Lars was young, strong and ambitious. He had lots of courage and a strong Christian faith. He decided to move westward to Dakota. Armed with these qualities he bought a team of horses, a wagon and a cow and left Wisconsin in April 1882 for North Dakota taking along:
They arrived in Dover Township May 11, 1882. The ground was covered with snow when they arrived. In the years to follow there were countless hardships to endure. Food and clothing were not always easy to get. On one occasion Lars had to kill his dogs to use the hide for shoes.
Being a devout Christian Lars was instrumental in getting churches organized and donated two acres of land for a church. He was a charter member of the Eidfjord congregation. When a minister was not available Lars would conduct the services and officiate at funerals in the absence of the pastor.
In addition to the three children born in Norway, seven more were born in North Dakota:
A tornado destroyed the church in 1916. Two years later the church was rebuilt. This coming July EIDFJORD will celebrate its 90th anniversary.
Sever Pederson and Tina Michaelson were married in the Eidfjord church on February 14, 1902. Eleven children were born to this couple of which six still survive:
- Leonard
- Laura Rasmusson
- Bernice Adams
- Orville
- Sylvia Fliflet
- Gladys Fliflet
They farmed and lived in Dover Township all of their lives on the farm where Sever's father lived.
Sever was only six weeks old when his parents brought him here from Norway. He often told stories of the hardships encountered during his childhood in the Dakotas. Oxen and walking plows were the only means of working the soil. Indians and prairie fires were some other problems they had to be alert for. Sever was clerk of Dover School and Township treasurer for many years. The Pedersons were life-long members of the Eidfjord Church.
Mr. and Mrs. Leonard Pederson lived in the rural Hannaford area until moving into Hannaford around 1952. Leonard worked on the dray line in Hannaford for a number of years and is now employed by the city.
They had nine children:
Mrs. Pederson passed away in March of 1960 after a long illness. There are 28 grandchildren and 1 great-grandchild.
Source: Griggs County History 1879 - 1976 Page 228