The Icelandic Canadian - 01.12.2003, Side 22

64
THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
Vol. 58 #2
Dedication of the Stephan G. Stephansson
Homested Site in North Dakota
Summer 2003
by John Johnson
Good afternoon Ladies and
Gentleman:
Welcome to the homestead site of
Stephan G. Stephansson, the acclaimed
Icelandic poet. Stephan lived here from
1880 to 1889 in what was then known as
Dakota Territory. Today we are here to
dedicate this stone marker in memory of
Stephan in the 150th year of his birth.
My name is John Johnson; it was my
grandfather John Johnson the 4th who,
along with Hallgrimur Gislason, purchased
this land from Stephan in 1889 when he
decided to move to Markerville, Alberta,
Canada.
Stephan arrived here in 1880 and lay
claim to 157 acres of land - an area starting
at the top of this hill in the west, running
one mile east to the end of this road, and
1/4 mile wide on the north side of the road.
The homestead was over there at the foot
of the hill. There are several impressions on
the ground and signs of a former founda-
tion where we believe the house stood. So
you see the bulk of the land was to the east
of the home.
Eventually my grandfather John
Johnson acquired all of this land. At some
point, he did sell 25 acres of this land to
enable easier access for the neighbours.
Actually, the area around this marker is
part of this 25 acres that is now owned by
Norma Ruble and John Lawson. We great-
ly appreciate the fact that they have
allowed us to place this marker in the actu-
al location of the farmstead. (Norma - if
you are here, I would like to personally
thank you.)
Out in front, where you see a small red
flag, stood a beautiful American elm tree.
Stephan mentioned this huge tree in sever-
al of his writings. Many Icelanders have
PHOTO COURTESY OF ALMAR GRIMSSON
Visiting from Iceland
Left to right: Marinella Haraldsdottir, Vilborg Isleifsdottir Bickel, Anna Bjork gudbjornsdotir,
Ragnheidur Jonsdotdr, Jorunn Egilsdottir, Almar Grimsson.