Postcard Thursday, 66, Update

Men’s bunad from Åmli, Aust Agder, Norway
[photo source: 
http://www.google.no/search?q=setesdalsbunad&hl=no&sa=X&tbo=u&tbm=isch&source=univ&ei=Nqy0UKOZOqGg4gTE0IHICQ&ved=0CDAQsAQ&biw=1366&bih=625 ]

Today I received an email from Rune Jensen regarding the postcard that went up on the blog this past Thursday showing a group of people dressed in the costume from Setesdal.  He sent the photo and link above plus another link for other pictures of the costumes from this area in southern Norway.  One thing he mentioned that was very interesting is that while there are 19 counties or fylker in Norway there are 400 different designs for bunader.  I had wondered if there were variations within the counties and the answer is an emphatic, yes!  Nevertheless, there are strict regulations regarding the designs and colors to be used in all these costumes. 

As you notice the men’s bunad comes in basically two styles for this area, short trousers and long trousers, dark jacket and light jacket.  The light colored jacket looks like it is probably shorter in length than the dark jacket.  I personally like the dark jacket and short trousers with the nice high stockings, tassels, colored vest, and buckled shoes.  All versions have an attractive tie or cravat that compliments the ensemble.  Very handsome looking all of them.

Rune mentioned that he thought all the women's skirts except those from Setesdal are long but even the long ones had multiple underskirts.  Apparently there is a story about a woman who wore seven underskirts or “stakker” during an especially hard, cold winter to keep warm.  I think that seven underskirts might look a little bulky and be heavy as the material used for these skirts is usually wool.  He did say that everything has been sewn so nice that the different layers can be shown off for example when a woman has to lift her skirts while walking in the forest. 

Thank you Rune, as always for your comments and additions.

For more pictures of the costumes from southern Norway here is the second link:
http://flekkefjordhusflidslag.elisabethgg.net/bunad.htm

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 7

Norwegian Fjord horse and woman from Hardanger, Norway, ca 1900

I have just a few postcards and pictures of these wonderful creatures one of which appeared previously in Postcard Thursday, 6, last week. We have three pictures I have found so far that show our family owned some of these horses.

“Pil” and Lars Stensland at Gåseflå, ca 1905
[photo courtesy of Alf Georg Kjetså]

Here we see close ups of the farm hand Lars Stensland holding on to the Fjord horse, 'Pil' and in the picture below, although it is blurry, we see Notto Mikalsen Hornnes in the wagon with the horse hitched up and ready to go to work.*

Notto Mikalsen Hornnes and Fjord horse hitched up, ca 1870
[photo courtesy of Alf Georg Kjetså]

Lillejordet farm in near Ulefos, Telemark, Norway with horses in the field, ca 1900

Lillejordet was the farm belonging to I.C. Lee's father, Kristen Rollefsen Lillejordet.** Here we can see the horses working in the field with the farm houses and people in the background. There is even a flagpole and flag. Many of the houses and farms in Norway do display the flag in this manner.

Horse and rider
[photo courtesy of Alf Georg Kjetså]

This cropped version of a picture that previously appeared in the blog is a good example showing the size of the horse in comparison with the rider. I cannot tell for certain if this is a Fjord horse. The color and markings seem correct but it is definitely large enough to be considered a horse not a pony.

Fjord horses were much coveted and used on the farms in Norway and are still used today although mostly to haul tourists around in carts or a bridal couple in a small horse drawn buggy.

Current day postcard showing tourists riding in horse drawn carts near Birksdal glacier.

Norwegian Fjord horses are a special breed and are sometimes referred to as ponies because of their size but they are considered horses even if they are smaller than the normal cutoff for height. They are small but very sturdy and strong, capable of carrying a human and pulling heavy loads.

Most Fjord horses are dun colored although there are five shades that are recognized by the breed registry. The most common color is brown dun but as you can see from the picture, Pil, looks rather darker in color, although that may just be the quality of the photograph. These horses are one of the oldest breeds and have been used for hundreds of years as a farm horse in Norway. It is thought that they have been around since the last ice age and were domesticated over 4,000 years ago. They have a good temperament and can be used with harness and saddle. Although the mane does grow long it is usually trimmed or roached so that it stands up in an attractive manner that also accentuates the horse’s neck. The short mane helps to keep the horse looking well groomed. The ears are small and the eyes are large. Their coat becomes heavy and thick in the winter.

Fjord horses pulling sleds filled with logs, early 1900s, most likely in Telemark

You can see how sturdy they are in this picture as they pull a load of logs through the snow. This next card looks as if the photo was taken at a farmer’s meet or fair where the horses may have been judged, bought and sold.

