Book Translation: Tollef Docken, Randi Gjerde Family History by Ruby Heen

Thank you to the author Ruby Heen (1913-1968). These pages broke through a 30 years brick wall for me.

Intro: These book pages are the only key I have to linking Emma Gjerde as the person born Ingeborg Bjornsdatter Olsen to Ben Gjerde and Kari Horn.

HALLINGEN DOCKEN (DOKKEN) – GJERDESLEKTEN
Av Miss Ruby Heen, Grand Forks” N. Dak.

THE HALL, DOCKEN (DOKKEN) – GJERDE GENEALOGY
Tollef Docken, Randi Gjerde Family History by Ruby Heen

By Miss Ruby Heen, Grand Forks, North Dakota.
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Tollef to America in 1877

Tollef Olsen Docken (Dokken) blef fott den 20. desember, 1852 i Hemsedal, Norge og reiste til Amerika i mai maaned 1877 i folgo med sin bror, Nils som desverre dode paa sjoen under overreisen.

Tollef Olsen Docken (Dokken) was born on December 20, 1852 in Hemsedal, Norway and traveled to America in May 1877 with his brother, Nils who unfortunately died at sea during the journey.
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Randi born

Randi Olsen Gjerde blev fott den 15. juli 1859 i Hemsedal og kom til Amerika sammen med sine foraeldre samt en soster og to eldre brodre i aaret 1861.

Randi Olsen Gjerde was born on 15 July 1859 in Hemsedal and came to America with her parents {*and a sister and two older brothers in 1861.}

[CORRECTION: *…and two older brothers in Jun 1860. Her oldest sister, with the same name, died as an infant.]
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Tollef and Randi Married

Tollef O. Docken og Randi O. Gjerde blev gift i 1879 eller 1880 enten ved Blooming Prarie, Minnesota eller i naerheten av Mekinock, North Dakota. Jeg kan idde si tiden eller paapeke stedct med sikkerhet da de gamle rekorder ikke kan finnes. Tollef og Randi fik en noksaa stor familie: sonnen Olaus, der er dod; Clara (Mrs. C.A. Heen); Benard; Bella (eller Bernia) (Mrs. O.I. Hensrud); Ida der dode ung; Edwin; Clarence; Ida (Mrs. Oscar Hensrud) og Elmer. Deres efterslekt bestaar nu ogsaa av 32 barnebarn og 53 barnebarns barn.

Tollef O. Docken and Randi O. Gjerde were married {*in 1879 or 1880 either at Blooming Prarie, Minnesota or} near Mekinock, North Dakota. {DELETE: I cannot now tell the time or point out the place with certainty as the old records cannot be found.} Tollef and Randi had a fairly large family: the son Olaus, who has died; Clara (Mrs. C.A. Heen); Bernard; Bella (or Bennia) (Mrs. O.I. Hensrud); Ida there died young; Edwin; Clarence; Ida (Mrs. Oscar Hensrud) and Elmer. Their descendants now also consist of 32 grandchildren and 53 great grandchildren.

[*on 12 May 1880 in Walle Lutheran Church in Thompson]
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Tollef and Randy Story

Tollef og Randi badde efter de blev gift i Blooming township ved Mekinock, North Dakota. Forst ved Middle Grove kirken ved elven og senere to mil syd fra samme kirke. Begge arbeidet haart; var strevsomme og senere to mil syd fra samme kirke. Begge arbeidet haart; var strevsomme og var medlemmer av Middle Grove kirke, av hvilket Tollef var en av stifterne og hans underskrift finnes paa menighetens stiftelsesdokumenter, der er dataeret 10. april, 1885. Do fik sig land i Grand Forks County i 1880 og 1886, or gav et landstykke til skolegrunkd, den skole som den dag i dag populert blir kaldt for “Dockenskolen”. Tollef og Randi Docken levde at lykkeligt samliv i Blooming township i samfulde 57 aar, hvorefter de bodde et par aar i Mekinock hvor Tollef dode den 19. september, 1938. Randi flyttet saa til Grand Forks alderdomshjem, hovr hun opholdt sig til sin dod den 15. april, 1949. de er begge gravlagt paa Middle Grove kirkes gravlund.

