Editors note: This article written by Brenda Schroeder-Dresser, Lonnetta Jean (Stovern) Schroeder
and Olander Stovern in the year 2000.
As far as our memory can recall, we believe that Kristin settled at Starbuck, Mn. We can only speculate that maybe he had to help farm for a year, as this is where Annie was born on December 3. 1885. Later he moved to a farm one mile west of Rosholt S.D. He built a sod home into the hill. Later Mr. Fred Falstad (Brigettas nephew) built a home across the little creek on his homestead. It is believed that the reason the Dravlands picked this area, was that there was water on the land.
This may be the reason Nels found Annie, as the Stovern farm had no water, Nels and his sister Gina went on a stone boat to get water at Dravland's.
Annie Davland and Nels Stovern were married November 4, 1904 at Crawford, S.D. It was called an inland town as it was not on the railroad. The railroad came through in 1914 and the town of Rosholt was built. Nels was a butcher at Crawford, and did some farming on the family farm by Rosholt.
Annie and Nels’first son was born August 14, 1905 in Crawford, S.D. His name is Orlando Bernard Stovern or Nicknamed Lonnie Stovern most people today call him O.B. Two or three years after grandpa was born his Father and Mother moved to Ratcliff, Saskatchewan, Canada. They lived there 5-6 years. While there , their second son was born on Oct. 27,1912. His name was LLoyd Edwin Stovem. They all returned to S.D. in 1914.
Nels worked at many different meat markets including Duluth, Mn. where they moved in 1922. Annie worked in the fish hatchery there, too. Lonnie Graduated from Duluth Certral High School in 1926. They returned to New Effington, Mn. in 1926 and were there till 1938 and continued to work in many different meat markets in the area. They moved to Sisseton, South Dakota in 1938. Nels continued to work at Stavigs as a butcher there until he was 85 years old and Annie took care of elderly people in her home and also worked at Stavigs. Nels passed away April 22, 1970 and Annie died in 1975 both in Rosholt S.D. while living in the Rosholt Nursing Home. Both Are buried at Rosholt S.D.
Lonnie Stovern (O.B.) was very active in sports: foothall, baskethall, basebaH, always interested in Hunting and Fishing. When they returned to New Effington in 1926 he and his father owned a hatchery and meat market. Lonnie has worked as a butcher for Red OwI in Huron, S. D. and Madison , Mn. This is where Lonnie married his sweetheart Grace Katherine Fuller on October 12, 1929 at the Little Brown Church in Nashua, Iowa. Their first daughter was born Katherine Helen Stovern. She passed away right after birth. Their second child, Lonnetta Jean was born on March 26, 1936.
In 1940 they moved to St. Paul and Lonnie became a Postal railroad clerk on the railroad. In 1946 they moved to Willmar and he held a part-time position as a butcher and baseball Umpire. Grace passed away April 19,1962 in Willmar, Mn. She is buried in Rosholt S.D. On September 1964 he married Hildi Hydean in Willmar. He retired from the mail service on July 30,1970.
During his retirement he drove school bus for 13 years. Lonnie got involved in trap shooting so he and Hildi did a lot of traveling in the U.S. He was named the Veterans Champion at the Grand American in Vandalia, Ohio in 1971. Lonnie was named to the Trap Shooters Hall of Fame recently.
They traveled to Norway in
1984
and met many Stovern relatives and visited the Stovern homestead but never were able to
see any
Dravland homesteads or relatives. Hildi passed away on September 14, 1997. Lonnie lives
in Willmar in his Apartment and is in Good
Health at 94. Still drives everyday!
Editors note: The Dravland Farm in Norway is now
the Heggland Farm. Bernt Heggland was a brother to Kristen Dravland.
Lonnetta or Lonnie Jean as she is called was born 3/26/36 in Graceville, Mn. which was the closest hospital to New Effington. She attended school in St. Paul until she was in 4th grade. Then they lived in Willmar and she graduated from High School there in 1954. She went to LPN school in Willmar and graduated in June of 1955. She married Jerry Schroeder on March 24, 1956 in Willmar, Mn. and this marriage ended in divorce in 1999. She worked in various hospitals and nursing homes as they moved around many times with Jerrys career. She ended up working her last 18 years at the Willmar regional treatment center just recentty retiring on January 19, 2000.
Together She and Jerry had 6 children: