    
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Administrative
Information
Scope and Content Note
Biographical Information
Lineage
Selected Search Terms
Partial Interview Transcript
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Information
Resources
Robert A. L. Mortvedt Library
Pacific
Lutheran University
Tacoma, WASHINGTON 98447
Phone: (253) 535-7586 E-mail: archives@plu.edu
New Land
New Lives Oral History Collection
Martha Tweiten Handeland
A Guide to Her Oral History Interview |
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Administrative
Information
Creator:
Handeland, Martha Tweiten
Collection Nr: t107
File Content:
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3 file folders
2 photographs
1 sound cassette
0 compact discs
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Processing Information:
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The
interview was conducted using a cassette recorder. A research
copy was also prepared from the original. To further preserve
the content of the interview, it is now being transferred
to compact disc. We deliberately did not transcribe the
entire interview because we want the researchers to listen
to the interviewee's own voice. The transcription index
highlights important aspects of the interview and the
tape counter numbers noted on the Partial Interview
Transcription are meant as approximate finding guides
and refer to the location of a subject on the cassette/CD.
Interviewed
by Inger Nygaard Carr
Transcribed by Mary Sue Gee, Julie Peterson and Becky
Husby
Encoded by Kerstin Ringdahl & Amity Smetzler
Recording Quality: Good
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Restrictions:
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The
collection is available for research.
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Preferred Citation:
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[Collection
Number, Collection Title]
New Land New Lives Oral History Collection
Scandinavian Immigrant Experience Collection
Robert A.L. Mortvedt Library
Pacific Lutheran University
Tacoma, WA 98447
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The
interview was conducted with Martha Handeland on October 27,
1981 in Tacoma, Washington. This interview provides information
on parents' life in Tacoma before moving back to Norway in 1920,
family background, voyage to Norway, life and schooling in Norway,
American-Norwegian Christmas traditions, household responsibilities,
return trip to Canada and Seattle, life in Tacoma, marriage,
children's lives, maintenance of Norwegian traditions. It also
contains a photograph of Martha Handeland and a photograph of
Martha and her husband Torvald. The interview was conducted
in English with some Norwegian towards the end of the interview.
Also see Carl Tweiten, Anna Hopen, and Torvald Handeland.
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Martha
Tweiten Handeland was born on July 26, 1910 in University Place,
Tacoma, WA. Both of her parents were originally from near Sirdal
in southern Norway, between Flekkefjord and Stavanger. Her father,
Ommund Tveiten, came to the U.S. in the late 1800's and her
mother, Pauline Amalia Liland, came in 1904; they were married
in Tacoma. Martha was the second oldest of eight children, of
which six were born in the U.S. When she was 10, her father
decided he wanted to farm with his brother, and the family moved
back to Norway in August 1920. She returned to the U.S. at age
17 1/2 with her older brother Carl, leaving Norway on April
14, 1928. They traveled through Liverpool and Halifax, England
and landed in Quebec, Canada. They took a train from Quebec
to Vancouver B.C. and then a boat to Seattle, after which they
lived on a farm in Tacoma with their aunt Bertha. Martha's brother
Oscar returned to the U.S. in 1929, her father in 1930, and
her mother and remaining five siblings came in 1931. During
this time, Martha was a maid and did housework for various people.
She met her husband, Torvald Handeland, whom she knew from Norway,
and they were married by Reverend Michelson in a Norwegian service
at Messiah Lutheran on October 1, 1938. They had three children:
Einar Ingvald, born on January 14, 1943; Pauline Olivia Campbell
in September 1944; and Arne Melvin on October 1, 1946. Einar
is an engineer at Tudor Engineering in Seattle; he and his wife,
Marilyn Jones, a teacher, have two adopted children. Pauline
married John Campbell, a chemical engineer for Weyerhauser,
in 1968, and now lives and teaches in Aberdeen, WA. Arne lives
in University Place and teaches at Curtis High School in Tacoma;
his wife is Andrea Holmes. Martha's family has been active in
the church and all were baptized and confirmed Lutheran. She
now attends Gloria Dei Lutheran. She has been involved in Norwegian
organizations-Normanna, Valhalla, and Embla Lodge-since 1930.
