Johan Torvald Norby

   Another name for Johan was J Torval.

  Research Notes:

1. Birth - Norway Parish Records

- father, Halvor Nordby; mother Pernille Persdtr
- not sure of witness
- baptism - not clear, but likely 12/12; also not sure what the "third column is", possiblly the day it was recorded

2. Marriage - 1907

- J Torval (it appears that this is how he recorded his name and was known as)
- resident of Bellingham, Whatcom Co
- Julia, of Kitsap Co
- witness - Henry Norby


3. US Census
1900 - with his parents

a. 1910 - Poulsbo, Kitsap, Co, WA, ancestry p 35

- T John Norby, wife Julia age 29 <1881> emigrated 1888, married 2 years, 2 children, J Theophulus age 2 <1908>, M Pernille age 1/12 <March 1910>
- John - Minister, Church; emigration 1887, Na;
- rent

b. 1920 US Census
- J Torval Norby, wife Julia emigration 1898 (1898 recorded for Torval also
- Minister, Norwegian Lutheran
- children: Theophilus age 11, Pernille age 9, Ester age 8, Marie age 5, Valborg age 4, Phillip age 3, Edna age 1
- 1312 Franklin Street; rent

c. 1930 US Census
- Torval pastor Lutheran Church; Julia
- 1312 Franklin St; rent; no radio
- children: Pernille (but a faint line and just above Ester) age 20, Marie age 15, Valborg 14, Phillip age 13, Edna age 11, Josephine age 9, Joseph age 9


------ according to WA births, 1907-1919, ancestry.com
- one unnamed boy born in 1913 - stillborn -- WA Digital - Death Records
- May 1915 - 5th, Marie --- and then 15th, Pauline -- ??? --- Pauline isn't listed again, so died before 1920 US Census, before 1 Jan 1920


3. WA Digital Death Records

- father Halvor Norby; mother Pernille Skaaret; wife Julia

4. Torvald Norby Obits - Seattle Times, 5 & 9 Sept 1945

9 Sept 1945
- 63 years old of 509 North 42nd Street
- funeral at Phinney Ridge Lutheran Church; interment at Pacific Lutheran Cemetery
- (Sept 9 it is written that he died Friday - that would be Sept 7)
- he was Superintendent of Seattle Seamen's Mission at 107 Columbia Street

5 Sept 1945
- paster of Seattle Seamen's Mission -- started in 1938
- widely known
- died in hospital after a short illness
- trained for the ministry at St Olaf's College [MN] and completed his work at Redwing College and Seminary in MN
- prior to Seamen's Mission, pastorates in Bellingham from 1913-1933; also a minister at Poulsbo [WA]


- survived by wife Julia (509 N 42 St); six Daughters, Mrs Edna Haavik, Mrs Josephine Johnson and Mrs Pernile Crout all of Seattle; Mrs Valbourg Grande of Tacoma; Mrs Esther Meyer and Mrs Marie Looysen of Bellingham; 3 Sons, Sergt Philip Norby, USMC, serving overseas; Joesph Norby, serving overseas with the Navy; Theordore Norby of Ashland, OR; 10 grandchildren; 2 brothers; 3 sisters

Julia Norby obit, Tacoma News Tribune, 1967
- born in Norway, Haugesund, Rogaland [about 100+ kms south of Bergen, 600 kms west of Olso]
- died at age 86, at her Seattle home
- moved to Seattle in 1938 (after her husband's retirement from Bellingham)
- survived by sons Phillip of Tacoma, Dr Thoe of San Jose, CA, and Joseph of Seattle; 5 daughters, Mrs Otis Grande of Tacoma, Mrs Frank O Rollinger, Mrs Orvall Looysen and Mrs Paul D Fiorito, all of Seattle, Mrs Elroy C Meyer of Bellingham, and Mrs Obert Haavik of Portland


5. Research

a. Seattle Seaman's Mission, from the Seattle Times
3 Sept 1938, p 7, col 3
- "veteran" 31 years of the Ministry in Western WA;
- recently ended 20 yrs of service at American Central Lutheran Church in Bellingham;
- came to the US at age 5 and became a Washington resident on Nov 10, 1889 a day before the territory became a state
- his father cleared a home in Hoodsport
- attended St Olaf College; then graduated from Redwing Theological Seminary in 1907

b. Whatcom County Genealogy (http://wagenweb.org/whatcom; Dec 2010)
Church History - Bellingham
- pastor at Bellingham Bay Lutheran Church - started in the fall of 1907 and ended abt 1909 (he was there for 2 years
- returned to Bellingham in the fall of 1918 - paster with Bethlehem Evangelical Lutheran Church (formed with the joining of the synods in 1917) and continued there to 1938 - the church was renamed to American Central Lutheran Church in 1928

c. Seattle Daily Times
- there are numerous notices of Rev Norby as guest pastor at various churches, but mostly at Phinney Ridge Lutheran Church

d.
- he was a minister at Poulsbo, Kitsap Co from about 1909 to 1918
- 1910 Census - Poulsbo
- Pernille, Ester, Edna, Phillip, Valborg were born in Kitsap Co
[ 24 Dec 2010 ] no information on the Kitscap Co USGenWeb page



6. US WW I Draft Registration, 12 Sept 1918

- birth as 8 Dec 1881
- address: 1464 Iron [Ivan] St, Bellingham
- Lutheran pastor, Bethelem Lutheran Congregation, Bellingham
- nearest relative - Julia, address as above
- height and build - medium; eyes blue; hair dark

7. RL Polk, Bellingham

- 1936, p 153 - as below
- 1937, p 148 - 1312 Franklin St; Rev J Torval, American Central Lutheran; Wife Julia T; also at the same address, Edna D student, Marie P saleswoman, Pernille M, Phillip S driver with Brown and Cole, Valborg teacher
- 1938, p157 - as above, but with Pernille M as a Nurse, Phillip S as a student

- not listed in 1939


8. Pastor at Bellingham Bay Lutheran ... 1907-1909

from Olaf M Norlie's book, page 306
https://archive.org/details/norsklutherskemevol2norl/page/306/mode/1up
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  Noted events in his life were:

1. Emigration - 1887: Leaving: Trysil, Hedmark, Norway. ³⁶³⁰

2. Residence - 1910, 15 Apr 1910, Poulsbo, Kitsap Co, Washington, United States. ³⁸⁴¹

3. Residence - 1920, 1 Jan 1920, Bellingham, Whatcom Co, Washington, United States. ³⁸⁴²

4. Residence - 1930, 1 Apr 1930, Bellingham, Whatcom Co, Washington, United States. ³⁸⁴³

5. Residence - 1936-1938, 1936-1938, Bellingham, Whatcom Co, Washington, United States. ³⁸⁴⁴

Johan married Julia Jacobson, daughter of Unknown and Unknown, on 14 Jul 1907 in Kitsap Co, Washington, United States.³⁸³² (Julia Jacobson was born about 1881 in Haugesund, Rogaland, Norway ³⁸⁴⁵ and died on 10 Jul 1967 in Seattle, King Co, Washington, United States ³⁸⁴⁵.)