Ole K. Berven

BERVEN, WARBERG, RISK

Posted By: Emmet County IAGenWeb Coordinator (email)
Date: 1/23/2011 at 19:22:27

Ole K. Berven, one of the well-to-do farmers of Emmet county, residing on section 35, Swan Lake township, was born on the 4th of June, 1861, in Norway, of which country his parents, Knute and Christina (Jacobson) Berven were lifelong residents. They are now deceased and one of their nine children has also passed away. In his native land Ole K. Berven grew to manhood, his education being acquired in the local schools. It was in 1882 that he came to America and located in Lee county, Illinois, where he worked as a farm hand for some time. In 1884 he came to Iowa, but after spending two years in Hamilton county removed to North Dakota, where the following ten years were passed. At the end of that time he came to Emmet county, Iowa, and purchased his present farm of one hundred and sixty acres on section 35, Swan Lake township. He is an energetic and progressive farmer and has made excellent improvements upon his place so that it now ranks among the best farms in the locality.

Mr. Berven was married in 1896 to Miss Julia L. Warberg, also a native of Norway, and they have become the parents of eleven children, namely: George; Anna, the wife of Luther J. Risk; Lewis; Knute; Emma; Antone and Oscar, both deceased; Antone, the second of that name; Joseph; Alma; and Theodore. The family attend the Lutheran church of which Mr. and Mrs. Berven are members, and he is now serving as one of its trustees. He is also filling the office of trustee of his township and has served as school director. In politics he is an ardent republican. He is one of the self-made men of his community, as on coming to this country he was empty handed and all that he now possesses has been acquired through his own industry, good management and economy. He is one of the representative farmers of his township and is a man highly respected and esteemed by all who know him.

CC Note: Ole (died 1939) and Julia Berven (died 1952) are buried in Swan Lake cemetery, Swan Lake township, Emmet county, Iowa.

Source: History of Emmet County and Dickinson County Iowa: A Record of Settlement, Organization, Progress and Achievement, The Pioneer Publishing Company, Chicago, Illinois, 1917.