She and her husband had a motel for eighteen years, her children
helped out with it. She has maintained Norwegian traditions
within her family, and her children were taught Norwegian.
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Full Name: |
Martha Tweiten Handeland
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Maiden Name: |
Martha Tweiten
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Father: |
Ommund Karlson Tweiten
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Mother: |
Pauline Amelia Liland
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Paternal Grandfather: |
Karl Pederson Tveiten
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Paternal Grandmother: |
Marte Lunde
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Maternal Grandfather: |
Ommund Pederson Hampland Liland
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Maternal Grandmother: |
Anna Malena Jonsdatter Espetveit
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Brothers and Sisters: |
Carl Tweiten
Oscar Tweiten
Anna Malena Hopen
Alma Johanna Tweiten
Bertha Tweiten Berg
Jørgen Tweiten
Thor Bernhard Tweiten
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Spouse: |
Torvald Martin Handeland
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Children: |
Einar Ingvald Handeland
Pauline Olivia Campbell
Arne Melvin Handeland
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This collection is indexed under the following headings
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Personal Names |
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Tweiten, Martha
Handeland, Martha
Tweiten, Ommund Karlson
Liland, Pauline Amelia
Tveiten, Karl Pederson
Lunde, Marte
Liland, Ommund Pederson Hampland
Espetveit, Anna Malena Jondatter
Handeland, Einar Ingvald
Campbell, Pauline Olivia (Handeland)
Handeland, Arne Melvin
Handeland, Torvald Martin
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Family Names |
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Handeland family
Tveiten family
Tweiten family
Lunde family
Espetveit family
Liland family
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Geographical Names |
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Tacoma (Wash.)
University Place(Wash.)
Sirdal (Norway)
Deming (Wash.)
Aberdeen(Wash.)
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Subjects |
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Family -- Norway
Family -- United States
School attendance -- Norway
Emigration and immigration -- Norway
Bergensfjord (Steamship)
Normanna Hall (Tacoma, wash.)
Valhalla Lodge (Tacoma, Wash.)
Daughters of Norway -- Embla Lodge
Our Saviours Lutheran Church (Tacoma, Wash.)
Gloria Dei Lutheran Church (Tacoma, Wash.)
Messiah Lutheran Church (Tacoma, Wash.)
Christmas -- Norway
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Occupations |
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Logging -- Washington
Domestics
Family farms -- Norway
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Genre/Form |
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Oral history
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Institution |
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Pacific Lutheran University. Scandinavian Immigrant Experience
Collection
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The
partial interview transcription highlights important aspects
of the interview. Numbers on the left may be used as guides
to important subjects. Two numbers separated by a slash indicate
that the first number is for cassette and the second for CD.
018 PERSONAL BACKGROUND: Born in University Place, Tacoma, Washington
on July 26, 1910.
035 Moved to Norway at age 10 in August 1920. Father had come
to U.S. in the late 1800s. Mother came in 1904. Parents married
at Our Saviors Lutheran Church in Tacoma.
065 PARENTS: Met at church. Norwegian services. Father left
Norway because people were poor there. Took off to make a better
living.
092 FATHER: Raised on a farm. Seven brothers and two sisters.
Father's name Ommund Tveiten. Father's oldest brother came first
to U.S., but never heard from after arrival in New York.
136 FATHER'S TRAVELS: Came to Wisconsin for a few years and
returned to Norway. Was there a year or so then came out west.
Brothers, Ommund, Karl, Martin, Johan came out west and did
logging.
172 Parents married in 1908. Mother's name, Pauline Amalia Liland.
182 MOTHER: Came to U.S. because her mother had died in Norway.
She brought her 12-year-old brother too. Her younger sister
died before she could come to the U.S. She had two sisters here
already. She was about 20 when she came to the U.S.
232 Mother brought her brother to his aunt and uncle at University
Place, Tacoma. She worked as a housemaid until she was married.
249 PARENTS ORIGINS: Both came from near Sirdal in Southern
Norway between Flekkefjord and Stavanger.
263 MATERNAL GRANDPARENTS: Ommund Liland from Hompland. Anna
Malena Espetveit. Talks about grandparents and where they lived.
They had nine kids, two died when very small. They were farmers.
325 Grandfather and Uncle Per came to the U.S. for a few years
but disliked it so they returned to Norway.