Tollef and Randi attended church after they were married in Blooming township near Mekinock, North Dakota. First at Middle Grove church by the river; were struggling and later two miles south from the same church. Both worked hard; were industrious and were members of the Middle Grove church, of which Tollef was one of the founders and his signature is found on the church’s founding documents, which are dated April 10, 1885. They acquired land in Grand Forks County in 1880 and 1886, and gave a piece of land for the school grounds, the school that to this day is popularly known as the “Docken School”. Tollef and Randi Docken lived happily together in Blooming township for a total of 57 years, after which they lived for a few years in Mekinock where Tollef died on September 19, 1938. Randi then moved to the Grand Forks Nursing Home, where she resided until her death on April 15, 1949. They are both buried in the Middle Grove church cemetery.
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Tollef and Randi Story, cont., grandparents

De var meget snille besteforeldre og vi borneborn saa altid med forventning frem til de tider vi kunne besoke de gamle paa deres farm. Jeg, isaer, opholdt meg meget i deres hyggelige hjem gjennem sommermaanederne. Bestemor provde at laere mig norsk. Jeg var villing til at laere men studerte vist ikke haart nok. Bestefars horsel var daarlig, han brukte meget av sin fritid til laesning naar han ikke var travelt beskjeftiget med farmarbeidet. Han var en stille venlig mann. Jeg synes fremdeles jeg ser ham naar han var tilstede ved de kirkelige utendors fester, som han brukte at staa laenende mot et tre og betrakte de andre mennesker med sin ene haaud i jakkelommen og tommelfingeren stikkende ut over hanten.

They were very kind grandparents and we grandchildren always looked forward with anticipation to the times when we could visit the old people on their farm. I stayed many times at their pleasant home during the summer months. Grandma tried to teach me Norwegian. I wanted to learn, but I guess I didn’t study hard enough. Grandfather’s hearing was poor, he spent much of his free time reading when he was not busy with the farm work. He was a quiet friendly man. I still think I see him when he was present at the church outdoor parties, which he used to stand leaning against a tree and watch the other people with one hand in his jacket pocket.
===

Book Reference: Hemsedal’s Genealogy

Fra Hans Flatens “Hemsedals Slektshistorie”, som jeg har laant av Ole Jodock og Nils Jodock, har funnet oplysninger om min slekt i Hemsedal saa langt tilbake som i 1700-aarene i de fleste tilfeller, men eftersom familien emigrerte til Amerika er de senere utelatt i boken. Antageligt har de ikke sent tilbake oplysninger om sit senere liv efter ankomsten hit til landet.

From Hans Flaten’s “Hemsedal’s Genealogy”, which I have borrowed from Ole Jodock and Nils Jodock, I have found information about my family in Hemsedal as far back as the 1700s in most cases, but since the family emigrated to America, they were later omitted in the book. Presumably they have not sent back information about their later life after arriving here in America.
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Bjorn Olsen Bubakka “Ben Gjerde” Info

I “Hemsedals Slektshistorie” side 16 or 73 over Gjerde-Bubakke grenen av min slekt finner jeg at min bestefars fars navn var Bjorn Olsen Bubakka, som i 1854 blev gift med Kari Thorsleivsdatter Horn. Vi kjente dem her i Amerika som Bjorn Olson og Carrie Tollefson. Deres born er i boken angit som Rangdi (fott i 1855); Ola (1856); Ingvar (1858) og Rangdi, min bestemor fott i 1859. Familien reiste til Amerika i 1861. Paa side 152 i samme bok under “Sondre Horn” visende bestemor Dockens slekt, er hennes mors navn utelat men Ole Jodock har skrevet hennes navn ind i sit eksemplar av boken.

In “Hemsedal’s Family History” page 16 or 73 above the Gjerde-Bubakke branch of my family I find that my great grandfather’s name was Bjorn Olsen Bubakka, who in 1854 married Kari Thorsleivsdatter Horn. We knew them here in America as Bjorn Olson and Carrie Tollefson. Their children are listed in the book as Rangdi (born in 1855); Ola (1856); Ingvar (1858) and Rangdi, my grandmother born in 1859. The family traveled to America in 1861. On page 152 in the same book under “Sondre Horn” showing grandmother Docken’s family, her mother’s name is omitted but Ole Jodock has written her name in own copy of the book.
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Bjorn “Ben” Gjerde and wife Kari Horn Story

