Manfred History and Preservation Inc.

10/23/2026

FAMILY FRIDAY!!

Verna Anderson Bowers
Wife's Full Name: Verna Anderson

Wife's Place of Birth: Manfred, ND

Wife's Father's Name: Perry Anderson

Wife's Mother's Name: Lillie Rodne

Wife's Siblings' Names: Margaret, Peter, Donald, Ruth, LoAnn, Orren

She was one of the 5 original founding members of MHP. INC

Birth
9 Nov 1930
Death
14 Nov 2025 (aged 95)
Burial
Vang Lutheran Cemetery
Manfred, Wells County, North Dakota, USA

Verna Anderson Bowers, 95, of Harvey, ND, passed away peacefully Friday, November 14, 2025 at the SMP Health St. Aloisius Hospital in Harvey, ND. Memorial Service will be held at 11:00 AM Thursday, November 20, 2025 at the Vang Lutheran Church in Manfred, ND with Pastor Shirley Teske officiating. Visitation will begin one hour prior to the service at the church. Burial will be held at the Vang Lutheran Cemetery following the reception. In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to the Vang Lutheran Cemetery Fund: 1984 39th Avenue NE Manfred, ND 58341.

Caroline Verna Bowers was born Nov. 9, 1930, the daughter of Perry and Lilly (Rodne) Anderson, of Manfred, N.D. The middle child of seven, she was a good worker and loved animals. She attended school in Manfred for eight years and then graduated from Fessenden High School in 1948. Verna attended Minot State College and earned her Teaching Certificate in 1950. Verna taught third grade in Glendive, Mont., for 3 ½ years before moving to Florida. She was once married to Gene Roberts. While he attended Law School, Verna worked at the University of Florida in the housing office and other various jobs. They later divorced. Verna continued to live and work in Florida. She married Charles Bowers. He passed away in 1979.

Verna worked many years for Southern Bell Telephone Company and held various positions in the company, retiring in 1985. In 1983, Verna earned her Bachelor Degree in Business Administration. She moved back to Harvey in 1992 to help care for her mother. She purchased a home nearby where she continued to live until her 95th birthday.

Verna was very talented and creative. Her sewing, knitting, and painting ability was admired and shared with family members. She made Christmas stockings, knitted sweaters, and made the Centennial quilt for Vang Lutheran Church. She shared her sewing skills with Anderson Upholstery Shop while working with Perry and Peter.

While living in Harvey, Verna enjoyed bowling and helping at the local food pantry. She was a member of Vang Lutheran Church, Sons of Norway, and Manfred History and Preservation.

Verna is survived by sisters, Ruth (Reiner) Widiger, New Rockford, ND and LoAnn (Wayne) Dybing, Fargo, ND; brother, Orren (Karen) Anderson, Minot, ND; sister-in-law Rose Anderson, Manfred; and many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Perry and Lilly Anderson; sister, Margaret (Ted) Thorson; brothers, Peter and Donald (Fran) Anderson.

10/19/2026

MANFRED MONDAY!!
Things you can not see but are stored very well!
Some art work from past Manfred School students from our archives.

10/16/2026

Family Friday!!

Nels and Annie Overrein
Husband's Full Name: Nels Hansen Overrein
Husband's Place of Birth: Steinkjer, Nord Trondelag, Norway
Husband's Father's Name: Hans Olsen
Husband's Mother's Name: Anna Hendrietta Andersdtr
Husband's Siblings' Names: unknown
Wife's Full Name: Oliana (Annie) Stromme
Wife's Place of Birth: Norway
Wife's Father's Name: unknown
Wife's Mother's Name: unknown
Wife's Siblings' Names: unknown
Children's Names: Helen, Olaf
2nd Wife’s Name: Nanna Straume
Nels Overrein immigrated from Trondelag, Norway in 1906. While in Manfred he worked for the wagon shop and also as a blacksmith for Jens Renden, who was from the same area in Norway. In 1908 he joined the Manfred Band, playing a “horn”.
Nels worked as a blacksmith for the wagon shop in Manfred. He also worked for Jens Renden in his blacksmith shop. Both Nels and Oliana were born in Norway and came to this country in 1906 and 1908 respectively. On January 14, 1910 they were married in Fessenden. Their plan was to make Manfred their home for the winter and move to Montana in the spring where Nels had a homestead. They had two children, Helen, born in North Dakota and Olaf born in Montana.
The 1920 census reveals that Nels was a widowed and living with his stepbrother in Bellingham, Watcom, Washington. On April 20 1921 he was married to Nanna Straume in Bellingham. He was a blacksmith and continued to live in Washington until his death at age 95.

