Spouse:
Julia Thompson (married on November 1879; she died on April 20, 1896); Widower; Lenora Arestead (married on May 15, 1898)
Children:
Nine children: Tyler, Magnus, Rudolph, and Odin (sons, with first wife); Gertrude, Lenora, and Mabel (daughters, with first wife); Clement (son, with second wife); Dorothe (daughter, with second wife)
Family Members Who Have Served in the Minnesota Legislature:
He was raised in Hellelands Sogn, Norway.
He came to Houston County, Minnesota in 1871. He moved to Wisconsin in 1872. He moved to Renville County, Minnesota in the spring of 1876.
He was a founding member of the American Church of Sacred Heart, Minnesota.