolis, Minnesota. For many years, Ivar Aus was the pastor at the Norwegian Lutheran Memorial Church (Mindekirken) in Minneapolis, Minnesota. 

  Ivar Asbjørn Aas
  Name change to Ivar Asbjørn Aus at the time of Naturalization to United States Citizenship, December 18, 1956, Kings County, New York.

  Born: Ski, Norway, 12/2/06

  Education: Hamarkatedralskole, University of Oslo, Menighetsfakultet, Union Theological Seminary

  Employment: Norway: Santal Misjon Norway, State Church

  of Norway; United States: Trinity Lutheran Church, Brooklyn, New York, Norwegian Lutheran Memorial Church (Mindekirken,) Minneapolis, Minnesota; Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran, Edina, Minnesota; Central Lutheran, Minneapolis; Nile Nursing Home, Minneapolis.

  Death: September 26, 1993, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Interment Central Lutheran Columbarium, Minneapolis, Minnesota.

  Hulda Unhjem Aas
  Name change to Hulda Unhjem Aus at time of Naturalization to United States Citizenship, December 18, 1956, Kings County, New York

  Born: Ørsta, Norway, December 20, 1909

  Education: Ørsta skole, Volda middleskole, Volda gymnas, Ullevål sykepleskole

  Employment: Norway: Ørstabruk, Ullevål Skyehus; United States: none

  Death: March 3, 1999

  Interment: Central Lutheran Columbarium, Minneapolis, Minnesota

  Hans Magnus Aas
  Name change to Hans Magnus Aus at time of Naturalization to United States Citizenship, December 18, 1956, Kings County, New York

  Born in Ørsta, Norway, 3/14/41

  Education: Public School 102 Brooklyn, New York, Fort Hamilton High School Brooklyn, New York, University of Minnesota, University of New Mexico, University of Arizona.

  Employment: Newspaper boy, Brooklyn Eagle, University of Minnesota student employment, Sandia Corporation, Albuquerque, University of Colorado, Fort Collins, Colorado, Max Planck Institute, Goettingen, Germany, University of Wuerzburg Germany.

  Death: May 26, 2018, Karman, Cyprus

  Buried: Karman, Cyprus

  Scope and Content:
  Collection of personal family papers for the Aas/Aus family. Contains photographs, correspondence, film, notebooks, cookbooks, and other records.

• Vågespel podcast and publication, 2025

  Vågespel (A Daring Journey) is a podcast series highlighting the voices of selected Norwegian emigrant women from Western Norway, both in English and Norwegian.
  
  The following people are involved in the podcast:
  
  Reidun Horvei is a storyteller and one of the scriptwriters for Vågespel. She has long experience with Norwegian folk singing and storytelling and helps bring emigration stories to life through her performances.
  
  Inger-Kristine Riber helped write the script and creates the soundscape for Vågespel. She uses music and sound to support the stories and connect emotions from the past to the present.
  
  Ragnhild M. Gudbrandsen is a storyteller in Vågespel. She has performed many roles on stage and uses her voice to share the experiences of the women whose stories appear in the production.
  
  Katherine Jane Hanson contributed to developing the script. Her knowledge and insight help highlight the daily lives and challenges faced by the women whose stories are told.
• North Shore Commercial Fishing Museum journal, 1993-2018

• Rev. Bernhard E. Bergesen letter, 1940 July 13

  Letter sent to Rev. B. E. Bergesen of Minneapolis, Minnesota, from King Haakon of Norway in July of 1940. The king had just fled to England and was living at Buckingham Palace. The letter is in his own handwriting and explains why he fled Norway.
• Ole Estensen and Anne Langlie collection, 1898-1970

  Ole E. Langli, originally from Selbu, Norway, immigrated to the United States in 1912 at the age of 17. His older brother, Ingebrigt, was already farming in Minnesota and sent Ole money for his passage. When it came time to book the journey, Ole found he didn’t have quite enough for a ticket on the Titanic—so he chose a different ship instead.
  
  Once in Minnesota, he worked on his brother’s farm and in the logging industry. He eventually met and married Anna Henmo, who had emigrated from Tydal, Norway, along with her sister. Ole later found long-term employment at the Ford plant, where he worked for 40 years.
  
  Ole and Anna settled in North Minneapolis and raised two children together.
  
  Collection includes letters and photographs.
• Ann Romo collection, 1897-1934

  Flashdrive of obituaries from 1897-1934 from the Kenyon, Wanamingo, and Zumbrota areas in Minnesota. Originally compiled by Kenneth Nygaard. All files are born digital. 
• Handbok for de forenede stater (Manual of the United States), 1930, 1932

  Manual for the United States: For the Information of Immigrants and Foreigners. In English and Norwegian.
• Oliver Brown correspondence, circa 1915

  Letters sent to Oliver Brown in Minnesota from family in Oslo, Norway.
• Letter from Johanes Micalson, Norwegian Grove, Minnesota, 1882 March 22

  Letter from Johanes Micalson. Original letter and translation.