Thursday, July 3, 2025
Vol. 160, Issue 27 www.decorahleader.com
Decorah, Iowa 52101 email: editor@decorahleader.com
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Put your blue star in the window... Parents of Decorah area soldiers honored with Blue Star Banners BY ZACH JENSEN STAFF WRITER Decorah area military families were honored Monday night when American Legion Post 163 presented them with Blue Star Service Banners recognizing their sons and daughters who will soon be deployed to the Middle East. “It’s an American tradition to display a Blue Star Service Banner in the window of a home when a loved one is proudly serving in the U.S. Armed
The Bible which was aboard the Restauration during the 1825 voyage is believed to have belonged to a man named Ole Johnson. It and other rare books were on display in March of 2025 as part of a special event. (Photo by Seth Boyes)
‘Mayflower of the North’ sparked mass Norwegian migration
migrated to urban centers Sloop ship where labor and craft persons needed. Eventually even ‘Restauration’ left were those opportunities declined.” More than 50 Norwegian An estimated 800,000 men, immigrants spent almost 100 Stavanger harbor women and children left their days at sea in 1825, hoping homes in Norway beto reach the United States. 200 years ago ancestral tween 1825 and 1930 to pursue The voyage of the small ship life in the New World, accordRestauration is considered the Friday ing to information from Vesfirst ripple in what became a BY SETH BOYES NEWS EDITOR
wave of Norwegian migration to the U.S. — Friday will mark the 200th anniversary of the day that first boatload of immigrants began their trek across the Atlantic Ocean. Displays at Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum in Decorah said resources and opportunities in Norway were becoming increasingly limited during that era. Laws at the time limited inheritance of the family farm to the eldest son and, while improved sanitation, the introduction of a smallpox vaccine and an improved diet led to a healthier populace across Norway, such improvements also resulted in another issue — overpopulation. “Official solutions to an expanding rural population, such as breaking up large farms into smaller units, proved to be only temporary,” information from Vesterheim said. “Young persons, unable to secure a farm or even a job on a farm,
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Tammy Nordheim (left) and Tracy Frieden each received blue star banners for their sons, who will soon be deployed to the Middle East with the Iowa Army National Guard’s 133rd Infantry Regiment (Photo by Zach Jensen)
terheim — the total population of Norway at that time was estimated at approximately 1 million people, and a number of groups eventually settled in areas of the Midwest. “And of course a good number of them found their way to this scenic area, that reminded them so much of their hilly homeland,” an editorial in the July 31, 1975, Decorah Journal said.
The tale of Cleng Peerson Many local newspaper archives cited Norway’s Cleng Peerson as the man who sparked the mass migration. Peerson had traveled extensively in Europe and
Forces,” said Post Commander Jim Bolson. “As Americans support troops deployed overseas, the Blue Star Service Banner is a reminder that war touches every neighborhood. Families are encouraged to display the banner in the window of a home when a loved one is serving in the U.S. Armed Forces.” Each blue star represents one family member serving, and a banner may have up to five stars, according to the American Legion. If an individual is killed in action or dies, a smaller gold star is placed over it, the Legion’s information said. Tammy Nordheim and Tracy Frieden, both of rural Decorah, each received Blue Star Banners
Revision of planned Decorah sports complex reviewed during joint session BY DENISE LANA STAFF WRITER A new paired-down list of design elements for Decorah’s proposed sports complex was reviewed and approved by the Decorah City Council and the city’s parks and recreation board during a joint work session held Monday, June 30. An early July bidletting is planned to expedite potential construction on the 30-acre, $3 million dollar project. The original project bid was unanimously rejected in May
due to estimated costs exceeding the city engineer’s estimate by more than $250,000. The city council and staff then regrouped and began exploring ways to lower the project’s overall price tag. According to Decorah City Manager Travis Goedken, the first bid was submitted as a single lump sum, which he said made it impossible for the city to remove individual items from the project. With the rebid, Goedken recommended the bids be required to include a breakdown of each item and
Visit us online - Norwegian www.decorahnewspapers.com continued on page 10
A pair of commemorative bi-colored stamps were issued by the U.S. Postal Service in 1925 to commemorate the centennial anniversary of organized Norwegian migration to the U.S. The 2-cent stamp issued for the celebration depicted the Restauration, according to information from the Smithsonian National Postal Museum, while the 5-cent commemorative stamp showed a replica of an ancient Viking ship which sailed from Norway to the area of modern-day Chicago around 1893.
its price. Goedken also suggested the project’s elements be separted into one of two categories: base and alternate. The base would include musthave items, with the alternate list comprising a la carte features which could be included if feasible. The bid price for the project would reflect the base items only, with the caveat that no base items could be added or removed once a bid was
Sports complex continued on page 6
FOOD AND CONVERSATION
Oneota Valley Literary Foundation hosts themed dinner to discuss new novel’s themes of loss and connection BY SETH BOYES NEWS EDITOR Some 25 place settings were set in two long rows Saturday night inside the dining room of Blazing Star in Decorah. Placards informed guests three of the seats had been reserved — each one for the same person. Author Daria Lavelle. Saturday’s gathering in the local Water Street restaurant was part of Lavelle’s current book tour. The author’s debut novel “Aftertaste” was released in May. Film rights to the story have already been claimed, and Lavelle has been busy
planning stops in cities like New York, San Francisco, and — as it happens — Decorah. Lavelle crossed paths with Sarah Krammen, programming coordinator with the Oneota Valley Literary Foundation, during a convention in February, and the two connected over Lavelle’s work. “What really gripped me about this book was the idea of communal memory and how food and memory tie us together,” Krammen said. Lavelle was invited to visit Krammen’s community in northeast Iowa and talk about her debut
novel, but with an atypical twist. The visit would be formatted as a dinner event inspired by the underlying theme of Lavelle’s novel — food as a means of connection. “Words, literature, books and storytelling can help you imagine lives that are not your own,” Krammen said. “That’s the heart of what we’re doing here tonight.” Cracking the cover “Aftertaste” centers on a chef
Aftertaste continued on page 13
Dozens of place settings were waiting as guests took their seats Saturday inside Blazing Star to hear from Daria Lavelle, author of “Aftertaste.” (Photo by Seth Boyes)