Johan Bojer
Born Johan Christoffer Hansen
6 March 1872-3 July 1959
Staværinger Home Page
Johan Bojer was a
popular Norwegian novelist and dramatist who often wrote of the lives of the
poor farmers and fishermen of Trøndelag, the region around the Trondheimsfjord which includes Stadsbygd
and Rissa. Bojer's
novels provide interesting and valuable information about the life there in the
late 19th and early 20th centuries. If you're ancestors are from Trøndelag and want to know about the lives of your
grandparents, read The Emigrants, The Last of the Vikings, The Great Hunger, The Everlasting
Struggle, and others.
His
1925 novel, Vor egen
stamme (published in the United States as The
Emigrants and in the United
Kingdom as Our Kinsmen), provides a background on the
lives of these people who emigrated to North Dakota in the 1880s, many of whom
settled in La Moure County south of Litchville. It is said that Bojer
visited the area in 1923 and interviewed people as research for this book,
including my grandparents. The La Chesnais biography of Bojer
includes a picture of Bojer on this trip to America with
the novelist Upton Sinclair and actor Douglas Fairbanks. Bojer's characters
are often given place names from the region in which he grew up (e.g., Flata, Myran and Trøen).
In
his writings and actions, he leaves the impression of being a thoughtful man
who cared about common people, his roots in Rissa,
and his family. He provided college
funds for his maternal half-brother, the actor Sophus
Dahl, even when the latter decided to pursue a life in the theatre instead of
the original plan to study engineering that Bojer is
said to have favored. He also provided
funds for building the church at Rein in Rissa and
for building the square-sail boat, Den Siste Viking.
Family was important to him. He
was proud of the accomplishments of his children and kept contact, even late in
life, with at least one of his foster brother’s sons who had emigrated to America.
Bojer’s Ancestral Roots
Johan
Bojer was born out of wedlock in Ørkedalsøren,
Orkanger, Sør-Trøndelag,
about 19 miles (30 km) southwest of Trondheim, to Johanne Iversdatter Elgaaen
(16 December 1845 to 3 August 1884). His
mother was from Femundsjøen, Engerdal,
Røros, Sør-Trøndelag (now
part of Hedmark), about 115 miles (185 km) southeast of Trondheim, the daughter
of Iver Johnson Elgaaen
(1812-1876) and his wife Ane Sophia Olsdatter Unsgaard (1812-1888). She had four brothers and three sisters born
between 1841 and 1858. Johanna was the
fourth child.
He
was christened Johan Christoffer
Hansen. In his christening record
from Orkanger, Orkdal
parish, 7 April 1872, his father is recorded as Hans Böier
from Christiania (now Osl0). In his
confirmation record from Rissa, Stadsbygd
parish, 2 October 1887, his father is recorded as Hans Boier
from Kristiania.
According to biographer Trygve Ræder (below), Johan’s father was Hans Bojer,
1822 [sic]-1894. However, it is clear that the Böier/Boier name in the church
records was a pseudonym or nom de guerre
intended to provide privacy since Hans was married at the time to his first
wife, also named Johanne.
Bojer’s daughter, Thora
Vaa (below) identified his father as a customs
official named Hans Pauls,
and relatives of Johanna Elgaaen identify him as Hans Paulsen. In public records, we find that he used both
names, Paulsen in the 1865 census and Pauls in later
ones (1875-1894). He was christened Hans Christophersen
in Eidsvold parish, Akershus
county, Norway in 1823 and died in Kristiania
in 1894. His parents were Christopher
Hansen and Karen Erichsdatter, who purchased Paulsplass (listed as Pålsplass
under Pålses, Eidsvoll
bygds historie, volume II,
pp. 504-505) in 1825, and Pauls became their “address
name” per custom at the time.