Fjord horses at farmers fair in Telemark, Norway, early 1900s

In the last card all we can truly see is the shadow and the horse’s legs and hoofs but we also see the back of the wagon and a girl in a Setesdal bunad, light cream colors this time instead of the usual dark colors but still with the traditional bands of brighter colors at the waist and at the hem.

Setesdal girl in cart, ca 1900s

I love the look of these little horses. They remind me of the ponies that the Hobbits used in The Lord of the Rings.

For more information and pictures of Norwegian Fjord horses you may want to check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fjord_horse

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Notes:

* Gåseflå is located in Hægeland, Vest Agder, Norway. Lunnen farm is in Hornnes, Aust Agder, Norway.

** Lillejordet, as noted, is near Ulefos, Telemark, Norway. An abbreviated form of the farm name Lia is where I.C. and his brother, A.C. took their American surname of Lee.

The Lees are from my maternal line and the Hornnes/Gåseflå families come from my paternal line.

Tales from Gåseflå

The four children in the front from the left: Ragna, Arne, Ragnvald, and Mikal. Standing behind from the left: Anna (Store Anna) Mikalsdatter Hornnes, Osmund Bårdsen Gåseflå, Marie, Gunie, John Stean (Sadie’s brother), Lars Stensland. The horse was named “Pil.” The photo was taken ca 1905.

[photo courtesy of Alf Georg Kjetså]

On an earlier post there is another view of this same photo but I am repeating it here to go with a couple of stories that Inger Frøysaa related about her father and his brothers who are the little boys in the picture.

Father’s watch

“A little story from the Gåseflå brothers.

"
Ragnvald could not resist a desire to see his father's pocket-watch on the inside and of course also the parts separately. But it was not easy to put it together again and after a while he gave in. Then he took his father's hat and coat went to his mother and said with a deep voice:

‘My dear lady. I am the watchmaker from the city I must unfortunately tell you, madam that it would be terribly expensive to repair this watch. It will be much more inexpensive to put it together yourself.’

It was told that it was difficult for his mother to hide a smile.”

Red Currant Berries

“The rascal boys from Gåseflå: The railway came in 1896, the same year as my father was born. I think he was" a good" teacher for his younger brothers.


“The train passed 2 or 3 times daily and the boys were almost always staying next to the tracks and waved to the passengers. The ladies waved back to them and thought that they were such cute little boys. In the summertime the ladies often wear white dresses and hats. These were people who left the city in the summer and had their holidays at the countryside.


“Grandmother had a lot of currant bushes and the little cute boys made "snowballs" with their hands and the goal was the ladies on the train. And guess if they hit ??!!
 After a few days the conductor informed the passengers, when they approached Gåseflå that everyone had to stay inside and all windows had to be closed. At least as long as the currants season lasted.” 


Thank you, Inger, these are such cute stories and help to bring our history alive.

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 6

Tveit Church, Aust Agder, Norway, ca 1900

This card from circa 1900 shows the church at Tveit with what appears to be the congregation or part of the congregation dressed in national costume. The caption at the top says that it is the Tveit Church with Alume, which suggests that this might be a confirmation class although some of the children are pretty young looking. I liked it because it does show the people and they are dressed up in the national costume. Also it is possible to see just how steep the countryside is with the hills in back of the church. Tveit is located in Setesdal north of Kristiansand but south and east of Evje og Hornnes.

Several years ago I became acquainted John Galteland (Børuf Johnsen Galteland married Åslaug Mikalsdatter Hornnes a daughter of Mikal Alfsen from his first marriage). John contacted me saying he was interested in learning more about the family because as far as he knew he and one other were the only Galtelands in the United States. We did find a connection, just not where we expected it and although he continued to refer to me as his cousin we were actually quite far removed as cousins. We corresponded for some time and even had some pleasant telephone conversations. I am sorry to report that John has since passed away.

In the process of researching his connection to our family I came across the following story in O.O. Uleberg’s Horness I book, pp 423-424. I always wonder what it was like to live back in those times and I thought this interview interesting as a view into the past. Included are also some other postcards from Setesdal dating from the 1900s.

Setesdal between Valle and Bykle, Norway, ca 1900

Here follows a few thoughts taken from an interview by Jon Løyland in 1925 with Eivind Telleivson Galteland-Kjetså, who was the husband of a grandniece of Mikal Alfsen.* Concerning Monen in Galteland where Eivind grew up he says:

“But the land was a poor place. We had a little corn and some apples. But we had a pretty good living. We had one cow and father was a waterman up in the valley all summer long until harvest time in the fall. And he thought we lived well. He was 74 years old and did his own work.

