Norwegians on the Prairie: Ethnicity and the Development of the Country Town

by Odd Sverre Lovoll, Todd Nichol (Foreword)

Against the broad backdrop of the expanding western frontier, noted Norwegian American scholar Odd S. Lovoll explores the country town through the lens of ethnicity in this pioneering study. Benson, Madison, and Starbuck, all located on the western Minnesota prairie, were settled primarily by Norwegians and served as urban centers—railroad hubs, destinations for trade, and social nexuses—for the farming communities that surround them. Lovoll’s meticulous research into census data, careful reading of local newspapers, and extensive interviews with the descendants of Norwegian immigrants reveals strong ties to homeland that are visible today in each town’s social, political, and religious character.

Genres: History, Reference

304 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 2006

About the author

Odd Sverre Lovoll is an actor in the story of emigration and immigration he has studied so deeply. A native of Sunnmøre, Norway, he brought his family permanently to the United States in 1967.

After taking examinations at both the Universities of Bergen and Oslo, in 1969 Odd Lovoll received the M.A. degree from the University of North Dakota, where he also taught from 1967 to 1970. In 1970 he began teaching at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota and in 1973 he completed the Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota with a specialization in immigration history. His doctoral dissertation was later published by the Norwegian-American Historical Association as A Folk Epic: The Bygdelag in America

During his thirty years of service at St. Olaf College, Odd Lovoll served the institution in several capacities. A member of both the Norwegian and history departments, he was for a number of years chairperson of the Norwegian department. Throughout these busy years, he was tireless in his work on behalf of the Norwegian-American Historical Association. Appointed as editor of the organization in 1980, Lovoll assisted in the creation of a new relationship between the association and St. Olaf College when the editorship was linked to a professorship in the college's history department by the terms establishing the endowment of the King Olav V Chair in Scandinavian-American Studies. In 1992 Odd Lovoll became the first occupant of the King Olav V Chair and held this appointment until his retirement in December of 2000.


In his capacity as editor of the Norwegian-American Historical Association, Lovoll edited and supervised the production of thirty-three books. Lovoll's activity as an author and editor has not, however, been confined to the work of the association. His many books and articles, listed in the bibliography included in the pressed volume, are further evidence of interest and competence in a broad array of fields.

Odd Lovoll's work as a scholar has attained wide notice. He was decorated with the Knight's Cross First Class of the Royal Norwegian Order of Merit in 1986 by King Olav V and in 1989 he was inducted into membership in the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters. Among the many honors that have come to him in the United States are awards from the state historical societies of both Illinois and Wisconsin.