Hans
C. Pauls had an earlier military career as a
non-commissioned officer and was listed as a master sergeant in the artillery
in the 1865 census. He was married
twice, in 1848 to Johanne Christophersdatter,
1815-1874, and in 1888 to Hanna Frisch, 1839-after 1900. Hans and his first wife had four children,
also half-siblings of Bojer: Kristine in 1849, Agnes in 1852, Ferdinand
Emil in 1855, and Helga in 1857. Hans’s
family is shown in the 1865 census and in the 1875 census.
Some
reports have Johan Bojer’s mother, Johanne Iversdatter, moving to
Trondheim at age 17. In 1865, she was
working there as a servant in the home of Ole Anton and Wilhelmine
Erike Drejer. Six years later, she was working as a hotel
maid in Trondheim when she had an affair with Hans in 1871. Hans lived in Kristiania
(Oslo) but was in Trondheim, perhaps for an extended period on business. We know little of the relationship between
the parents in Trondheim except that Johanne Iversdatter got pregnant and Hans took responsibility as
the father. When the baby’s term was up,
she went to Orkanger to deliver the child.
After
the birth, she went back to work in Trondheim. According to Johan’s daughter, Thora, Hans made arrangements for Johanne
to work in a retail dairy. She became
unable to keep Johan with herself and gave the boy up for foster care. When Johan was almost two, he was living with
a married couple who worked during the day.
He was left alone much of the time and screamed constantly. A farm lodging was
nearby and word got out about the “howling brat,” about whom eventually a woman
named Randi Mortensdatter
Fætten (born Nebb) in Rissa heard. She
couldn’t stand the thought of this going on, so sent her daughter (probably the
oldest, Maria, who was about 19 at the time) to Trondheim where she arranged
for the boy to come to Fætten in Rissa
(17 miles/27 km northwest of Trondheim and the same distance north of his
birthplace in Orkanger).
Life in Rissa
According
to Thora, Johan and “Mor Randi” bonded instantly. She was described by Thora
as a woman upon whom people in Rissa depended for
various arrangements (e.g., weddings
and funerals), and probably for occasional remedies for illness as well. She was deeply religious and in the evening
she also liked to sit by the stove and tell stories of gnomes and pixies and
sea-trolls.
For
the rest of his childhood, Johan was raised by Randi and her husband, Elias Johnsen Fætten (born Aasen) in Rissa, part of the Stadsbygd
parish. Elias was a husmann (cotter or tenant farmer
without his own land). Bojer’s novel, Folk ved sjøen (published in English as The Everlasting
Struggle) was modeled on Fætten, one of a number
of small farms that were part of the Reinskloster
estate. The couple at Fætten had three daughters and one son of their own born
between 1855 and 1862 (the youngest was ten years older than Johan).
When
Johan was five, his mother, Johanne Iversdatter, had another son, christened Oliver Sofus Pettersen Dahl (Sophus
Dahl) in January 1878.
He was born Horg subparish
of Støren parish, Sør-Trøndelag,
in December 1877. In 1900, Sophus, as he was then called, was living in Kristiania (Oslo) and worked as an actor in many plays and films. His father was named in the Horg christening as Petter Dahl
from Trondheim.
By
the arrangement of his birth father, Hans, from 15 to 18 years of age, Johan
worked in service with Andreas Johnsen Fallin (born Denstad), a
prosperous farmer in Rissa. Johan’s father, who provided financial
support for his upbringing, also arranged for Johan to attend Dybdahl’s county school in Selbu
(1887) and non-commissioned officer’s school in Trondheim (1890-92), apparently
in an effort to interest the young man in following his first career as a
sergeant.
Johan Bojer’s
boyhood home (with 1929 monument honoring him)
on the fjord at Fætten, Reinsgrenda,
Rissa
Photo: Dennis L. Haarsager, 2004
The
old Rein church near Reinskloster burned shortly
after Bojer was confirmed there in 1887. Later, as a
successful writer, Bojer helped restore the church,
which is now also known as "Bojer kjerke," to its original condition. He also created an endowment for support of
the church with stock in the publisher, Gyldendal. Part of the library in Rissa
is devoted to Bojer.
