NORWEGIANAMERICAN STUDIES
Volume XXVIII

1979
The Norwegian-American Historical Association
NORTHFIELD MINNESOTA
Copyright © 1979 by the Norwegian-American Historical Association
87732:62

Printed in the United States of America at the North Central Publishing Company, St. Paul, Minnesota.

Preface

THE ASSOCIATION’S publication program has a two-sided goal: to probe more deeply into the beginnings and consequences of events already well studied, and to enrich the story of Norwegian-American experience by investigating areas long neglected or only superficially explored. The articles in this, the twenty-eighth, volume of Studies contribute significantly to attaining our objective and, in doing so, “illuminate the general contours of American life.”

Professor Munch’s essay on authority and freedom explains in large part the deeply rooted causes of religious conflict in the New World; Ms. Hansen takes us behind the scenes of the remarkable career of Skandinaven and the John Anderson Publishing Company in Chicago; and Ms. Catuna makes available in English the Civil War letters of the Dokken brothers. The Reverend Mr. Kilde sympathetically discusses the element of tragedy in Waldemar Ager’s career as writer, prophet, and reformer, and Dr. Ruud interprets in detail the relationship of Beret and the prairie in Rølvaag’s Giants in the Earth. The late Lars Fletre offers in translation the letters of the Chicago Vossing Correspondence Society of 1848; the Reverend Mr. Lindberg describes the role of pastors in immigrant fiction; Professor Clausen continues his listing of significant recent publications; and Ms. Jacobson resumes her writing “From the Archives.”

Exploring less familiar fields, Dr. Buckley presents Martha Ostenso as an immigrant novelist; Dr. Hale examines the Scandinavian antecedents of the Evangelical Free Church; Dr. Hassing describes how Methodism was carried from America to Norway; and Professor Petersen tells the story of the beginnings of Oslo in the Texas Panhandle. Dr. Marzolf reviews the experience of the Danish-language press in the New World, emphasizing the role of Den Danske Pioneer, and Ms. Anderson introduces her grandfather, Carl L. Boeckmann, as an immigrant artist educated in the homeland but a painter of Americans and American scenes.

With volume 28 I complete my work as editor of Studies. It is therefore appropriate at this time to express gratitude to the many scholars who have contributed articles and translations to the series during the past twenty years, and to the members of the board of publications, who have given advice, encouragement, and assistance without stint. I wish, too, to thank Charlotte Jacobson, our archivist, for her unfailing help with documentation, Clarence Clausen for his numerous and excellent translations, and Elaine Kringen, our assistant secretary, for her work with manuscripts. My indebtedness to Professor Ralph L. Henry, assistant - more properly, associate - editor for some fifteen years, is at least as great as my thankful appreciation of his professional skills and kindly service to the Association.

It remains to wish all success to Dr. Odd S. Lovoll, my successor as editor of Norwegian-American Studies. He will, I know, extend the horizons of the series, draw heavily on the researches of young scholars attracted increasingly to the study of immigration and ethnicity, and generally give free rein to his energy and great ability.

KENNETH O. BJORK