|
There are many individuals in the United States and Canada with the surname Tweet -- not all are related to this line. This page is specific to individuals related to Peder Johannesen Tweet (Tveit) of Eidfjord in western Norway. If you have any additional information on this family I would appreciate it if you would contact me at the link given at the bottom of this page. |
|
Finding Peder was a particularly difficult challenge. When I began this research, all I knew about him was his name—Peder J. Tweet, and approximate year of birth. I figured Tweet was probably an Americanization of a farmname (see below), and that his patronymic surname began with "J". I began by making a list of farms listed in the 1901 edition of Norsk stedfortegnelse whose names were Tveit, Tveid, Tveide, Tveiden, and a few other variations. I found Tveit farms in ten of Norway's nineteen amter. The highest concentration of this name was in the amt of Søndre Bergenhus (now Hordaland fylke) where 58 farms were located. With this information I decided to begin my search in the parish records of udflyttede [removals] for 1864-1875. I searched the records of 18 parishes, before I finally found him recorded in Eidfjord parish. His was the ninth recordeded removal in 1869. The record indicated he was a bachelor, born 2 March 1844, leaving for North America. Later on, I found additional information to further prove this relationship. Not the least of which is a Works Projects Administration interview of Peder's wife, dated 14 April 1939, in Erhard, Minnesota. |
|
Before I get into any biographical data, I need to mention something about the use of surnames in Norway. Before 1890 surnames didn't exist except for the nobility, clergy, and some professions. Patronymics (adding -sen or -datter to the father's given name) were the common form used. Therefore, the surname Hansen indicated the man was the son of Hans. Hansdatter indicates the woman is the daughter of Hans. Farm names, or gaardnavne, were commonly used to precisely identify an individual.
Tveit is a gaardnavn -- not a surname. Tweet is the americanization of the gaardnavn Tveit. The gaardnavn identified someone's residence. The gaardnavn was not static -- it changed whenever someone moved to another farm. When Peder Johannesen came to the United States, he brought the use of the Tveit gaardnavn with him. |
|
Peder's father, Johannes Anvedsen, was the third child of Anved Anvedsen and Brita Johannesdatter. Anved was born 23 December 1770 to on Vindal farm in Granvin parish, and christened on Christmas day. Brita Johannesdatter was born in 1762 on Fryste farm in Ulvik parish. Anved and Brita were married 16 June 1793 in Eidfjord church. His mother, Sara Pedersdatter, was the first of three children of Peder Larsen and Gjertru Oddmundsdatter. Peder was born 11 March 1794 on Garen farm in Eidfjord, and died 16 May 1875 in Eidfjord. On 8 May 1814, Peder and Gjertru were married in Eidfjord church. Gjertru was born in 1777 on Sæbbe farm in Eidfjord, and died in 1869 on Garen farm. Johannes Anvedsen and Sara Pedersdatter were married 16 June 1834 in Eidfjord church. Johannes died 3 October 1844 on Tvedt farm, and was buried on 8 October. Sara died 16 October 1863 on Qvammen farm in Ulvik, and was buried on 25 October. A link to documents pertaining to the Peder's lineage is included here. |
|
Peder Johannesen, the immigrant ancestor of this family, was born on Tvedt farm 2 March 1844, and christened in Edifjord church two days later. Peder was the youngest of Johannes and Sara's four children. The other children of this family were Brita, born 26 June 1837, died 1922 in Eidfjord, married 5 July 1859 in Voss to Johannes Olsen; Anved, born 19 March 1840 in Eidfjord, died two days later; and Anved, born 22 January 1842 in Eidfjord, christened 30 January 1842, married Madli Pedersdatter 8 July 1861 in Eidfjord. Brita and Johannes Olsen had eleven children: Ole (1860- ); Johannes (1862-1863); Johannes (1864- ); Ingeleiv (1866- ); Sara (1867- ); Peder (1869- ); Gjertru (1871-1871); Gjertru (1872- ); Nils (1875-1875); Nils (1877- ); and Anved (1879-1889). Anved and Madli had a family of thirteen children. Many of their descendants still live in Eidfjord. These children were: Johannes (1863-1900); Kristi (1865-1951); Peder (1866-1953); Jakob (1869-1870); Anved (1869- ); David (1870- ); Sjur (1871-1872); Sjur (1873- ); Ole (1874- ); Sara (1876-1897); Gjertrud (1878-1946); Britha (1880-1902); and Malena (1882-1939). |
