Sigvart Johannes "Sig" Susag

October 18, 1887 - October 23, 1978
91 years, 5 days

Mabel Cora (Hoflen) Susag

December 17, 1888 - June 30, 1966
77 years, 6 months, 13 days

Married: November 15, 1915

Children of Sig & Mabel:
Grace Margaret Susag (Pfau) (1917-2003 / 86 years)
Lloyd George Susag (1919-2013 / 94 years)

From The Rutland Leader, October 1, 2006

Sigvart Johannes Susag

Sigvart Johannes Susag was born on October 18, 1887, in Namsos, Nord-Trondelag, Norway. His father, Edvard Sivertsen Susag, was a blacksmith in Namsos. Sigvart left Norway as a young man. He emigrated April 18, 1909, from the Trondhjem Port on Ship Laurentia, debarking at Port Huron, Michigan on May 19, 1909. His uncle Antonius had sponsored Sigvart's immigration. Sigvart's grandfather & grandmother, Sivert & Andreanna Johnson, along with his uncles, John Sivertsen, Antonius Sivertsen, and David Susag, had immigrated from Sparbu, Nord-Trondelag, Norway, to Dakota Territory in 1880 & 1881 and taken up homesteads south of Cayuga, on land that is now owned by Harvey & Judy Bergstrom and by Edith Pherson.

Homesick

Sig arrived by train at Cayuga on May 11, 1909. Upon stepping off the train, a wave of homesickness struck, and he wished he had enough money to get back on the train and return to his home in Norway. There was a solitary hill on the south side of Cayuga, a gravel deposit left on the prairie by the receding glaciers of the last Ice Age, and Sig recounted that he hiked up to the top of that hill, gazed over the prairie in every direction and there was not a tree to be seen from where he stood on that hilltop, all the way to the horizon. "My eyes filled with tears," he said, "and if I had any money at all, I would have gone back to the depot and bought a ticket to go back to a place where trees grew"

Antonius Sivertsen to Canada

He (Sigvart) took over the management of his uncle Antonius Sivertsen's homestead, in April of 1910, while his uncle went to Canada to look for another farm. Antonius and his wife, Ellen, moved to New Norway district, Canada, in the summer of 1910. Antonius' widowed mother,

Andreanna, accompanied her son to his new farm in Canada. Sig's grandfather, Sivert Johnson, had died in 1902 and is buried near Rutland in the Nordland Cemetery. His uncle John sold his Sargent County homestead and moved up to the Tioga, North Dakota area at about the same time. Sigvart's uncle David, farmed near the town of Comstock, Minnesota.

Sivertson or Susag

Sivert, John & Antonius had observed the old Scandinavian practice of children taking their father's first name as part of their last name. Sigvard's father, Edvard, who remained in Norway, and his uncle David, however, took the name of the farm on which they resided in Norway as their last name. The name of that farm was, and still is, Susag. (Sivert Johnson (Jonsen) and sons: Antonius Sivertson, Edvard Susag, John (Johannes) Sivertson, and David Susag.)

Sigvart and Mabel

Sigvart met his future wife, Mabel Hoflen, while she was teaching at the rural school located near the farmsteads of Sivert Johnson and Antonius Sivertsen, in southeastern Ransom Township. Mabel Cora Hoflen, daughter of Andrew Hoflen and Anna Martha Johnson, was born December 17, 1888, in Fulk County, Dakota Territory South. She married Sigvart on November 15, 1915, in Forman, North Dakota. After their marriage, Sigvart and Mabel continued to live in Sargent County, establishing a farming operation with their son, Lloyd, who later purchased their share of the farm. The Susag farm was 1 mile west of the town of Rutland, on the south side of County Road #3. A nice grove of trees was planted around the farmstead.

Sigvart's Powerful Bass Voice

Sigvart had a beautiful singing voice and was called on to sing at events and funerals throughout the area. He was always happy to oblige. One of the hymns well suited to his powerful bass voice was the Norwegian language version of "How Great Thou Art" and he was often called upon to sing that number at the funerals of pioneer Scandinavian homesteaders. Sigvart first returned to Norway to visit his boyhood home in 1947 and made three more visits over the years. One of the visits was a reunion of the Norwegian male chorus group he sang with before immigrating to America.

Mabel's Parents

Mabel's parents were Swedish emigrants who homesteaded in Dakota Territory, Faulk County, in 1885. Statehood was granted to North and South Dakota on November 2, 1889. Mabel's father, Andrew Hoflen, was born in 1863 in the province of Jamtland, Sweden. Her father lived initially in a sod hut on the prairie. About 1900 the family moved to Sargent County. One of Andrew Hoflen's grandsons, Andrew G. Hoflen, currently owns and operates the Hoflen farm northeast of Rutland.

