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Knudt Tomason ELLESTAD

Male 1822 - 1896  (73 years)


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  • Name Knudt Tomason ELLESTAD 
    Birth 4 May 1822  Vestre Slidre i Valdres, Oppland, Norway Find all individuals with events at this location 
    • Ellestad
    Gender Male 
    Burial 1896  Highview Cemetery, Eureka Twp, Dakota County, Minnesota Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Death 11 Feb 1896  Eureka Twp, Dakota County, Minnesota Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Notes 
    • Buried as Knudt Thompson. Known as Knudt Thompson as early as the 1860 census. He was the first of his siblings to come to Minnesota.

      According to Linda’s notes: came to America in 1855, built log cabin that ended up on the Dakota County fairgrounds, lived in Christiania.

      Linda’s notes also suggest that Thomas and Betsy were Knut’s children through Sonova (wrong).

      Knut, Ingri, Thomas (b. 12 Apr 1852), and Berith emigrated in 1855 according to the Vestre Slidre church book. Accompanying them were Berith Thomasdatter Ellestad (b. 16 Jan 1823) and Berith Gundersdatter Ellestad (b. 6 May 1854).

      In the 1860 census, Knudt Thompson, 38, Ingre, 41, and their children Thomas, 8, Betsey, 6, and Severt, 5, were living in Eureka Townshop. Also living with them was an Ole Thompson, 62. In Tolly Swan’s Thompson papers, it’s speculated that the “Severt” is actually the son of the next-door neighbor.

      In the 1870 census, Knudt, 50, was living in Eureka with his wife Susan, 50, Thomas K., 18, Betsey, 17, and a 5-year old girl named, apparently, Lena Johnson. Knudt was living just a few farms away from his brother Peter.

      In the 1880 census, “Knut Thompson” was living with his wife Sonova on a farm in Eureka, Dakota County. Also living in the household were 60 or 61 year-old Kristi Oleson, a housekeeper, and 9 year-old E.K. Sun or Seen, helping out on the farm.

      His obit:

      Knut Thompson, age seventy-three years and nine months, died at the home of his daughter, Mrs Ole E. Forstrom in Eureka and the cause of his death was general decline. Mr Thompson was one of the oldest settlers of this county. He came to this country from Norway in 1854 and settled in Wisconsin, where he lived two years, moving to Eureka in 1856 where he has since resided. Mr Thompson was a man highly esteemed by his neighbors and those who were acquainted with him for his sterling qualities in all that goes to make a good citizen and a Christian gentleman. He has held several positions of trust and was for several years mail carrier from Christiania to Castle Rock. He leaves three brothers, Peter Thompson of Eureka, Andrew Thompson of New Market and Ole Thompson of Norway Lake, Minnesota, and two sisters, Mrs L Soine of Dennison and Miss Anna Thompson of Eureka, and a daughter, Mrs Ole E. (Betsy) Forstrom of Eureka. His wife Ingri preceded him in death in 1863. Funeral services will be held Friday at the Conference Church. Rev Elias Aas will conduct the service.

      Lynn Stegmaier, curator of the Dakota City Heritage Village, provided this history of the log cabin that Knudt built:

      “The log cabin was built around 1857 by Knudt Thompson, a pioneer from Valdres, Norway. He and his younger brothers, Peter and Andrew and sister, Anna Ellestad were part of a group of Norwegian immigrants who formed Christiania settlement near Chub Lake in Eureka Township, Dakota County, Minnesota. It was desirable land, having a good combination of timber, open prairie and water with a terrain that reminded them of the old country. Knudt Thompson was a carpenter by trade and his careful notching and fitting of the logs reflected his skill.

      “Though the Indians had given up their rights to the land in the Treaty of Mendota in 1851, some Sioux lived nearby and paid friendly visits to the cabin.

      “Knudt and Sonova Thompson and their children, Thomas and Betsy lived in the cabin for a number of years. Knudt deeded the cabin and land to his brother, Peter who had an adjoining homestead. It served as a home for their sister, Anna Ellestad and others. The longest occupants were their brother Andrew’s son, John who with his wife, Helga and eight children, lived in the cabin from about 1902 to 1917.

      “The cabin was passed down and loved by younger generations of Peter Thompson’s family as a summer home. After vandals destroyed the interior, Peter’s granddaughter, Ione van Steenwyk donated the cabin to the Dakota County Fair in 1965. It was rebuilt at its last relocation in Dakota City Heritage Village in 1982.

      “The old logs, which had been left uncovered by siding after its move to the Fairgrounds, became infested with carpenter ants, powder post beetles and other destructive insects. After consulting experts in engineering and pest management, the Dakota City Board made the difficult decision to destroy the cabin by fire in March 2003 before the insects resumed additional damage to the cabin and the other historic buildings nearby.”
    Person ID I1766  Don Carlson's Tree
    Last Modified 5 Sep 2019 

    Father Tomas Knudson TØRSTAD,   b. 1795, Tørstad, Vang i Valdres, Oppland, Norway Find all individuals with events at this locationd. Aft 1865 (Age > 71 years) 
    Mother Berit Johannesdatter ELLESTAD,   b. 30 Jul 1796, Slidre i Valdres, Oppland, Norway Find all individuals with events at this locationd. Aft 1865 (Age > 70 years) 
    Marriage 1 Aug 1819  Vestre Slidre i Valdres, Oppland, Norway Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Family ID F1270  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family 1 Ingri Gulliksdatter EGGE,   b. 14 Aug 1819, Slidre i Valdres, Oppland, Norway Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 1863, Eureka Twp, Dakota County, Minnesota Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 43 years) 
    Marriage 17 Oct 1852  Vestre Slidre i Valdres, Oppland, Norway Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Children 
     1. Thomas Knudt THOMPSON,   b. 12 Apr 1852, Vestre Slidre i Valdres, Oppland, Norway Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 31 Jan 1872 (Age 19 years)
     2. Berit Knudsdatter (Betsy E) THOMPSON,   b. 21 Oct 1853, Vestre Slidre i Valdres, Oppland, Norway Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 27 Sep 1938, Dakota County, Minnesota Find all individuals with events at this location (Age 84 years)
    Family ID F1272  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
    Last Modified 14 Sep 2008 

    Family 2 Soneva K SAMPSON,   b. 1820, Norway Find all individuals with events at this locationd. 1887 (Age 67 years) 
    Marriage Aft 1863 
    Family ID F1394  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
    Last Modified 10 Oct 2006