Ida Apalseth was born on December 18, 1896 in Litløy, Norway to Ole Pedersen and Herborg Johnsen. Litløy is on an island in northern Norway. Ole owned a bakery in addition to selling fish and working as a mailman, and Herborg was a homemaker. Ida had three sisters-Aslaug, Dagmar, and Herborg-and two brothers-Martin and Halfdan. Ida was the eldest and Herborg the youngest. Herborg and their mother died a week after Herborg's birth; Ida was only six. When Ida was twelve, her father remarried and had eight more children. The family was fairly well off and had several workers; at times, there would be eighteen people at the dinner table. After Ida was confirmed, she and her sister moved to Trondheim, where Ida got a babysitting job. Not fully satisfied in Trondheim, Ida decided to immigrate to Petersburg, Alaska, where her older half-sister from her father's first marriage lived.
Ida left Norway in November 1916; she was nineteen years old. From Ellis Island, New York, Ida took the train to Seattle, Washington, where she was supposed to meet a woman, Molly, who would help her get to Alaska. When Ida and Molly contacted Ida's sister in Alaska, she told them that the weather there was awful and Ida should just stay in Seattle if she could obtain employment. Ida followed her advice and found a housekeeping job with the family of a retired Navy officer within a week. Ida was very fond of Seattle and joined a mixed Norwegian group that met at the Norway Hall. She continued to work for this family for nine months and then got a cleaning job at the Potter Hotel on James Street. A boy from Ida's hometown had immigrated as well and joined the U.S. Navy. He was stationed in Bremerton, Washington, and Ida met her husband, Andrew Apalseth, through him. Andrew was also born in Norway. He and Ida were married on April 1920 at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Seattle and then moved to Tacoma. They had one daughter, Olive (Rudsil). Once in Tacoma, Ida joined the Daughters of Norway and attended Bethlehem Lutheran Church. She returned to Norway once in 1973.
Lineage
Full Name: Ida Pauline Pedersen Apalseth. Maiden Name: Ida Pauline Pedersen.. Father Ole B. Pedersen. Mother: Herborg Johnsen Paternal. Grandfather: Peder Kristian Olsen. Paternal Grandmother: Maria Inbjør Olsen. Maternal Grandfather: Albrigt Johnsen. Maternal Grandmother: Laura Johnsen. Brothers and Sisters: Aslaug Marie Pedersen. Dagmar Pedersen. Halfdan Pedersen. Herborg Pedersen. Martin Pedersen. Half Brothers and Sisters: Ole Pedersen. Solvieg Pedersen. Vilhelm Pedersen. Edgar Pedersen. Margot Pedersen. Kristofer Pedersen. Olive Pedersen. Spouse: Andrew Apalseth. Children: Olive Apalseth Rudsil.
From the guide to the Ida Pauline Apalseth Oral History Interview, 1982, (Robert A.L. Mortvedt Library Scandinavian Immigrant Experience Collection Archives and Special Collections Department)
