Individual Details
Kolbjorn Hoff
(10 Dec 1893 - 11 Feb 1977)
KOLBJORN HOFF
Williston -- Kolbjorn Hoff, 83, Williston, died today in a Williston hospital. Funeral Monday at 2, Our Redeemer's Lutheran Church, Williston. Burial Riverview Cemetery, Williston.
Mr. Hoff was born Dec. 10, 1893, at Valdres, Sondre Aurdal, Norway. In 1901 he came to the U.S. and settled at Baker, Minn. In 1905 he moved to Walcott with his parents, and in 1907 to Bonetraill, where they homesteaded. He farmed at Bonetraill until 1959 when he retired and moved to Williston. For a time he operated a coal mine with his brother. He was a member of the Strandahl Township Board in Williams County, and served on the Scandia Valley Lutheran Church Board.
Surviving are his wife, and a sister, Mrs. Sigrid Evanson of Williston.
Friends may call at the Sletten Funeral Home, Williston, from 1 until 5 p.m. Saturday, and from 9 a.m. until noon Monday.
a newspaper article
HOFF FAMILY by Mabel Hoff
Kolbjorn Hoff, son of Mr. and Mrs. Erik Hoff, was born in Valdres, Norway, in 1893. He came to Baker, Minnesota, with his parents in 1901, and lived there until they moved to Walcott, North Dakota, in 1905.
They filed on a homestead in 1906 and in May 1907, they moved to West Bonetraill. The weather was fair. Erik and son Kolbjorn walked to Van Bernard's place, had dinner, caught a ride west to Cow Creek, walked to Peter Jacobson's home, spent a couple of days and then moved to their homestead into a tent. Mrs. Hoff and son Mikkal came in a wagon with the cattle and son Olaf drove a steam engine out to their homestead.
That summer they had a bad hail storm and wind blew their tent down. Kolbjorn had built a little sod house about 4 by 6 and Kolbjorn and his dog and Mother crawled in. His Dad got in as much as he could until the storm was over. That hail storm cut the grass down to the ground. There was so much rain it drowned the gophers in their holes or hail killed them. It cut the grass so there was no hay to be gotten and they had to go four miles west to get hay. Engvald Anderson, a close neighbor, had four horses and Erik, Olaf, Mikkal and Kolbjorn hayed together. In the fall a prairie fire came and burned the hay stacks.
That year they also built a two room sod house, with double one-half inch boards for roof and heavy tar paper in between, which they lived in until 1911. They had to go seven miles to Bonetraill for groceries with a horse and buggy. In the spring Magne Stover rode along with Kolbjorn for kerosene for his stove, and they had to cross Cow Creek which was very deep. Kolbjorn disconnected the horse from the buggy but water got in to the buggy. Eggs packed in oats floated down the steam. Magne jumped out, caught the horse as it came on land, and they pulled the buggy out backwards. They had to drive two miles north to LeDells on higher ground to get to Bonetraill. About 1911 they got four oxen. Olaf started breaking with a walking plow, but was too late to get a crop that year.
Olaf got a Crosley radio in about 1925 with ear phones, and in 1927 Kolbjorn got an Atwater Kent radio with a horn for loud speaker. Reception was not too bad. They got Calgary, Canada, and W.L.S. Barn Dance with old time music. When they hauled grain to Williston they took in the silent movies which cost around 30 or 35 cents, had a good meal for 25 cents and slept in a livery barn overnight for nothing.
They dug for water in a slough and got good water, but hauled most of their water from Koppang's well which was 24 feet deep. On March, 17, 1920, Kolbjorn broke his leg in the Hoff coal mine which they operated. A big clay chunk fell on his leg. His Dad Erik and Mikkal took him by bob sled 44 miles to Wittenberg Hospital at Williston. Dr. Skovholt put sand bags on each side of his leg with a 44 pound pull on it. He was in the hospital for six weeks at a cost of $5.00 a day.
We had a Jacobs wind power for electricity until 1950 when the power line came. We sure enjoyed electricity and telephone, but got along without them too, we had to work harder keeping lamp chimneys clean and lamps filled.
Kolbjorn purchased the Olaf Hoff homestead and married me, Mabel Lovro, in 1933 and we lived on this land. He bought his Dad's land and the Moe quarter and continued living on the land until 1959 when we moved to Williston.
We had some cattle, hens, turkeys and a few pigs, milked cows, sold cream and so on. The Thirties were hot and dry but we lived through those years too. We went to church and Ladies Aid for entertainment and Kolbjorn played on the Strandahl Ball Team.
We put our land in Soil Bank for ten years, and then sold it to Kolbjorn's nephews in December 1968. Haral and Marlys and Annette Hoff are living on the place.
The Wonder of Williams A History of Williams County
Vol. 2
Kolbjorn's parents were Erik Hoff born in 1854 and Margit ( ?) Hoff born on April 3, 1860. They had three sons and one daughter, Olaf - born in 1886, Sigrid - born in 1889, Mikkal - born in 1890, Kolbjorn - born in 1893. Erik died June 1, 1939 and Margit died January 21, 1937.
The Wonder of Williams A History of Williams County
Williston -- Kolbjorn Hoff, 83, Williston, died today in a Williston hospital. Funeral Monday at 2, Our Redeemer's Lutheran Church, Williston. Burial Riverview Cemetery, Williston.
