Magnus Thorkelson and Vigdis Gudmundsdóttir

A short story from Magnus B Magnus's notes:

Shortly after he (Magnus Thorkelson) married my grandmother (Vigdis Gudmundsdóttir), they moved to Audum a Vasleisu-Strond (waterless Strand), approximately 1859, into a turf house.   From there he tended fishing.  Vasleisu Strond was so called for its apparent lack of fresh water, though when the tide was out, there were pools of good spring water that was drawn and stored in barrels for household use and the animals.

Though they were not rich by any means, grandfather provided and grandmother found ample to give to the poor and needy.   To her mind, she was preparing for a place for her family and herself in the hereafter.

Sometimes her generosity exceeded all bounds.  One time grandfather came home to see a man he knew was better than they, riding off with a pack-horse laden with gifts and it angered him, so Grandmother curbed the giving for a spell.

There came however an old lady begging and grandmother sent her of with six cod, and as the old one left she turned and blessed grandmother and all her household, saying the Lord would bless her for her kindness, and if in fish, he would see to it that they were large ones.

Then shortly after six whales were stranded on grandfather's property, and friends and neighbours were invited to harvest the bounty.

Good fortune did come grandfather's way. One morning, after several days of stormy weather, the family rose to see a ship stranded on the reef out from the shore.   She bore the name James.  There was no one aboard and she was loaded with lumber.   Again, grandfather invited all to gather as much as they could, and he himself gathered enough as the ship broke up, to build a house stable and storage, also in the years that followed he built himself a fleet of small fishing boats, six in all.

The household grew from when he and grandmother married, and carried all their possession in a hand-barrow with their first born perched on top to a turf shanty, to near twenty members of serving girls, shore-men and sailors that lived with the family in the timbered and stone house.   Grandfather was a stone mason.

Some years later another ship met with nearly the same fate, only this time she was loaded with coal and had some of her crew aboard.  When the captain was forced to jetson some of the coal, grandfather had him put it on the reef. Literally he bought it on the sea bottom, and when the tide was out again, all within reach they salvaged what they could, and paid grandfather what they cold afford.

One such debt was to come in good many years later when after grandmother emigrated to Canada, an old neighbour from Iceland looked her up to pay her what he said he owned grandfather for the coal.  It came at a time when it was sorely needed.  Grandmother was a proud women and would not have taken charity.

Magnus Thorkelson - The Burning at Auðnum

Magnus Thorkelson (1830-1885) was the son of Thorkel Rafnson and Margaret Gudmundsdottir.  Magnus married Vigdis Gudmundsdottir (1834-1906), daughter of Gudmundur Gissarson (the watchman) and Ingibjorg Jonsdottir. Magnus and Vigdis had 8 children together Gumundur, Margret, Vigdis, Gudrun (1862-), Thorkel (1866-1955), Grimur (1870-), Ingibjorg (1871-1962), Björn (1876-1954). They lived at Grimsstudum for 18 years, then moved to Auðnum, Vatnsleysuströnd across the bay from Reykjavik.  They were there nine years until the fire at Auðnum.

Vigdis Gudmundsdottir and Magnus Thorkelson

Magnus B Magnus records note that Magnus Thorkelson worked as a seafaring, outfitted his own ship and was counted a capable man. He was held in high esteem as may be seen when he was chosen to sit on a committee for the underprivileged, when it was first formed in Reykjavik in 1872.  He held this position till 1877, then he moved to Auðnum on the Vatnsleysuströnd, as he felt it was a better site for his undertakings. 

  

On the evening of October 2nd, 1885, a tragedy took place at Auðnum. Magnus Thorkelson died when his house caught fire and he did not escape.  Reports state that he was rescuing entrusted accounts out of his burning house, but failed to get out himself. Others of his household escaped unharmed.  Vigdis and their children were left homeless. In 1887, Vigdis decided to go to America with five of her children, Gudrun, Thorkel (Charlie), Grimur (Jim), Ingibjörg and Bjorn, and grandson Sigurdur (Sam). They came to America on the ship Romney.  

By then, the three oldest children were married, Gudmundur (father of Sigard), Margret was married to Sigurdur Sigurdsson. They had three children and later immigrated to Canada.  Vigdis was married to Gudmund Thorareinson, and had two children. 

Kristleifur Thorsteinsson wrote the following :

At Auðnum were two dwellings when I first came there. Both farms had timber houses and they were rather small and plain in all. A little distance was between these houses.   In the farther house lived Magnus Thorkelson and his wife Vigdis. Magnus was big and manly and noted for his strength. He had black wavy hair and dark whiskers. His face was not fleshy and his jowles were smooth. He was firm mouthed with compressed lips. Coarsely big he was not, but he stood out among average men, both in stamina and temperament. Little had these neighbors in common at Auðnum, but they were good neighbors. The other neighbor was Gudmundur Gudmonson. It did happen that they refreshed themselves with wine and there was making of fists, but it never lasted the day.