“There was not much school in those days. Some would go just 8 weeks to school. When I [Eivind] was 14 years old we were taken out of school to help. I went around with Jørund Lauvland, but he was little younger than me. He was extremely good at the lessons and also a very good skier. One time when we were in school at Omland we had to ask permission to travel across the ice. The ice was very thick and strong then. The schoolmaster came with us and we kept pace with him. On the way he [the schoolmaster] picked a birch stick and taught us catechism lessons and would be obliged to use it on the children who would not learn. Jørund had read his part, and so could Salve Galteland, but he was crying (for fear of the stick) so Jørund broke the stick up. The teacher would have us tell who broke the stick, but we would not. Notto Lauvland and I had our hands on the table, but Jørund wouldn’t have us whipped. There was an old woman’s house where the teacher took us, and so whipped us a time. The schoolmaster could not teach Jørund anything after that. Then a pastor came to the school. He said to the schoolmaster ‘You can be glad, you are rid of him now, he is working everywhere.’ Jørund was brave, but he had sometimes a humorous side that was so quiet. He was always straightforward and honest to associate with.”

Girl milking a goat, ca 1900

Eivind also told about how he spent his summer sheepherding—

“When I was a small boy I went herding in the summertime. The payment for herding was the cost of new clothes. For two years I had one lamb in addition to some food for a part, one counted on it. In the autumn we made new clothing, all the same. The first year I got low shoes, the next year I obtained my top boots. That was like one handy thing.”

Mordfjord**, Norway, ca 1900

Eivind learned to sew too—

“When I first began to sew, I was very eager to do it. Jackets were short then, they were called ‘short jackets.’ The vest was covered as now; some were perhaps short then too. Both the jacket and vest were so short that the shirt could be seen underneath, but that was the style then. Trousers were . . . I could just remember a pair of knee pants. The socks were white, and so they shrank easily. We sewed women’s clothing also, lace bodice and jacket; the women themselves sewed skirts. Skirts had gathering where it did some good. The bodice was much like a vest.”

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Notes:

* Eivind Telleivson Galteland-Kjetså was married to one of the granddaughters of Mikal Alfsen's brother Abraham Alfsen Roland-Abusland-Kjetså.

** It is a little hard to see because it is crossed out but the card originally identified this place as Mordfjord. Someone has written "Hest hyl Sætesdal" across the card in ink. Google Translate makes this "Horse Howl or Screech, Sætesdal" but I think the hyl in this case should be closer to høl and would translate more like a place called Horse Hole as in a pool in a river or stream located in Setesdal. Mordfjord itself translates to murder/death or dangerous water/lake. It certainly looks dangerous with the water rushing down into the pool. I was fascinated by the little cabins perched right in the midst of all that surging water.

Once again, the translation of the interview with Eivind is mine so I apologize for any errors and hope that our Norwegian cousins will help me make corrections where necessary. I am not sure if the new Google translate will help with the translations from Hornnes I since many of these stories are written in the dialect of the area and may be slightly different than bokmål or nynorsk.

Patriarch: Mikal Alfsen Roland-Hornnes-Espetveit, 1805, part 2

Aerial view of Hornnes
[photo courtesy of Alf Georg Kjetså]

When Alf sent this picture he wrote on the back “I am sending you a picture of Hornnes taken from an airplane. Here you see two peninsulas as two “horns” putting out into the lake; therefore the name Horn nes. Nes means a headland. We see Fennefossen, the river Otra passing by Hornnes kyrkje [church] and coming out into the lake Breiflå. Between the two horns you see an isle called Kjeøya. And to the left a smaller isle called Helgeholmen.”

This then is where Mikal Alfsen and his family lived in the 1800s. When his first wife, Ragnhild, died in 1859 he still had eight children living at home ranging in age from 6 to 22 years of age. At age 56 he remarried in 1862 to 19 year old Anne Gundersdatter Uleberg. I imagine it would have been difficult for Anne to come into the home as the new mistress with four of the eight children older than she was and also quite daunting at 19 to become stepmother to the younger children with the youngest then 9 years old.

The oldest son from the first marriage, Notto Mikalsen, was 25 years old when his father remarried. Because the farm was to be divided if and when Mikal remarried as oldest living son Notto would take ½ as his inheritance from his mother. Notto did not take this half of the farm until 1868 when he was 31 and Mikal sold him the other half as well. Notto did not marry until 1872 at age 35.

Mikal started his second family while still living at Lunnen and three more children were born here before he bought and moved to a smaller farm, Rønningen also in Hornnes. In 1878 he bought Espetveit but had to sell it again in 1880.* His youngest children were born while they lived here.

Espetveit farm, ca 1960s
[photo courtesy of Alf Georg Kjetså]

He did not leave Espetveit but rented the farm until 1888. He died there in 1890. The man who bought Espetveit was Torjus Ånonson Abusland. Lill Anna persuaded two of Torjus's daughters, Anna** and Line, into coming to America. Later Torjus sold in 1908 and left for America too.