Valdres SambandValdres Samband[ Home | Members | Guest
Book ]
[ Archive | Book Orders | Budstikken | Budstikken Bits | Churches | Genealogy Terms | Links | Norwegian Cuisine | Stevne ]
By Jahn Børe Jahnsen
American writers have been asking the officials at the Valdres Folk Museum this question over and over. I know that Valdres Samband genealogist, Betty Rockswold, is often asked the same questions. I will try to explain the situation, being the museum officer in charge of this project.
The bygdebok project (history of the farms and families) started ten years ago with four writers: Mona Dalen and Bjørn Gunnar Østgård as f amily genealogists, and Sonja Innselset and Ingar Ranheim as farm historians.
The work proceeded and the bygdeboks for the other five townships of Valdres were printed, one after the other. This left North Aurdal. But North Aurdal is by far the Valdres Township with the largest population, so the work here has had to take more time.
Mona and Bjørn have almost finished the genealogy. In order to speed up the farm history part of the project, the Valdres Folk Museum has decided to hire Harald Hvattum, author of the Etnedal bygdebok, to help.
Please keep in mind that for a township the size of North Aurdal, ten to fifteen years working on a local bygdebok is not unusual.
Now the plans are to have the manuscript ready in May 2003, followed by a period of printing and proof reading, etc. We hope the book is ready for sale in 2004. The work finding pictures and illustrations has already started, but will continue. If you have any information or pictures that can be of interest for this book, please don’t hesitate to inform us.
By using the unfinished genealogical part of the manuscript, we have been able to help Americans visiting the Valdres Folk Museum in person. Genealogy is becoming very time consuming. Museum officials have very little time to help answer letters from Americans inquiring about their ancestors, even when they offer payment.
The Valdres Folk Museum hopes that this will answer some of your questions and pray that you will be patient for another year or two. Thank you. Jahn