The two bells in the church are dedicated to his foster mother, “Mor Randi,” and his wife, “Mor
Ellen.”
Bojer church at Rissa
Photo
courtesy P5 Fosen Radio
Johan
Bojer did not adopt his surname and nom de plume until after the death of
his natural father in 1894. He had
published his first novel under the name Johan K. Hansson. Bojer and Boier are common names in Denmark, where Johan traveled for
an extended visit on the proceeds of his first literary sale, so one plausible
explanation is that his father’s ancestors were Danish with that family
name. It is a mystery why his father did
not use it in available public records.
Bojer married Ellen Lous Lange in
1899. They had three children, Thora Bojer (Vaa),
born in 1902, Randi Fætten Bojer
(Godal), born in 1903, and Halvard
Lange Bojer, born in 1905.
End
of Life
Two
unpublished but very literate letters and daughter Thora’s
short biography (see References below) provide a glimpse of Bojer’s
character and feelings that he had led a rich life. The letters are reproduced below with the
kind permission of their owner, Jane Wikan Slater,
daughter of the addressee, Johan Eilert Wikan of Petersburg, Alaska. He was the son of Bojer’s
foster brother, Johan. [The English
translations are by Dennis L. Haarsager, Karen Husdal
Brevik and Aud Haarsaker.]
I
grunnen heter du vel etter min kone og
meg
så det var naturlig at du endelig sente
meg
noen ord. Det har jo gått dere gutter
fra
Fætten
så godt siden dere kom til Alaska,
men
det skyldes vel at dere alle henge
i
og ikke rangler på kaféer, og ellers i
alle
deler oppfører dere vel. Jeg husker
at
jeg tidligere har hørt om at du ikke
var
heldig med valg av kone, og det
samme
var vel tilfellet med Elias.
skapet,
og somme er heldige og andre
ikke. Mine tre unger har alle været
svært
heldige og har selv allerede fått
voksne
unger. Tida går merkelig fort,
jeg
fyldte 85 i mast, og nå om et
par
måneter er jeg et år mer. Da nermer
resan
seg de hundre, og jeg synes det
nesten
er uhøflig mot de yngre å leve
så
lenge.
Seneste høst var det 25 års
jubile-
um
for kirka på Rein (siden den
ble
ferdig og innvidd altså) Og jeg var
for
skral til å dra der opp, men bis-
pen
preket i fuld stas for fuld kirke,
og
siden hold kommunen middag
for
noen utvalgte. Jeg sjøl fikk jo
takk
og helsing pr telegram. Jeg
skulle
ønske at jeg fikk oppleve å komme
nedtil
Rissa enda en gang, og den
pletten
jeg særlig er gla i er kirka og
kirkegården
på Rein, og det er vel fordi jeg
fra
barndommen har så mange minner
derfra Det er vel annerledes for dere yngre,
som
fikk kirka på Føll.
Ola Bruvollen som har ringt
i
den kirka, i 25 år, døde for en måneds
tid
siden, han var min siste venn fra
barndommen - alle
de andre ligger
på
kirkegården. Bisettelsen av ham
ble
usedvanlig, kirka ble opplyst
og
pyntet med blomster, og to prester
var
tilstede og forretted. Det var ikke før
fuldt
så mye stas, dengangen en
husmann
skulle føres til det sidste
hvilested. Mye har i sandhet forandret
seg
til beste for menigmann.
Jeg ser av brevet ditt at du
tenker
på
en ny tur til Norge, og ingen ting
skulle
glede meg mer enn om
jeg
kunne få se en av dere igjen.
Andreas, min gudsønn, skriver
iblant
til meg, og det er stor stas
når
jeg får et brev fra ham.
Min sønn Halvard er blitt
statssekretær,
det er en slags vise-
minister,
og det er en stor og fin stilling.
Og
det gleder jo en far å se , at
det
går hans unger godt.
Nå må du hilse dine brødre
fra
meg, og ellers ønsker jeg deg
og
dine et godt nytt år.