According to Find a Grave both Nels and Nanna are buried at Bayview Cemetery in Bellingham Washington. Nanna died in 1973 and Nels married another woman after named Ethel.
Not able to track down the first wife Annie.

The Bellingham Herald (WA) 6 Oct 1980, Mon

OVERREIN, Nels H., age 96 of 6189 N.E. 187th Place, Seattle, died Sat Oct 4, 1980. A member of Calvary Temple and International Machinest Union No. 239 for over 50 years, Mr. Overrein is survived by 1 son, Olaf G. and wife Ethel Overrein of Bellingham; 1 daughter Mrs. Helen N. Bell of Seattle; 6 grandchildren; 5 great-grandchildren; nieces and nephews. Funeral service Wed Oct 8, 1 pm Jones Funeral Home. Interment Bayview Cemetery.
The Bellingham Herald (WA) 2 Nov 1973, Fri

OVERREIN, Nanna Marie of 3218 Peabody St, age 77, passed away Wed, Oct 31. A 52 year resident of this city, Mrs. Overrein was a member of Calvary Temple. She is survived by her husband Nels H.; 1 stepson Olaf G., city; 1 stepdaughter Mrs. Helen Marie Bell, Seattle; 6 grandchildren; 4 great-grandchildren; 2 brothers and 2 sisters in Norway. Services will be conducted by Rev. Paul Cantelon, Monday, November 5 at 1 pm at the Jones Funeral Home. Interment Bay View Cemetery. Memorials may be made to Calvary Temple.

10/12/2026

MANFRED MONDAY!
Continued past history from last week
1928

First half of January very mild. February a big dirt storm. March finally snow falls. Mid April- Field work was delayed on account of heavy frosts. Late snow. Rains in June. High winds in July cause some damage on Halvor Olson and Ingvald Ravnaas farms. Crops looked good through season. Some of the crops were running better than expected. Threshing delays due to rains. Sufficient help was available. Snow did not arrive until mid December.



End of January Ole Mietz and son August have a near tragedy with train in Fessenden. Edna Ongstad married in June. 25th wedding anniversary of J. M. Langseth in September. Fessenden streets and fair grounds regraveled. Olaf Anderson received in January a carload of machinery. Lutheran Teachers Association of ND met at the Manfred parishes March 18-23. Olaf Anderson also sells the Whippet. CC Melby purchased his store back and will open for business. June 10-Edna Ongstad and Arthur Larson were married. Olaf Anderson received a carload of machinery. Manfred Motor received a carload of Fords. 11/1-M/M CK Melby leave Manfred and return to live at Minneota MN.



Governor Sorlie dies. Paul Christenson died in March. Mrs. Guy Fisher dies in July at age 43.

Walter Reule, 16 years old, died Oct 18.



9/13-Oscar Melby's threshing rig broke down Wed and he had to make a trip to Fargo for repairs.

9/20-Oscar Melby was taken seriously ill Monday and was taken to the hospital. Rudolph Peterson is operating his threshing rig. 9/27-Oscar Melby is getting along nicely after his operation, but it will be a few weeks before he can return home. 10/18-Oscar Melby returned home from the Reimche hospital at Harvey on Sunday. He is getting along nicely. 10/18-Oscar Melby is back from the hospital where he underwent an operation for appendicitis. He is feeling much better now. 11/19-M/M Oscar Melby are the proud parents of a son born to them on Nov 22. 12/6-Miss Emma Nordtorp of Fessenden visited at the Oscar Melby home over Thanksgiving.

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10/09/2026

FAMILY FRIDAY!!
Getting back to the EILERT NELSON FAMILY
Eilert and Tillie Nelson
Husband's Full Name: Eilert Norman Nelson
Husband's Place of Birth: Manfred Township, ND
Husband's Father's Name: Knut E Nelson
Husband's Mother's Name: Randi Ulberg Nelson
Husband's Siblings' Names: Ida, Anna
Wife's Full Name: Ottilla Ramstad Nelson
Wife's Place of Birth: Hatton, ND
Wife's Father's Name: Erik Ramstad
Wife's Mother's Name: Marie Sletten
Wife's Siblings' Names: Gunder, Carl, Gilman, Evelyn, Lillian,
Orville, Ernest, Sanford, Leonard, Wallace, Elnor
Children's Names: none

Eilert was associated with his father Knut Nelson in the farming enterprise ever since he was old enough to help out, and he took over full operations after his father's death in 1947. He owned the place jointly with his mother until her death.



