from "​Double Cousins" by Ralph Hammersborg, A Norwegian Family Chronicle, produced in 1996

Ralph Hammersborg had asked his Mother’s cousins to write about their lives. The cousin's stories are taken from "Double Cousins by Ralph Hammersborg, A Norwegian Family Chronicle, produced in 1996.” Birth dates of living relatives have been removed from the original text.

1915 - Hjørdis (Pettersen) Nordhaugen
born April 10, 1915, died at age 92 on August 24, 2007.
Daughter of Oline & Adolf Pettersen

Written in 1996

Hjørdis Nordhaugen nee Pettersen, was born in Narvik on April 10, 1915 as first child of Oline and Adolf Pettersen. When she was one year old they moved back to Steine in Lofoten, and when she was four the family moved south to Trondheim.

She went to Bispehaugen Primary School (7-14) and after that to Trondheim Kommunale Middelskole, a public secondary school (14-17).

She was active in the youth club of the Methodist Church, the Epworth League, where she also was editor of the newspaper Bien (The Bee).

Seventeen years old she started working in a kiosk, selling newspapers, magazines and books (and of course read all she could!). Later she worked as a cashier in a bakery, and started doing office-work in a firm of agents.

In 1947 she married Johan Nordhaugen, a joiner from Vega, Helgeland, who had worked in Trondheim since 1945.

In 1956 she took a course at a commercial college (Myklands handelsskole), while working full time, and in 1957 they both worked for a year in Sweden.

From 1956 she worked in Forretningsbanken, the largest bank of commerce in Trondheim, and from 1970 to 1982, when she reached the retirement age, she was a branch manager in this bank.

In 1971 , after her father died, Hjørdis' mother came to live with them at Brundalen 10. There she lived until March 1983, when she died, nearly 98 years old. Two months later, in May 1983, Johan died too, when undergoing heart surgery at a hospital in Oslo.

Hjørdis then of course had a hard time, but realized the importance of having many good friends and a big family in the neighborhood, and she never had problems making friends. She is very active and a vigorous person, with many interests. She knits, crochets and embroiders, reads a lot (historic books, biographies, novels), sees friends (she still has a club with her girlfriends from her childhood at Lademoen), likes shopping and walks in town, loves to travel, watches TV, particularly sports and news, all in all she is incredibly young for her 80 years.

Johnson Family (home) - Kinstories (home) - Susag Family - Flatau Family - Beckman Family
Granquist Family - Anderson Family - Stout Family - Walker Family - Peterson Family - Morris Family - Cauble Family