Johan
Bojer
Translation:
After
all, you were probably named after my wife and me, so it was natural that you
finally sent me some words. It has
certainly gone well for you boys from Fætten since
you got to Alaska, but it 's probably due to the fact that you work hard and do
not carouse in cafés, and otherwise in all ways behave yourselves. I remember that I previously have heard that
you were not fortunate in your choice of wife, and the same was probably the
case with Elias. Yes, marriage is a game
of chance, and some are fortunate and others not. My three children have all been very
fortunate and already have grown children themselves. Time goes remarkably fast. I turned 85 in
March, and now in a couple of months I will be a year older. Then the journey approaches the hundred
years, and I think it is almost discourteous towards the younger ones to live
so long.
Last
fall was the 25th anniversary for the church at Rein (since it was finished and
dedicated, that is). And I was too
poorly to go up there, but the bishop preached in full finery for a full
church, and then the municipality gave a dinner for some selected people. I myself got got
thanks and greetings by telegram. I
should wish that I was able to come down to Rissa one
more time, and the spot I especially love is the church and the cemetery at
Rein, and that is probably because I from childhood have so many memories from
there. It is probably different for you
younger ones, who have had the church at Føll.[1]
Ola
Bruvollen, who has rung[2] in that church for 25
years, died about a month ago. He was my
last friend from childhood - all the others lie in the cemetery. His funeral service was extraordinary, the
church was brightly lit and decorated with flowers, and two ministers were
present and officiated. Earlier, there
were never so many decorations when a tenant farmer should be led to his final
resting place. In truth, much has
changed for the better for the common man.
I
see from your letter that you are thinking about a new trip to Norway, and
nothing would please me more than if I could be able yo
see one of you again.
Andreas,
my godson,[3] writes me occasionally, and it is a great pleasure when I receive
a letter from him.
My
son Halvard has become undersecretary, it a sort of
deputy minister and it is a big and important position. And yes, it pleases a father to see that his
children do well.
Now
you must greet your brothers from me, and otherwise I wish you and yours a
Happy New Year.
Your
friend
Johan
Bojer
Notes:
[1] The other church at Rissa.
[2] The bells in the church at Rein in Rissa. Bojer named one
after his wife Ellen and the other after his foster mother Randi (Mortensdatter Nebb) Fætten.
[3]
The addressee’s brother.
Hvalstad
12.3.59
Kjære venn
Hjertens takk for det hyggelige
brevet.
Og lykke til med det nye ekteskapet. Det
gleder
meg i høy grad at du endelig har
funnet
lykken.
”Den siste viking” har jeg bare
et eneste
eksemplar
av på engelsk. Jeg tror boka
i
mange år har været utsolgt både
i
England og Amerika.
Nå driver ungdomslagene i Rissa
og
Stadsbygd prosess om hvem av de
to
lagene som skal få oppbevare båten
Dommen
faller i mai, og det blir
spennende. Rissa skal, ifald de
vinner,
koste et forsvarlig naust
til
båten.
Dette med filmingen er svindel
En
direktør Kielland i Tr.heim fikk
av
meg lov til å ta opp film hvor-
dan
råseilsbåtene går over stag, men
da
han først slapp til utvidet han
det
til å vise avseiling og folket
som
står i fjæra og ønsker lykke til
på
reisa. Det vil si at min literære
eiendomsrett
er stjålet. Det skal
han
nok få svie for.
Personlig har jeg været ganske
frisk
i vinter, men når man
nærmer
seg de 90 må man finne
seg
i en og annen skavank.
Vi har hatt flere dødsfall
i
familien. Randis mann, pastor Godal,
faldt, rammet av slag, da han var
ute
på ski. Han var bare 54 år, så
hans
bortgang var altfor tidlig. Randi
sitter
igjen med fire barn.
Og i overmorgen begraver vi
Marie
Lange, søster av min kone.
Hun
ble 84, men har i det siste
året
været mer eller mindre util-
regnelig.
