Lögberg-Heimskringla - 11.06.1964, Side 4

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LÖGBERG-HEIMSKRINGLA, FIMMTUDAGINN 11. JÚNÍ1964
Lögberg-Heimskringla
Published every Thursday by
NORTH AMERICAN PUBLISHING CO. LTD.
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WALLINGFORD PRESS LTD.
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Ediior: INGIBJÖRG JÓNSSON
EDITORIAL BOARD
Winnipeg: Dr. P. H. T. Thorlakson, chairman, Haraldur Bessa-
son, Rev. Valdimar J. Eylands, Caroline Gunnarsson, Jóhann
G. Jóhannson, Thorvaldur Johnson, Jakob F. Kristjánsson,
Rev. Philip M. Pétursson. Vancouver: Dr. S. E. Bjömsson.
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Authorized os second closs moil by the Post Office Deportment, Ottawa,
and for payment of Postage in cash.
Dr. P. H. T. Thorlakson:
The Selkirk Lutheran Church
1889 — 1964
Mr. Chairman, Ladies and
Gentlemen:
I wish to thank Rev.
Bergman and the members
of the 75th Anniversary Com-
mittee for inviting me to
participate in this evening’s
program. I was asked to
speak on the early history of
the Selkirk Lutheran Church
and to include some personal
anecdotes.
There was a time, not so
very long ago, it seems, that
I knew every member of this
congregation and almost every
person that lived in Selkirk.
Yet that is more than 50 years
ago — the year that I left
home to attend University. It
has always been a pleasant
experience for me to come
back home to Selkirk. I join
you this evening to celebrate
another important milestone
in the history of this Church,
as I did on the 60th Anni-
versary. May I add that I
confidently expect to do so
again on the lOOth Anni-
versary.
Today (Sunday, May 31st,
1964) has been set aside to
commemorate the establish-
ment in 1889 of the Selkirk
Icelandic Lutheran Church.
First, we wish to honor and
pay a special tribute to the
adventuresome Icelandic men
and women who came to the
Red River Valley and to the
Lake Winnipeg area between
the years 1875 A.D. and 1910
A.D. These were the early
years of rapid colonization of
the North-West. We also
wish to remember with
gratitude the loyal devotion
of the many members who
have served this congregatjon
during the intervening years
and to acknowledge the stead-
fast support of the present
members who are now at-
tending this Church — meet-
ing new problems and new
situations.
The first group of Icelandic
colonizers to pass through
Selkirk in the Spring of 1875
were Capt. Sigtryggur Jonas-
son (who lived for a time in
“New Iceland” and later here
in Selkirk), Mr. Skafti Arason
(later a successful farmer in
the municipality of Argyle,
near the town of Glenboro),
Mr. Christian Johnson (later
an implement dealer at Bald-
ur), Mr. Einar Jonasson (who
continued to reside in Gimli)
and Mr. S. Christopherson
(later a farmer at Grund,
near Cypress, Manitoba). Mr.
Christopherson joined the
party at Milwaukee. He re-
presented the Icelandic group
who were temporarily settled
in the State of Wisconsin.
This small advance party
started originally from the
Icelandic Settlement at
Kinmount, Ontario, North
of Toronto. They were
accompanied by Mr. John
Taylor, a government agent
who become a very staunch
friend of the early Icelandic
settlers. Two of his daughters
married young Icelandic men.
The Icelandic group in On-
tario had received encourage-
ment from Lord Dufferin,
then Governor General of
Canada. Because of his first-
hand knowledge of Iceland,
its people and their history,
Lord Dufferin had interceded
for the Icelandic group with
the Prime Minister of Canada
and his Cabinet.
In the Spring of 1875 this
party was on its way to the
west shores of Lake Winni-
peg where they hoped to find
a suitable area on which to
found a “New Iceland”. This
new location was in the
district of Keewatin in the
Northwest Territories and at
that time was governed di-
rectly from Ottawa. The first
large group of over 300 men,
women and children to arrive
in “New Iceland” on October
21st, 1875, came from the
Ontario and the Wisconsin
settlements. The next groups
came directly from Iceland.
The area designated as
“New Iceland” was selected
because of free land with
plenty of timber for building
and other purposes, abund-
ance of fish in the lake and
close proximity and easy
accessability by a waterway
to “Crossing” as Selkirk was
then called. It was here that
the first transcontinental
Canadian railroad (the C.P.R.)
was to bridge the Red River
on its drive westward to open
up the vast prairie lands for
colonization and then further,
beyond the Rockies to the
Pacific Coast. By supporting
and encouraging this new
transportation venture, the
Canadian Government of the
day wished to prevent a
further peaceful American
take-over of Western terri-
tories by default, as had re-
cently occurred in the case of
the State of Oregon and the
State of Washington.