Mr. Hoff was born Dec. 10, 1893, at Valdres, Sondre Aurdal, Norway. In 1901 he came to the U.S. and settled at Baker, Minn. In 1905 he moved to Walcott with his parents, and in 1907 to Bonetraill, where they homesteaded. He farmed at Bonetraill until 1959 when he retired and moved to Williston. For a time he operated a coal mine with his brother. He was a member of the Strandahl Township Board in Williams County, and served on the Scandia Valley Lutheran Church Board.
Surviving are his wife, and a sister, Mrs. Sigrid Evanson of Williston.
Friends may call at the Sletten Funeral Home, Williston, from 1 until 5 p.m. Saturday, and from 9 a.m. until noon Monday.
a newspaper article
HOFF FAMILY by Mabel Hoff
Kolbjorn Hoff, son of Mr. and Mrs. Erik Hoff, was born in Valdres, Norway, in 1893. He came to Baker, Minnesota, with his parents in 1901, and lived there until they moved to Walcott, North Dakota, in 1905.
They filed on a homestead in 1906 and in May 1907, they moved to West Bonetraill. The weather was fair. Erik and son Kolbjorn walked to Van Bernard's place, had dinner, caught a ride west to Cow Creek, walked to Peter Jacobson's home, spent a couple of days and then moved to their homestead into a tent. Mrs. Hoff and son Mikkal came in a wagon with the cattle and son Olaf drove a steam engine out to their homestead.
That summer they had a bad hail storm and wind blew their tent down. Kolbjorn had built a little sod house about 4 by 6 and Kolbjorn and his dog and Mother crawled in. His Dad got in as much as he could until the storm was over. That hail storm cut the grass down to the ground. There was so much rain it drowned the gophers in their holes or hail killed them. It cut the grass so there was no hay to be gotten and they had to go four miles west to get hay. Engvald Anderson, a close neighbor, had four horses and Erik, Olaf, Mikkal and Kolbjorn hayed together. In the fall a prairie fire came and burned the hay stacks.
That year they also built a two room sod house, with double one-half inch boards for roof and heavy tar paper in between, which they lived in until 1911. They had to go seven miles to Bonetraill for groceries with a horse and buggy. In the spring Magne Stover rode along with Kolbjorn for kerosene for his stove, and they had to cross Cow Creek which was very deep. Kolbjorn disconnected the horse from the buggy but water got in to the buggy. Eggs packed in oats floated down the steam. Magne jumped out, caught the horse as it came on land, and they pulled the buggy out backwards. They had to drive two miles north to LeDells on higher ground to get to Bonetraill. About 1911 they got four oxen. Olaf started breaking with a walking plow, but was too late to get a crop that year.
Olaf got a Crosley radio in about 1925 with ear phones, and in 1927 Kolbjorn got an Atwater Kent radio with a horn for loud speaker. Reception was not too bad. They got Calgary, Canada, and W.L.S. Barn Dance with old time music. When they hauled grain to Williston they took in the silent movies which cost around 30 or 35 cents, had a good meal for 25 cents and slept in a livery barn overnight for nothing.
They dug for water in a slough and got good water, but hauled most of their water from Koppang's well which was 24 feet deep. On March, 17, 1920, Kolbjorn broke his leg in the Hoff coal mine which they operated. A big clay chunk fell on his leg. His Dad Erik and Mikkal took him by bob sled 44 miles to Wittenberg Hospital at Williston. Dr. Skovholt put sand bags on each side of his leg with a 44 pound pull on it. He was in the hospital for six weeks at a cost of $5.00 a day.
We had a Jacobs wind power for electricity until 1950 when the power line came. We sure enjoyed electricity and telephone, but got along without them too, we had to work harder keeping lamp chimneys clean and lamps filled.
Kolbjorn purchased the Olaf Hoff homestead and married me, Mabel Lovro, in 1933 and we lived on this land. He bought his Dad's land and the Moe quarter and continued living on the land until 1959 when we moved to Williston.
We had some cattle, hens, turkeys and a few pigs, milked cows, sold cream and so on. The Thirties were hot and dry but we lived through those years too. We went to church and Ladies Aid for entertainment and Kolbjorn played on the Strandahl Ball Team.
We put our land in Soil Bank for ten years, and then sold it to Kolbjorn's nephews in December 1968. Haral and Marlys and Annette Hoff are living on the place.
The Wonder of Williams A History of Williams County
Vol. 2
Kolbjorn's parents were Erik Hoff born in 1854 and Margit ( ?) Hoff born on April 3, 1860. They had three sons and one daughter, Olaf - born in 1886, Sigrid - born in 1889, Mikkal - born in 1890, Kolbjorn - born in 1893. Erik died June 1, 1939 and Margit died January 21, 1937.
The Wonder of Williams A History of Williams County
Events
| Birth | 10 Dec 1893 | Valdres, Sondre Aurdal, Norway | |||
| Marriage | 23 Dec 1933 | Williston, ND - Mabel Pauline Lovro | |||
| Death | 11 Feb 1977 | Williston, ND | |||
| Burial | 14 Feb 1977 | Riverview Cemetery, Williston, ND | |||
| Occupation | Farmer |
Families
| Spouse | Mabel Pauline Lovro (1913 - ) |