Sigvart and Mabel's Children

Sigvart and Mabel had the following children: Grace Margaret, who was born January 11, 1917, and died April 3, 2003; and Lloyd George, who was born April 14, 1919, and is still going strong. Mabel died June 30, 1966, and Sigvart died on October 23, 1978. (Since the writing of this article, Lloyd passed away on July 15, 2013).

Grace

Grace married James Pfau on January 13, 1954, and the couple spent most of their married life as school teachers in the U.S. Panama Canal Zone, returning to Lake Cormorant, Minnesota, following their retirement.

Lloyd & Beulah

Lloyd married Beulah Donaldson on September 20, 1945. Beulah was the daughter of Iver Donaldson and Sofie Pedersdatter. Her father, Iver, was the Standard Oil Co.'s bulk oil dealer in Rutland. She was born in Rutland on June 24, 1923, and died November 5, 1982. They had eight children: David; Ivan; Mark; Joel; Ronald; Carolyn; Wayne; and Sandra. The Susag farm was taken by eminent domain in 1972, becoming part of the Tewaukon National Wildlife Refuge. Lloyd married Thala June Aleshire on February 19, 1991, in Austin, TX.

The following is a memorial to Sig Susag written by Thala June (Aleshire) Susag

The research and biographical sketch for this memorial was done by the original contributor "Thala June".

Sigvart "Sig" Susag died in St. Mary Hospital, Detroit Lakes, Minnesota following a head injury suffered in a fall in the nursing home. Johannes Sigvart "Sig" Susag, son of Edvard Susæg and Gustava Elise Johannesdatter Bedsvaag, was born 18 Oct 1887 in Namsos, Nord-Trondelag, Norway.

At the invitation of his uncle, Anton Severtsen, Sig left his job in a bank and immigrated to Sargent County, North Dakota, arriving at Cayuga 11 May 1909. He told Lloyd when he stepped off the train and surveyed the flat land around him, he would have gotten back on the train and returned to Norway if he had been able to afford it. Sig took over management of his uncle's farm while Anton was away, searching for a farm to purchase in Alberta, Canada.

Sig also helped care for Andreanna, his widowed grandmother, who was also living on Anton's farm. She moved to Canada with Anton and his wife and died there.

In later years, Sig Susag purchased and placed the gravestone on the Nordland Cemetery grave of his grandfather, Sivert Jonsen, who died in 1902 in Sargent County.

Sig Susag met a young schoolteacher, Mabel Cora Hoflen, (1888-1966) who was teaching in a rural school near Anton's farm. In the winter, he would get up early and fire up the coal-burning stove in the one-room school building before Mabel arrived. They married on 15 Nov 1915 in Forman, North Dakota. Their two children were born near Rutland, Sargent County, North Dakota. Grace Margaret (Susag) Pfau (1917-2003), and Lloyd George Susag (1919-2013).

Sig Susag had a marvelous singing voice and was often called on to sing at local funerals. Lloyd remembers, when the road to Rutland was impassable due to heavy snow, his father would trudge through the drifts on foot to sing at his neighbors' funerals. He would sing hymns in the Norwegian language as well as English.

Sig and Mabel farmed near Rutland. Son, Lloyd, joined his father in farming and in the mid-1950s bought his share. Lloyd expanded the farm, as well as adding custom harvesting to the farm operation, harvesting wheat from Oklahoma to the Canadian border.

Lloyd and wife, Beulah (Donaldson) Susag, raised their eight children on the farm. They were active in the Rutland Baptist Church, and often sang duets in services. The church was established as a Swedish Baptist Church, and an early member was Mabel's mother, Anna Martha Hoflen, who was born in Sweden.

Under pressure from the United States Department of Interior, Fish & Wildlife Service, the farm was deeded in 1972 to the government and added to the Tewaukon Game Preserve established for migratory waterfowl (Canada geese).

After World War II ended, Sig was able to visit his siblings in Namsos, Norway. His parents were deceased. Sig's father, Edvard, died 22 Jun 1942 during the Nazi occupation of Namsos, a deep water port. Namsos was bombed heavily. Edvard's blacksmith shop was bombed out. Friends of Edvard's said he worked late each night, rebuilding his business. It was bombed again and Edvard died soon after.