Capt. Sigtryggur Jonasson,
the leader of the first group,
established himself on a farm
in “New Iceland”. By 1884,
however, we find this enter-
prising young gentleman re-
siding here in Selkirk. In that
year there were only two Ice-
landic families living in this
town, which at that time had a
total population of 300 people..
By November, 1888 there
were 800 people in Selkirk
including 70-80 Icelanders
(counting only those over
twelve years of age) — now
numerous enough to organ-
ize a Christian Association
called, in Icelandic, “Kristi-
legt framfarafélag.” This
group conducted private de-
votions in the homes of its
members, reading sermons,
prayers and singing hymns.
Rev. Jon Bjarnason was
the first minister to conduct
a service for the Icelandic
group in Selkirk — on the
27th of May, 1889. He urged
them to organize a congre-
gation, which they did on
Whitsunday, June 9, 1889. (By
that time there were 30-40
families in Selkirk and a
number of single people.) The
Selkirk congregaton became
a member of the Icelandic
Lutheran Synod of North
America at its annual con-
vention held in Argyle, June
19th, that year.
The new congregation
organized a Sunday School
and conducted bible readings
on Sundays. They immedi-
ately began building a church
on Rosser Avenue which they
completed within five months.
This was quite an achieve-
ment, for the members were
few in number and most of
them were very poor — some
of them recent arrivals, but
they gave their labour and
whatever money they could
spare.
The first service in this
little church — measuring 18’
x 24’ — was held on Novem-
ber 6th, 1889, conducted by
Rev. Friðrik Bergmann from
Winnipeg.
A few weeks later, on
December 2nd? a big concert
was held in the church —
with 7 speakers included on
the programme, some from
Winnipeg. The entertainment
lasted until after midnight.
The proceeds from the con-
cert paid off the remaining
debt incurred in the building
of the church.
At that time the congre-
gation could not afford a
resident minister, but min-
isters from Winnipeg and
“New Iceland” would visit
them when possible.
Rev. Magnús J. Skaptason
who served the parish in
“New Iceland” also conducted
services in Selkirk when he
passed through on his way
to Winnipeg. In 1891 he con-
firmed the first class of young
people in the Selkirk Church.
That Spring, in fact on Easter
day, he delivered a sermon
in the Hecla Church and later
in his other churches in “New
Iceland” renouncing the
doctrines of eternal damna-
tion, redemption and other
doctrines of the Lutheran
faith. He resigned from the
Synod on April 3rd, 1891.
This caused a great deal of
controversy, first in “New
Iceland” then in Selkirk
where it began in May, 1891
and lasted for two years,
dividing the congregation
“þeir börðust sem ósviknir
Islendingar og góðir drengir”
said Klemenz Jonsson in his
historical sketch. During this
time the group that remained
loyal to the Synod was served
occasionally by Rev. Friðrik
Bergmann of Winnipeg.
Finally reconciliation was
brought about largely through
the efforts of Sigvaldi Nordal
and Gestur Johannsson.
Dedication of the church took
place on the 28th of June,
1893, Rev. F. Bergmann
officiating.
Rev. Oddur V. Gíslason
from “New Iceland” served
the congregation as occasion
permitted from 1895-1898. In
1896 the little Church on Ross-
er Avenue was möVed to
Clandeboye Avenue and en-
larged by almost half — 28’
x 50’, and a steeple was
erected. This second Church
could accommodate about
300. Everyone worked at re-
building the Church with as
Á kirkjuþingi í Selkirk
(Nokkrum árum eftir aldamótin)
Aflasla röð: Séra Björn B. Jónsson, frú Jónína Hjálmsson, séra Pétur Hjálmsson, frú
Sigrún Ólafsson, séra Kristinn Ólaísson, frú Ingunn Marteinsson, séra Runólfur Marteins-
son, frú Thorgrimsen, séra Hans B. Thorgrimsen. Önnur röð: frú Sigurbjörg Jónsson, séra
Friðrik Bergmann, frú Guðrún Bergmann, séra Jón Bjarnason, frú Laura Bjarnason, séra
N. Steingrímur Thorlakson, frú Erika Thorlakson. Fremsta röð: séra Friðrik Hallgrímsson,
frú Bentína Hallgrímsson.