A Family Gathering: Thompson

 

 

 

 

 

My late Valentine to extended Thompson family members.  This is the fifth book in the Family Gathering series and features Didrik “Dick” Thompson.  It was finished and published a little before Christmas 2021.  Like the others in the series, it is for interested extended family and not for sale except by invitation.  Family members who would like to order a copy can contact me, via email, message, or in the blog post comments, and I will send the appropriate link to the Blurb publishing site store.  Please note, self-publishing is expensive and the books are costly.  I would really like to be able to give them as gifts to all the family members but it is simply not possible or practical to do that. 

 

The book is mostly about Grandpa Dick but it does include pictures and information about his ancestors, his parents, siblings and his two daughters.  It also contains a section with the descendants starting with Dick’s father, Didrik Andreas Thomsen.    

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 535

 

 

 

 

 

Santa Claus, Father Christmas, St. Nicolas

 

The two unused postcards shared this week come from Dick Thompson’s Scrapbook Collection and have reproductions of Victorian Christmas greetings.  They are products of Merrimack Publ. Corp. of New York and printed in Hong Kong.  The originals were most likely from around 1900.

 

Santa Claus, Father Christmas, or Saint Nicolas, by whatever name we choose to call him he is often featured in holiday greeting cards.  When the Dutch established New Amsterdam they brought the legend and traditions of Sinterklaas with them.  We get the name Santa Claus from the Dutch Sinterklaas.

 

Traditionally Nicolas is thought to have been born in 15 March 270 and died 6 December 343 at the age of 73 years.  His parents were wealthy Greek Christians who both died of plague when Nicolas was a boy.  Accounts show him living a devout life and using his inherited wealth to help the poor and suffering.  He was made Archbishop of Myra, a harbor city near where he was born, when he was in his twenties.  During his life there was much persecution and torture of Christians.  It is believed that he was tortured and imprisoned during that time.  Many miracles have been attributed to him although it is not possible to tell how many of the events occurred as they were recorded long after he died.  His habit of secretly giving gifts became a tradition of gift giving in his honor after his death December 6.

 

 

 

 

Also depicted on the cards is holly.  Some scholars believe the name holly came from the word holy and is sometimes referred to as “Christ’s Thorn.”  The sharp, prickly nature of the leaves is to remind us of the crown of thorns worn by Jesus.  The bright red berries are reminders of the drops of blood.  Another account says that the shape of the leaves resemble flames and can serve as reminders of God’s burning love for his people.  Because the holly tree remains green with red berries during the Christmas season it has naturally become associated with Christmas. 

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Nicolas

https://www.celebratingholidays.com

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 530

 

 

 

 

 

Aurland, Norway

 

This used Normann color photo postcard has the number 631 at the upper right corner on the reverse.  The picture shows the community of Vangen and the fjord.  When Dick Thompson and his sister Anna visited this area in 1951 they met with a cousin, Monrad Johnsen and his family.  Monrad sent this card with a Christmas greeting to Dick in 1958. 

 

Like many of the picturesque communities in Norway, Vangen is small, with the buildings clustered around the fjord and hugging the mountainsides.  The largest building in the center of the picture is the 800 year old Vangen church.  The style of the church is attributed to the English merchants who used to stay in Aurland for long periods to buy different goods and they helped build the church.  The building is described as an early Gothic style.  There have been several restorations with the most radical changes made in the 1860s.  The most recent renovation was in 1926.  The stained glass windows were made by the Norwegian artist, Emanuel Vigeland.  The pulpit and candlesticks date from the 1600s.  The church is open to the public with no fee.

 

Although it cannot be told from the picture on the card, the fjord is long, 18 miles or 29 km, and narrow with a depth of 3,156 ft or 963 m.  It is less than 2 km or 1.2 miles wide.  The mountains surrounding the fjord are steep, rising to about 5,900 ft or 1,800 m.  There are other villages along the fjord in small valleys.  Large sections of the fjord are part of the West Norwegian Fjords UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

 

Monrad Johnsen was the son of Eli Andersen Johnsen sister to Dick’s mother, Sigrid Berentine Andersdatter Thompson.  He was a teacher at the agricultural college in Aurland.  Dick noted in his Scrapbook that Monrad was awarded the King’s Medal of Merit during World War II.

 

Marie and Monrad Johnsen, 1955

 

 

For more information about Aurlandsfjord, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org./wiki/Aurlandsfjord

If this Thursday it must be postcards, 519

 

 

 

 

 

Near Voss, Norway, ca 1950

 

Another Normann postcard from Dick Thompson’s Scrapbook, this one has a photograph of the countryside near Voss.  The title and the number 11-54-31 appear at the lower left.  Normann’s signature logo is at the lower right.

