A precious gift from a far-away cousin

This morning, a second cousin I have never met but connected with through Facebook, sent me this precious photo. From 1902/3 Our great grandmother Gunhild Gundersen with her first two girls. His grandmother Gudrun is the little blond on Gunhild's right while the little dark haired girl is my grandmother Dagmar. This is the first picture I have seen of my grandmother as a child!

Thank you so much cousin Arild Fehn!

1902/3 Eidanger, Telemark, Norway
Gunhild, Gudrun and Dagmar Gundersen

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Grandma and her siblings

This photo was taken on the occasion of Grandma's oldest sister Gudrun's 90th birthday. Missing is their brother Finn Gundersen Øvald. Finn, who was born in 1910, died in 1946. Grandma Dagmar believed he died of leukemia. 

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Sibling Saturday - The Gundersen sisters

1952

On one of her many visits to her family in Norway 

my grandmother Dagmar poses with her sisters.

                    my grand aunts
                    Dagmar Gundersen Sevald (top left)    10 Jun 1900 - 12 Jun 1991

                    Hanna Mathea Gundersen Gubberud (top right)    7 Dec 1904 - 22 Mar 1989

                    Solveig Gundersen Vollen (bottom left)    30 Dec 1907 - 22 Oct 1996

                    Gudrun Marie Gundersen (bottom right)    19 Dec 1898 - 19 Oct 1989

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1910 Norwegian National Census - Nils Gundersen Family Gjerpen, Telemark, Norway

each Sunday I explore a census record and list the genealogical clues it contains (or doesn't)

The Nils Gundersen, Gunhild Marie Olsdatter Family
(my maternal grandmothers parents)

This is the most recent census that Norway has released to the public.

• The family now has adopted the surname of Gundersen. The days of patronymics are over. Where my grandmother Dagmar was noted in the 1900 census as Dagmar Nilsdatter, she now is called Dagmar Gundersen. The family has adopted as their surname, Gundersen, which was the patronymic of Nils, the head of the family.

• The family is no longer in the small village of Eidanger but in Gjerpen. They have been living here since at least 1904 as my great aunt Hanna is the first family member born in Gjerpen. Nils has built a house for his growing family for which I have documentation which states they moved there in 1909. I know the house is in Skien, apparently Gjerpen was incorporated into the larger city of Skien some time after 1910.

• My great grandfather Nils is no longer a sailor or "somand" but is now a"Skibskaptein" or ship captain. I know he captained a boat going up and down the Telemarken canal, however I do not know if he has that particular position at present.

• There are now 5 children in the family Gudrun, Dagmar (my grandmother), Hanna, Solveig and Finn. Two more boys, Rolf and Oddvar will be born in the next few years

Dagmar's stories - stolen by the gypsies

remembering one of the many stories my grandmother Dagmar shared with me

Dagmar is stolen by the Gypsies

My grandmother referred to herself as a "Black Norwegian", a term that puzzled me. I guess it is an old phrase for those that are not the more common blond/blued eyed variety. Knowing what I now know about DNA and the history of Norway it makes more sense to me. Norway is very mountainous and the vast majority of Norwegians live on or near the coasts of Norway. For many men their life was the sea. From Viking times on Norwegian men went to their ships. The ships went out to sea to fish, to other countries to trade (or loot), and as now (and always) wherever men went they left their DNA behind. Or brought a dark-haired lovely home to raise their children in Norway.

I have traced Dagmar's line in Norway back to the mid-1600's. She was solid Norwegian. Her eyes were brown and her hair black and curly. She was a "Black Norwegian".

Great Grandmother Gunhild with
blond Gudrun and dark Dagmar

When Dagmar was three her mother sent her and her sister, five year old Gudrun, out to play. When she shortly went to check on them Dagmar was gone. Gudrun told her "the gypsies took Dagmar". Her mother took Gudrun and ran to the local police. There was a gypsy camp just a bit outside their town. The Sheriff took them in a wagon out to the camp. There Dagmar was playing happily with the gypsy children. Now, my great grandmother, Gunhild had strawberry blond hair and Gudrun was blond and blue eyed. "Look at her," said the gypsies pointing to my grandmother Dagmar, "she is dark and beautiful like us, not pale and ugly like that child. She belongs to us." The sheriff was not fooled. My great grandfather Nils was a friend of his. Nils was a sailor and out to sea but the sheriff knew. Nils was a "Black Norwegian".

1900 Norwegian National Census - Øvald Family Eidanger, Telemark, Norway

each Sunday I explore a census record and list the genealogical clues it contains (or doesn't)

Norwegian National Census of 1900
Eidanger, Telemark, Norway

This is the first census in which my grandmother Dagmar Gundersen is noted.

    

*Eidanger , a small farming community has 3872 registered inhabitants

*The extended family resides on the farm Øvald.

*Gunder Nilsen, born in Eidanger in 1842, is Nils' father and Dagmar's grandfather. His occupation is shipbuilder and carpenter. His father's first name - Nils
*Gunder is a widower (e) and I will have to find additional documentation to tell me the name of his wife and discover if she is the mother of all of the children listed.

*Gunda Marie Gundersdatter was born in Eidanger in 1877,  is Gunders unmarried (ug) daughter and runs the household meaning his wife is likely deceased.

*Lauritz Severin Gundersen, born in Eidanger in 1882 is Gunder's unmarried (ug) son. He is a sailor.

*Nils Gundersen, born in Eidanger in 1875, is Gunders married (g) son. He is also a sailor.

*Gunhild Marie Olsdatter, born in Eidanger in 1875, is Nils' wife. Her father's first name is Ole.

*Gudrun Marie Nilsdatter, born in Porsgrund December 19, 1898, unmarried (ug) is Nils and Gunhild's daughter and Dagmar's sister

*Dagmar Nilsdatter (my grandmother) is just an infant in this census, born June 10, 1900 in Eidanger

*She lives with her extended family in a farm community. Patronymics are still used. She is noted as Dagmar Nilsdatter while later her parents and all their children will adopt Nils' patronymic Gundersen as their surname. 

*The family has been in this location for some time. Three generations are all born in Eidanger with the exception of Gudrun who was born in a very close neighboring town

*they do not own the farm on which they live but are crofters on a small section.

**click on document to enlarge for easier viewing**