Name/Title
Norby family: Ole and Marie (Olson) Norby, 1884 pioneers of Bloomfield Township, Traill County, DTEntry/Object ID
2023.429.1Description
This folder contains documents and photographs about Ole Norby and his wife Marie (Olson) Norby, early settlers in Traill County [photo, left]. These documents and photographs were kindly donated to the TCHS by Paula (Norby) Sanders, whose mother Lois (Kruschke) Norby was Ole and Marie (Olson) Norby's granddaughter.
The life of Ole and Marie (Olson) Norby is briefly described on page 146 in Vol. I in the Traill County History book, and in his obituary published in the 31 August 1934 issue of the Hillsboro Banner.
As described on page 146 in Traill County History, Vol. I [see below]: "Ole Norby was born December 9, 1852, near Tangen Station, Hedemarken [Hedmark], Norway. In 1879 he came to America, to Dakota Territory. He homesteaded in Norway Township. After proving Homestead he decided to sell and return to Norway. As he traveled across America, towards the east coast, he changed his mind and returned to the Hillsboro area. In 1884, he purchased land in Bloomfield Township and began farming again."
"Ole met a young girl from Sweden, Marie Olson, who was living with her sister on a neighboring farm. There were married in 1885. Marie was born May 14, 1859, in Sweden, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Olaf Olson. She had come to America in May, 1884."
"Ole and Marie Norby lived in a sod house for two-years where their first son, Oscar, was born. Later, a two-room frame house was built and two children, Julius and Laura, were born [see family tree, below]. Some years later more rooms were added, and Melford was born [Julius died at age 10 and Melford moved away to Illinois]."
"Ole served as a township supervisor and school treasurer in Bloomfield Township for a number of years." From an Ancestry.com Public Member story contributed by Shannon Van Horn [Ole Norby's great granddaughter] in 2019 [below], we know that Ole and Marie's farm in Bloomfield Township was located in the NE Qtr. of Sect. 4 [see 1909 plat map, below].
From age 146: "Sometime during the 1890s the parents of Mrs. Norby, Olaf and Charlotte Olson, of Sweden, came to live with them. Mr. Olson died in 1905 and Mrs. Olson died in 1910."
"In 1909 Ole and Marie Norby retired from farming and sold their farm, and then moved to Hillsboro where they purchased a home."
"In 1914 Ole purchased the Ostlund Farm in Norway Township, which he farmed for two years, then their son, Oscar, took over the farming. Ole and Marie retired to Hillsboro where they continued to make their home until passing away."
Ole's obituary was published in the 31 August 1934 issue of the Hillsboro Banner newspaper (see below) and in the 30 August issue of the Hatton Free Press (see below). These obituaries described how Ole Norby farmed in Bloomfield and Norway Township for 56 years. This obituary noted that Ole came to America in 1872 at the age of 20, and then in the spring of 1878 to Dakota Territory to stake a homestead claim in Norway Township. In the 1880 US Census for Traill County, DT, Ole Norby was recorded as age 27 and single. After proving his homestead claim, Ole sold up and went east, but returned and married Marie Olson of Hillsboro. They bought land in Bloomfield Township and farmed there for nearly 30 years. Ole and Marie moved into Hillsboro [1910 US Census]. They then bought a farm in Norway Township. In 1918, Ole and Marie moved back into Hillsboro, leaving the operation of their Norway Township farm to their oldest son, Oscar Norby [see TCHS Family History Catalogit entry 2025.35.1]. Ole Norby died, age 81, on August 26, 1934, at his home in Hillsboro after a three-month long illness. Ole was interred in the Arnegard Cemetery [FaG grave-marker photo, below], located three miles west of Hillsboro.
Marie (Olson) Norby's obituary was published in the 11 December 1942 issue of the Hillsboro Banner newspaper (see below). As noted earlier, Marie was born on May 14, 1859, in Sweden, to parent's Olaf and Charlotte Olson. When Marie Olson came to America from Sweden in May 1884, all her belongings were carried in a wooden trunk on the boat. This travel trunk was donated to the TCHS Plummer House Museum by David Brown, Marie's great grandson (see photo, below). This trunk is now on display at the museum in Hillsboro. Marie married Ole J. Norby in January 1885 in Hillsboro. As described earlier they farmed in Traill County and resided in Hillsboro for many years. After her husband died in 1934, Marie continued to live in their home in Hillsboro, but in 1940 moved to Grand Forks to live with her son Oscar and family. Marie (Olson) Norby passed away, age 83, on December 4, 1942. After funeral services at the Methodist Church in Hillsboro, Marie was interred in an Olson Family plot at the Arnegard Cemetery located about 3 miles west of Hillsboro [FaG grave-marker photo, below].
The Ole Norby family history folder at the Plummer House also contains Ole's First National Bank of Hillsboro account book covering from 1921 to 1926.Acquisition
Accession
2023.429Source or Donor
Paula (Norby) SandersLocation
* Untyped Location
Resource RoomBuilding
Plummer House