Sånn
plukkes vi bort, den ene etter
den
andre, og snart blir det vel
også
min tur.
Jeg kan se tilbake på et rikt
liv,
som
jeg er meget takknemlig for.
Tenk, om jeg hadde været yngre,
så
ville jeg tatt en tur og besøkt
dere
i Petersburg.
Men hvem er han dere kaller Ed,
og
som bor i Seattle? Er det Elias?
Hvem
det nå er, så går jeg ut
fra,
at han står dere nær. Og
det
er jo sørgelig at han er rammet
av
kreft.
Så må du og din frue ta en
hjertelig
hilsen, og likeså må
du
hilse dine brødre.
Din
hengivne
Johan
Bojer
Translation:
Hvalstad
12 March 1959
Dear
friend
Sincere
thanks for the pleasant letter. And much
joy in your new marriage. It pleases me
greatly that you finally have found happiness.
I
have just one sample copy of "Den siste viking" in
English. I believe the book has been out
of print for many years both in England and America.
The
young people's societies in Rissa and Stadsbygd are now busy with litigation about which of those
two groups shall get to store the boat.[1]
The judgment comes in May, and will be tense. Rissa will, in case
they win, bear the cost of a proper boathouse for the boat.
This
with the movie making is a swindle. A
director Kielland in Trondheim, got my permission to
make a movie about how the square-sail boats put about, but when he got the
chance he enlarged it to show the boat depart and people standing on the shore
and wishing bon voyage. That means that
my literary ownership was stolen. He
will definitely suffer the consequences for this.
I
have personally been fairly healthy this winter, but when one approaches 90,
one must accept some weaknesses.
We
have had several deaths in the family.
Randi's husband, pastor Godal fell while out
skiing, struck by a heart attack.[2] He
was only 54 years old, so his death was much too early. Randi is left with four
children.
And
the day after tomorrow we bury Marie Lange, sister of my wife. She was 84, but has during the last year been
more or less of an unsound mind.
Like
that we slip off, one after another, and soon it will probably be my turn.
I
can look back upon a rich life, of which I am very thankful.
Think,
if I had been younger, then I would have taken a trip and visited you in
Petersburg.
But
who is the one you call Ed, that lives in Seattle?[3] Is that Elias? Whoever that might be, I presume that he must
be close to you. And it is sad that he
is stricken with cancer.
A
cordial greeting to you and your wife, and so you must also greet your
brothers.
Sincerely
yours
Johan
Bojer
Notes:
[1] Den siste viking, a replica of
the Åfjord style of open sailboat, sometimes called stavæeringsbåt,
featured in the book of the same name.
[2] Randi in this case is his younger daughter.
[3] Ed was the
nickname used by Elias Wikan, brother of the
addressee.
In
the 1959 letter, Bojer looks forward to having the
litigation in Rissa settled in May. That must not have happened, because Thora writes that he traveled to his home district that
summer to mediate the dispute (and apparently was successful). However, he caught pneumonia, and on the way
home had to be taken off the train at Oppdal to check
into the hospital. He died on July 3,
1959.
Bojer’s Writings
Bojer's novels brought him fame in Norway and
internationally (especially in France where he spent many years) on the par
with contemporary Norwegian writers Knut Hamsun and Sigrid Undset (who wrote Kristen
Lavransdatter, which also features Rissa in mediaeval times). Norwegian critics did not accord
him the same respect as given the other two named, however.
Many
of Bojer's novels were translated into English (and
other languages) and are available in U.S. libraries or through used book
dealers online such as AbeBooks,
Alibris
and BetterWorld.
Only The Emigrants is currently in print (Sons of Norway Heritage Books,
P.O. Box 379, Decorah, IA 52101-0379, 888-838-BOOK or 319-382-6511/fax
319-382-8828).