This farm was located in Manfred Township, just three miles north of Manfred along the county road. The farm unit comprises some 520 acres, of which 425 are under cultivation. The family owned considerably more acreage at one time, but sold out some of their holdings several years ago to bring the farmstead into operating size for one man and one set of machinery.



Eilert had about 30 head of cattle on the place, and also kept four head of horses - almost a record in those days. He combined most of his crop, but also threshed some of his own grain to get a supply of straw, and has also did some custom threshing for his neighbors. The barn was built in 1915 and other buildings added including the granaries, machine shed, blacksmith shop, chicken house and garage. The last additions to the house were made in 1926.
Eilert married Tillie Ramstad of Hatton in March of 1936. He served as a deacon at Vang Lutheran Church. He died in 1976.
Tillie grew up and attended school near her farm home near Hatton. After her marriage to Eilert they lived and farmed north of Manfred. She moved into Harvey in 1977 and entered the St. Aloisius Nursing Home in March of 1994. She was a member of Vang Lutheran Church and was active in the Ladies Aid and as a Sunday School Teacher. She died in 1995.
Both Eilert and TIllie are buried at Vang Cemetery.
A memory of Tillie.. She made the best homemade bread every day.....

10/08/2026

Lots of free firewood. Lost some cottonwood this summer. Free to take. Have to cut pieces yourself.

10/05/2026

MANFREDMONDAY!! A 100 year look back to 1926 and 1927

1926

Very mild winter. Dry conditions. Dust storms, wells going dry, and James River dry in places. July 15 rain came rather late. Crop was poor to fair. End of July harvest help was scarce because hands were still busy in the south. Combine Harvesters are being tried out in state. Farmers are warned to beware of chicken thieves as a number of thefts had recently occurred.



Shirley Bros beginning from in January. Big prairie fire, and Manfred residents helped combat the flames. Glanders outbreak and 35-40 horses shot in April. Five cars of lumber burn on track at Heimdal in May. Bi annual Luther League Convention at Parshall ND. Gilman E Shirley gave two papers 'Christ the Lord and Savior', and 'Divine Love'. Pastor Langseth was ill in hospital first half of year. Luther League Rally picnic held in O S Hovey grove with 1000-1500 people attending. Feb. Olaf Anderson begins selling John Deere farm implements. Feb. Shirley Brothers received a carload of tractors. March Olaf Anderson receives a carload of Overlands. Home talent puts on 'A Hoodooed C**n' to benefit the Manfred baseball team. The Soo Line removed the water tower and windmill in March. March-April and again in July Rev Langseth ill in the hospital. The Sons of Norway held their first meeting in their recently completed hall. August 8 Big Luther League Rally held at Ole S Hovey farm. Chorus of 75 voices. In December the Women's Literary Society presented the play 'And Home Came Ted'. Evelyn Shirley married Dec 22 to Charles F Knoll. SofN put on a play in December with a good crowd in attendance.



Feb.Mrs. Dahle dies after many years of poor health.



Feb. Anne Nordtorp visited her sister Bertha for a few days before going to Minot to begin training at the Trinity Hospital.



1927

Plenty of moisture in spring and crops looked good. Farmers pool together in ordering Grimm Alfalfa seed. At harvest time indications were for a better than average crop. Considerable red rust observed but apparently came too late to cause any great damage. Plenty of help is available at present. Rye is exceptionally good and oats and wheat are well filled. Mid August a hail occurred which did some damage especially to oats north of Manfred. Surplus of help for threshing. Average wages are $.35 per hour. Late August threshing and harvesting were delayed by heavy showers. Yields are very good. Nice weather in December after a severe cold spell.



During the Seed Special Day in February the Hall in Fessenden gave 8 inches while the people were in there. Gilman Shirley marries. Manfred presents play 'Mr. Bob', a comedy Dec 16.



End of Jan the Pioneer Cash Store, Arveskaug and Iverson proprietors had a fire. The fire starting in the basement was quickly discovered and extinguished in a short time. Guy Fisher's granary burned down losing all his seed grain and feed and some machinery. Roads are in good condition and the mail carriers can use their autos. Sof N put on movies every Fri and Sat. March A fire started in the Depot but was seen before much damage was done. Measles was going around in April. June 29 Gilman Shirley married Mabel Larson. Sophie Rogness marries Edwin Opdahl in July. Shirley Bros received a carloads of machinery in August. Rev Langseth purchase a Pontiac from Anderson Motor Co. LO Burkum and Lester narrowly escaped death from lightning and fire in late October when their barn was stuck by lightening. In Nov Mr. Burkum began rebuilding the barn. Movies shown at Manfred Fri and Sat beginning in November. Play given at Manfred Dec 16 called 'Mr. Bob' for the benefit of the school.



