The first wave of migration from
Norway to America began with the departure of 52 people
on the sloop Restauration in 1825. By the mid
1800's, they were followed by thousands of other
Norwegians who were seeking new opportunities, more space
- especially the chance to own land. Although these
emigrants settled in various parts of America and Canada,
many, like my great-grandparents (Ments Arntsen Skaarvold and Gunhild
Ellevsdatter Rognesli) who came from Sør-Trøndelag,
settled in the midwest states of Wisconsin, Minnesota,
Illinois, Iowa, North or South Dakota. My
Skaarvold
great-grandparents came from the parish of Støren in Midtre Gauldal
Kommune.
Here is a list of the parishes in Sør-Trøndelag.
When I started this web site in 1997,
I had no idea what a fascinating journey I was about to start.
Through much research and the help of many, I have found hundreds of
Norwegian ancestors and many many new "cousins," both in the U.S. and in
Norway. And in spite of all I have learned and read, there is
always still more to find, translate, read, and explore.
Within
this web site, you will find information about my Sør-Trøndelag
ancestors and those of many others. To be consistent, I have used their farm names as
surnames. These families were found primarily in the parishes of Støren, Horg, Budal, Singsås, and Soknedal.
Some
of the Sør-Trøndelag surnames included in the pages of this web site
are: Skårvold, Skaarvold, Rogneslien, Rognes, Gunhildsøien,
Refset, Refsetås, Storrø, Bones, Bonesvold, Røttum,
Folstad, Kjelstad, Rambrudt, Rambraut, Staverløkken,
Heggvoll, Vagnildaune, Aune, Aasenhus, Løkken, Haanshus,
Voll, Bordal, Sætereng, Soknes, Haugen, Indset, Øyan,
Øyen, Øien, Røsbjørgen, Kirkvold, Enodd, Bogen,
Buset, Aarhaug, Nyhus, Kirkvold, Garli, Garlimo, Vinsnes and others.
On
the Surnames page you will also find 4- or
5-Generation Ancestor charts for many emigrants from Trøndelag. Some
are related to me and some are not. Regardless, through my
research, I have information about all of them in my growing database.
For many I have additional information about their ancestors and
descendants.
If you have a Sør-Trøndelag connection, please
feel free to contact me.

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