Scandinavians, Winter, and Minnesota
December 26, 2012
I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!
Here in northern Minnesota, there is still a long winter ahead of us. The older I get, the less I like the snow and cold. I always wonder what possessed my ancestors to settle here in northern Minnesota.
When many of them immigrated in the late 1800's, the winters had to be even more brutal without snowplows, central heating, and heated automobiles.
The Minnesota DNR has compiled this climate data on Minnesota:
Here in northern Minnesota, there is still a long winter ahead of us. The older I get, the less I like the snow and cold. I always wonder what possessed my ancestors to settle here in northern Minnesota.
When many of them immigrated in the late 1800's, the winters had to be even more brutal without snowplows, central heating, and heated automobiles.
The Minnesota DNR has compiled this climate data on Minnesota:
Climate
Average annual precipitation - Average Annual Precipitation Map
Northwest: 19 inches/year
Southeast: 34 inches/year
Northwest: 19 inches/year
Southeast: 34 inches/year
Average annual snowfall - Average Annual Snowfall Map
Northeast: 70 inches/year
Southwest: 35 inches/year
Northeast: 70 inches/year
Southwest: 35 inches/year
Warmest temperature on record - Minnesota and United States Climate Extremes
114 F - Beardsley (July 29, 1917)
114 F - Moorhead (July 6, 1936)
114 F - Beardsley (July 29, 1917)
114 F - Moorhead (July 6, 1936)
Coldest temperature on record - Minnesota and United States Climate Extremes
-60 F near Tower (February 2, 1996)
-60 F near Tower (February 2, 1996)
(Reviewed 2008)
I sometimes reason that my ancestors were from Norway, and it's cold there too, but the climate in Norway is much milder according to about.com:
And according to a blurb from a 7/26/1886 NY Times article, the 1885 Minnesota census listed 184,948 residents as born in either Norway, Sweden or Denmark, and another 160,000 born of Scandinavian parents. That was roughly 1/3 of the Minnesota's population.
My Dad's family are of Norwegian descent.
My Dad's family are of Norwegian descent.
Below are vintage family photos of my Norwegian ancestors, enjoying?, enduring?, or maybe just making the best of a Minnesota winter:
Great Grandpa
Grandma's sister
My Grandma holding Marlene (I love her clothes, the dog and the old car too)
Grandma's brother
Great-great Grandpa, Great Grandma, and Great-Great Grandma
Grandma's sister and my Grandpa.
Grandma's oldest sister and Grandma's nephew.
Grandma, Grandpa, and Grandpa's sister.
What is northern Minnesota weather like today? It's currently -6 deg F, with the predicted high of 9 deg F. Brrrrrrrr! But at least it's not 40 below!
Sharing is caring
We're supposed to be getting a "big" snowstorm here today. 6-8 inches lol. I grew up close to Cleveland where they get a lot more snow than down here in Columbus, but still it's nothing like you guys get on a normal basis. I love snow, but after January 1st, I'm pretty much just waiting for spring to get here.
ReplyDeleteAwesome pictures! But they don't look very bundled up. Maybe they are used to the cold.
ReplyDeleteYou are surely stronger than I in regards to that kind of weather. I prefer 103 degrees in summer which is our extreme. Love those vintage pics of your family:}
ReplyDeleteLove the snow and a little cold but not that cold.
ReplyDeleteLove the pictures. They sure were a sylin' back then. Not all casual like nowadays.
Stay warm.
I can barely stand the cold in Oklahoma. Don't know how on earth you stand it that cold.
ReplyDeleteBrenda
Brrr Carlene. I couldn't stand to live in a place that cold. It's in the mid 30s here today, with rain and wind and I'm sitting here freezing.
ReplyDeleteLove the photos of your ancestors.
Ohhhh....love your photos! I have a whole drawer full of photos that look like we could be related! My refrigerator is full of Swedish Meatballs, a rice pudding and some lingonberries!!! Thankfully there is NO Lutefisk stinking up the place...there is only SO much I will do for my husbands need for tradition! Happy New Year...where are you in our great state?
ReplyDeleteI love your vintage family photos! Your Minnesota trivia is really interesting!
ReplyDeleteI love all the old family photos! I'd rather have snow and cold than a brown winter. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing these wonderful vintage photos! I am inspired to look through my family's pictures now :)
ReplyDeleteI love your photos of days ago! I grew up in Brainerd, MN....I miss it sooooooo. I don't know if I could handle the cold winters @50 yrs old now but I have several photos of our winters that I hope when day my grandchildren will look at lol. I now live in Texas so I agree with Vickie snow is better than brown!!
ReplyDeleteI love your blog! Here's to another great year 2013!
xoxo,
twentyfour7
Your vintage family photos are wonderful! We are in the midst of a big snowstorm at the moment - expected for this time of year though! Hope you stay warm!
ReplyDeletelove this post and the pics...I think my favorite is grandmas sister! She looks like she'd be fun :) All of the clothes and coats and styles are so interesting to look at.
ReplyDeleteI love your old photos. I have many similar ones and my grandparents also immigrated from Norway and settled here in Minnesota! Uffdah!
ReplyDeleteGuess I won't complain about throwing another log on the fire on this 21 degree morning!! Love the pic of the girl with the pipe!!! All of them are so cool!
ReplyDeleteThose photos are just priceless, Carlene! You folks must grow some thick skin in Minnesota! I'll be featuring you next week at Knick of Time Tuesday - thanks for sharing at the party!
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year,
~Angie
Oh wow Carlene, love the vintage photos. You come from good strong stock. I love a bit of Winter, but I think this is a tad too cold for me. Christmas without snow would not be the same. However, after Christmas and the month of January I am ready for it to be "our of here". lol! Thanks for sharing these priceless pictures with Share Your Cup. I will be thinking WARM thoughts for you my friend!
ReplyDeleteHugs,
Jann
Carlene, those photos look so familiar. Guess it's because mom and dad's families were from Minnesota. And that's why they settled here in Texas after dad came out of the air force. No more shoveling snow for them! I spent a Christmas in Minnesota and I was never colder! Brrrr. So glad to be in my central texas home. Until August. Happy New Year!
ReplyDeleteI grew up here in Western WA but my hubby grew up on a farm south of Moorhead - I've been there when wind chill was -60!! Air temp on Christmas Day was -25, too. Whew. Popped over here from Savy Southern Style, btw.
ReplyDeleteHi Carlene. Last summer I read the 8 volumes of a book called ' The Emigrants' speaking about the mass of scandinavians emigrating to America in the late 1800 . What the books said was that they settled in Minnesota because they recognized the nature there. Many trees / bushes were the same and they 'recognized' the climate, so they immediately felt at home there. I am a Dane myself, and found the books really interesting !.Keep warm !
ReplyDelete