The Beginning
Kathy (Knutson) Larson’s grandparents both emigrated to the United States from Norway. Carrie Gisn‘s, Kathy’s grandmother, came to North Dakota at the age of 22 from Trondelag, Norway with some friends in 1902. She started out in Abercrombie before moving west by herself because she wanted land of her own. Gisn‘s claimed a quarter of land in 1907 and toughed out the harsh western North Dakota winter on her own before she married Louis Knutson, another Norwegian who farmed nearby.
Knutson (originally known as Lars Havdal, he changed his name because nobody could spell it) also came from Norway. As a younger son of a Norwegian farmer, he was forced to adventure out on his own because of the lack of available land in his home country. Knutson had known Carrie in Norway and they were married Jan. 6, 1908. The site of their original homestead is still visible on the Larson property, however the building is gone and only a depression in the ground remains to mark where the Knutson’s first made their home.
The Knutson’s had two children, Gudrun (Kathy’s aunt) born in 1908, and Olaf (Kathy’s father), born in 1910. For many farms, the story of how it all began would end here, but not for the Knutson’s. In 1914, the Knutson’s sold everything except their land and returned to Norway. They lived there with Carrie’s mother and other relatives for a year and a half. The farm in Norway was not large enough to support another family. It was then that Louis, missing his life as a farmer back in the States, said to Carrie “I’m going back to America but you and the children can stay in Norway if you wish to.” Carrie replied that she had been waiting for him to say those words. The Return to America
In 1915, the Knutson family returned to the United States, where they built the farmhouse that Kathy Larson and her husband still live in (with some new additions). On the land that they first homesteaded in 1908, the Knutson’s grew small grains. They also raised horses, pigs, cattle and chickens. The fresh milk and eggs were transported the 25 miles to Williston to be sold.
At the age of 13, Kathy’s father Olaf took over the family farm. Due to health issues, Louis could no longer handle the many harsh demands and stresses of a farmer’s life. This was in 1923, just before the start of the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression, years that tested the mettle of both farmers and people in town alike.
“I remember Dad telling about days when grasshoppers would fly in and make the skies almost black. They would eat the paint off the house,” Kathy said on those hard years.
The Knutson’s survived the ‘30s by remaining largely self-sufficient. Olaf was also skilled in many different areas. According to Kathy, he was a self-taught farmer and he also dug coal. With a very entrepreneurial attitude, Knutson would take on almost any job. Later in his life, Olaf would sell insurance, rent out houses in Williston that he fixed up himself and served as the administrator of Bethel Homes for seven years.
Knutson farmed alone until 1944 when he was married to Olga Eide. They had four children, Kathy and her twin Karlyn (Frantsen) and two other sisters Loris (Van Berkom) and Janelle (Olson). Kathy remembers how her mother would sew all their clothes, even in high school sometimes. Larson also said how one of her favorite childhood memories was of dressing kittens in doll clothes with her sisters. She says they were the first family in the area to get a TV and one of the few with a projector to watch home movie reels on. The Larson’s still have the reels, which have been transferred to VHS tapes so that the whole family can enjoy them. Eventually, those VHS tapes will probably be digitized and placed on DVD for future generations of Larsons.
Going Home
In 1958 after the death of Louis Knutson, Kathy, her parents, sisters and Nana (Carrie Knutson) visited Norway. For Carrie, it had been the first time in over 40 years that she had been back in her homeland. While there, they visited some of Carrie’s siblings who were still living, and got to know their extended family. Larson says she was too young to comprehend how her grandmother must have felt seeing her family and old home again after so long, something many immigrants rarely get to do. Since that first trip to Norway, Larson has visited the country of her roots five other times and remains in close contact with her Norwegian relatives.
Kathy met Stan Larson at a dance in Fargo. They were married in 1965 and farmed in Buffalo at Stan’s family farm for three and a half years. During this period, the Knutson farm was rented out.
In 1968, Stan and Kathy returned to Williston to take up the job that Kathy’s parents and grandparents had devoted their lives to. They continue to farm small grains and pulse crops like peas and red lentils. Their lentils are shipped around the world. They now farm the Knutson-Larson property with their son Bryan. The farm consists of about 4600 acres (including the land their son Bryan farms). In comparison, the farm originally started out at 160 acres with Carrie’s homestead. The Larson’s also have three other children (Darrel, Angie and Greg), 12 grandchildren (four step-grandchildren) and two step great-grandchildren with a 13th grandchild due in January.
Kathy and Stan are very active in the Williston community. They are members the of Sons of Norway, the North Dakota Association of the Blind and are very involved in West Prairie Church activities. In June, it was announced by the Williams County Soil Conservation District that the Larson’s will receive the 2008 Achievement Award in Conservation. The award is for producers in Williams County that are exceptional preservationists. It shows that the producer keeps the air, land and soil healthy and in top condition in his or her operation.
A family of many talents, Kathy continues a tradition of music. Her mother and father headed up several singing groups including a Norwegian quartet and the Northernaires, a male singing group with a barbershop music style. Both her grandfather and father played violin, her father was also proficient in guitar and organ. Larson says she remembers how her father would play the organ at St. Luke’s, the church of her childhood. Kathy herself also sings and plays guitar. She led a singing group in church called the Alaethia Singers for 30 years.
According to Stan Larson, he says they haven’t stopped dancing since they met. They now teach Norwegian folk dancing and enjoy ballroom dancing. The history of the Larson farm is long and complex. Much of it wouldn’t be known if it weren’t for Kathy’s dedication to recording her family’s story. She has put together two books of family history. One is a compendium of her grandparent’s and parent’s histories and memories that she and her sisters have of growing up in North Dakota. It is filled with pictures and contributions from relatives in Norway as well. Larson printed the books for her siblings and other family members to share. She has also put together a five-inch thick binder full of even more family history. She says that every year they discover more.
Last winter, Larson was in her attic and says she found old school assignments that belonged to her father and aunt. Larson is constantly updating the binder and sending the updates to her sisters and children so that they can update their individual copies.
The history-loving bug doesn’t end with Kathy. Larson mentioned a second cousin in Norway that has tracked their family roots back to the 1300s.
The centennial anniversary of the Larson farm will be held on July 26th. The family will host a supper that is open to the public at 5 p.m. that evening at the farm.
They will also have a family reunion that weekend.
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