Ellen Maria Rusten

   Another name for Ellen was Maria Rusten.

  Research Notes:

I have NOT found a birth/baptism record for Ellen Maria, aka Maria, in the Tolga parish registers [Narbuvoll, Os, Tolga official and copy; I also view Rendal, Trysil and Røros parish births for 1879]. I have view births from about 1878-1880 on at least 3 occasions but have not found her. The only possibility that I have found is a birth/baptism record for Eli Maria, born 12 Sep 1879 and baptised 5 Oct 1879. [Note that the 1880 US Census for Anders Rosten and Marit record Ellen Maria's birth as the month Sep].

The problem this that the parents are recorded as Ole Estensen [b 1828] and Anne Kristine Olsdatter [1836] with residence as Øverhaug. Witnesses include Anne J Nygaard, Katrine R Røsten, Elias T Nygaard.
[Tolga Parish register (copy) no. 4, 1845-1887, p. 77, no 13; link, https://media.digitalarkivet.no/en/view/9225/82 ]

.. Is it possible that the parish priest recorded the wrong parents? That's possible but not likely.

.. Is is possible that the mother, Anne Kristine never fully recovered from giving birth and was too sick to care for the young baby?
This is also a possibility. I checked death records in Tolga parish but Anne Kristine is not recorded between Sep 1879 and May 1880 [I did not look after May 1880].

.. Is is possible that Marit and Anders agreed to take the baby with them to North America? This is also a possibility particularly if the mother was sickly and the father wasn't able to manage a baby.

The three possibilities I mentioned above have no evidence or proof. They are simply my thinking. What I find strange and very unsual is that that if Ellen Maria Rosten, aka Marit, was not baptised, or at least there is no record in the parish registers. There is no explanation for this lack of a record, since the other children of Anders and Marit were all baptised. And, at that time period, almost all children were baptised at least in the rural areas of Norway. Thus, it is very confusing that there is no baptism record for Ellen Maria, daughter of Anders Røsten and Marit Svendsdatter.


A day or year of death for Ellen Maria, aka Maria, is also NOT known. She is last recorded in the 1885 MN State Census with her age as 5 years old. She is Not recorded with the family in the 1895 Census. Did she died between 1885 and 1895 ??? This is the most likely possibility, since the keeping of "vital stats" at this time period is not consistent. And as I have inidcated elsewhere on this family, there are other instances of no records of basic 'facts'.

Note: none of the Family Trees have a detail on Ellen Maria suggests that she died before 1900 in Hennepin Co, MN

  Noted events in her life were:

1. Death unknown, Between 1885 and 1895, Polk Co , Minnesota, United States. Ellen Maria's death is not known. She was recorded with her parents in the 1885 MN State Census at Badger Twp, Polk Co, MN, but she was not recorded with them in the 1895 MN State Census. A reasonable conclusion but in no way a certainity is that she died between these 2 census dates.