|
Peder immigrated in April 1869 from Eidfjord to Baldwin, Wisconsin where he stayed for six years. Years later, in 1904, Peder returned to Norway, returning to Minnesota 29 August 1904. On the same ship with Peder was the Torger Ellingsen family. Torger, his wife Aashilda Jacobsdatter, and their six children were also leaving Eidfjord, and heading for St. Croix County, Wisconsin. Their eldest daughter, Maritta (Martha) would later become Peder's wife. If there was any shipboard romance among the two, it has been lost to history. Torger and Aashilda were married 31 October 1842 in Granvin church. Their seven children were all born on Sæbbe farm in Eidfjord. Torger and Aashilda's children were: Jacob (1843-1924), who married Kari Knutsdatter (1846- ) before the family left Eidfjord, and died in Valley City, North Dakota; Maritta (1845-1846); Maritta; Elling (1849- ); Lars (1853-), who married Stina, and had five children, Elmer, Nora, Alda, Lottie, and Ruth; Christian (1855- ); a stillborn son in 1859; and Magnus (1861-1902) who married Inga Sjursdatter and had five children, Sarah, Emma, Selma, Martin, and Rupert in Rush River Township, St. Croix, Wisconsin. The family used Sebby as their surname in the United States. |
|
Three years after arriving in the United States, Peder married Maritta Torgersdatter on 25 March 1872, in Baldwin, St. Croix, Wisconsin. Peder and Maritta had two children while in Baldwin, Johan (John), born 6 May 1872, died 17 March 1949 in Fergus Falls, Minnesota; and Sarah, born 17 July 1873. In 1875 Peder decided to move his family to Otter Tail County, Minnesota. He took a train from Baldwin to Breckenridge, Minnesota, then hired a rig to take him to Rothsay. From there he walked to purchase homestead rights to 80 acres in Section 30 of Erhards Grove Township. Upon his return to Wisconsin, the family travelled for three weeks by oxcart to rearch their homestead. The last nine of the couple's eleven children were born in Erhard. These children were: Elling Pillinius (1876- ); Anna (1878- ); David (1880- ); Theodore (1882- ); Peder (1884- ); Martin (1885-1936); Amanda (1888- ); Andrew (1891-1979); and Christina (1894- ). Peder died in Erhard 10 February 1916, and was buried in Bagstevold Cemetery. Maritta died 6 February 1944 in Erhard, and was also buried in Bagstevold Cemetery. Martha was interviewed by the Works Projects Administration twice in 1939. Once in April, and again in July. |
|
In 1900, Sarah was working at the Gladstone Hotel in Jamestown, North Dakota. In 1910, she was working at a hotel operated by James Feely in Kenyon, Minnesota. Sometime between then and 1920 she and James Feely were married. Elling moved to Velva, North Dakota sometime before 1920. On the 1930 census he is enumerated with his wife, Emma, and their three children: Kenneth, Marie, and Esther. Anna married Ed Christopherson of Fingel, North Dakota; David lived in Lunds Valley, North Dakota; In 1930 Theodore wasliving in Burke County, North Dakota. He and his wife, Anna, had eleven children: Clarence, Donald, Mildred, Lawrence, Alma, Earl, Glen, Norman, Doris, Bennie, and Erma. Peder was also married and living in Larson; Amanda married John Erickson of Sparta, Wisconsin, and had two children: Harlan and Wallace. Andrew married Alma Johnsonand lived in Argyle, Minnesota. They had one daughter, Florence. Christine married Christ Erickson of Sparta, Wisconsin. On 23 June 1909 in Pelican Rapids, Minnesota, Martin Tweet married Bertha R. Marquardt, born 20 March 1886 in Minnesota, died 26 February 1949 in Pelican Rapids, the daughter of Wilhelm Jakob Marquart and Wilhelmine Henriette Splittgerber, who had immigrated from Prussia in 1881. Martin and Bertha had two children, Vernon Martin (1910-1994) and Viola Miranda (1912-1990). Vernon married Bernice Evelyn Svare (1915-1970) 27 March 1939 in Sisseton, South Dakota. Viola married Oliver Peter Teterud (1911-1973). Viola and Oliver had no children. Vernon and Bernice had six children. |
Copyright 2002 Jeffrey Michael Svare