News from Heritage Telemark (Press headings to read more).

Genealogy as a hobby is getting more and more popular. University studies and university courses in genealogy get filled up months before they are planned to start. Take a look here to see what Stamford University Library is offering in June 2008.

Have you ever heard about Genealogy Cruises ? Many Genealogcal Societies have annual Genealogy Conferences, but what about Genealogy Cruises ? Some have tried, and it has turned out to be a big success.You might have to book well in advance ! Genealogy Conferences and Genealogy Cruises are the frosting on the cake for many genealogists.

At the Skien - Telemark booth at Norsk Høstfest in Minot, ND we supplied our visitors with brochures and maps from Telemark and from Norway. And we gave answers to hundreds of question about Telemark and about Norway. But we too had questions, did our visitors have roots in Norway, and what did they know about their anchestors. Altogether 324 visitors left their names and addresses at our booth in connection with our free lottery and competitions.

Did you know that the Historical Association at Drangedal in Telemark has put more than 7.000 pictures from Drangedal on the net ?

Some 50 years after the American President Dwight D. Eisenhower asked Americans to reach out to other countries, sister-city relationships are thriving between the U.S. and Norway.

A school in Oungre, Saskatchewan in Canada had a Norwegian Day in October. Many children brought a lot of small Norwegian things with them to school that day, things that came from Norway, maybe long, long time ago. At the school they had lefse, krumkake, flat bread and some Norwegian cheese. And all the children got to know where Norway is on the map.

In case anyone forgets, a time capsule laid in Minot, ND Tuesday Oct. 9, 2007 will remind the next generation of Scandinavian descendants of their heritage.

The Scandinavian Heritage Association (SHA) placed the time capsule next to the Gol Stave Church in the Scandinavian Heritage Park during a ceremony that featured a flag show by youth from Hill Middle School. (See Images/Minot 2007 for more pictures of the ceremony).

At the annual Scandinavian-American Hall of Fame Reception and Banquet in Minot on Oct. 10, 2007 Skien City Attorney, Mr. Rolf Haugen was awarded the recognition as an honorary ambassador for North Dakota.

We invite you to share your family's immigration story with us for the Telemark Heritage database.

America's largest museum devoted to preserving the nation's Nordic heritage moves in the Summer or Fall of 2011 into a new state-of-art facility in Seattle's Ballard District, the heart of the Northwest's Scandinavian community since the 1880's.