Individual Details

Iver Toresen Singsåsmo

(1 May 1885 - 11 Nov 1963)

In America the surname was Singsaas.
BIRTH: Born May 1, 1885 on the Singsaas farm in Singsaas Sogn, Holtaalen Prestegjeld, Sondre Trondhjem Amt, Norway.

CHRISTENING: Baptized June 19, 1885 in Singsaas Sogn, Holtaalen Prestegjeld, Sondre Trondhjem Amt, Norway.

CONFIRMATION: Confirmed June 24, 1900 at the Lake Hendricks Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran Church (Calvary) in rural Hendricks Township, Lincoln County, Minnesota.

MARRIAGE: Married Kristine Hugos on December 21, 1909 at Toronto, Deuel County, South Dakota.

ANNIVERSARY: Mr. and Mrs. Iver Singsaas married 25 years. A group of friends and relatives gathered at the Free Church parlors on December 29, 1934, to remind Mr. and Mrs. Iver Singsaas of their 25th wedding anniversary. It was a complete surprise to both Mr. and Mrs. Singsaas as it was a week later than the day on which they were married, twenty-five years ago. They were married at Toronto, S.D. on December 21, 1909, by Rev. Vik. The attendants at this wedding were Jens E. Ramlo, Chris Fjeseth, Mrs. John Morkken, and Anna Morseth. Eight children were born to this union, namely, Iola (Mrs. Albert Lietz) of Ivanhoe, Eunice, Thelvin, Lucille, Norma, Verna, Conrad, and Richard. All were present at the supper.
The church parlors were very prettily decorated in silver, white and yellow. A large wedding cake, which was made by Mrs. John Morken, adorned the center of the bridal table. A seven o'clock supper was served to the guests. Preceding the supper, a short program was given. The program consisted of two songs, "When Your Hair Has Turned to Silver" and "Long, Long Ago", sung by Jeanette and Bennie Singsaas, a talk by Ole Erickson, and a poem was read which had been written for the occasion. Before the guests departed, Mrs. Singsaas cut the wedding cake and each one received a piece.
In behalf of the friends and relatives present, Ole Erickson presented Mrs and Mrs. Singsaas with a purse of money in remembrance of the day and wished them many happy years together.

Lyt saa skal i nu faa et digtListen so shall you now get a poem
somkangi eder lidt udsigtwhich can give you some idea
om aarsaken til at vi er saa snilabout the reason why we are so kind
at huske at gjore vor pligt.to remember to do our duty.

I allen hundre og ottete femIn eighteen hundred and eighty-five
den forste mai kom til et hjemthe first of May came to a home
enliten gut med et faat besluta little boy who made up his mind
det har vi nu fundet ud.to get ahead in the world.

De ledte omkring og fandt saa tilslut etThey looked around and found with
navn som var passe paa'n saaden gut.approval a name which would fit such a
de Kaldte ham Iver et navn som opliverboy. They called him Iver, a name of
det har vi nu fundet ud.adventure that have we now found out.

Vi maa nu forlade det lyklige hjemWe must now leave the happy home
hvor Iver I barndommen slog sleig frem where Iver in childhood got ahead
og snu os mod vest hvor der kom enand turn to the west where there came a
gjaest I et vakkert Bonde hjem.guest to a beautiful farmer's home.

I six og Otti nu ski du horIn six and eighty now you should listen
der blev paa Hugaas et stort sprorThere was at Hugaas a big commotion
Thi hu mor ble sjuk og der spredtes budsince mothe got sick and there spread
Paa Hugaas var flere end for.the word at Hugaas were may peoples around.

Disse to gik i livet fromThese two became acquainted
Fandt i hverandre en hyggeligvenFound in each other a good friend
de talte tilsammen og sa silThey talked together and then said
amen, at de ei velde skelles egjen.amen, that they would not part again.

Saa Idag vi mindes en saerskelt dagSo today we remember a special day
som vestnok var efter Ivers behagWhich no doubt was according to Iver's
og Christine taengte begyndtetaste and Christine started to think
at laengte, or derfor saa stogde Ilag.to long for, and therefore it was fated.

