Peer Stromme
Encyclopedia
Peer Stromme also Per Olsen Strømme (September 15, 1856 - September 15, 1921) was an American pastor, teacher, journalist, and author.
to immigrant parents from Norway
; Ole and Eli Haugen. Stromme graduated from Luther College (Iowa)
and attended Concordia Theological Seminary
. In 1879, he was ordained into the Lutheran ministry. He subsequently held a teaching post at St. Olaf College
. Peer Stromme was editor of Norden, a Norwegian language paper in Chicago
. Additionally he was the founding editor of the Norwegian language newspaper Dagbladet
. He also translated books for the John Anderson Publishing Company
in Chicago
and the Lutheran Publishing House of Decorah, Iowa
.
Stromme was the author of several books written in the Norwegian language which explored the Norwegian immigrant experience. His articles appeared in the Norwegian-American literary magazine, Symra
. Stomme was influenced in his writing style by other Norwegian American writers who had provided a truthful renditions of the lives of immigrant settlers, in particular Hans Andersen Foss
. Stomme employed many major themes common to immigrant fiction, including the process of settling and assimilating into a new culture. His settings are detailed and realistic, with his books frequently depicting individuals who are at odds with society. He is best remembered for his 1896 novel Hvorledes Halvor blev prest. It was translated and published into English as Halvor: A Story of Pioneer Youth by David T. Nelson (1891-1969), Professor of English at Luther College
.
Biography
Peer Olson Strømme was born in Winchester, WisconsinWinchester, Winnebago County, Wisconsin
Winchester is a town in Winnebago County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,676 at the 2000 census. The census-designated place of Winchester is located in the town...
to immigrant parents from Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
; Ole and Eli Haugen. Stromme graduated from Luther College (Iowa)
Luther College (Iowa)
Luther College is a four-year, residential liberal arts institution of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, located in Decorah, Iowa, USA...
and attended Concordia Theological Seminary
Concordia Theological Seminary
The Concordia Theological Seminary is an institution of theological higher education of The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod , located in Fort Wayne, Indiana, dedicated primarily to the preparation of pastors for the congregations and missions of the LCMS...
. In 1879, he was ordained into the Lutheran ministry. He subsequently held a teaching post at St. Olaf College
St. Olaf College
St. Olaf College is a coeducational, residential, four-year, private liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota, United States. It was founded in 1874 by a group of Norwegian-American immigrant pastors and farmers, led by Pastor Bernt Julius Muus. The college is named after Olaf II of Norway,...
. Peer Stromme was editor of Norden, a Norwegian language paper in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
. Additionally he was the founding editor of the Norwegian language newspaper Dagbladet
Dagbladet (Chicago)
Dagbladet was an influential American daily newspaper published in the Norwegian language in Chicago from 1889-1891....
. He also translated books for the John Anderson Publishing Company
John Anderson (publisher)
-Career:John Anderson was born in Voss, in Søndre Bergenhus Amt, Norway. He was brought by his parents to Chicago in 1845. John Anderson became a printer and in the 1860s he began to print books as well as job printing. Anderson worked initially for the Chicago Tribune...
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
and the Lutheran Publishing House of Decorah, Iowa
Decorah, Iowa
Decorah is a city in and the county seat of Winneshiek County, Iowa, United States. The population was 8,172 at the 2000 census. Decorah is located at the intersection of State Highway 9 and U.S...
.
Stromme was the author of several books written in the Norwegian language which explored the Norwegian immigrant experience. His articles appeared in the Norwegian-American literary magazine, Symra
Symra
Symra was a Norwegian language periodical published between in 1905 and 1914.Symra; En Aarbog for Norske Paa Begge Sider Af Havet was established to publish the literary works of Norwegian American authors, writers and poets. Johannes B...
. Stomme was influenced in his writing style by other Norwegian American writers who had provided a truthful renditions of the lives of immigrant settlers, in particular Hans Andersen Foss
Hans Andersen Foss
Hans Andersen Foss was an American author, newspaper editor and temperance leader. Born the son of a small tenant farmer in 1851 in Modum, Buskerud county, Norway, Foss immigrated to the United States in 1887.-Biography:...
. Stomme employed many major themes common to immigrant fiction, including the process of settling and assimilating into a new culture. His settings are detailed and realistic, with his books frequently depicting individuals who are at odds with society. He is best remembered for his 1896 novel Hvorledes Halvor blev prest. It was translated and published into English as Halvor: A Story of Pioneer Youth by David T. Nelson (1891-1969), Professor of English at Luther College
Luther College (Iowa)
Luther College is a four-year, residential liberal arts institution of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, located in Decorah, Iowa, USA...
.
Selected works
- Hvorledes Halvor blev prest (How Halvor became a pastor) (1894)
- Unge Helgeson (Young Helgeson) (1906)
- Den vonde ivold (In the Clutches of the Devil) (1910)
- Erindringer / av Peer Strømme (Reminiscences of Peer Strømme ) (1923)
Additional sources
- Scandinavian Immigrant Literature (Christer Lennart Mossberg, Boise State University Boise, Idaho, 1981)
- The Memoirs of Peer Stromme, (Originally published as Erindringer / av Peer Strømme translated by Dr. Neil T. Eckstein. Minneapolis, Minn: Augsburg Publishing House)
- Peer Stromme's Noraville Stories, (translated by Karl J. Schulz, Gerald Thorson, Neil T. Eckstein, Winchester Academy Ethnic Heritage Monographs. 1977)
- Halvor: A Story of Pioneer Youth, (translation by David T. Nelson. Decorah, IA: Luther College Press 1960)
- The Western Home: A Literary History of Norwegian-America, (Chapter 13 titled "Knut Teigen and Peer Stromme, Natives of Wisconsin". by Orm Øverland. Northfield, MN: The Norwegian-American Historical Association, 1996)