347 PATERNAL GRANDPARENTS: Karl Tveiten and Marte Lund. They
were farmers.
369 FAMILY RETURNS TO NORWAY: 1920 father decided he wanted
to farm with his brother. There were eight children, six born
in the U.S. Carl, Oscar, Anna, Alma, Bertha.
402 FATHER'S WORK IN NORWAY: Not enough to farm. Got a job in
Kristiansund as a chauffeur. Took classes in engineering so
he could care for the car.
420 TRAVEL TO NORWAY: Left Union Station, Tacoma and arrived
in New York after six days by train with a transfer in Chicago.
5-6 days wait in New York in a hotel.
440 HOTEL: Two beds for eight people. One bathroom per floor.
Uncle and Aunt Bertha returned with them. Spent some time in
New York. First time on escalators.
469 BOAT TRIP: Nine days on the "Bergensfjord." Boat was good.
Some sick.
494 TRAIN: Took own food. Can't remember much.
508 ARRIVAL NORWAY: Landed in Stavanger. Met by Uncle Ommund
and other relatives. Took train to Moi. Took boat to Tonstad.
Took horse and buggy two miles to Tveiten. Too many for the
buggy, took turns walking.
568 SCHOOL: Hard to start Norwegian school after a few years
in Tacoma.
578 NORWAY SCHOOL: More Bible stories. Memorize Bible verses.
Went to Sunday school. Fourteen weeks of regular school. Had
school one month then off for one month, teacher taught other
places. After confirmed finished with school. School divided
into two classes - Småskole and Storskole. Omskole, more like
high school. Father chauffeured a combination passenger-cargo,
car-truck vehicle.
625 HOME IN NORWAY: Beautiful home. Winters more severe. Had
skis to get to school. Very cold. 3-4 feet of ice on the ground.
649 CHRISTMAS: Same as their Christmas in the U.S. Christmas
Eve Day, found the tree in the woods. Sang Christmas carols,
Norwegian and English. Decorated the tree, candles, made trimming
some out gladspapir. Got an orange to hang on the tree. Decorate
with cookies, korien.
701 CHRISTMAS DINNER: Pinne steak, lamb salted, dried, put on
a stick and fried in the ambers on the fire. Potatoes, lefse,
potato kake.
732 CHRISTMAS BAKING: Hard to get eggs. Mother got eggs and
covered them with rock salt to keep them until Christmas. Made
potato lefse and flatbroed.
780 CHRISTMAS EVE: Lighted candles. Went around tree and sang
carols. Ate julegroet (rice) at midnight. Put out something
for Julenissen in barn.
814 CHRISTMAS: Always got something new. No presents under the
tree.
827 CHRISTMAS MORNING: No church service held there. Sleigh
bells. Skiing. Visiting other people. Ungdomhus, a gathering
place for youth.
868 CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS: Stories of Julenissen, trolls, viftefolk(?).
Needed to be aware of these spirits.
877 SPRINGTIME: Lots to do on the farm. Plant potatoes, corn,
and a little wheat. Had cows and sheep.
894 CHORES: Did carding, spinning, weaving, knitting of clothes.
Took a lot of time. Lady with a knitting machine helped.
905 CHORES: Helped with chores around the barn, milking, feeding
cows. Milking was women's work.
912 MEN'S WORK: Cut hay in the summer. Took it home by sleigh
in the winter. Cut wood. Went to Snorskog to catch "ryper" (Ptarmigan)
which are small bird they caught in snares. They were sent to
England and canned and considered a delicacy. She speaks in
Norwegian about a cousin. A liter of "ryper" sold for 40 nkr.
last Christmas.
959 FATHER'S WORK: Went to Tonstad to get supplies. He was also
a mail carrier.
980 Confirmed then stayed home for a while.
984 RETURN TO U.S.: At age 17 1/2 with brother Carl. Wanted
to maintain U.S. citizenship. Looking for work. Didn't have
jobs in Norway. Talks about her father's job some more.
1013 LEAVING NORWAY: On April 14, 1928. 17 years old. Landed
in Canada. Talks about her feelings leaving.
1076 TRAVELS: Went through Liverpool, England. Then twelve days
by a slow boat to Halifax, England. She talks some of why they
took this route.