Ole O Braaten died in March. Edith Hedahl died in March at age 21. John Anhorn died in April.

Lars Natland is killed by a bull on August.

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10/02/2026

THe Ostrem family was large. Even and Kjersti Ostrem had 10 children. This is just an entry of a few of them.
FOR MORE INFO GO TO OUR WESITE AT MANFREDND.COM AND VISIT THE MARCH 2006 NEWSLETTER FOR COMPLETE FAMILY HISTORY!
Lars was born June 26, 1905 on the Austreim farm in Vang, Valdres.
At age four, he came to America with his parents and two siblings. He grew to manhood on his parents farm south of Tioga, ND. With younger siblings at home to help, Lars was able hire himself out to farmers, one of which was Bendik Rogne of Manfred. The Ostrem family attributes Lars for enabling their family to come to Manfred, when Bendik Rogne invited Lars and family to rent his farm in 1929. Lars and his father farmed The Rogne land until 1942, when Lars purchased a home in Manfred where he and his parents lived the remainder of their lives.
From 1942, Lars worked for farmers, some of whom were Sofus
and Herbert Ongstad, and Oscar and Gene Melby. He took over as
custodian for the Manfred School when his father retired from this
position. Lars was active at Vang Lutheran Church and Fagerlund Sons of Norway Lodge where he received a 50-year membership pin. He was an avid golfer, and a wonderful accordion player, delighting audiences of all ages with his old-time music. Lars was good hearted and loved by all. He died Sept. 27, 1987 and is laid to rest at Vang Cemetery.

"Hello God! This is Lars talking, but I don't know if you can hear me. I have lived in Manfred quite
a long time, but I may have to move soon. I really don't want to move, but they say if you should
send for me I had better be ready to go. So, just in case, I shined my car and filled it with gas. They
say the highway to heaven is beautiful and scenic. My car is rather old, so I don't know if it will go
that far. So if I have some problems along the way, maybe you can send Jesus to give me a hand.

Hello Lars! This is God talking. I hear you loud and clear. Don't worry about your old car.
When I am ready for you, I will send a limousine and two angels to bring you. Your mother and
father are sitting at a nice big table waiting for you.. I heard your mother once say, “I wish I had all
my children with me again." I will see that eventually she will have all her children with her again.
You will ALL be around this beautiful table. Manfred is a special place on My Earth. So many
beautiful families lived in and around Manfred, and many have started to come back and are sitting
at their tables waiting for the rest of their families to join them. And when they are all here, we will
have the biggest fiesta that Heaven has ever seen.

Thank you God-for telling me all this. There is one more question I would like to ask you: When all
these people come into Heaven, how do you keep track of them?

As my children come into Heaven, I put a star out into the heavens. I have one here for you, so
when you get here I will put it out into the heavens, and it will be beautiful and shine brightly
for all the world to see. " Written By Henry Ostrem

Arnt
Arnt was born April 20, 1916 at Tioga, ND, where he attended his first seven years of school. In 1929 when he was 13 years
old, his family moved to Manfred where Arnt graduated from the 8th grade. He helped his parents on the farm and in the mid 1930s
he joined the Civilian Conservation Corp where he worked on projects in Minnesota and also in North Dakota. There he helped start the Theodore Roosevelt National Park by preparing the land for bridges to be built in the park. In 1936, he moved to Chicago. Two of his brothers were employed with the same night club, and Arnt was able to secure a job there as well. For a time, he had a job as a singing bartender. Later, he moved to Iowa where his sister Inga was living and there tried his hand at farming.

In September 1942, while living in Iowa, he was called into the Army Air Corp. Arnt married Phyllis Biever in 1943 while he
was stationed on Long Island, New York. Phyllis’ parents had moved out to Oregon before the war, where her father worked in the shipyards. During the time Arnt was overseas, Phyllis went to live with her parents in Portland, Oregon. As World War II came to
an end, Arnt was serving in Okinawa, Japan. When he came home from the service, he went to Portland to join his wife Phyllis and
their 5-month old son David. Under the GI Bill, Arnt attended body and fender school and then managed the body shop of a Ford
auto dealership at Portland, working in this field until his retirement in 1981. Phyllis enjoyed working as a secretary for the Portland
school system for 23 years. Arnt and Phyllis have three sons: 1. David an artist lives at Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada and he
has a daughter Angela, 2. Jerry has two children: Inga and Zachery, and 3. Jim. Arnt and Phyllis live at Gresham, Oregon.

