Nils Olsen…Life was hard way back then

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By Eva Hallam Solberg

Published in PCN November 9, 1978

Nils Olsen has lived a long, hard life. He is 96 years old (in 1978). He shares a room in the local rest home with another elderly gentleman. His hearing and sight have gone bad, but once in awhile his eyes clear up enough so he can read a little. And “no one can take a feller’s memories from him.”

Nils was born and lived in Ruskilda, near Copenhagen, Denmark, until he was 26 years old. His family owned a small farm of a few acres, and his father worked in the brick yards to make ends meet. Nils, his brother and four sisters, shared chores on the farm. Their schooling lasted seven years. He remembers a few of the teachers during those years. One in particular sticks in his memory as being pretty rough on him. Later, another teacher came along with whom Nils got along better.

Read the rest of this story & many more in
"Looking Back Again: Life Stories from the Prairies of Montana"
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Volume 1
Volume 2
Volume 3

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