SIDE II
021 TRAVELS: Went from Halifax, England to Quebec, Canada. Had
doctor's examination in Quebec. Six days by train from Quebec
to Vancouver B.C. Took boat to Squamish B.C. Stayed with Uncle
Alek. Back to Vancouver then took boat to Seattle.
103 TRAVELS: Arrived Seattle, taxi to Greyhound Bus. Met an
uncle at Jefferson Hotel. Took taxi to meet Aunt Bertha at University
Place.
148 Stayed with Aunt Bertha until mother came. Helped aunt with
cows. Sold milk. Talks about the farm. Bertha's husband worked
at Clearfir Lumber Co.
190 Brother, Carl worked at Clearfir Lumber Co., then went out
with a logging company.
197 LANGUAGE PROBLEMS: None since she'd learned it before. Saw
many old friends from school who were now graduated.
218 SCHOOL: Didn't like school in Norway as well as she had
in the U.S.
224 REST OF FAMILY COMES: Brother, Oscar came over in 1929.
Father came to Vancouver in 1930, he wasn't a U.S. citizen.
He worked in the woods. Carl, when 21 and already a U.S. citizen,
was able to obtain citizenship for his father. Mother came in
1931 with five others. The whole family was reunited.
259 WORK: Martha did housework. Worked as a maid. Brother, Oscar
and she rented a house on Cushman Avenue.
280 WORK: Talks about different uniforms she'd wear on the job.
White uniform for Dr. Kiehl. She did cooking and cleaning. $30
per month.
334 HOME: Mother and father lived in the same house that she
and Oscar had rented on Cushman. $20 a month for a furnished
home.
356 FATHER'S WORK: He worked in a lumber mill by White River
and Enumclaw. Younger siblings Barney (5) and Jorgen (7) had
difficulties in school. They didn't know English.
396 WORK: For Dr. Pasco for $50 a month. Very demanding. Worked
hard.
437 WORK: New job for two old maids. Learned to cook differently
on job. Toast, muffins, fruit popular U.S. breakfast. Little
fruit in Norway. Everything made from scratch.
478 MET HUSBAND: Knew from Norway.
500 ACTIVITIES: Norwegian organizations. Normanna, Valhalla,
Embla Lodge member since 1930.
509 WEDDING: Service in Norwegian at Messiah Lutheran. Minister
Rev. Michelson. Reception after service. October 1, 1938.
537 Husband was logger when married. Rented place on 7th and
N. "L" street. Built home at 2340 S. Ainsworth.
556 CHILDREN: First child January 14, 1943, Einar Ingvald. Now
an engineer at Tudor Engineering in Seattle. Wife, Marilyn Jones
a teacher. Two adopted children. Einar was in Vietnam for nine
months and again for eight months.
612 CHILDREN: Pauline, September 1944.
627 WORK: Martha and husband had a motel for eighteen years.
Children helped with this. Husband worked at Martinac Ship Building.
641 CHILDREN: Pauline went to Bellingham then to Washington
State College in Pullman, Washington. Now a teacher. Married
in 1968. Met husband, John Campbell at Washington State. He's
a chemical engineer for Weyerhauser and previously for Shell
Oil in California. She taught at Oxnard, California. They now
live in Aberdeen and she is teaching in the Aberdeen School
District.
690 CHILDREN: October 1, 1946, Arne born. Went to University
of Washington. Teaches at Curtis High School. Lives in University
Place. Married Andrea Holmes.
721 CHURCH: Family active in church. All baptized and confirmed
Lutheran. She belongs to Circle. Goes to Gloria Dei Lutheran.
742 TEACHING CHILDREN NORWEGIAN: Einar was fluent Norwegian
when a child but his teacher discouraged its use.
774 NORWEGIAN TRADITIONS MAINTAINED: Taught children Norwegian.
Baking kumle, potato balls or dumplings with salted pork in
the middle. Child learned Norwegian from Audun Toven at the
University of Washington.
827 SUMMERTIME IN NORWAY: At the Sæter she enjoyed cutting grass
and putting it up in haystacks. Stacked hay for winter.
864 SUNDAYS IN NORWAY: Couldn't do any baking or gardening.
A day of rest.
877 She speaks Norwegian and mentions some of her favorite Christmas
songs.
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