Ludvig Hareland was born in Stavanger, Norway, November 14, 1878 and came to United States in 1899, going first to Minnesota, then to the Hannaford Community in 1900, where he filed on land located two miles east of Hannaford in Greenfield Township.
At Valley City, North Dakota, Ludvig and Martina Hetland were united in marriage August 17, 1907. She also had immigrated to United States from Stavanger where she was born August 27, 1884. They continued to live on the farm and had a family of seven children, four daughters and three sons.
Martina Hareland had a natural talent as nurse, and many times acted as mid-wife in the delivery of a baby. Those days women had their babies at home with the help of a mid-wife or doctor if available. She also assisted Dr. R. D. Benson of Hannaford on several occasions.
During the bad flu epidemic, Mrs. Hareland also became ill, as did the entire family with the exception of Ludvig who had to be nurse to his own family as well as some of near neighbors. Three of the children contracted pneumonia. Mrs. Hareland had to get out of bed to apply mustard plasters and all recovered.
Life on farm was not uneventful for the family. One summer when Dad was out doing carpentry work and away from home, a severe electrical storm came up during the night. Mother was confined to bed with milk leg and had our cousin Dagny Hetland staying with us. Mother heard this terrible crash and having a hard time awakening Dagny, had her go upstairs to see what happened to the three children sleeping there. Dagny was speechless when she saw plaster strewn all over the floor. The children were unharmed, but lightning had struck the house, followed the iron bedstead and went out at foot of bed through a nail and into telephone ground outside. Many nights we were called from our beds to go into storm cellar because of bad storms.
Another event standing out in memory was the runaway of a team of horses on a buggy when a piece of paper blew across road and frightened the horses, causing Mrs. Hareland to be thrown from the buggy and injured to the extent of having one breast removed at Valley City Hospital. Mrs. Hareland passed away January 1937.
Ludvig Hareland had learned the carpentry trade as a youth in Norway and worked at his trade through much of his life. An old landmark in Hannaford is the Public School he built in 1907 and which all seven children and some of the grandchildren attended. He built the church in Walum, the Faith Lutheran Church in Hannaford, many homes and hip-roofed barns in the surrounding community. Mr. Hareland would have quite a crew working as there were no power tools and all work had to be done by hand. Some job that would seem impossible to do was always a challenge to him.
Mr. Hareland built a second house and rented the farm to Gabriel and Anna Malmin for several years, and later to Magnus and Malena Haugen as newlyweds, while he continued to work at his trade as a carpenter in the community and at shipyards in Duluth. Later years he went into concrete work, making well curbings, and birdbaths among other things.
On December 4, 1944, Mr. Hareland married Millie Watne, and spent 27 years together. Since he enjoyed traveling, they made several trips to Norway, Alaska, and through many states.
Ludvig Hareland passed away October 12, 1971, and was active until cancer disabled him a year earlier.
Surviving members of the L. Hareland family besides Millie are:
1. Mrs. Charles (Marie) Hilyard and Mrs. Virgil (Dorothy) Bakke both of Plentywood, Montana
2. Sidney of Anaconda, Montana
3. Lloyd of Hannaford, North Dakota
4. Mrs. Ray (Myrtle) Ohman of Rigby, Idaho
5. Mrs. Willard (Irene) Jordet of Anchorage, Alaska
6. and Herman of Wahpeton, North Dakota. The three Hareland sons are also skilled carpenters as are some of grandsons.
Source: Griggs County History 1879 - 1976 Page 135