 

It is possible to see that every inch of arable land is used no matter how steep it may be.  A tourist hotel is in the background but not easily seen in the photograph.  When Dick traveled to Norway in the 1950s, he stayed here for a few days.  Voss is on the rail route between Oslo and Bergen.  There are many scenic places and waterfalls along that route.  Trains and tourist buses often stop at Voss and Flåm so that tourists can take pictures.  One of the sights along the way is the magnificent waterfall, Tvindefossen.  The falls attract thousands of visitors per year.  When we visited Norway in 2014, my cousin and her husband drove us down the western coast of Norway from Ørsta to Hornnes.  Along the way we had the pleasure of stopping to see Tvindefossen as well as several other waterfalls.  

 

 

Tvindefossen, 2014.  Tourist buses can be seen at the right near the fencing.

 

 

Tvindefossen, closer view, 2014
 

There is a parking area for cars and buses.  A path allows visitors to walk up to the foot of the falls, where it is possible to enjoy the cool breeze and light mist coming from the falls.  

 

Voss is surrounded by snow-capped mountains, forests, lakes, and rivers.  It is a popular tourist area and is notable as a center for skiing, water sports, skydiving, paragliding and adventure sports.  The Voss Museum has outdoor displays of old farmsteads as well as an indoor displays from traditional farm life.

 

For more information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voss

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tvindefossen

 

If this Thursday it must be postcards, 501

 

 

 

 

 

 Nygårdsparken, Bergen, Norway, ca 1951

 

Nygårdsparken shown in the black and white photo on this Normann postcard, B-1-101, is another card from Dick Thompson’s scrapbooks.  It shows a section of the park with a swan swimming in the pond.  As with most of the cards in the scrapbooks this one was glued on a page and kept in an album.  It is probably a card he purchased while on his trip to Norway in 1951.

 

The park is located in Bergen’s city center and is the largest urban park in Bergen.  It covers about 18.3 acres or 74.2 decares.  Joachim Georg Wiesner and Klaus Hanssen founded the Park Association of Nygaard in 1880.  The grounds are modeled after a typical English park and was laid out by the Danish gardener, S. Lund Leiberg.  In 1898 the park was changed into an exhibition area with a small zoo and a botanical garden.  There was also an exhibition of objects from Nansen’s polar expeditions.  One of the first electric elevators in Norway, with a uniformed lift attendant, took visitors up to the top of Wisbech & Meinich’s Panorama tower for views of the city.  All these areas were open to the public with a ticket costing 50 øre.

 

Originally the park was within walking distance of general population of the city; however, as time went on the city expanded and the population in the city center declined.  The number of visitors to the park also fell off leading to a lack of maintenance.  In 2007 the city decided to build a kindergarten in the park.  The school capacity is 550 children.  In the beginning there were some protests from local people not wanting the school constructed so close to existing buildings; therefore, there were delays in construction.  Today the kindergarten is now in use.

 

For additional information, see:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nygårdsparken

 

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 499

 

 

 

 

 

View of the Chr. Michesen monument, Bergen, Norway, ca 1950

 

The two postcards shared this week have photographs of the Christian Michelsen monument or memorial located in Bergen, Norway.  Dick Thompson bought these cards in 1951 during his trip to Norway.  The card above is a Normann product titled Bergen, Chr. Michelsen-monumentet (uttort av Gustav Vigeland).  The card has the number 14/746 at the lower left.  Vigeland (l869-1943) is Norwegian sculptor famous for the cycle of life figures found in Frogner Park, Oslo, Norway. 

 

A previous Thursday postcard, #38, 10 May 2012, has more information about Christian Michelsen and two additional vintage postcards from 1905.  Michelsen, the first Prime Minister of independent Norway (1905-1907), was a Norwegian shipping magnate and statesman.  He and Jørgen Løvland [see the 11 May 2012 post in this blog] were instrumental in negotiating the peaceful separation of Norway from Sweden in 1905.  Michelsen was born in Bergen in 1857 and died in 1925 in Fana, Norway.  He believed in a democratic republic accepted the fact that a democratic monarchy would have the greatest chance of success abroad and also among most Norwegians.  Prince Carl of Denmark became King Haakon VII of Norway .  

