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The Bridge

Iowa

Publication Year

Articles 1 - 4 of 4

Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Danish Cedar Falls, Carrie Eilderts Jan 2021

Danish Cedar Falls, Carrie Eilderts

The Bridge

In 1855, Frederick Petersen’s family became the first Danish immigrants on record to settle in Cedar Falls, Iowa. The Petersens came from the Schleswig area on the Danish/German border, and in 1860, Christian Petersen came to Cedar Falls, also from Schleswig. More Danish families moved to Cedar Falls from Pine River, Wisconsin in 1866, and the next year Danes began arriving directly from their homeland after enduring a long journey by ship and train. By the early 1870s, Danes were settling in Cedar Falls in large numbers. By 1871, three hundred Danes called the city home, making up about ten …


Lives Well-Lived: My Danish American Ancestors In Shelby And Audubon Counties, Iowa, Cindy Larsen Jan 2021

Lives Well-Lived: My Danish American Ancestors In Shelby And Audubon Counties, Iowa, Cindy Larsen

The Bridge

My childhood was filled with my parents’ voices describing their love of history and knowledge of their Danish heritage in conversations that linger in my memory. My mother, Elizabeth Aagaard Larsen, and dad, Chester B. Larsen, were both children of Danish immigrants to the communities of Elk Horn and Kimballton, Iowa.


The Building Of Immanuel Lutheran Church In Kimballton, Iowa, Jeanette Lillehoj Jan 1995

The Building Of Immanuel Lutheran Church In Kimballton, Iowa, Jeanette Lillehoj

The Bridge

Coming into the small Iowa town of Kimballton from any direction, the spire of Immanuel Lutheran Church, which stands on a high point in the town, is clearly visible. The early Danish immigrants who built this church intended the church spire to be a beacon to those entering the town. The centennial of Immanuel Lutheran Church will be celebrated in 1997. To those Danish immigrants who were responsible for building this church, this article is dedicated.


Danish American Political Behavior: The Case Of Iowa, 1887-1936, Stephen H. Rye Jan 1979

Danish American Political Behavior: The Case Of Iowa, 1887-1936, Stephen H. Rye

The Bridge

Although thousands of Danish immigrants settled in Iowa, often in communities which can readily be identified, there is some difficulty in isolating voting units which were composed largely of Danish Americans. For example, Fredsville, a settlement located west of Cedar Falls in Grundy County, became the home of a sizeable Danish community, but in the voting unit of Fairfield Township, census materials demonstrate that the non-Danish voters slightly outnumbered the Danes in the late nineteenth century. However, at least five Iowa townships can be identified as having a clear majority of voters who were Danish in background, and this study …