Wang Township Time Line, Renville Co., MN ========================================================================= USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, material may be freely used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material, AND permission is obtained from the contributor of the file. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by other organizations. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material for non-commercial purposes, MUST obtain the written consent of the contributor, OR the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. If you have found this file through a source other than the MNArchives Table Of Contents you can find other Minnesota related Archives at: http://www.usgwarchives.net/mn/mnfiles.htm Please note the county and type of file at the top of this page to find the submitter information or other files for this county. FileFormatted by Terri--MNArchives Made available to The USGenWeb Archives by: Barbara Pierce Submitted: June 1999 ========================================================================= 1862 - The Indians had been removed from the area after the uprising of 1862. However, they trickled back to their old homes and occasionally visited the settlers. 1867 (June) - The township was first settled by white men. Previously only nomadic Indians and perhaps an occasional trapper were in the area. The first group of settlers had their origin in the area or near Oslo, Norway, then known as Kristiania. They were followed by an influx, which were predominantly from the Valdres Valley of Norway, most of them from the area of Vang. It was these people that gave the township its name. 1868 - The first Lutheran church to be organized was the Vestre Sogn congregation which was organized as a part of Our Savior's congregation of Sacred Heart. 1871 - The organization of the second Lutheran congregation in Wang Township was Hawk Creek. 1873 (about) - The New Lisbon Post Office was established in Section 6. Christopher Hutchins was first postmaster. 1873-1877 - Grasshoppers ravaged the area, some years destroying the entire crop and even eating into fork handles and logs of buildings. 1881 - Our Savior's Lutheran Church was constructed, Section 21. Prior to that, the congregation met in homes and in schoolhouses. C. O. Narvestad contributed the two acres of land. 1892 - The Wang Church was built on land donated by A. T. Ellingboe, Section 9. 1894 - The Vestre Sogn Lutheran Church became associated with the First Lutheran congregation of Granite Falls. 1913 (July) - Our Savior's Lutheran Church was struck by lightning and burned to the ground. By that time Hawk Creek congregation had been formed so Vestre Sogn congregation was disbanded. 1915 - Vestre Sogn Cemetery Association was organized and a small chapel was built. 1920 - The population was 674. 1930 - The population was 656. 1940 - The population was 560. 1947 - Number of landowners 185. 1979 - The population was 329 due to the exodus during and after World War II, combined with lower birth rates. Number of landowners 148.