Early Coon Prairie — Per and Matthias Evensen

General Store on Coon Prairie owned by Peder Evenson (Gullord)

The settlers on Coon Prairie mostly came from Biri, Gudbransdal (especially from Øiers parish) Flekkefjord, South Land, and Upper Telemark. The greatest part was composed of those from Biri. Accelerated by Even Gullord’s well-written, exhorting letters there soon was a large immigration of people from Biri, so that in a few years there were just as many people from Biri on Coon Prairie and in neighboring settlements as in Biri in Norway. On the 16 June 1849 came Even’s father, Ole Tostensen Gullord with his fine sons, Tosten Olsen Vestbøe (Westby) and Henrik Olsen Gullord, Hans Knudsen Ramsrud together with Per and Matthias G. Evensen. After a journey of 15 weeks they arrived 1 October on Coon Prairie.

After a few years stay on Coon Prairie, Per and Matthias Evensen went to Minnesota and in 1853 came to the spot where later the city of St. Peter was built. At that time it was only an Indian village, but a couple of Americans had recently taken claims there. Soon after the Evensen brothers arrived, one of the Americans was fatally wounded in a dispute concerning his claim. The Indians seized the murderers, tarred and feathered them and otherwise mistreated them and chased them away from the area. Per and Matthias Evensen cared as well as they could for the wounded man until he died. For their kindness he turned over his claim to them. That claim lies where St. Peter’s best homes now are, and here these Biris built the first house in St. Peter. In July 1857 the legislature decided to name St. Peter the state capital. In the boom which followed the Evensens were offered $40,000 for their claim, but they refused it, since they thought they could get much more for it by selling lots. But by an unusual political trick the decision of the legislature was changed and St. Paul became the capital instead of St. Peter. Disappointed in his hopes, Per Evensen returned to Coon Prairie. Matthias Evensen however remained in Minnesota and became an important man. He enlisted when the Indian war began in 1862, became a sergeant, and took part in many bloody battles. He also served during the hanging of 38 leaders of the Indian uprising. Thereafter he took part in the Civil War.