South Dakota: Norwegian American settlements



The first Norwegians arrived in the Dakota's as early as 1859, shortly after the treaty with the Yankton Sioux was signed 10 Jul 1859. It took another ten years before the greater influx of Norwegians took place. According to the 1860 census there were 129 Norwegians in South Dakota. That changed fast; in 1880 one-tenth of the population was Norwegian, and in 1889 one-third of the population were Norwegians. The towns of Roslyn and Pierpoint were originally almost 100 percent Norwegian.

http://www.augie.edu/cws/ Augustana College, The Center for Western Studies. The Center is historically a Norwegian American center, and houses collections relating to the Norwegian American presence in South Dakota.

Norwegian American periodical and serials also found at the Center for Western Studies:
Norwegian-American Studies (1926-1979)

Nord-Norge (1917-1952)

Sons of Norway (1922-1967)

Sons of Norway Viking (1968-1984)

South Dakota Norwegian American Newspaper (In the Norwegian language)
Vesterheim (1888-1889) Sioux Falls

Syd Dakota Ekko (1889-1893) Brookings

Almueven (1890) Pierre

Fremad (1894-1940's) Sioux Falls; Fremad would often include stories from Scandinavian newspapers, selections of Norwegian litterature, and local advertisements.

Visergutten (1926-1944) Canton

Posten (1902-1912) Sisseton

Posten (1908-1916) Sioux Falls

South Dakota Genealogical Societies:
http://www.genealogyforum.rootsweb.com/gfaol/resource/SD/GS.htm


 * MITCHELL AREA GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY, c/o Mitchell Public Library, 221 N. Duff St., Mitchell, SD 57301 (605/996-6693). The society does not have a library, but it does possess a card file of all known burials (1880-1980) in Davison County, South Dakota, some of whom were Norwegian immigrants. The society reported that Our Redeemer Lutheran Church, Irene, South Dakota, has the records of several Norwegian communities, including James River, organized 1875;Bang, 1887; and Bethlehem, 1889. These records are in Norwegian and untranslated.

Aberdeen Area 

Genealogical Society P.O. Box 493 Aberdeen 57402-0493

Bennett County Genealogical Society  P.O. Box 483 Allen 57714

Brookings Area Genealogical Society  513 3rd St. Brookings 57006

Chamberlain Area Historical Preservation Association 115 West Lawler Chamberlain 57325

Czech Heritage Preservation Society P.O. Box 3 Tabor 57063

Davison County Sd Genealogical Society 41004 259th St Mitchell 57301

East River Genealogical Forum RR 2, Box 148 Wolsey 57384

Family Tree Society P.O. Box 202 Winner 57580

Heritage Club-platte Rt 2, Box 128 Platte 57369

Hyde County Historical &amp; Genealogical Society P.O. Box 392 Highmore 57345

Lake County Genealogical Society  Dakota State College Madison 57042

Little Cornwall On The Prarie 2805 South Fourth Avenue Sioux Falls 57105

Lyman - Brule Genealogical Society 110 E. Lawler C/O Cozard Memoria Chamberlain 57325

Mitchell Area Genealogical Society  620 N. Edmunds Mitchell 57301

Moody County Genealogical Society  501 W. First Ave Flandreau 57028-1003

Murdo Genealogical Society P.O. Box 441 Murdo 57559

Nordland Heritage Foundation Augustana College Sioux Falls 57l97

North Central South Dakota Genealogical Society  178 Southshore Dr Mina 57462-3000

'''Pierre-ft. Pierre Genealogical Society '''P.O. Box 925 Pierre 57501

Rapid City Society For Genealogical Research  P.O. Box 1495 Rapid City 57709

Sioux Valley Genealogical Society  200 West 6th St Sioux Falls 57104-6001

South Dakota Genealogical Society  P.O. Box 1101 Pierre 57501-1101

South Dakota State Historical Society  900 Governors Drive Pierre 57501-2217

Union County Historical Society  P.O. Box 552 Elk Point 57025

Watertown Genealogical Society  611 B Ave Ne Watertown 57201

Yankton Genealogical Society  1803 Douglas Ave Yankton 57078