HARALD THORSON:

Harald Thorson was born in the parish of North Aurdal in Valdres, Norway, on November 16, 1841. He was the son of Thore Olson and Sigrid (Gigstad) Olson. He came to America at the age of 16, settling in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, where he attended school and established a small country store. He soon sold the store to Osul Torrision, and continued as Torrison's employee until 1865 when he moved to Northfield, Minnesota, where he opened a general merchandise store with his brother Knut. That partnership was dissolved after one year, and Harald continued the business alone. The store apparently grew and prospered, and Thorson evidently became a wealthy man. He is said to have owned many farms in the Northfield area, and sold horses and mules in Northfield. He was one of the organizers of St. John's Lutheran Church in Northfield. He was one of the incorporators of St. Olaf College (1874) and served as secretary of the board of trustees. He also helped establish and became a director of the First National Bank in Northfield (1872).

Around 1885 Thorson closed his Northfield business interests and moved to St. Paul, where he was involved in organizing the Northwestern National Bank. He was also involved in establising the Columbian National Bank, Minneapolis. Thorson later moved to Elbow Lake, Minnesota, and became president of the bank there. While at Elbow Lake he made real estate investments in North Dakota, and held shares in several banks there.

Thorson's first wife and child died in childbirth soon after the couple moved to Northfield. He later married Karen Lajord. The couple had eight children, including Minnie, Elmer, Clara, Theodore, Cecile, and Henry. Two others died in infancy. Thorson died in St. Paul on February 18, 1920, and was buried there. His wife had passed away a few years earlier. At the time of his death he was said to have owned a chain of about thirty banks located in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Upper Michigan. The bulk of Thorson's estate was left to St. Olaf College. A lawsuit brought by his heirs following his death resulted in great animosity between them and the college.

Thorson is said to have been a large financial contributor to St. Olaf College. He also made contributions to Concordia College (Moorhead, Minn.) and to Luther College (Decorah, Iowa). He was an active member of the Valdres Sambad.

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Annual and monthly statements of condition of banks in Minnesota and in North Dakota in which Holland apparently had a financial interest and/or of which he was a director. These statements summarize the assets and liabilities of the various banks. Some of the files include related correspondence, including some correspondence of P. O. Holland. After Thorson's death Holland was himself a director of several of these banks. Other letters are from presidents of the individual banks, and from brokerages Piper, Jafffray & Hopwood and Kalman & Company. The largest portion of the material is from the Bank of Elbow Lake, Minnesota, and the First State Bank of Kensington. Most of this material dates from 1920-1944 (after Thorson's death), and was apparently kept by Holland, acting as executor of the Thorson estate. Many of the documents are stamped "Treasurer's Office, St. Olaf College."

The earliest (1910-1922) and latest material (1997-1998) is found in the biographical information file. It includes photocopies of biographical sketches, Thorson's obituary, a transcription of an article about Thorson's bequest to St. Olaf College and the contesting of his will, and correspondence between Faye Thorson Wirtz and St. Olaf College archivist Joan R. Olson. The material was transferred to the Minnesota Historical Society by the St. Olaf College archivist.

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Availability:

The collection is open for research use.

Preferred Citation:

[Indicate the cited item and/or series here]. Harald Thorson Banking Files. Minnesota Historical Society.

See the Chicago Manual of Style for additional examples.

Accession Information:

Accession number: 15,789

Processing Information:

Processed by: David B. Peterson, March 2004

Catalog ID number: 002884509

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Holland's records as vice president and treasurer of St. Olaf College are in the St. Olaf College archives, Northfield, Minnesota.

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This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog of the Minnesota Historical Society. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these headings.

Topics:

Banks and banking -- Minnesota.

Banks and banking -- North Dakota.

Charitable bequests.

Norwegian Americans -- Minnesota.

Philanthropists -- Minnesota.

Persons:

Thorson, Harald, 1841-1920.

Wirtz, Faye Thorson.

Organizations:

Alexandria State Bank (Alexandria, Minn.).

Bank of Elbow Lake (Elbow Lake, Minn.).

Citizens State Bank (Barrett, Minn.).

Citizens State Bank (Brandon, Minn.).

Farmers State Bank (Buttzville, N.D.).

First National Bank (Emmons, Minn.).

First National Bank (Halstad, Minn.).

First National Bank (Northfield, Minn.).

First National Bank (Roseau, Minn.).

First State Bank (Kensington, Minn.).

First State Bank (Laporte, Minn.).

Kanabec State Bank (Mora, Minn.).

Northfield National Bank (Northfield, Minn.).

St. Olaf College -- Benefactors.

Vergas State Bank (Vergas, Minn.).

Occupations:

Bankers -- Minnesota.

College administrators -- Minnesota.

Executors and administrators -- Minnesota.

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