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Back in Holden, Oline faced the censure of church members. She claimed that her treatment amounted to "torture-a-plenty." A formal March 1881 meeting was held to determine if Oline should be ousted from the church for disobeying her husband. She argued that a wife did not owe blind obedience to her
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Oline Pind Muus's family was part of Norway's upper class. She received an excellent education. Oline displayed interest in her husband's work and was a devout
Lutheran. Her background made her a worldly, spirited person. A contemporary noted that Oline yearned for more than a life among sturdy but
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While Muus dealt with challenges presented by
American culture, his marriage to Oline floundered. Life in remote Holden was difficult compared to Oline's comfortable youth. Her husband had little time for her and their children. During winter, Bernt allowed only a single room and the kitchen to be
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In early
December 1879, Oline brought suit against Bernt. To better support their children, she wanted access to an inheritance left by her father. Bernt had taken the funds, believing they were his to control. In a time when a married woman's legal rights were still precarious, a wife's lawsuit
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for what she considered trivial matters. He also stopped her from going back to Norway to visit her family, saying that wives with such demands should be sent to St. Peter (an asylum for the insane). Prior to Oline's request to travel, Bernt had visited Norway alone.
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Bernt also faced questioning from the membership. An estimated one thousand people attended a
February 1880 meeting held mainly to consider dismissing him. During an 1882 gathering, the congregation voted seventy-three to thirty-seven to retain him.
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When Oline broke her leg in 1877 while pregnant with their sixth child, Bernt advised her to let "patience be your liniment." In
November 1878, the day her husband dedicated St. Olaf's Old Main building, their ailing twelve-year-old son died of
117:'s nineteenth century Norwegian-Lutheran community was a rarity. Legal separation between a leading pastor and his wife was unheard of. But an 1879 court case in Holden Township led to both those outcomes, and triggered a public debate about
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The court ruled that the statute of limitations had run out on the first of Oline's two estate payments. Bernt could keep the initial sum but would have to repay her the second portion, around $ 1,118. On May 5, 1882, in the case
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and stern manner earned him critics. Followers who strayed from the path he laid out could expect severe rebukes. In ministerial matters, however, he often displayed kindness to those in need or distress.
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Muus believed in education for the children of his parishioners, but preferred it to be based on his
Lutheran standards. He created twenty parochial schools for immigrant children. Muus was a founder of
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Pastor Muus had a stroke in the early 1890s that left him partially paralyzed. A neighbor described him as a "sad, lonesome man." Muus decided to return to Norway, where he died on May 25, 1900.
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Qualey, Carlton C. "The
Norwegians." In They Chose Minnesota: A Survey of the State's Ethnic Groups, edited by June Drenning Holmquist, 220–247. St. Paul: Minnesota Historical Society, 1981.
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Fifty
Memorable Years at St. Olaf, Marking the History of the "College on the Hill" from its Founding in 1874 to its Golden Jubilee Celebration in 1925.
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Jarchow, Merrill E. Private
Liberal Arts Colleges in Minnesota: Their History and Contributions. St. Paul: Minnesota Historical Society, 1973.
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Reverend Muus, deeply religious and uncompromising in matters of faith, impressed those who met him. Nevertheless, the minister's unbending
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364:"Biographical Sketch." Unpublished manuscript. Bernt J. Muus Papers, Norwegian-American Association Archives, Northfield, Minnesota.
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Blegen, Theodore C. Norwegian
Migration to America: The American Transition. Northfield, MN: Norwegian-American Association, 1940.
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Shaw, Joseph M. Bernt Julius Muus: Founder of St. Olaf College. Northfield, MN: Norwegian-American Historical Association, 1999.
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Nydahl, Theodore L. "The Early Norwegian Settlement of Goodhue County, Minnesota." M.A. thesis, University of Minnesota, 1929.
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husband. She stated that if God had created women to be slaves, he would not have given them intellect and spiritual ability.
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shortly before their departure for America. Muus, born in 1832, was six years older than his bride. An honors graduate of the
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and his wife Oline arrived in Goodhue County's Holden Township. Muus was to serve Lutherans in Holden, located north of
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Benson, William C. High on Manitou: A History of St. Olaf College, 1874–1949. Northfield: St. Olaf College Press, 1949.
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Richardson, Charles O. "Landmark Cases in Goodhue County." Goodhue County Historical News 15 (February 1981): 4.
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259:. Courts granted her a limited divorce on January 20, 1883. She received $ 150 per year for ten years as
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Ueland, Andreas. Recollections of an Immigrant. New York: Minton, Balch & Company, 1929.
406:"Oline Muus to Holden congregation, February 1880."Budstikken (Minneapolis), March 23, 1880.
263:. Bernt was given custody of the children, who were still minors. In 1896, Oline moved to
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Ronning, Halvor N. The Gospel at Work. Minneapolis: self-published, 1943.
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Manuscript in St. Olaf College Archives, Northfield, Minnesota.
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395:"Men and Attitudes in the Early History of St. Olaf College."
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Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License
372:"Triple Jeopardy: The Muus vs. Muus Case in Three Forums."
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against her clergyman husband stirred public interest.
173:, he came from a line of leading Norwegian clergymen.
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Oline Muus left the Holden congregation and moved to
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at nearby Northfield and became its first president.
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387:Holden Through One Hundred Years, 1856–1956. .
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235:, 29 Minn. 115 (12 N. W. Rep. 343), the
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384:Northfield, MN: Northfield News, 1925.
344:Appel, Livia and Theodore C. Blegen.
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400:(Northfield, MN) 7 (June 1943): 11.
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354:Ayers, Edel Ytterboe.
314:Johnson, Frederick L.
393:Jorgenson, Theodore.
88:May 5, 1882
434:of Muus v. Muss via
380:Grose, Ingebrikt F.
177:uneducated farmers.
265:Fruithurst, Alabama
370:Ericson, Kathryn.
163:Norwegian American
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375:Minnesota History
349:Minnesota History
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141:Oline Muus
125:Background
92:1882-05-05
85:(District)
443:from the
326:March 26,
243:Aftermath
210:communion
153:minister
115:Minnesota
97:(Supreme)
466:licensed
462:MNopedia
320:MNopedia
226:Decision
197:heated.
151:Lutheran
261:alimony
182:pietism
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73:Decided
398:Banner
203:typhus
167:Norway
159:Kenyon
274:Notes
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328:2014
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