Nils Larson Bolstad was born 5 May 1800 in Evanger, Voss, Hordaland, Norway. He was the son of Lars Nielsen Bolstad and Ingeborg Knutsdatter. In 1837, prompted by Hovland’s letter;  he left his home and went to Bergen where he boarded the Ægir and set sail for America. The ship arrived in New York on 10 June 1837. (Flom states 4 July 1837) From there he went to the Fox River Settlement like a few other Vossings, such as Nils Sjurson Giljarhus, Jon Haldorson Bjørgo, Magne Botolvson Bystølen, Odd Johannesson Himle, Lars Eirikson Lødve, and Lars Godskalkson Møen. In 1839 he and Gijarhus and Bystølen decided to leave the Fox River Settlement and look for cheaper land. They hired Odd Himle to go with them and help make a choice of location. Magne fell ill and couldn’t go with them, but the others went ahead to Milwaukee and then west to Koshkonong. They were not only the the first Vossing, but the first Norwegians to set foot on this land which would become the biggest and richest pioneer colony in the country. In 1840 Nils moved to Jefferson Prairie, Wisconsin. He bought property in Christiana Township and 40 acres in Deerfield Township.

In 1841 he was married to Anna Olsdatter Vindeg. She was born 31 Oct 1811 in Rollag, Norway. Her parents were Ole Ellevsen Vindeg and Bergit Halvorsdatter Kravik. She had arrived in America on 12 Aug 1840. Her brother Gunnel had settled on Koshkonong a short time after her husband.

Nils built a house the same year he was married in which they lived for a while. Their property was the NE ¼ of the NW ¼ of Section 2 in Christiana Township. He sold this land along with 40 acres in Section 1 (which was a short distance east of his first land) to Gulleik T. Saue in 1843 and moved to his property in Deerfield Township where he remained until his death in a driving accident in 1865. In 1870 his real estate was valued at $1400 and he had personal assests of $400. In 1870 Anna and 3 of her children are living with her and the value of the farm is $3300. She stayed on the farm for a while longer but then sold it and moved to North Dakota where she died in 1893. She is buried in Riverside Cemetery, Fargo, ND. There is also a record for her burial in East Koshonong in Dane, Wisconsin but I suspect it is a memorial like for her son Lewis. The children used Larson, Nelson, and Bolstad at various times for a surname.The family used Larson as their name.

They had six children:

1. Knut (c1853 – 1917) – Knut was married and for a while lived in Chicago. He moved to Nebraska and then went prospecting for gold in Alaska where died.
2. Lewis (2 Sep 1842 – 28 Jun 1864) – Lewis (Lars) lived in Cambridge, Wisconsin and  volunteered with Company H, 15thInfantry Regiment during the Civil War. He enlisted for 3 years on 11 Oct 1861 at Madison, Wisconsin and mustered there on 16 Nov 1861 as a private. In the battle at Stone River he was wounded and sent to Nashville, Tennessee. At Chicamauga, Georgia he was wounded and taken prisoner, but managed to get back to his regiment by an exchange. He fell in a battle in the Kenesaw fields at Kenesaw Mountain, Bald Knob, Georgia on 28 Jun 1864. It was said that he was shot during guard duty. He is buried in the National Cemetery at Marietta, Georgia, section G, grave 1449. A memorial stone is at East Koshkonong Cemetery and bears his name with date of birth and death. He went at various times by Bolstad, Larson, and Nilson.The Wisconsin Historical Society has an online photo of him in his uniform. Search for Louis Nelson Bolstad.
3. Isabel (19 Sep 1844 – )
4. Betsey (c1847 – )
5. Ole (9 Aug 1847 – 19 Dec 1916) – Ole lived his entire life at Koshkonong. He was a bachelor and lived with a relative, Ole G. Vindeg.
6. Sarah (c1849 – )

Sources: 1801 Norwegian Census; 1860, 1870 US Census Records; A History of Norwegian Immigrants (Flom); Evangerboka (Vol. 2); Find-a-Grave.com; History of the Emigration from Voss (Rene); Norwegian Immigrants to the United States (Vol. 1); Norwegians in the Civil War Database (Vesterheim); Wisconsin Historical Society

Margreta Monsdatter Lunde was born in 1801 and baptized on 13 Sep 1801 at the Voss Church at Vangen. She was the daughter of Mons Torsteinson Lunde (1761 – ) and Brita Davidsdatter (1769 – ). Brita’s mother is from the well documented Mosafinn family in Voss. She was married on 22 May 1833 to Paal Iverson Dale. Paal was born 28 Mar 1806 in Ulvik, Granvin, Hordaland and was the son of Ivar Nilssen Dale (1772 – 1826) and Guri Helgesdatter Espeland (1778 – 1840). Margreta lived in Ulvik in Granvin after her marriage. She and Paal had two children born at Dale: Iver b. 6 Dec 1860 and Torstein b. 6 Dec 1835. In 1836 the family, along with Paal’s sister Ingebjørg went to America. They settled in Adams Twp., in LaSalle County, Illinois where they had two more children: Nelson (Nels) b. 1838 and Betsey (Brita) b. 1843. Paal died sometime between 1843 and 1850 as Margreta is a widow in 1850. She is farming with her 4 children and her real estate is valued at $800. I have not located her after this date so perhaps she also passed on. Her son Torstein (Thomas) is farming in the same community in 1860 and the value of his real estate is recorded as $3000. He had personal assets of $50. There is a possible candidate for Iver who is married to a Rosina, but without a marriage certificate, etc. it is not possible to say for certain if this is him. The other children I have not located. The family went by Everson and in 1860 Thomas was using Iverson.