Andrine Pedersdatter Haug

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=47182285

Otto Cappelen Simenson Haug was born on December 20, 1834, on his parent's farm Lystad in Skiptvet, Ostfold, Norway. Otto was the oldest of six children born to Simen Jensen and Mette Sophie von Cappelen. In 1860, he married Andrine Pedersdatter, the daughter of Peder Andreson and Anne Jensdatter. Six years later, Otto and Andrine, along with their two young sons, bid farewell to their families and their homeland and set sail for North America, where they planned to settle in Fillmore County, Minnesota.

The couple farmed at Pilot Mound for seventeen years, and it was there that four more children were added to their family. In 1883, Otto moved his family to northern Minnesota where he filed claim on a new homestead near Fodahl Township in Marshall County. Fodahl was a Scandinavian community, and Otto immediately became involved in the town's civic affairs. An educated and well spoken man, he was appointed the town's tax assessor and town clerk and was elected as the town treasurer. He also served as deacon of the newly organized Lutheran Church. Otto ventured into the world of business when he and two other men started the Skandinaviske Insurance Company, a fire insurance company that would operate for more than fifty years.

In 1885, Otto became a naturalized citizen of the United States. By 1889, Otto had fulfilled all the requirements of the Homestead Act and received the patent and final ownership of his 160 acre homestead at Fodahl. But the winds of change were in the air, and in 1902, two of Otto's sons traveled to the "last best west" in Canada and filed claims for homesteads for themselves, their brother Severin, and Otto, just north of Foam Lake in what would become the Province of Saskatchewan. In the twilight of their years, Otto and Andrine once again became pioneers of a new and unsettled land, facing hardships and struggles as they contributed to the development of their new country.

In 1907, Otto received his certificate as a naturalized British subject in the Dominion of Canada. In 1908, he received the patent to his 160 acre homestead north of Foam Lake. Otto was frequently asked for his opinion and advice on many different civic and religious issues. His care and concern for family, friends, neighbors and strangers exemplified his traditional Scandinavian values and hospitality and was a testament to his integrity and the qualities that made both of his adopted countries great.

Andrine, his faithful and loving wife, died in 1914. Otto lived for ten years following Andrine's death. He remained active, surrounded by his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren until his death in 1924. He and Andrine are buried in Marshall Cemetery, on land that Otto donated for use as the cemetery.

A note of thanks and recognition is gratefully given to Lavina Mary Howe Travers for her many years of research on the Haug/Howe families that made this biographical sketch possible.