Inga, or ‘Ingrid’ also known as ‘Corky,’ was born May 15, 1918 at Tioga, ND. She was eleven years old when her family moved to Manfred in 1929. She attended Manfred School, and in 1932 she was confirmed at Vang Lutheran Church. Her sister Christy relates that Ingrid obtained the name Corky when someone said to her “You’re a real corker!” She indeed loved life, and freely shared this love with everyone. She loved music; she always was singing; she loved dancing with her father to Lars’ music; she loved telling stories. One knew that when she arrived, you would be having fun.
Ingrid lived first at Minot, and then in 1937 she moved to Chicago where her brothers Ivan, Henry, and Ted were working.
An entry in the June 10, 1937 issue of the Wells County Free Press reported,“Miss Inga Ostrem left from New Rockford Friday for
Chicago where she will work as a beauty operator with her sister-in-law, Mrs. Ivan Ostrem.” Ingrid married Jack Sheedy at Chicago,
WA and they lived at Melrose and Ottumwa, Iowa. They had two children. Ingrid later married Ralph Reinholt.

During World War II, Ingrid moved to Seattle near her sister Bert. In her job with Boeing during war years, she worked
inside the wings of planes because she was one of the few who could maneuver within the narrow spaces. Later she worked in a
Northgate hospital and nursing home. Ingrid died in 1998 and is laid to rest in Vang Cemetery, Manfred.

Ivar was born April 30, 1920
at Tioga, ND to Even and Kjersti Ostrem. He
shared the same birth date as his oldest brother Ivan.
What was to have been a lovely day of celebration
for his oldest sister Bert as she graduated from
high school May 29, 1925, instead turned to
tragedy for the family when Ivar, at age five, lost
his life after suffering a burst appendix enroute
to a Minot hospital.

Johnson-Jacobson-
Ostrem House
Dedication into the
Manfred Heritage Museum
July 2, 2006
The Johnson-Jacobson-Ostrem House has been
named in honor of several of its former owners,
each of whom had a great heart for Manfred.

Nennie Johnson and his wife Alpha (Skogmo)
built this house in 1905. Nennie also built a hotel in
Manfred in 1906 and then a pool hall-barber shop in
1908, both of which still exist.

Rasmus Jacobson, a grain manager, and his wife
Margaret (Nordtorp) were the next owners of this house.
Their son, James, went on to become vice president of
the Chase Manhattan Bank, New York and he fondly
returned often to Manfred throughout his life.

Lars Ostrem purchased this house in 1942 as a home
for himself and that of his parents. His parents lived
there the remainder of their lives and it served as Lars’
home until he died in 1987, a span of 45 years!

PICTURED: LARS OSTREM

09/28/2026

MANFRED MONDAY!!!! Maybe the harvest is over now, just maybe?

Talking about Threshing again:
The crew and what they did.
From newsletter on the webiste

