Finnestad Ancestry

Here is the 1920 US Census for Ole and Mari Finnestad's great granddaughter Elnid Travland. Elnid was the daughter of Susan (Sikes) and Ole John Travland.   Apparently, after her parents divorced, she went to live at the home of her aunt and uncle, Nowa (probably a misspelling of Noah) and Mana Brown.   Mana must have been Susan's sister. Elnid was the granddaughter of Iverdine (Finnestad) and Lewis Joseph Peterson Travland.

Here is the 1920 US Census for Ole and Peter Travland's younger brother living in Bee County, Texas with wife Stella (Berkeland) and their children Ernest, William, Louis and Lillie. Page 2 (below) listed Thomas and Stella's two youngest children, Clarence and Gladys. Thomas and Stella had one other child, Dina Marie Travland that died as an infant in 1911.

Here is the 1920 US Census for Ole and Mari Finnestad's grandsons, Ole and Peter Travland, living in Bee County, Texas. Peter Travland, wife Hannah and their son Willard had moved into the home of Peter's older brother, Ole along with Ole's son Lawrence.     This census indicates that Ole had divorced his wife, Susan (Sikes). Ole and Peter were the children of Iverdine (Finnestad) and Lewis Joseph Peterson Travland

Here is the 1910 US Census for Ole and Mari Finnestad's grandson, Peter Andrew Travland, wife Hannah and their son Lawrence (line 70 - 72) living in Bee County, Texas. The image has been smeared, but living a few houses away (lines 79 - 84) was Peter's younger brother, Thomas Tobias Travland, wife Stella and their children, Ernest, William, Louis and Lillie. The three Travland brothers all lived within a short distance of each other in Bee County; yesterday I posted the 1910 Census for their older brother Ole Travland. Peter was the second son (and third child) born to Iverdine (Finnestad) and Lewis Joseph Peterson Travland.    Thomas was the third son (fourth and final child) born to Iverdine and Lewis.

Here is the 1910 US Census for Ole and Mari Finnestad's grandson, Ole John Travland, wife Susan Eola (Sikes) and their son, Lawrence, living in Bee County, Texas. Ole and Susan married in 1907 and I've not been able to locate the 1900 Census for Ole who may have been living as a boarder with another family that year. Ole was the first born child of Iverdine (Finnestad) and Lewis Joseph Peterson Travland.

Here is the 1900 US Census for Ole and Mari Finnestad's grandson, Peter Travland and wife Hanna (Arno) living in Bee County, Texas.   Also living in the household was Hanna's brother, Henry. Living nearby was Peter's uncle, Peter Travland, (younger brother of Peter's father, Lewis) and his wife Susanna (Iversdatter).    Peter was the third child born to Iverdine (Finnestad) and Lewis Joseph Peterson Travland.

Here is the 1900 US Census for Ole and Mari Finnestad's son-in-law, Lewis Joseph (Peterson) Travland.    Lewis had moved to Beeville, Texas from Milan township, DeKalb County, Illinois sometime after the death of his wife, Iverdine (Finnestad) in 1879.    In 1880 , Lewis was was still living in Milan township so I am not sure when he moved to Texas as the 1890 US Census was destroyed in a fire. Also living in the household were Lewis' children (from his second marriage to Tilda Peterson), Inga, Martin, Lena, Ida and Ben.

Elmer and Stanley Olson's younger brother Olaf, was also buried at the Lawnridge Cemetery in Rochelle, Illinois. Olaf A Olson was born July 25, 1906 and died December 4, 1972. His marker was misspelled as "Olsen".

Stanley's older brother, Elmer Olson is also buried at Lawnridge Cemetery in Rochelle, Illinois. Elmer was born August 16, 1893 and died January 27, 1967.     Elmer was the son of Mary (Knutson) and Stephen Olson, grandson of Elizabeth (Finnestad) and Ole Andreas Knutson and great grandson of Ole and Mari Finnestad.

