Lögberg-Heimskringla - 01.08.1980, Page 9

LÖGBERG-HEIMSKRINGLA, HÁTÍÐARBLAÐ 1980
Icelandic Festivals in
North America 1874-1900
The first Icelandic festival
in North America took place
in Milwauke'e, August 2,
1874. One thousand years
had then passed since
Iceland was settled and
Icelanders on both sides of
the Atlantic Ocean
celebrated this unique
event. The Milwaukee
celebration also served as
means to unite Icelandic
immigrants in North
America in their attempt to
establish an exclusive
Icelandic settlement and
reminded them to preserve
their language and heritage.
Sixteen years passed
before another festival was
organized. Heimskringla
suggested an Icelandic
festival in Winnipeg July 19,
1888 but it was not until Jon
Olafsson was appointed as
the editor of Logberg that
things started rolling. In an
article of June 4, 1890, he
suggested that the
Icelanders in Winnipeg
should organize a festival in
the city that summer. The
response was extremely
positive and following a
public meeting in Winnipeg,
the first Festival Committee
began preparing a
celebration for August 2. At
9:30 that da\ close to two
thousand Icelanders
gathered by the First
■ Lutheran Church on Victor
Street. From there they
marched along Ross Street,
Isabel Street, Notre Dame,
Portage Avenue, Malo
Street, Rubert Street, and
into Victoria Gardens.
This first Icelandic
festival in Canada was quite
a success and local papers
such as “Town Talk,”
“Siftings” and “Com-
mercial”, devoted con-
siderable space the
following week to this
unique event.
This was not the only
Icelandic festival in North
America that year. Another
one took place in Seattle,
Washington, on August 3.
Similarily that attracted the
attention of newspapers in
Seattle, all of which praised
this effort by the Icelanders.
As a result of this suc-
cess, festivals were
organized in Winnipeg
annually until 1931 and in
Seattle throughout the
1890's.
Icelanders elsewhere in
North America soon
followed these examples and
organized festivals in their
settlements, for example, at
Argyle 1895, Brandon 1893,
Idavelli 1894, North Dakota
1897, Pipestone 1897, and
Spanish Fork, Utah, 1898.
At a later date festivals took
place at Wynyard, Langruth
and Lundar.
The Idavollur Festival
Idavollur is now a part of
Hnausa Park. On July 23,
1894, close to thirty
Icelandic farmers met at
Hnausa expecting to meet
with dairy scientists from
Winnipeg. Many of these
settlers had brought their
families with them so the
total number of people
gathered at Idavollur that
day was between fifty ,and
sixty. These farmers came
from various parts of
northern New Iceland and
had not met each other for
months. Consequently, they
were in a good mood and by
four o’clock, when it was
apparent that the scientists
from Winnipeg would not
show up, a few of those who
had been waiting for them
were beginning to feel a
little tipsy. Instead of
returning home, they
decided to spend the rest of
the day in the Park. Supper
was prepared by the
women, the children played
on the beach and the men
sang Icelandic songs in the
shade of the trees. Everyone
had such a great time that it
was decided to meet again
the next year and the first
Idavollur Festival Committee
was formed. Gradually the
festival at Idavollur became
the main attraction for
Icelanders in New Iceland.
It was still popular in 1932
when Winnipeg Icelanders
moved their festival to Gimli.
Most of the other
celebrations mentioned
above did not last as long;
some were held only once.
J. Th.
Compbments of
(Stlhart 3Fttttrral ðjtrotra Htö.
Fírst Street, Gimli
and
309 Eveline Street, Selkirk
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