Volume 2, Issue 3 Page 6 September 2002

The Crew of the 12-Bundle Hauler Threshing Rig and Their Duties
The labor of both men and horses was vital to the success of the threshing operation, each having key responsibilities.
STEAM ENGINEER & BOSS/MANAGER As engineer he monitored the steam engine to be sure all indicators were in the safe range, and keep
moving parts oiled. As boss he oversaw the threshing operation. As manager he hired the crew, kept daily records of crew hours and bushels
threshed for each farmer, collected money from farmers, and paid the crew.
FIREMAN Worked very closely with the engineer on the steam engine for any repairs and care of the steamer to maintain it at the proper pressure level.
Did all the firing of the steam engine by pitched the straw from the straw pile into the firebox making sure the fire remained at the proper heat level.
SEPARATOR MAN Came several weeks ahead of harvest to do repairs and maintenance on the separator, and made sure it was in tip-top condition.
He oversaw the operation of the separator.
3 SPIKE PITCHERS Two wagons loads of bundles would be pitched into the separator at the same time, one on each side of the separator. It was
the job of two of the spike pitchers to assist the bundle haulers to pitch their loads into the separator. So there were always two spike pitchers and
two bundle haulers pitching bundles into the separator. Because the spike pitcher’s job was quite strenuous, three men would rotate into these two
positions. The third spike pitcher would be kind of resting and cleaning up the front of the feeder.
12 BUNDLE HAULERS Each took their wagon and team out into the field, collected the grain bundles by pitching them onto the wagon, returned
to the threshing rig to wait in line for his turn to pitch his bundles into the separator, and then go collect more bundles from the field. Many of the
same bundle haulers came from MN each year after the harvest there had finished.
WATER MONKEY When the straw monkey was old enough, he graduated on to became the water monkey making 5-6 trips to the James River to pump water
by hand into the water tank to supply water to the steam engine. When the water monkey was old enough, he graduated to be a bundle hauler-a full man’s job.
STRAW MONKEY The youngest crewmember. Drove the straw wagon to the separator where the separator man would turn the blower onto the
rack and fill it up with straw, then the straw monkey drove over to the steam engine and push the load of straw off the rake to the fireman.
3-4 GRAIN HAULERS These were generally the farmers whose fields were being threshed. They backed their truck to the grain spout and loaded
grain into their truck box then hauled it to grain bins to unload.
ELEVATOR MAN Drove the grain elevator up to the bin using horses and elevated the grain into the grain bins.
2 COOKS Did all the cooking and baking on a cook stove for the threshing crew, working from 3:30 a.m. until 11 p.m.
FLUNKY Oversaw the cook car and making sure it was well supplied with food. Purchased all supplies, provided the eggs and butter, and often
took the lunches out to the field.

Threshing Work Schedule: Mon-Sat with Sun off as a rule
4:00 a.m. Engineer & fireman begin steaming up the steamer
5:00 a.m. Fireman blows steamer whistle as wake-up call
6:00 a.m. Day begins with breakfast for crew
6:45 a.m. Whistle blows to alert crew to get their wagons
and horses out to the field
7:00 a.m. Start pitching bundles into the separator
9:30 a.m. Morning lunch is taken to field
12 Noon Dinner at the cook car
1:00 p.m. Back to work
3:00 p.m. Afternoon lunch taken to the field
6:00 p.m. or so Quit hauling bundles and take care of horses
By 9 p.m. Supper over. Free time of visiting, horseplay,
and then to bed in the hayloft of the barn

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09/25/2026

FAMILY FRIDAY!!

Knut and Randi Nelson
Husband's Full Name: Knut E Nelson
Husband's Place of Birth: Ramstad, Sigdahl, Norway
Husband's Father's Name: Nils Eilertsen Ovestad
Husband's Mother's Name: Åsa, Knudsdatter Langrud
Husband's Siblings' Names: Bertha Hunstad
Wife's Full Name: Randi Ulberg Nelson
Wife's Place of Birth: Ulberg, Sigdahl, Norway
Wife's Father's Name: Aslaug Ulberg
Wife's Mother's Name: Ingebjorg Ulberg
Wife's Siblings' Names: Gilbert
Children's Names: Anna, Ida, Eilert
K. E. Nelson homesteaded the home quarter, the NE 1/4 of Sect 9-149-71, August 2, 1893. His first home was a sod shanty while he batched on the place, and a few years later he built a one-room shanty. In later years he rebuilt the house, adding rooms and additions twice, to bring it to the modern size structure seen above on the picture. He added land as the occasion and need arose until he built the farm up to its present size. His other holdings were in West Norway Township, which land he sold in 1946.
The barn was built in 1915 and other buildings added including the granaries, machine shed, blacksmith shop, chicken house and garage; last additions to the house were made in 1926.
K. E. Nelson was born in Norway, March 20, 1871, and settled in America in 1891, settling first at Yankton, SD, where he took up farm work. He went to Northwood in May 1892, and came to the Manfred community in August of 1893 where he took up this homestead. He was also a carpenter, and during the early years he rented his land and worked on construction projects in the central part of the state.
He made two extended trips to Norway, one in 1901-1902; and the second from 1909 - 1911. When he returned from the second trip in July 1911, he married Norwegian born Randi Ulberg. The wedding took place at Boston, Massachusetts. They returned to the farm at Manfred, which continued to be their home until he died in July 1947. In 1954 Randi moved to Harvey and lived there until her death in 1972.
They were the parents of three children: Anna, who died in infancy; Eilert, who took over the home farm ; and Ida, who died in 1938. Eilert was associated with his father in the farming enterprise since he was big enough to help out, and he took over full operations after his father's death in 1947.