Saa net for Jul I netten og niSo just before Christmas in nineteen and
da var det ho Christine skulde blenine then Christine should become
Kona hans Iver og derned opgiver,Iver's wife and with that give up
sin Pige og ungdomes sti.her girlish ways.

De satte nu fod neder eget bordThey put now food on their own table
begyndte at dyrke Dakota's Jordbegan to cultivate Dakota's soil
og ei det alene thi Jeg skulde meneand not alone since I should mention
de hjaelp at behoe vor Jord.they helped to populate our earth.

Af disse har de vist otte i radOf these they have eight in a row
Iola og Eunice Thelvin ConradIola and Eunice, Thelvin, Conrad,
Lucille og Norma Richard og VernaLucille and Norma, Richard and Verna
alla saa kjaek og glad.all so brave and happy.

De alle lever I Fars og mors hjemThey all live in Father and Mother's
Undtagen Iola som fandt seg fremhome except Iola who found her way
og fundet et bo I hjegge og roand made a home of her own
sidin Lietz blev hendes ven.since Lietz became her friend.

Saa gratulerer ve eder i lagSo we congratulate you both
paa eders femohlyve aar dagon your twenty-fifth anniversary day
og onsker i maa mere lykkeand wish you many more happiness
opnaa, mens aarene laegges bag.achieve, as the years go by.

Published in the Hendricks Pioneer Hendricks, Minnesota on Friday, January 11, 1935. Volume 36, Number 2. K.E. Holian, Publisher. The poem was translated by Eugene B. Singsaas.

ANNIVERSARY: Observe Golden Wedding: Mr. and Mrs. Iver Singsaas. Some 175 persons came to congratulate Mr. and Mrs. Iver Singsaas at the Legion Hall in Hendricks Sunday afternoon, August 28 when the honored couple observed and celebrated their golden wedding anniversary. The occasion was especially pleasurable since all of their eight children were able to be present.
Mr. and Mrs. Singsaas were married at Toronto, S.D., Dec. 21, 1909, by Rev. J.W. Wick. Their attendants were Miss Anna Morseth, Mrs. John Morken (Anna Ramlo), Jens Ramlo and Christ Fjeseth.
After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Singsaas farmed until 1933 when they moved to Hendricks where they lived until 1943 when they moved to Minneapolis where they lived until 1957 when they retired. Since their retirement they have spent much time traveling and visiting their children, their friends and relatives in various parts of the country.
Their eight children are Mrs. Albert Lietz (Iola) Ivanhoe: Mrs. Everett Nelson (Eunice), Seattle, Wash.; Thelvin Singsaas, Mountain Lake; Mrs. Jay Gosney (Lucille), Kansas City, Kan.; Mrs. John Earenfight (Norma), Pipestone; Mrs. Thomas O'Rourke (Verna), Seattle, Wash.; Conrad Singsaas, Detroit, Mich.; and Richard Singsaas, Minneapolis. There are also w8 grandchildren and one great grandchild.
Mrs, O,J. Ramlo and Mrs. Sigurd Wold cut and served the anniversary cake; Mrs. Hjalmer Erickson of Sioux Falls poured coffee, and punch was served by Mary Lietz. Mrs. Gerald Kusnierek (Phyllis Lietz) displayed the gifts and registered the guests.
Out-of-town guests included Mr. and Mrs. John Jurrens and Mr. and Mrs. Hjalmer Grimlie of Astoria; Mr. and Mrs. Franklin Klinghagen, Mr. and Mrs. Hjalmer Erickson, Mr. and Mrs. Amor Erickson and Mr. and Mrs. Donald Wildeboer, all of Sioux Falls; Mr. and Mrs. Louis Sneer, Mr. and Mrs. Henry Klingenberg and Miss Elizabeth Unruh, all of Mountain Lake; Mr. and Mrs. Marion Ellis and Mr. and Mrs. Pete Fjeseth of Brookings; Mr. and Mrs. Niel Ramlo of Rock Rapids, Iowa; and Mr. and Mrs. Ingebright Singsaas of Williston, N.D.
Published in the Hendricks Pioneer Hendricks, Minnesota on Thursday, September 8, 1960. Volume 61, Number 36. Ewald and Ruth Kintzi, Owners and Publishers.

DEATH: Died at 12:00 noon on November 11, 1963 at the Abbott Hospital, Minneapolis, Hennepin County, Minnesota. Age at death was 78 years, 6 months and 10 days.