Here is a photo of the marker for Stanley August Olson 's grave located at Lawnridge Cemetery in Rochelle, Illinois. Stanley was born August 24, 1895 and died September 23, 1976. Stanley's wife, Ann Olson was born March 21, 1894 and died March 23, 1977. 

Here is the WW II draft registration for Stanley's brother, Elmer Olson filed in Ogle County, Illinois on April 27, 1942. Elmer worked for Cal Packing Corporation , in Rochelle, Illinois which was apparently "an ancestor" of Del Monte Corporation. 

Here is the WW II draft registration for Ole and Mari Finnestad's great grandson, Stanley August Olson. Stanley worked at the Barber Colman company in Rockford, Illinois.   Stanley was the son of Mary (Knutson) and Stephen Olson, the grandson of Elizabeth (Finnestad) and Ole Andreas Knutson.

I came across this document a few weeks ago confirming a 4th child born to Edith Olivia (Knutson) and Charles Edward Ludwig. Their third child was never given a first name and died on the same day as his birth on October 24, 1927 in Rochelle, Illinois. This child's grandparents would have been Elizabeth (Finnestad) and Ole Andreas Knutson, great grandparents would have been Ole and Mari Finnestad.

Here is a 1915 census record from South Dakota for Ole and Mari Finnestad's great granddaughter, Maine Olson, living in Pleasant township in Lincoln County. I could not find any other family members that were part of this particular census, but everything matches.      Maine was born January 19, 1899 so she would have been 16 in 1915.    Maine was also born in Illinois and her parents, Mary (Knutson) and Stephen Olson were both born in Norway. I'll have to do some additional research to find who Maine was living with during this census which may provide some clues as to why she was living in South Dakota. Maine's grandparents were Elizabeth (Finnestad) and Ole Andreas Knutson.

Here is a photo* from 1962 of Ole and Mari Finnestad's great granddaughter Carshon (Richardson) Johnson.   Carshon was the daughter of Carrie Evelyn (Finnestad) and Charles Richardson, and granddaughter of Caroline (Quitno) and Ole Finnestad Jr. * Photos provided by Ole and Mari Finnestad's great great granddaughter, Jill (McKay) Clinton.

Here is the death certificate for Ole and Mari Finnestad's great great grandson, Verol Truman Johnson. Verol was only 31 when he died of an accidental drowning while fishing in Velasco, Texas. Verol was buried at the Lawnridge Cemetery in Rochelle, Illinois, though I have not yet obtained photographs of his grave. Verol was the son of Tilda (Hansen) and Truman Johnson, grandson of Andrea Elizabeth 'Lizzie' (Knutson) and Lambert Johnson, great grandson of Elizabeth (Finnestad) and Ole Andreas Knutson.

Ole and Mari Finnestad's grandson, Peter John Vallem died on October 27, 1931 in Rockford, Illinois. Here is a document which contains information obtained from the death certificate. Click here for the photos of his burial site at the Union Cemetery in Lee County, Illinois.

Ole and Mari Finnestad's granddaughter, Isabel Josephine (Vallem) and husband Ole P Hall were buried at Lawnridge Cemetery in Rochelle, Illinois. Here is a closeup of Isabel's marker. Isabel Josephine Vallem was born July 29, 1882 and died January 5, 1938. Isabel was the daughter of Rachel (Finnestad) and Lewis Vallem. Below is a close-up of Ole's marker.

Ole and Mari Finnestad's great great grandson, Rollo Peter Vallem passed away this spring on April 14, 2010. Here is a copy of his obituary which appeared on the website, www.Madison.com   Rollo was the son of M Norma (Emmons) and Orville Elenne Vallem.   (The obituary names his father as "Pete", which must have been a nickname.)     Rollo's grandparents were Sarah (Anderson) and Peter John Vallem and great grandparents were Rachel (Finnestad) and Lewis Vallem.

