These stories can also be heard on Sunday mornings around 10 am on WILD 102’s “Look Back in Time” program. Each week’s radio story will be posted here on our website.
Weekly radio stories are researched, compiled, and read by Sheila Winstead, RCHS Board Member.
November 24, 2024
I’ll continue reading from Edna Broten’s story of her childhood in the Fugleberg family from Fox.
She and Henry Broten’s recollections of their lives and stories of their parents and grandparents are
compiled in a binder. A copy is in the family research area at the Roseau County Museum.
“I learned how to make feather pillows, our geese supplied us with many feathers. The pillows were easy
to make. Ma would corral the geese, turn the goose backside down in her lap and pick the feathers, of
course the ones by the neck were the best. It wasn’t long and we all learned how to do this. Naked geese
were the funniest ever. The first time I saw a naked goose, I was wondering if it was going to stay that
way and be cold. Wasn’t long and the feathers grew back. The sheep supplied us with the wool. We
would sell the wool, but kept some for making quilts. I remember Ma was walking from the chicken coop
with her apron full of eggs; she and the Ram (buck) must not have been friends. That Ram came right
behind her, bucked her and the eggs went flying and down Ma went with a bath of eggs all over her. A lot
of Norwegian words came out of her mouth that day. I knew what they were, too.
Whenever Pa went to town, usually Badger, he would always come home with prunes, no matter what
else he had to go for. Fruit soup (Sotsuppe) was such a family favorite. Us kids would always call the
tapioca frog eyes because it swelled. I can taste it now. So good. Because we raised our own cows, we
always had an abundance of milk, cream and butter. I grew up on Rommegrot. At Christmas time,
sometimes Ma would hide an almond in it and whoever found it, you would be rich. I never found it, but I
always felt rich because we had strong family values and good health. Svensakka, as we called it, was
made with flour, buttermilk, soda and salt. I always thought this was better than lefsa. Lily had an art in
making this thin bread. I usually made the lefsa and doughnuts. Potet Klubb (potato dumplings) was a
good family standby. Ma always put a cube of pork in the center. With all the boys around they were as
big as baseballs. She had to keep them full. The best part of the potet klubb was frying it up in the
morning and serving it with butter. I like that the best, we would fry up bacon with it. Ma always had the
coffee on and taught me her way of [making] egg coffee. Yes, I gained a reputation of the best coffee
around. We always celebrated birthdays, nobody was left out. A white cream cake with chocolate
frosting was the tradition. No matter whose birthday it was we celebrated. I remember the Mickleson
brothers and their Mom came for a visit. Out came Ma’s cream cake with chocolate frosting. It was one
of their birthdays and it was a surprise for them. They were so surprised, and I don’t think anyone had
ever done anything like that for them before. It was such a fun day. Daisy, Pa’s horse had a colt and it was
born on my 16 th birthday. 1930, I believe. I will never forget that. It was the nicest birthday present I ever
had. I got to name the horse and we called her Polly. We used to hook Daisy and Polly to the toboggan
and buggy. They were hard-working horses for fieldwork, too. We had fun with them, too. Julia loved to
ride the horses; oh, there was a time or two she fell off. After toboggan rides, coming into the house to
the aroma of hot chocolate simmering on the old wood stove along with soup and dumplings was the
best. The busiest time on the farm was from April-October. We cleaned in the spring. Washed out lace
curtains, beat the heck out of the wool rugs, wash the quilts, it was a time when Ma wanted everything
fresh. We canned as the garden grew. We canned meat. We cured pork. We hayed and jumped in the
hay piles. We helped with the harvest. We worked hard. My teen years were fun and happy years. We
always had company so us kids played a lot of games, especially softball. When I finished school, I stayed
at home with Pa & Ma. I helped Ma with housework, baking and cooking. I worked as a babysitter for my
brother Earl and took care of my brothers, Merlin and Floyd. Earl was a rambunctious one. He wandered
away from the farm one day. We looked and looked for him. We even had the neighbors looking for him.
He was around 4 years old. It was getting dark and we were all getting so worried. Then we saw Mrs.
Higdem coming from the road, carrying him in her arms. He was crying, he had berry leftovers all around
his mouth. She found him sleeping by some berry bushes. We were so thankful. We all cried, too. Earl’s
favorite recipe of mine is my white bread. He doesn’t think you can find that kind of bread around
anymore by anyone. Even on their visits, he and Carolyn appreciated fresh bread.
On weekends I took confirmation with Pastor Quanbeck and was confirmed on November 10, 1929.
Thank you to 
for letting us share our county’s history with your listeners by donating air time, studio time, and production staff every week.