Two of Sig's sisters, Aasta and Ingrid, were taken captive 10 Aug 1943 and held until 12 July 1944 at Falstad, a Nazi concentration camp south of Namsos. No reason was given for their capture in Falstad records; however, their family believed it was because they refused to reveal the location of their brother, Joachim, who was a suspected leader in destroying the Nazi heavy water plant.

The following is taken from "Double Cousins by Ralph Hammersborg, A Norwegian Family Chronicle, produced in 1996.”

Memories of Family: Early Years

written by Lloyd George Susag

I was born near Rutland, North Dakota on April 14th, 1919, the last of two children of Sigvard John Susag and Mabel Cora (Hoflen) Susag. My sister, Grace Margaret, was born on January 11, 1917.

My mother, Mabel, was born December 17, 1888, at Orleans, South Dakota, and died June 30, 1966, at the age of 77. Her parents were Andrew and Martha Hoflen of Swedish heritage. Mabel married Sig, my father, November 25, 1915, at Forman, North Dakota.

Sig was born on October 18, 1887, to Edward and Augusta Susag in Namsos, Norway, a seacoast town on the North Sea. Sig died October 23, 1978, at the age of 91, preceded in death by three sisters and three brothers. Four sisters in Norway survived him. I have a memory of Austa, Alvhild, Borghild, Emma, and one brother, Jochim. Both Jochim and Austa visited us on the family farm. Another sister, Ingrid, owned a bakery in Namsos.

Sig immigrated to North Dakota in 1909 with the assistance of his uncle, Anton Sivertson, who farmed near Rutland in Sargent county, North Dakota. Sig told his reaction to seeing the flat plains of North Dakota when he got off the train, wishing with all his heart he had the funds to go back home to Norway. He did not return for a visit until 1947, returning a couple of times more, one to join the reunion of a Norwegian all-male chorus which he had toured with prior to moving to the United States. Prior to coming he worked for a bank and was fluent in foreign languages.

Besides farming, Sig did carpentry work and had various jobs with the US Department of Agriculture. He was an inspector for the Federal Grain Loan Program and a member of the ASCS (The Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service). During the Depression years he was the head carpenter for building the bridge across the Sheyenne River at Lisbon, North Dakota, and during the Depression and Dust Bowl years helped neighbors build barns and homes. During the Roosevelt years, Sig was the only Republican in his voting precinct where he served as an inspector. There was a requirement that each voting precinct have both a Democrat and a Republican election judge, so one of Sig's fellow voters (a Democrat) volunteered to be a Republican just to keep things moving and Sig was able to vote Republican.

Sig came from Norway with a rich singing voice and he shared it with his neighbors. He always was available for funerals and sang at his church, Rutland Baptist, as well as Lutheran churches, school, and community functions.

Mabel told the story of Sig yearning for rain the year following their marriage. It had been bone dry for a long, long time. When it finally rained, Sig ran outside, sans clothing, and jumped around in the rain while Mabel tried to get him to come inside. At that time they farmed three miles north and one mile east of Rutland. Grace was born while they lived there. They later moved a quarter-mile closer to Rutland and I was born there.

Sig and friends wrote, produced, and starred in home talent plays to raise money for the Rutland Consolidated School in the years 1924 until about 1929. The hilarious productions always drew large crowds. Singing was always a part of the program; solos, duets, and three-part harmony. One of the plays I remember involved a lot of "bologna". The men built a "bologna-phone" by hanging various tubes of bologna sausage of graduated lengths on an iron bar to resemble the wooden bars of a xylophone. Sig was in the play and squeezed the appropriate bologna tube to make the music that was coming from behind the curtain. Mrs. F. B. Peterson was back there playing the piano. The audience loved it. Sig, for the most part, was serious and conservative but would join in the fun for worthy causes. Because of like-minded dedication of residents and community leaders, Rutland Consolidated School was one of the best in the state. It was the first consolidated school in the state, was the first to have steam heat and indoor restrooms.

Mabel taught school in a nearby township for a number of years and substituted often at Rutland Consolidated. She taught Sunday School at Rutland Baptist and in the summer taught parochial school at South Trinity Lutheran Church. (Grace followed her footsteps into the teaching profession. I dropped out of college and went home to the farm after Sig broke his hip. I stayed and raised my family on the farm). Mabel was active in PTA and served many years as a clerk for the school board at Rutland Consolidated. She was adept at baking delicious bread and hearty meals but preferred working outdoors, milking cows, and tending chickens. I was awed at her ability to mimic many voices to perfection and laughed at her retelling the latest party-line gossip, doing the voices in turn. My children loved to have stories read by her and some remember the made-up stories which came alive from her active mind.

