6.25 linear feet (5
archival boxes and 1 oversize folder)
Henry Langum was the son of Johan (John) Johanneson and Kari
Nerisdatter (Folsland) Langum, Norwegian immigrants who settled in
Lake County, South Dakota. Mr. Langum was born February 13, 1882 in
Volga, South Dakota (1st Langum to be born in South Dakota). Mr.
Langum was a teacher, minister and chiropractic. He married Anna G.
Nelson and had three children.
Correspondence, news clippings, book chapters and photographs.
Letters are from Henry and Anna to John, with a few from John,
Virginia, Artsie and Georgene (DoDo within the family). Also
included are incoming correspondence and letters between Henry and
Anna. Henry’s schooling from grade school thru college including
Theological School and Chiropractic School. His life during his
years as a minister, teacher, and chiropractic. The letters are
always full of family news, keeping John up on activities with his
parents and his sisters and their families. He keeps close track of
his financial situation, how much he is working and spending.
Contains St. Olaf yearbooks from the years 1905, 1906, 1908, 1909.
Accounts of visits to South Dakota and California and later to New
Jersey. Comments re: his book with chapters from the book. Frequent
references to family health problems and his facial pain and
problems eating. Anna’s letters are shorter, less frequent and
usually deal with her activities, the house, Henry or the family.
Her letters from California and New York tell of her activities.
There is also a scrapbook from Anna’s trip to California from
February to May 1944. Anna and Henry both clipped articles relating
to economics, politics and Minneapolis news to send to John. Their
letters show their devotion to each other and to their children.
Also included are their financial reports that are sent to their
son, John. Anna and Henry‘s last illnesses and deaths.
Correspondence to and from Henry and Anna would also be in the
John K. Langum Collection and David J. Langum Collection
Access: Open for research Acc. No. 2003-22, 2005-1, 2008-1 Processed by: Connie Butts and David Langum, October 2003
Debbie Hamm and David Langum, May, 2005; March, 2008;
January 2010
Henry Langum was the son of John (Johan) Johanneson (born January
21, 1838 in Drammen, Norway and died February 14, 1883 in South
Dakota) and Kari Nerisdatter (Folsland) (born in Telemarken, Norway
and died February 10, 1911) Langum, Norwegian immigrants who settled
in Lake County, South Dakota. Mr. Langum was born February 13, 1882
in Volga, South Dakota (1st Langum to be born in South Dakota). His
father died the day after his first birthday, so Henry grew up
working on the family farm and his formal education was slow to
start, but his education continued for much of his life. He attended
country school until 1899 when he then attended South Dakota
Agricultural Preparatory Department until 1901. He then taught at a
country school in Brookings County, South Dakota from 1901-1902
until he started at St. Olaf Academy (1902-1905). From the Academy,
he went on to attend St. Olaf College where he graduated in 1909
with a Bachelor of Science degree. During the time that he attended
St. Olaf College, he was a member of the St. Olaf Octet (1908-1909),
predecessor to the St. Olaf Choir, and taught physiology at the
Academy. After graduating from the Universal Chiropractic College
(1911) he opened his practice in Story City, Iowa. He taught public
school in Big Timber, Montana (1912-1913). On January 31, 1912 he
married Anna Georgena Nelson in Stanhope, Iowa. He practiced
chiropractic, in Sheridan, Wyoming from 1913-1916. After receiving
his Candidate of Theology Degree in 1919 from Luther Theological
Seminary (1916-1919), Henry took Anna to North Dakota where he
served over two congregations in Driscoll until 1921 when they
returned to Minnesota. In Litchfield, Minn. he served as pastor of
the Ness Lutheran Church, 1922-1929, and taught biology at the high
school, 1923-1943. From 1943 to 1946, Mr. Langum worked as a wartime
airplane parts inspector at the Honeywell Regulator Plant in
Minneapolis. He practiced chiropractic in private practice and with
Dr. Bly for most of the rest of his life. In 1940, he was awarded
Honorary Degree of Fellow of the International College of
Chiropractic. He also spent many years working on a book of his
religious and philosophical beliefs that was never published.
He and Anna had three children: John Kenneth, Arlene (Artsie)
Harriet and Georgene (DoDo) Wyoming. John (June 18, 1913-February
26, 1998) an economist was a vice president of the Federal Reserve
Bank in Chicago. He married Virginia de Mattos and they had one son
David J. Langum, a lawyer, legal historian and professor. Artsie
(Jan. 9, 1923-December 11, 1998) an accountant, married Charles
Wright and had two sons: Charles and Thomas. They moved to New
Jersey in1958 and worked in New York City. Georgene (Jan. 6,
1916-July 30, 1978), an accountant, married Justin Darby and had two
sons: John and James. Anna had relatives in Los Angeles, Ca. and she
liked to visit there in the winter sometimes with Henry. Henry’s
problem with tic doloreaux or trigeminal neuralgia caused him much
pain and sometimes kept him at home. In 1966 Anna fell and broke her
arm which led to complications from which she died March 18, 1967.
Henry frequently wrote, when Anna was visiting or at one of her
numerous club activities, “Mom is gone and I don’t like to be
alone”. Not liking to be alone, he died a month later on April 9,
1967.
Anna Georgina, daughter of John G. and Elizabeth (Munson) Nelson
was born February 22, 1884 in Hamilton County, Iowa. She was a
teetotaler and a devout Republican. She attended the Iowa State
Normal and Jewell College and also attended St. Olaf (1907-1908) as
a music student. While at St. Olaf’s she sang in the church choir
(the first one of St. Olaf Choirs). As a wife and mother she was
active in church, PTA, Woman Chorus and different study groups.