Person:Marta Ekrene (1)

In 1862 she went to America with here two youngest children, Peder and Stine. Marta lived for a time with Sivert at Choice and later with Peder in Montevideo, MN where she died on June 17, 1909.[Larrie Nelson2.FTW]

According to the census records, in 1870, 1975, 1880, and 1900 Martha was living with her daughter and son-in-law Stine Marie and John Larson near Choice, Minnesota. She is also believed to have stayed with her son Sivert near Choice. In America they took the last name of Johnson after her husband's first name. Later she lived with her son Lars in Montevideo, Minnesota. She died there at the age of 99 and is buried at Montevideo, Minnesota.

Martha, who was alert and active until the time of her death at almost 100 years, had a keen sense of humor and was always laughing and joking. She kept busy, even in her later years, knitting mittens and boots. The knit boots she wore around the house in place of shoes. She never lost interest in children. Those in our family even remember how she would feed Lester Larson (born May 1907) by first chewing the food well herself and then feeding him. This was an old Norwegian custom among people who got their bread from coarse grains.

Richard B. Larson