Bojer’s great-grandson, Axel Bojer
(grandson of Bojer’s son Halvard),
maintains web
pages about him in the Norwegian language, including a complete
list of his works (see references below). My list of works by Johan Bojer
(titles in bold are in my
collection):
·
Unge tanker, 1893, novel published under the name, Johan K. Hansson
·
En
Moder,1895, play
·
Helga, 1895, novel
·
Gravholmen, 1895, play
·
Et
folketog, 1896, novel
·
Olav
den hellige, 1897, play
·
Paa
kirkevei, 1897, folk tale
·
Rørfløitene, 1898, folk tale
·
Den
evige krig: en samfundsroman (The
Eternal Strife), Kristiania: O. Norlis, 1899,
novel
·
Moder
Lea (Mother Lea), 1900, novel
·
Gamle
historier, 1901, folk tale
·
En
pilgrimsgang (Pilgrimage), 1902 (New York: The Century Co., 1924), novel
·
Theodora, 1902, play
·
Troens magt (The Power of a Lie), 1903 (trans. Jessie Muir, New York: The Century Co., 1909, 1920; also
published in London as The Power of Faith),
novel
In brief: Powerful
story about a well-regarded man who unintentionally gets caught up in a lie,
but then goes to great lengths to perpetuate it -- successfully, in some ways.
·
Brutus, 1904, play
·
Hvite
fugler, 1904, folk tale
·
Vårt rike (Treacherous Ground;
also published as Our Kingdom), 1908,
novel
·
Troens makt, 1910, dramatization of the novel
·
Kjærlighetens
øyne, 1910, play
·
Liv (Life), 1911 (trans.
Jessie Muir, New York: The Century Co., 1911, 1920), novel
·
Maria
Walewska, 1913, play
·
Fangen som sang (Prisoner Who
Sang), 1913 (Toronto: Goodchild,
1924), novel
·
Den
franske fane, 1916, article
·
Sigurd
Brå, 1916, play
·
Den
store hunger (The Great Hunger), 1916 (trans. W. J. Alexander Worster and C. Archer, New York: Moffet,
Yard & Co., 1919), novel.
Click the title to read this Project Gutenberg novel online in English.
In brief: Man achieves great success from humble beginnings, loses it all, then slowly discovers his "great hunger."
·
Samlede romancer I fire bind,
1917, collection of plays
·
Verdens ansigt (The Face of the
World), 1917 (New York: Moffet,
Yard & Co., 1919), novel
In brief: Radical doctor, obsessed with the human condition worldwide, finally
moves to his mother’s town by the sea and takes over the running of its
hospital, and tries to “rescue” one troubled man.
·
Dyrendal (God and the Woman), 1919, novel
In brief: A story of a clever man who is able to
purchase a fine estate. He and his wife
take in her nephew as a son they couldn’t have.
Finally, they give up their farm and return to modest circumstances. Dyrendal was
modeled after Flyta in Rissa,
a farm owned by the State and given to the local commanding officer.
·
Stille vær, 1920, stories
·
Den
siste viking
(The Last of the Vikings), 1921 (New York: The
Century Co., 1923), novel
In brief: Fishermen from Trøndelag spend winter in
the Lofoten Islands chasing cod. The model for den siste viking is said to be Kristoffer
Kvithyld of Rissa.
·
Vor egen stamme
(The Emigrants), 1925 (trans. A. G. Jayne, New
York: The Century Co., 1925; also St. Paul: Minnesota Historical Society Press,
1991; also published in London as Our Kinsmen), novel
In brief: Trønder
farmers emigrate to North Dakota in the 1880s.
Modeled after immigrants from Bojer’s home
district, Stadsbygd parish.
·
Nye
temple (New Temple), 1927 (trans. C. Archer,
New York: The Century Co., 1928), novel
In brief: Siblings from
newly-impoverished family are raised by prosperous foster mother. The book follows their lives after her death;
the sister taking over the estate, while the brother pursues a liberal view of
religion.
·
Samlede romaner I ate bind, 1927, collection of novels
·
Folk
ved sjøen (The Everlasting Struggle), 1929
(trans. Arna Heni and Louise Rourke, New York: The Century Co., 1931. Note: London
edition: Folk by the
Sea),
novel
In brief:
Cotter family ekes out a grim living at the edge of Trondheimsfjord.
