Anders Ness
To date I have found 1865 (MN), 1870, 1875 (MN), and 1880 census records for my great-great-grandfather Anders Anderson Ness (1821-1890) and his family.
The naming of cats is a difficult matter, Eliot writes, and no less difficult is the naming of 19th century Norwegian immigrants to the U.S. In the early 1800s, many Norwegians did not have family names, just a first name and a patronymic (e.g., "Anderson" for son of Anders). The name of the farm (gård) where one lived was sometimes appended, but used more like an address than like a family name; it changed if one moved to a different farm. It was customary for the firstborn son to be named for his grandfather and the next son for the other grandfather (sometimes even if both grandfathers had the same first name!), and similarly for daughters/grandmothers. Names of deceased siblings or children were often reused.
Once in the U.S., a Norwegian immigrant needed a family name for immigation officials and census takers, sometimes choosing the patronymic and sometimes the farm name, often with variations in spelling over time. Starting ca. 1875, the Norwegian-American press encouraged immigrants to use their Norwegian farm name as their American family name. Due to all these factors, tracing individuals through census records is complicated.
As explained on my genealogy page, two of my distant relatives have traced my Norwegian ancestry in detail. My great-great-great-grandfather, great-great-grandfather, and great-grandfather were all Norwegian born and all named Anders (Americanized as Andrew):
- Anders Torchildsen Ness 1796-1874 (emigrated 1869)
- Anders Anderson Ness 1821-1890 (emigrated 1853)
- Andrew Anderson Ness 1852-1900 (emigrated 1853)
The census records on this page all identify my great-great-grandfather as Andrew Anderson, not Anders Ness. His son Andrew Ness is Andrew Anderson on the 1865/1870/1880 census forms, but Andrew Ness (with creative spelling variations) on 1885/1895 forms. Similarly, my great-great-grandfather Peder Highum is Peter Peterson on 1865/1870 forms, Peder Pederson on the 1875 form, and Peter P. Highum (an Americanization of Høgheim) on the 1880 form.
1865:
Minnesota State Census, 1865 Fillmore Pilot Mound https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:939Z-YP69-K?cc=1503054 Image 1 of 8, starting #3 [No further details (e.g., age) in original.] Andrew Anderson Male White 3 Ann Anderson Female White 3 Peter Anderson Male White 3 Andrew Anderson Male White 3 Malena Anderson Female White 3 Sulphus Anderson Male White 3 Elias Anderson Male White 3 Ole Anderson Male White 3 Nels Anderson Male White 3
1870:
[SAN's great-great-grandfather Andrew [Anders] Anderson [Ness], wife Annie (Anna), 9 kids:] US Census 1870 >> MN >> Fillmore >> Pilot Mount, images 3+4 of 14, lines 34-40 + 1-4: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-XX6S-8YZ?i=2&wc=922H-TQX%3A518658101%2C518845001%2C518992901&cc=1438024 [Value of farm: 2800; value of estate: 1050; Andrew Sr. is male citizen over 21.] Andrew Anderson 1870 Male 49 White 1820-1821 Norway 5 Annie Anderson 1870 Female 49 White 1820-1821 Norway 5 Peter Anderson 1870 Male 20 White 1849-1850 Norway 5 Andrew Anderson 1870 Male 18 White 1851-1852 Norway 5 Eliza Anderson 1870 Female 16 White 1853-1854 Wisconsin 5 Solfact Anderson 1870 Male 13 White 1856-1857 Wisconsin 5 Elias Anderson 1870 Male 10 White 1859-1860 Wisconsin 5 Ole Anderson 1870 Male 8 White 1861-1862 Minnesota 6 Nels Anderson 1870 Male 5 White 1864-1865 Minnesota 6 Andreas Anderson 1870 Male 4 White 1865-1866 Minnesota 6 Petrea Anderson 1870 Female 6 White 1863-1864 Minnesota 6 [Parents Anders/Anna born/married in Norway; kids Peder/Anders born Norway 1849-1852, later kids in US; emigated 1853 to Dane County WI, then to Fillmore County MN ca. 1861.]
1875:
[SAN's great-great-grandfather Anders Anderson [Ness], wife Anne (Anna), 6 kids:] MN State Census 1875 >> Fillmore >> Pilot Mount, image 13 of 16, lines 15-21: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-62G9-41D?i=12&cc=1503053 Andrew Anderson Pilot Mound, Fillmore, Minnesota 54 1821 Norway Norway Norway White Male 0565720 Anne Anderson Pilot Mound, Fillmore, Minnesota 49 1826 Norway Norway Norway White Female 0565720 Malina Anderson Pilot Mound, Fillmore, Minnesota 20 1855 Norway Norway Wisconsin White Female 0565720 Salfast Anderson Pilot Mound, Fillmore, Minnesota 18 1857 Norway Norway Wisconsin White Male 0565720 Elias Anderson Pilot Mound, Fillmore, Minnesota 15 1860 Norway Norway Wisconsin White Male 0565720 Ole Anderson Pilot Mound, Fillmore, Minnesota 12 1863 Norway Norway Minnesota White Male 0565720 Nels Anderson Pilot Mound, Fillmore, Minnesota 11 1864 Norway Norway Minnesota White Male 0565720 Andreas Anderson Pilot Mound, Fillmore, Minnesota 8 1867 Norway Norway Minnesota White Male 0565720 [1870 US vs. 1875 MN: Eliza -> Malina, Solfact -> Salfast, no Petrea. Elder sons Peter and Andrew (SAN's great-grandfather b. 1852) not listed here, presumably out of house already. Doesn't quite line up with children listed at findagrave.com.]
1880:
US Census 1880 >> MN >> Fillmore >> Pilot Mound >> ED 73, image 19 of 21, lines 28-34: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9YB2-9ZWS?i=18&wc=QZ24-DRB%3A1589406338%2C1589406455%2C1589403038%2C1589395253&cc=1417683 Andrew Anderson Male 59 Married White Farmer Self 1821 Norway Norway Norway C 271 0 1 Anne Anderson Female 53 Married White Keeping House Wife 1827 Norway Norway Norway C 271 1 1 Malina Anderson Female 25 Single White At Home Daughter 1855 Wisconsin Norway Norway C 271 2 1 Elias Anderson Male 20 Single White At Home Son 1860 Wisconsin Norway Norway C 271 3 1 Ole Anderson Male 17 Single White At Home Son 1863 Minnesota Norway Norway C 271 4 1 Nels Anderson Male 16 Single White At School Son 1864 Minnesota Norway Norway C 271 5 1 Andreas Anderson Male 13 Single White At School Son 1867 Minnesota Norway Norway C 271 6 1
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