Sawyer, Thore O. (1818-1909)

SAWYER, SAGEN, GEORVIG, REFEM, PETERSON, ANDERSEN, STANGELAND, SWANTON

Posted By: C. Tucker (email)
Date: 7/30/2016 at 16:34:50

The Reporter
LeGrand, IA [Friday 12-17-1909] p. 1

SAWYER

Thore O. Sawyer was the second child of a family of eight children. His parents were Ole and Martha Sagen, of Strand Sogen, Norway. The father died when Thore was in his sixteenth year, which threw him on his own resources. The mother struggled on in poverty trying to do for the large family. She came to America in later years and saw her children all settled in life in a country where the necessaries of life were much more easily procured and where nearly all attained competency. From Big Grove, Ill., he moved to Munsontown, on the south bank of Big Indian creek, where he bought an old school house, remodeled it into a dwelling house and lived in it for nearly five years, working as a day laborer in the neighborhood until he had raised two steer calves and made a team out of them. Then he moved across the creek, bought eighty acres of government land and made that his home until he moved to Iowa in 1869, when he settled on the farm where he died. He married Melina Georvig in 1842 and emigrated to this country accompanied by his family and three brothers – Knud, Rasmus and Ole – in 1846. There were no fast ocean liners in those days so they came in a sail ship, the voyage taking nearly twelve weeks from Stavanger to New York, and about three weeks over the lakes and canal from New York to Milwaukee. From thence they continued their journey inland to Muskeegon, where they stayed about three weeks, but not considering that country what they were aiming for in coming to America, they started out for Big Grove, Kendall county, Ill., not in a Pullman sleeper, but in a wagon drawn by one yoke of oxen. There were ten passengers with all their baggage. To make the journey more disagreeable they contracted the fever and ague at Muskeegan and a rule was made amongst themselves that each should ride while having the chills and walk while having the fever as there were too many for all to ride at once in one wagon. Of the four brothers and three sisters of the subject of this sketch, two sisters and two brothers preceded him to the beyond. Bertha Refem, the eldest in the family, died in 1889; Martha died in 1908; Knud in 1894; and Jonas in 1863. The oldest sister, Lena Peterson, of near Leland, Ill., Rasmus Sawyer, of near Leland, Ill., and Ole Sawyer, of near Gilman, Iowa, who survive him, are all well advanced in years, and are waiting soon to join their brothers and sisters on the shores of eternity. Thore was born January 7, 1818, and died the 10th day of December, 1909, at the advanced age of nearly ninety-two years. His first wife died in 1862. He was married a second time in 1864 to Anna Andersen, who died in 1885, since which time he has lived with his two youngest children, Tillie and Abel Sawyer. He was the father of thirteen children, eight of whom survive him – Ole T., Enas and Benjamin, of this locality; Martha Andersen, of Leland, Ill.,; Mary Stangeland and Lottie Swanton, of Chicago, Ill., Abel and Tillie Jane. Three of the children died in infancy and two, Thomas and Carrie, reached mature age. He had twenty-five grandchildren and twenty great grandchildren. In politics he was a republican and gave his first vote for Taylor of the Whig party, but failing to vote at the last presidential election, consequently did not vote for Taft. He was a member of the Society of Friends (conservative), and a diligent attendant of their meetings. His voice was often heard in exhortation and admonition in public.