my 3x great-grandparents
ANNE SOPHIA BONDESDATTER and ANDERS MICHAEL ANDERSEN
The record of the confirmation of the baptism of Anders Michael Andersen on May 25, 1817. His actual baptism took place at home at Alvenes farm. See Anne Sophia's baptismal record below for more about this.
Baptismal record of Anne Sophia in 1823.
Often a child died shortly after birth and there was no time for the minister to get there. Therefore it was necessary to give instructions about how an infant was to be baptized. If an infant looked sickly or death was imminent, the baptism could be performed by the father of the child, the midwife or even the mother. In the church records you will often see an entry that a child had been baptized (hjemmedøbt) at home. This baptism, if the child lived, would be confirmed by the minister in the church at a later time.
This is the case with Anne Sophia, who was baptized on July 24th at home, then the baptism was confirmed in the church on August 10th.
Hard to read, but this is the marriage record of Anne and Anders in 1843. It says they were the 7th couple to marry that year, that they got married on the 27th of July, their full names, where they were born (he at Alvenes and she at Storli), their ages when they married (he was 26 and it says she was 21, but she had actually just turned 20), his father's name, then her father's name. The column third from the right with writing in it refers to whether the bride and groom had been vaccinated against smallpox or could confirm they had already had it.
Death record of Aron Michael and Anne Oline on May 15, 1851. The next column indicates they were buried on May 23, 1851. Aron was a month shy of his 7th birthday and Anne Oline was a month shy of her 4th birthday. There is no reason given for how or why they died. The word "barn" on many lines indicated that the deceased was a child.
Death record of Ingeborg Marie on July 21, 1849. She was just 21 days old.
Death record of Hans Olai on June 3, 1853 at just 6 days old. This, sadly, was too often the outcome before they had midwives to assist.
My best estimate of what this says: Nordland's County's chairman, Rjøbmand Jadelens, convened the meeting at Farm no. 37 in Bodø on July 29, 1858. The pre-trial was administered by the acting Governor, Lohrsen. The bailiff (local official who collected taxes and enforced the law) in Salten, the bailiff in Lofoten, Berg, and the acting bailiff in Helgeland met and Proceedings Protocol were kept.
From the Districts of the Governor of the County met the following Rapporteurs (persons appointed by an organization to report on the proceedings of its meetings):
A. From Lofoten's District: list of representatives follows
B. From Salten's District: list of representatives follows, including Farmer Alvenæs, who was representing Foldens in the Saltens District. In 1858, Farmer Alvenæs would have been Anders Michael Andersen who was 41 years old and the head of the farm.
(Note: other occupations noted are: Sognepræst/parish priest; Districtslæge/district physician; Handelsmand/merchant; Kirkesanger/church singer.)
In 1850, these were some of the items discussed in the annual meeting of the district chairmen. #24 talks about how the district surgeon, Dr. Steffens, was inconvenienced by the presence of a midwife (Jordemoder) at a birth and wants to be compensated with community funds. That item is passed in a vote and he is awarded 48 kroner. #29 is someone proposing a comprehensive district plan for the arrangement of the midwifery network. That item was voted down, essentially, by being tabled "for observation".
By 1858, when Anders was the representative for Foldens, item #29 says that Dr. Steffens is being paid a stipend to assist in the training of midwives in Christiania (Oslo). #30 and #31 refer to payment to particular midwives for services rendered. There certainly seems to have been progress made between 1850 and 1858.
1865 Census shows Alvenes was a busy place. Anders was 50 years old and Anne was 45. Six of their children were living with them: Jens, Conrad, Guline, Anne, Abigael, and Karoline. Marine had not yet been born. Also living with them were foster son, Hans Johannesen, and six people (tjeneskarl=servant; tjeneskpige=servant girl) who worked for them. Finally, they had lodgers there as well: school teacher Peder Larsen, plus fisherman Ole Karlsen and his wife and sons.
What Anne and Anders and their children would have seen as they rowed across the fjord to attend church in Rørstad Church on Sundays. Imagine this in the middle of winter!
The view looking the other direction: from Rørstad Church towards their home.
Alvenes on 1891 Census, showing it was in the "3rd counting circle" of Nordfolden for that census.
Where Alvenes lies in relation to the larger city, Bodø, and in relation to Rørstad. My ancestors from Alvenes are from Mom's maternal line. My ancestors through her paternal line were from nearby Kjerringøy.
The death and burial record of Anders Mikal Andersen at Alvenes. He died on the 28th of November in 1868, but they were not able to bury him until the 9th of May in 1869.
By the 1875 Census, Anne was 52 years old and a widow. Six of her children were still living with her at the time along with a servant girl, Bergitte Gundersdatter. Anne's youngest child, Marine, was just 7 years old. These records are fairly good for the time, but there are frequently small errors. They estimate the year of birth, for instance, based on the age the person claims to be. So, Anne's birth year is stated as 1822 when it was really 1823. Marine's birth year is stated as 1867 when it was really 1868. Anne did not live long enough to show up in the 1891 Census. She died March 20, 1885. (Note: spelling of names was not consistent. "Anne" and "Ane" and "Ann" could show up in different records for the same person.)
#3 is the death record of Anne Sophia Bondesdatter who was born in 1823 at Storli and died in 1885 at Alvenes. #4 is Anne Sophia's granddaughter, Thea Amalie, who lived only a couple of months. She was the daughter of Anne's eldest surviving child, Guline (my 2x great-grandmother).