Overnevnte Bjorn Olsen Gjerde og hustru Kari Tolldfsdatter Horn utvandret alsan til Amerika i 1861 med sine fire barn og bosatte sig pna Blooming Prairie Minnesota, hvor Kari dade, Bjorn lok san sin familic og flyttel til Blooming township i Grand Forks county, North Dakota, hvar hans datter Randi Docken, da allerede bodde. Bjorn dade i Grand Forks, North Dakota i 1891 og blev begravet paa Middle Grove gravlund. Bjorn og Kari hadde en star familie. Hvor dot blav av den farste datter Rangdi, som or nevat i slektshistorien. kjenner jeg ikke til men hun erantagelig dad som barn i Norge. Sonnerne, Ole og ingvald gik under navnet Gjerde og begge dade staten i staten Washington. Begge var ugifte. Randi Gjerde dade, som idligere nevot, i Grand Forks, North Dakota i 1949. Tollef (Tom) dode i Minnesotoa; Ingebret (Albert) dode i Greenbush, Minnesota; Iver dode i Bimidji, Minnesota; Ragnhild (Rosie) Gjerde dode i Devils Lake, North Dakota; Ingeborg (Emma) Gjerde dode i staten Washington; Carl B. Olson lever i Greenbush, Minnesota, og Samuel B. Gjerde bor i Oroville, Washington. (Se “Hallingen” for September, 1953 om sistnevnte.) En del av sonnerne brukte navnet Olson og en del Gjerde.

The above-mentioned Bjorn Olsen Gjerde and his wife Kari Tolldfsdatter Horn emigrated to America in 1861 [1860] with their four [three] children and settled in Blooming Prairie Minnesota, where Kari died, Bjorn lost his family and moved to Blooming township in Grand Forks county, North Dakota, where his daughter Randi Docken, then already living. Bjorn died in Grand Forks, North Dakota in 1891 and was buried at Middle Grove Cemetery. Bjorn and Kari had a big family. Where did the first daughter Rangdi, who was mentioned in the genealogy, die. I don’t know, but she probably died as a child in Norway. Sonnerne, Ole and Ingvald went by the name Gjerde and both lived in the state of Washington. Both were unmarried. Randi Gjerde, who formerly served, died in Grand Forks, North Dakota in 1949. Tollef (Tom) died in Minnesota; Ingebret (Albert) died in Greenbush, Minnesota; Zeal died in Bimidji, Minnesota; Ragnhild (Rosie) Gjerde died in Devils Lake, North Dakota; Ingeborg (Emma) Gerde died in the state of Washington; Carl B. Olson lives in Greenbush, Minnesota, and Samuel B. Gjerde lives in Oroville, Washington. (See “Hallingen” for September, 1953 about the latter.) Some of the Sons used the name Olson and some Gjerde.
===

Paa sid 139 i “Hemsedals Slektshistorie” under “Skarsdokken” finner jeg min bestefar Tollef Olson Dockens navn som Torleiv, og at han var fott i 1852. …

On page 139 of “Hemsedal’s Family History” under “Skarsdokken” I find my grandfather Tollef Olson Docken’s name as Torleiv, and that he was born in 1852. …
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Book Continues, but I don’t have any more pages

NES NYE GAMLEHJEM ER TAT I BRUK

Paa stasjonssiden i Nesbyen er det reist et imponerende bygg. Det er Nes Bygdeheim som nu paa det naermeste er ferdig, og blev tat i bruk i Mai Maaned. …

NES’ NEW OLD HOME IS IN USE
An impressive building has been erected on the station side in Nesbyen. It is Nes Bygdeheim which is now almost finished, and was put into use in the month of May. …


Misc…

About Miss Ruby Heen

Even though I only have a few pages, I am extremely grateful to the author of this Ruby Heen. I’ve been trying to decode the Gjerde, Olson, Olsen, Oleson mystery for over three decades. Miss Ruby Heen solved this mystery back in the 1950s and published her work in a way that survived the test of time and finally made it to me in 2023.

My 2nd Cousin

Who is Ruby to me? She is my cousin. We share grandparents. My 2nd great grandparents Ben Gjerde and Kari Horn are her great grandparents making her my second cousin 1x removed.

Restored Images

I love enhancing and restoring old photos. Making them more than they were. I don’t believe in spiritual ghosts so for me, the shadows of the dead are their ghosts. The images, memories, stories, writings, and art of the dead are their ghost and also their eudaimonia. If I had better pictures, I could do a better job but here is what I did do. I restored this yearbook photo of genealogist and author Ruby Harriet Heen (1913-1968)…

To this…

And this picture of her grandparents Ole J. Heen (1859-1852) and Inger Marie (1860-1852) from this…

To this…

 

I also created the following 5×7 printable collage documenting her ancestral chart…

Click to Download…

 

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