Here is the 1930 US Census for Ole and Mari's great grandson, Lawrence Vallem.    Lawrence, along with wife Jennifer,  daughters Bettie Jane and Elaine were living in Rockford, Illinois. Lawrence was employed as a factory foreman. Lawrence was the eldest son of Lena Josephine (Travland) and  Peter John Vallem, the grandson of Rachel (Finnestad) and Lewis Vallem.

Here is the 1930 US Census for Ole and Mari Finnestad's great grandson, Oral Hall and wife Flora Maree (Spickerman). In 1930, Oral and his wife Maree were living in Rochelle, Illinois.    As far as I know, they did not have any children. Oral was the son of Isabel Josephine (Vallem) and Ole Hall and the grandson of Rachel (Finnestad) and Lewis Vallem.

Here is a photo* of Ole and Mari Finnestad's great grandchildren, Rodney Risetter and his younger sister, Wanda.    This photo appears to have been taken in the 1940's.   Their eldest sister, Betty Lou, is not included in this photo. Rodney and Wanda were the children of Lillian (Finnestad) and George Risetter.  Their grandparents were Caroline (Quitno) and Ole Finnestad Jr. *Photo provided by Roxanne (Dearth) Hamilton

Sarah (Anderson) Vallem, the second wife of John Peter Vallem applied for a US passport for herself and their only son, Orville on January 12, 1920.   (John Peter Vallem and first wife Lena Josephine (Travland) had possibly 7 children; I've only been able to track down 5 of those, leading me to believe there was an error in the 1910 US Census.) Unfortunately, if the lower left corner was the photo of Sarah, it didn't come out on the xerox copy. Line #11 and #12 show Sarah and Orville as passengers on the Bergensfjord   arriving in New York from Stavanger, Norway. I don't know if any of Sarah's stepchildren felt slighted by not having been included in the trip, but it may have been the source of some animosity toward their half-brother, Orville. Here are some photos of the Bergensfjord. Here is a postcard of the Bergensfjord.

Here is the marriage certificate for Ole and Mari Finnestad's granddaughter, Iverdena Vallem and Axel Thompson who were married in Chicago on August 28, 1911. Iverdena (Dena) was the daughter of Rachel (Finnestad) and Lewis Vallem.

Here is the last US Census from Chicago for the Thompson family before they headed to Texas. Axel was employed as a real estate broker, which was probably a difficult industry during the Depression.  

Here is the death certificate for Iverdena (Vallem) Thompson, granddaughter of Ole and Mari Finnestad, daughter of Rachel (Finnestad) and Lewis Vallem. Iverdena (Dena) died on July 28, 1974 in McAllen, Texas.   She had been living in Donna, Texas having moved from Chicago, Illinois. Dena is buried at the Highland Memorial Park Cemetery in Weslaco, Texas.

While researching ancestors you realize how fortunate it is to live a long and prosperous life.    Premature deaths, especially those of infants and children must be extremely difficult for the families and unfortunately are fairly common.    But the following death is probably one of the most tragic I've encountered in my ancestral tree. Ole and Mari Finnestad's great granddaughter, Lillian Thompson, the 4th and youngest child of Dena (Vallem) and Axel  Thompson died due to a plane crash on March 4, 1945 in Weslaco, Texas. According to the death certificate, Lillian had lived in Texas for 9 years and was employed as a bank teller.   She was a few weeks shy of her 27th birthday and had never married.   According to her cousin Genevieve, Lillian loved to ride horses, which must have made Texas a great place for her to live after leaving Chicago. Lillian was the granddaughter of Rachel (Finnestad) and Lewis Va...

Ole and Mari Finnestad's great grandson, Robert Thompson died on May 6, 1916, eight days after his birth in Chicago, Illinois. Robert was the 3rd child of Iverdena (Vallem) and Axel Thompson. The Cook County death certificate indicates Robert was buried at the Mount Olive Cemetery in Chicago. Robert was the grandchild of Rachel (Finnestad) and Lewis Vallem

Iverdena (Vallem) and Axel Thompson's 4th child, Lillian was born March 31, 1918 in Chicago, Illinois. Here is the Cook County birth certificate.