OBITUARY: Iver T. Singsaas. Funeral services for Iver T. Singsaas were held at the Calvary Lutheran church of Hendricks on Friday, November 15. He passed away at the Abbott hospital in Minneapolis on November 11 as a result of complications arising from surgery performed early in September. A memorial service was also held at the Enger Funeral Home in Minneapolis on Thursday evening, November 14.
Since 1943 he had been a resident of Minneapolis. Early in the spring of that year, he became superintendent of the Adath Jeshuran cemetery association of Edina, serving until his retirement in 1958. Previously, he had been a long time farmer of the Hendricks community.
Iver Singsaas was born May 1, 1885, in Singsaas, Norway. He was the sixth child born to Thore and Kari Singsaas. When he was five, the family emigrated to the Hendricks area where they began farming northeast of town. He was confirmed in the Lutheran faith by the late Rev. Solenstein. On December 21, 1909, he married Kristine Hugos at Toronto, S.D. They farmed near Hendricks for some twenty years. They were formerly members of the former Lutheran Free church of Hendricks.
Surviving are his widow and eight children: Iola (Mrs. Albert Lietz), Ivanhoe; Eunice (Mrs. Everett Nelson), Seattle, Wash.; Thelvin, Mountain Lake; Lucille (Mrs. J.W. Gosney), Kansas City, Mo.; Norma (Mrs. John Earenfight), Pipestone; Verna (Mrs. Thomas H. O'Rourke Jr.), Seattle, Wash.; Conrad, Detroit, Mich. and Richard, Minneapolis.
In addition, Mr. Singsaas is survived by his brother Ingebrigt and his sister Inga (Mrs. Peter Ramlo), both of Hendricks. His entire family includes 31 grandchildren and 9 great grandchildren.
The funeral service held in Minneapolis was conducted by the Rev. Ivar Aus, minister of the Norwegian Memorial church. He spoke drawing from the text of the Gospel of St. John. Alta Aunoien, Mrs. Kenneth Hillock and Mrs. Kevin Van Sloun served refreshments at the Hillock home following the ceremony.
The last rites were administered by the Rev. Lloyd C. Kallevig of the Calvary church in Hendricks. He delivered a sermon employing the verse of Psalm 119. Hans Hegstad joined with the pastor to sing the hymn, "Den Store Hvide Flok". Mrs. Carvell Johnson accompanied and served as organist for the service.
The pallbearers were Julian Ramlo, Thomas Aunoien, Hiram Erickson, Kenneth Sommervold, Amos Erickson, and Neil Ramlo. Interment was at the East cemetery. Friends, relatives and members of the church prepared and served refreshments
As a final tribute to the memory of Iver T. Singsaas, this verse is proffered by his widow.

Jeg veed mig en Sovn i Jesu Navn
Den kvoe ger de troette Lemmer
Der reder en Seng i Jordens Favn
Sa moderlig hun mig gjemmer
Min Sjoel er hos God i Himmerig
Og Sor gerne sine glemmer.

Published in the Hendricks Pioneer Hendricks, Minnesota on November 28, 1963. Volume 63, Number 48. Ewald and Ruth Kintze, Owners and Publishers.

Note - this is the first verse from the Norwegian hymn, "Den Signede Dag". In English hymnals, it is known as, "I Know of a Sleep in Jesus Name". The translation of the verse written above is as follows:

I know of a sleep in Jesus' name
A rest from all toil and sorrow;
Earth folds in her arms my weary frame,
And shelters it till the morrow;
My soul is at home with God in heaven,
Her sorrows are past and over.

Events

Birth1 May 1885Nordmoen, Singsaas, Norway
Birth1 May 1885Singsås, sor-Trondelag, Norway
Christen19 Jun 1885Singsås, sor-Trondelag, Norway
Confirmation24 Jun 1900Hendricks Township, Lincoln, Minnesota, USA
Marriage21 Dec 1909Toronto, Deuel, South Dakota, USA - Christine Louise Hugaas
Death11 Nov 1963Complications arising from surgery. - Minneapolis, Hennepin, Minnesota, USA
Alt nameIver Toresen Singsaas

Families

Endnotes