 

 

 

 

The monument stands in the city park near the pool, Bergen, Norway, ca 1950

 

The second postcard, above, is identified as an Eberh B. product, but no photographer or catalog number is given.  Dick trimmed and pasted both cards in a scrapbook making it impossible to see all that might have been printed or written on the reverse. 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Michelsen

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Custav_Vigeland

 

 

 

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 498

 

 

 

 

 

 Den Nationale Scene or The National Theater, Bergen, Norway, ca 1950

 

Here is another unused postcard from Dick Thompson’s scrapbooks.  This one has a photograph of the National Theater in Bergen, Norway.  It is a Mittet & Eneret postcard printed in Norway with the identifier B.16 at the lower left corner on the reverse.  Dick purchased this card when he visited Norway in 1951.

 

The National Theater, or Den Nationale Scene in Norwegian, is one of the oldest and largest theaters in Bergen.  The theater had its beginnings in 1850 when Ole Bull, a famous Norwegian violinist, suggested that a theater should be created to encourage Norwegian playwrights.  At that time, it was called Det Norske Theater.  Henrik Ibsen was one of the first writers-in-residence and art-directors of the theater.  The original building was replaced and a new one was designed by Einar Oscar Schou.  The new building opened in 1909 with a production of Erasmus Montanus by Ludvig Holberg. King Haakon VII of Norway and Queen Maud attended.  In 1913 and 1920 extensions were added and over the subsequent years the building has undergone major changes, renovations, modernizations, and expansion.  In 2001 the building was restored to almost its original shape.  Today it houses three stages and presents about 20 productions annually.  In 1993 the theater became a state property.

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Den_Nationale_Scene

 

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 496

 

 

 

 

 

Exterior, side view of Johanneskirken, Bergen, Norway, 1909

 

This week two different views of Johanneskirken, Bergen on postcards are being shared.  The card above is identified as an Eneberettiget & Mittet Co. and dated 1909 at the lower right corner.  Mittet & Co. was one of the major postcard publishers in Norway in the early 1900s.  The company name is sometimes written as Eneret & Mittet Co.

 

Below is a Normann postcard from 1951 that shows the front view of the same church.  It has “Normann” written at the lower right corner and the number 14/645 at the lower left corner.  Both cards were found pasted in one of Dick Thompson’s scrapbooks.

 

Exterior front view of Johanneskirken, Bergen, Norway, 1951

 

It is a red brick church built between 1891 and 1894 and is one of the five churches that form the Bergen Cathedral parish.  Herman Backer (1856-1932), architect, designed the cruciform, Gothic Revival style building that seats about 1250 people, making it the largest church in Bergen.  In 1924 ceiling frescos were completed by Hugo Lous Mohr (1889-1970 and in 1967 the original organ built by Schlag & Söhne of Wurttemberg, Germany was modernized.  The altar piece was designed by Marcus Grønvold in 1894 and shows Christ in prayer.  There are four stair towers and a carillon designed by Verein Bochum, in Bochum, Westphalia.  Johanneskirken was a parish church in Bergen from 1894 until 2002, at which time several of the urban churches combined to form the Bergen Cathedral parish.

 

The Interior views of the church are found on Wikipedia.org.

 

The interior

 By Diego Delso, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=82675180

 

 

 The organ

By Alfred Diem from Wien, Austria - 0906_Kreuzfahrt_Norwegen_1868Uploaded by Jorunn, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7393134 

 

 

 

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._John’s_Church,_Bergen

 

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 495

 

 

 

 

 

Statue of Ludvig Holberg, Bergen, Norway, ca 1951

 

The postcard shared this week is one from Dick Thompson’s scrapbooks.  It has a photograph by Normann with the number 4704 at the lower left corner.  The title is "Bergen – Holbergstatuen."  This card was purchased when Dick visited Norway in 1951.

 

Ludvig Holberg (1684-1754) was born in Bergen, Norway when the country was under a dual monarchy between Denmark and Norway.  He was a writer, essayist, philosopher, historian, playwright, and considered to be the founder of modern Danish and Norwegian literature.  Although his works concerning natural and common law were widely read by many Danish law students, he is best known for the comedies he wrote for the Lille Grønnegade Theatre in Copenhagen. 

 

Given that his father died when Holberg was very young, and that he was the youngest of six brothers, it seems remarkable that he was able to become well-educated and well-traveled.  He had to live a modest life in his youth and young adulthood, earning his living as a tutor and acting as a traveling companion for noblemen.  Because he lived conservatively most of his life, he was able to invest a large part of the profits from the sale of his books.  Some of his investments included real estate.  He liked traveling on foot and continued walking most of his life, stating that it kept him healthier by helping him control malaria he had caught while in the south.