In the fall of 1885 flared up fire in Magnus’ house. A shed was built to the house that had hay and various articles stored and the fire started there and quickly caught the rest of the house. It was at night time. The people all got out.  The fire was so wild that the house filled quickly with smoke, as it was impossible to save clothing or household goods. Magnus still sought to enter and toss out the window anything he could reach. He was asked not to take these chances, but entered through the fire and smoke, where the hand could not be seen for the smothering smoke.  There had now gathered many people to the rescue, but all stood helpless. Sigudur Thorlaksson (workman) of Gudmundur was there with the others, he was an agile man and quick to act but rather small and moderate in strength. He broke a window in the house and got Magnus to it for a moment, he slid in and tried to get him by the hair and was going to pull him out, but Magnus broke loose and re-entered the burning and there he died.  After a little while the house and all in was levelled to the ground. A bearable turf house was build up on or close to where the house had stood, in the fall, and there stayed Vigdis, Magnus’s widow with some of the children for the winter.   I came to them there and found it very depressing to see the burned house and that big greater man of hers dead in such a horrible way.   

Misfortune did not come singly for those who lived after, Gudmundur oldest son of this couple had a mental breakdown and caused his own death by a gun shot.  He was well past 20 and a robust man. Both father and son were foreman and each had their own ship and were the main support of the home in full bloom when the big tragedy happened and completely destroyed the home. Never was Magnus Thoreklson’s house rebuilt and never has there been two dwellings at Auðnum since the burning.  

Hecla Island, Manitoba

Steinnes - Pall Jakobson and Sigrid Jensdottir home
and Community Library, Hecla Island, Manitoba

Hecla is one of the largest islands on Lake Winnipeg in the province of Manitoba. It is approximately nineteen miles long by six miles wide (at its widest point).

Its name was Big Island, and history has written that when the Icelanders came in 1876 they changed the name of the island to Mikley, which means "Magnificent Island".

The early years on the Island were difficult for the Icelanders. The first winter on the Island was extremely cold, and a small pox epidemic swept through the community, and unfortunately 30 of the 145 settlers died.  The surviving settlers were strong in spirit and determined and took to the land and built a community.  Fishing became a livelihood for the Icelanders. They built their own sawmill, and began to farm the land. The community for the most part was self-sustaining.

The Steinnes house, where members of my family were raised, was also the community library. The Library was entirely Icelandic, whose books came by ship directly from Iceland. Records indicate that the library was founded on February 6th, 1896 and was named "Morgunstjarnan" (Morning Star). The public library remained in operation until 1967. The home also had traditional Icelandic scenes painted on the walls,  painted by a resident at the Steinnes home - Asunder Eymundsson.


Beggi Palsson carrying a calf, Hecla Island, Manitoba

Additional sources:

Scattering of Seeds - Immigration History- http://www.whitepinepictures.com/seeds/ii/21/history2.html

136 - New Iceland - A Forgotten Nordic Colony In Canada - http://bigthink.com/strange-maps/136-new-iceland-a-forgotten-nordic-colony-in-Canada

History of Gimli Manitoba Settles - http://www.gimlicommunityweb.com/history/history.php

History of Hecla Island - http://www.reocities.com/heartland/woods/4013/history.htm

Manitoba History: Nya Island I Kanada: The Icelandic Settlement of the Interlake Area of Manitoba
http://www.mhs.mb.ca/docs/mb_history/27/icelandicsettlement.shtml 




Cecille May Wood

Cecille May Wood

Cecille May Wood, born September 1912, came from a large family, or large according to present day, maybe not so big in those days. There were thirteen children in her family. She was raised in Manigotagan, Manitoba. Her father was John Wood and her mother was Mildred Bruce. 

Cecille became a cookie in a lumber camp, and in her teens moved to Hecla Island. In 1931, she married Páll Pálson, and had three children with Páll. One being my dad, Johann Paulson.

In 1940, Cecille left Hecla, and she and my dad (age 9) went to Sipiwesk Lake on the Nelson River, about 25 miles north east of Wabowden to live. Dad noted, "that there was no more schooling that term, but in the autumn, I was in a correspondence course in grade three. Mom was a tough tutor to me". 

That may have been because when Cecille was younger, she had been promised $5.00 by her grandfather if she passed her grade seven year. She passed both seven and eight in the same year, and because there was no high school available, that was the end of her formal schooling at the age of thirteen. 



Páll Pálson and Cecille Wood (1931).

Dad noted that "The lessons came at regular intervals by mail and a test in each subject had to be written every two weeks, and forwarded to Winnipeg for correction. His Mom's assessment of his progress was quite severe, and the individual in charge at the correspondence branch thought that she was a bit harsh". He completed the year in the top 10% in the province and was enrolled again in a correspondence course for grade four in the fall of 1942.

Later, Cecille remarried to Gudjon Gudjonsson (John Johnson), and had two additional children. At some point, they moved from Sipiwesk Lake to Thicket Portage. There she served as post mistress of Thicket Portage for many years as well as co-owner of Johnson's General Store. She took an active interest in the life of the community and the well-being of her family.  In 1971, her and John retired and moved to Winnipeg.

Cecille was a hard working, independent woman, with a wide variety of interests and skills. She had a sense of adventure which she indulged through travel in her later years. When she was 73, she participated in a canoe trip with my dad, down the Beren's River.

Cecille passed away in Winnipeg, Manitoba March 2001.