The cotter's place, Flata, in this book was modeled
after Fætten, where he grew up in Rissa.
·
Mens
årene går, 1931, novel
·
Ei mor, 1932, nynorsk edition of the play, En moder
·
Huset og havet
(The House and the Sea), 1933 (trans. Trygve Martinus Ager, New York: D. Appleton-Century Co., Inc.,
1934), novel
In brief: Radical
lawyer strains his ideals after becoming rich in the shipping business
profiting from WW I.
·
Dagen og natten
(By Day and By Night), 1935 (trans. Solvi and Richard
Bateson, New York: Appleton-Century, 1937), novel
·
Kongens
Karer (The King’s Men), 1938, novel
·
Gård
og grend, 1939, stories
·
Hustruen, 1941, play
·
Læregutt. Erindringer, 1942,
autobiography, part 1
·
Samlede romancer I fem bind,
1942, collection of novels
·
Svenn, 1946, autobiography, part 2
·
Skyld, 1948, novel
·
Lov
og liv, 1952, novel
·
Fjell og fjære, 1958, stories
·
Glimt og gleder, 1960, articles, speeches, recollections (published
posthumously)
Den
Siste Viking play staged June 9-July 15, 2001 at Kystens
Arv Museum, Stadsbygd
Photo courtesy Arne Langmo
References
Harald
Beyer, A History of Norwegian Literature (trans. and ed. Einar Haugen),
New York: New York
Axel Bojer, Johan Bojers biografi og
forfatterskap, www.bojer.no/Axel/bojer.shtml
and bojer.no/Axel/forfatterskap.shtml
Johan Bojer, letter (unpublished) to Johan Eilert Wikan, January 3, 1958
Johan Bojer, letter (unpublished) to Johan Eilert Wikan, March 12, 1959
Johan Bojer, Læregutt. Erindringer. Oslo: Gyldendal norsk forlag, 1942
Sophus Dahl, Teaterminner. Fra
Nasjonalturneens dager. Oslo 1959.
University Press for The American-Scandinavian Foundation, 1956, pp. 291-293.
Carl Gad, Johan Bojer: The Man and His Works, (trans.
Elizabeth Jelliffe MacIntire),
New York: Moffat, Yard and Co., 1920.
Theodore Jorgensen, History of Norwegian Literature, New York: Haskell
House Publishers, 1970, pp. 469-483.
P. G. La Chesnais, Johan
Bojer: Hans liv og verker, Oslo: Gyldendal Norsk Forlag, 1982.
Trygve Ræder, Johan Bojer og heimbygda Rissa, Oslo: Gyldendal Norsk
Forlag, 1972.
Scandinavia Vital Records Index (compact discs), Family History Resource
File, Intellectual Reserve Inc., 2001.
Thora Vaa, Min far Johan Bojer
(booklet), Asker museum, 1999.
Acknowledgements
I
would like to acknowledge with deep gratitude the invaluable and patient work
of Karen Husdal Brevik in Orkanger, Norway, who over a year’s time provided important
research and translation assistance for this short biography of Bojer, and also to some of her familiy
members whose recollections were very helpful.
Aud Haarsaker of
Trondheim was also helpful in the translation.
I would also like to thank Jane Wikan Slater
in Florida who provided access to two unpublished letters, written in 1958 and
1959, from Bojer to her father, Johan Eilert Wikan of Petersburg,
Alaska. Mr. Wikan,
born in 1899, was the son of Bojer’s foster brother
(son of Randi and Elias), also named Johan (1862-1952). Thanks also to Sharon Wikan
of Petersburg, Alaska, also from this family (great-granddaughter of the 1862
Johan), who provided research assistance through access to additional
unpublished letters.
Dennis
L. Haarsager
Updated 24 April 2005, 9 September 2006, 29 October 2006, 8 June 2007,
and 29 November 2011
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