Spinning Up History

For most of the early pioneers traveling across the ocean to make a new life in America, some of the hardest decisions may have come with it was time to pack their trunks. How does one decide between life’s necessities and family treasures when entering into a new chapter?

Sigri Slinden's spinning wheel in the Samstad Cabin at the Meeker County Museum.

One of the things often packed in those trunks was a spinning wheel. Not only did these wheels have a practical use in the making of yarn, but they were often family heirlooms as well. Here’s a closer look at two of the spinning wheels found at the Meeker County Museum and the people who used and appreciated them.  

The first spinning wheel has the name of Sigri Olsdotter Slinden and 1843 painted on the side. Sigri would have been about seventeen years old, living in Norway. A few years later, she married Peter Overvig. They would have one daughter who died young. Peter also died some years before Sigri decided to move to Minnesota.

Sigri and her spinning wheel crossed the ocean in 1868. She came to live with her brother Haldo Slinden in Acton Township. She never remarried, but as Haldo and his wife had eight children, Aunt Sigri and her spinning wheel may have kept busy spinning yarn and making clothes for her nieces and nephews.

Sigri was also a great-aunt to the Samstad children who donated their family cabin and furnishings to the Museum, so it is fitting that the wheel is displayed in the cabin. Sigri lived until the age of 97.

The second spinning wheel is one of the Museum’s favorite things to share with our school field trips. Not only is the wheel one of the oldest documented items in the Museum, it also has a great story. The wheel is from at least 1812. It was donated by the Danielson family along with a unique history. During a war between Norway and Sweden in 1812, a Norwegian soldier came to the home of a Danielson ancestor in Norway. Some Swedish soldiers were after him, and he was looking for a place to hide. Luckily, the home had a trapdoor, and the man hid inside. A rug and the spinning wheel were then placed over the trapdoor. When the enemy arrived, all they found was a woman diligently working at her spinning wheel.

A few decades later, that same spinning wheel was brought to America and Meeker County by Nils and Ragnild Danielson. The wheel had been used to spin yarn out of all kinds of fibers including hair from sheep, goats, alpaca, yak, cow, dog, rabbit, and even camel. Ragnild and her daughter Helen also spun flax, which they wove into linen. A piece of their handmade fabric is also on display at the Museum.

Stop by the Museum to see these items and so much more. We also hope this might encourage you to take a minute and document the history of your own family heirlooms.