One cold November day she sent me out to the grainery to round up seven chicks that a Barred Rock hen had hatched late. Sigurd, David Susag's eldest son, was coming for a visit from British Columbia. I caught them, cleaned them, and Mabel fried them. We had a delicious, late November supper of "Spring" chicks, to the delight and amazement of our guest, Sigurd.

Sig's father, Edward Susag, lived and died in Norway. However, Sig's grandfather, Sivert, immigrated to North Dakota around 1890. Sivert took the name Jonsen (son of John), but I am not sure when he changed from Susag. He was born in 1824 and died in 1902, seven years before Sig arrived in North Dakota. He is buried in the East Cemetery at Rutland. His wife, Andreanna Nilbe, was born near Levanger, Norway, and is believed to be buried in New Norway, Alberta, Canada.

Of their four sons, Edward was the only one who remained in Norway. He was my grandfather. I saw a painting of him when I visited relatives in Namsos in 1973. He is seated on the remains of their home and cafe following repeated bombing by the Germans. Some of Sig's sisters were in German prison camps. Jochim, his brother, worked for the Norwegian underground who was successful in blowing up the heavy water plant which the Germans wanted for making weapons. Jochim slipped out of the country and spent years at sea, traveling all over the world.

Sivert's other three sons, Antonius (Anton) Sivertson, (son of Sivert), Johannes John Sivertson, and David Susag settled in the U.S. and Canada. Anton paid Sig's passage to North Dakota in 1909 and Sig agreed to farm his homestead at Cayuga while he went to Northwest North Dakota, I believe Tioga, near Williston. He later went to Canada, probably Alberta. The only information I have on John is that he is he also went to Tioga and homesteaded. David Susag settled at Vergas, Minnesota. He tried to homestead at Peace River, Alberta, Canada. After locating the land, a thunderstorm came up and he was forced to tie up his horses and take refuge under the wagon. After a long night of heavy rain, thunder and lightning, David discovered his horses were missing. They had been spooked by the storm and he finally found them in the wilds after fording a river that was swollen from the rain. He drove them to the nearest railhead and got on the train going South.

I recall visiting with David about January 1939. I was an engineering student at North Dakota State College in Fargo. Ragna (David and Julianna's daughter) had purchased a 1927 Chevrolet coupe and invited me to go out to Vergas with her to see her folks. When we arrived I found David lying on his bed, dressed in overalls, with a full, white beard down to his waist, I had been told he might not talk much, but he invited me to pull up a chair by his bed and he began to tell stories about his life, including the Peace River episode. After returning to Minnesota he became a timber worker and the family ran a dairy. We talked about various immigrants from Norway who had settled North Dakota and the hard life they had.

David's oldest son, Sigurd, did immigrate to British Columbia, Canada, and remained there as far as I know. He visited our farm at least once while I was young. Sig told the story that he and Sigurd got the notion to go to northern Minnesota to work as lumberjacks soon after Sig arrived in North Dakota. (Sig was supposed to take over farming for Anton at Cayuga while Anton went on to Tioga near Williston to check out homesteading there). Upon arriving at the lumber camp, Sig and Sigurd got into an argument with another lumberjack, a large, surely Frenchman, who threatened Sig. Sigurd, who was shorter and smaller than Sig, told the Frenchman he would take him on. He gave the guy a pretty good thrashing and they didn't have any more problems. They didn't stay in the lumberjack business very long, however. Sig returned to Cayuga and Sigurd may have gone on to British Columbia at that time.

Sig may have told me about the relatives at Tioga after visiting there. I can't remember. He was there a couple of times with my uncle George Hoflen, Mabel's brother. He owned a steam-operated thresher. Sig and Uncle George loaded up the thresher on a rail car and went to Tioga to thresh wheat. One time they were gone for six weeks because they were snowed in.

Most of my early memories involved farm life and taking on chores at an early age including working with horses that my grandfather Hoflen bought, trained, and sold. I can remember prairie fires, losing crops to pestilence and drought, listening to the stories of the elders as they discussed their particular problems and hardships, and getting into the usual things that boys do. I usually walked to the mailbox to pick up our mail. Sometimes I would pick up the Peterson's mail, too, and take it back to the house as they always stopped there. This particular rainy day, I dropped the mail in the mud. When I got home, my mother helped me clean the mud off of the magazine, The Pathfinder. On the cover were the words in big, bold, black type "STOCK MARKET CRASH". I asked for an explanation and my mother told me it was a very terrible thing. I went to bed that night still puzzling over the headline. New York seemed far away from North Dakota.

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