 

When he was in his teens, he visited large cities in The Netherlands, and France, spent time in Rome, and a longer period of time in Oxford, England. He taught at the University of Copenhagen for many years, at the same time starting a successful career as an author.   Although he was never formally admitted to Oxford University, he spent time there using the libraries and participating in Latin discussions with English students.  His travels were the main inspiration for his later writings.  He believed in people’s inner divine right of reason and that education was to teach students to use their senses and intellect instead of just memorizing material from books. 

 

Holberg never married and was childless.  By the end of his life, he had a small fortune.  In his will he left a legacy to the Søro Academy.  Because of his generous donation the king agreed that the entire estate would be free from taxation.  Holberg also earned the title of Baron of Holberg. 

 

The statue on the card was created by the Swedish sculptor, John Börjeson (1835-1910) and is located in Bergen, Norway.

 

 

 A slightly different view of the statue, 2014

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ludvig_Holberg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Börjeson

 

If this is Thursday it must be postcards, 494

 

 

 

 

 

Wm. Brown and dog team, 1909

 

The caption on this vintage postcard says:  “Wm. Brown made the trip from Grand Forks [North Dakota] to Seattle [Washington] at an average of 45 miles per day.”  Dick Thompson has penned in the date of 1905 and a note: “If you look close you find me there.”  There is a barely visible “X” just above his head at the upper mid left of the photo.

 

This is one of several postcards found in Dick Thompson’s scrapbooks.  I’m not sure when he assembled the scrapbooks but probably toward the end of his life in the 1960s.  He used magnetic photo albums that were popular at that time but have proved to be ruinous for photos.  He also used glue and tape on many of the pictures and clippings.  As a result, most cannot be removed from the pages to see the reverse side and many have been damaged over time from the glue and tape.  This image has been altered to remove some of the damage from tape.  Also, since he put the books together long after the events, some of the dates are inaccurate, as is the case in this example.  A newspaper clipping from the Bismark Daily Tribune [North Dakota], dated 30 April 1909, provided information about the upcoming race. 

 

Two men, W. G. Buchanan and William Brown with their buggies and dog teams started out from Grand Forks, N.D., on the 10^th of May 1909 heading for the Alaska Yukon Pacific Exposition just opening in Seattle, Washington.  On their way across the country, they planned to do some “boosting” for Grand Forks.  They hoped that local Grand Forks businessmen would help support them as a form of advertisement. 

 

Buchanan and Brown both had similar four-wheel buggies.  Buchanan’s dogs were bird dogs while Brown’s team were Newfoundland dogs and stag hounds.  Both men had been training their dogs all winter.  Brown estimated that his team could average 45 miles per day and where the roads were good, better than that.  He admitted that the mountains would be more challenging and slower.  Among his long-distance training runs were trips from Grand Forks to Minneapolis, and another trip to Winnipeg, he said, to give the dogs some exercise.  Buchanan’s bird dogs, (Labrador retrievers, German short-haired pointers, Boykin Spaniels, Golden retrievers, Vizslas, and Nova Scotia Duck Tolling retrievers), were slightly lighter weight dogs but he was confident they would give Brown’s team a good race. 

 

As can be seen from the card, Brown and his team of dogs were the winners, averaging about 45 miles per day.  Other stunts like this were carried out by walkers, such as Helga and Clara Estby who entered a $10,000 challenge from a sponsor in 1896, and walked from Spokane, Washington to New York City.  Although they walked the distance and hoped for the money to save the family farm, they did not receive it.  In 1905, for the Lewis & Clark centennial, a pair of 7-horse power Curved Dash Oldsmobile Runabouts, Old Scout and Old Steady, went from New York to Portland, Oregon following the Oregon and California Trail and the Union Pacific railroad.  Since there were no regular roads from Nebraska westward the route was chosen to facilitate supplies along the trip.  Old Scout, the winner of the race, was driven by Dwight Huss and his mechanic and co-driver, Milford Wigle.  Old Steady was driven by Percy Megargel and Barton Stanchfield.  In more recent times there have been a number of individuals who have biked or walked across the country to raise funds for various causes. 

 

For additional information, see:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_poeple_who_have_walked...

https://en.wikipedi.org/wiki/Newfoundland_dog

https://www.newspapers.com/clip/30361914/william-brown-and-wgbuchanan-to-race/

https://www.worldofspeed.org/archive-blog-1/2017/12/19/old-scout-made-it-to-portland-in-1905-winning-the-first-transcontinental-car-race