Tau, Stavanger and Final Norwegian Thoughts

I realized that I have spent so much time talking about all the sites we have visited in Norway that I neglected to talk about where we actually spent the night and ate most of our meals. So, Stavanger...Stavanger is a waterfront city and the third largest city in Norway. In fact, the area lining the harbor contains around 60 maritime buildings from the 18th and 19th centuries that were used as salting works for herring, storehouses for salt, logs and other goods, and for industry. Stavanger was first settled around 10,000 years ago and was the site of the Battle of Hafrsfjord in 872 A.D. which united Norway into one kingdom. The city is unique in that it has the largest concentration of wooden houses in Europe. There are approximately 8000 wooden houses that date from before World War II. As a whole, the city demonstrates various architectural styles that showcase almost 200 years worth of cultural history. We stayed in Old Stavanger which is comprised of 173 wooden buildings from the turn of the 18th century. The streets are very narrow and cobbled. The house we stayed in was wonderfully old with floors that creaked and beautiful wood everything! It gave me a wonderful idea about the kind of building in which my Norwegian ancestors lived.

Now, the last stop on the ancestry part of the Norway tour is Tau. Tau is a 35 minute ferry ride from Stavanger and is where the Tow branch of the Norwegian side is from. It also had a brewery that produced Tou beer after the town. It has since closed but Tou beer is still sold. As I already mentioned in my first blog, Andrew, my great great grandfather changed his name when he came to America from Sjursen to Tow after the name of his hometown, Tau. Andrew, or Endre as he is called in Norwegian, was born in April 1837 and baptized shortly after on April 16, 1837 with his twin brother Lars. He had at least one older brother names Ole. Tragedy struck a year later when Sjur Endresen, Andrew's father drowned in a fishing accident. A short time later, Andrew's mother, Marthe Olesdatter, remarried. Then in 1847 she also died and the stepfather remarried. Andrew and his brothers were now living with two stepparents and from the stories that have been passed down, they did not treat Andrew and his siblings nicely, which is why Andrew and his brothers left as soon as they could. It was in America that Andrew served in the Civil War and met his wife, Elen Sampson. So, the family sites...we went to the old homestead. It is on top of a hill overlooking the fjord. At some point way way back in the day, the ancestors or residents brought down large stones and carved a table and chairs. What is so cool is that they are still there! Of course they are on private property now and when we pulled up we were greeted by two barking dogs that looked only semi-friendly so we didn't get out but we could clearly see the stone table and seats. According to the record I found of Andrew's baptism, he was baptized in Strand, Rogaland, Norway. Strand is simply the municipality. I had talked to my dad and asked if he remembered a church and graveyard from his trips to Tau and he didn't. So when we got there, we looked and looked but did not see a church anywhere. However, as we started to drive out of Tau (not that it is a large town to begin with) we saw a sign that had a church on it and said Strand 1.6 KM pointing off to the left. I directed dad to follow that sign and lo and behold we found the church! By what I am positive was divine intervention, the sun came out at that moment and stayed until we left. Then it got cloudy and rainy again. The Strand church was originally built in the 1600s, then rebuilt in 1720 and rebuilt again between 1865 and 1870. It serviced the area which included Tau, which makes sense why there is no church in Tau. So this is the church or rather the site of the church where my great great grandfather and his twin were baptized and probably where his parents were married and buried! Since the church had a graveyard we walked up and down the rows looking for the graves of Sjur and Marthe but didn't find them. There were no graves before 1880 but the graveyard had been in use since the 1600s when the first church was built. So Sjur and Marthe were most likely buried here in unmarked graves. We did see open spaces and people with the last name Tou so undoubtedly we were in  the right place!

Land across from the Tow homestead. 

Looking back at the old Tow homestead.

In front of Strand Church. I am positive the sun that came out while we were there was divine intervention! 

      Strand Church and graveyard.

View from the church down onto the fjord.

Now for some final thoughts....Norway is ruggedly beautiful and simple. The Norwegian people do not see the need to build grandiose houses or own particularly outlandish  things. Everything they have is just what they need to survive. They clearly have done the best that they can to blend their man made structures into the landscape. Houses are small, many built of wood, buildings are open and airy and match the nature of Norway. The land is not necessarily friendly, as I have said before, it is rocky and soil is thin, not conducive to farming. I have gained a much better understanding and appreciation for my Norwegian ancestors and their struggles and experiences in this beautiful country as well as myself. Although, I have to ask, what is with Norwegians and red peppers? Anything I have eaten that would normally have tomatoes instead had red peppers!

Cheers!

Elizabeth

Ardal church, renaissance style from 1400s-1500s.