Manfred History & Preservation, Inc.
Ole and Charlotte Brecto
Husband's Full Name: Ole A. Brecto
Husband's Place of Birth: Columbia County, Wisconsin, USA
Husband's Father's Name: Ole Anderson Brecto
Husband's Mother's Name: Margit Olson Aadalen
Husband's Siblings' Names: unknown
Wife's Full Name: Charlotte Marie Berglund-Stokes-Jacobson
Wife's Place of Birth: Aardahl, Stokke, Hetland, Rogaland, Norway
Wife's Father's Name: Jacob Jacobson
Wife's Mother's Name: Malene Samuelsdater-Gausell
later married to Gabriel T. Gedrose
Wife's Siblings' Names: Anna Bergland, Solomon Andrew Berglund Stokes, Half siblings Tollak Jakobsen, Thaulow Gedrose
Children: Oscar Julius, Mabel Margit, Albert Thorwald, Chester Orlando, Elmer Hamlin, Darwin Royal.
Ole was born of Norwegian born parents on a farm in Columbia County, Wisconsin. His family settled in Wisconsin and they were farmers. Ole was the second born in his family. He attended country school. He operated his father’s farm in Wisconsin for ten years prior to moving to North Dakota. In Wisconsin he was the first to experiment in raising tobacco and had a successful crop.
In 1887 he took a preemption and tree claim in Wells County. He erected a claim shanty and lived there alone the first year. He has three horses, a plow and a wagon and some machinery. He hauled supplies from Sykeston, fifteen miles.
Ole and Charlotte were married in 1889 in Montana, according the marriage records of that state. She immigrated to America in 1888. Six children were born to this family. They youngest of these children were born while they were living in James River, Wells, ND (Manfred). They homesteaded first in Manfred Township #149 and then in Fairville, Township 148.