O. T. Halaas was born at Christiansund, Norway on August 11, 1854. He came to Carrington in 1883 and was the first person to prove up on his farm in Nordmore Township; the Northwest 1/4 of Section 18. He worked on the railroad crew building the Great Northern main line. After farming a few years he went back to his former work as a contractor and builder helping build the Kirkwood Hotel and elevators in Pingree and Edmunds. He later became a grain buyer and lived in Cass and Richland Counties for forty years.
In 1893 he married Christine Smith of Hickson. They had four children: Eugene, John, Milton, and Martha.
He died in 1930.
Source: A History of Foster County 1983 Page 91B