GRUNNET Family

The GRUNNET's are of Danish origin. Some pronounce the name with the emphasis on the first syllable and some with emphasis on the last. The following information was taken from the Biography of Niels Pederson GRUNNET. The name GRUNNET, or as it was first used, GRUNDET, can probably be referred back to the name of a little village in Hornstrup parish, Norvang district, Vejle county in Denmark. In 1578 Grundet was mentioned as a small community with 7 farms. Frederick II had exchanged the land there for the estate Starup with Iver Vind (d1586) who wrote of himself in the same year "of Grundet". The Grundet judicial district appears in 1495 and ceased to exist in 1806.

The peasant family which took the GRUNDET name may have come from this village, but it apparently moved early to Bjert in Eltang parish, Brusk district, and here we find evidence about the earliest known ancestors of this family, namely "old" Peder Pedersen GRUNNET, mentioned in Koldinghus rent roles of 1651. He was born about 1585 and died in Bjert about 1660.


Names

2 1902-1995 GRUNNET, Mabel Lorraine - SAWYER, Clifford B
3 1873-1939 GRUNNET, Niels Petersen - LARSEN, 'Laura'
4 1829-1881 GRUNNET, Niels Peter Pedersen - NIELSEN, Johanne Marie
5 1793-1854 GRUNNET, Peder Laursen - NIELSDATTER, Johanne (2nd m.)
6 1752-1835 GRUNNET, Else Marie Iversdatter - (POST), Laurs Hansen
7 1688-1757 GRUNNET, Iver Pedersen - HANSDATTER, Mette (2nd m.)
8 1656-1725 GRUNNET, Maren Pedersdatter - IVERSEN, Peder
9 1617-1684 PEDERSEN, Peder - ?, Sidsel 1631-1700
10 1585-1660 GRUNNET, "old" Peder Pedersen - ?
11 154x-16xx GRUNNET, Peder - ?
12 1511-1565 GRUNDET, Jens Pedersen - JENSDATTER, Anne d. c1581
13 147x-15xx TERKILDSEN, Peder - VINCENTSDATTER, Kirsten
14 145x-15xx Terkild ? (variant of the Danish 'Thorkil') - ?

More names alphabetically:

Ane Katrine 1859-89
Anne (Jensdatter) Grundet d1581 m. Jens Pedersen Grundet

Carl b191x

Else Marie Iversdatter 1752-1835

Florence b1898

Helen Johannah b1904

Iver Pedersen 1688-1757

Jens Pedersen Grundet 1511-65
Johanne Marie (Nielsen) 1838-1903
Johanne Marie 1866-1940

Kirsten (Vincentsdatter) Terkildsen 1479-1559 m. Peder Terkildsen

Laura (Larson) b1875
Leslie Niels b1900

Mabel Lorraine 1902-95
Maren Pedersdatter 1656-1725
Myrtle Mary b1906

Niels Peter Petersen 1829-81
Niels Petersen b/d 1864
Niels Petersen 1873-1939

Peder b154x
Peder Laursen 1793-1854
Peder Pedersen (no Grunnet surname) 1617-84
"old" Peder Pedersen 1585-1660
Peder Pedersen 1585-1660
Peder Petersen 1864-9
Peder Petersen Grunnet 1869-1924
Peder Terkildsen b147x

Robert Eugene b1909

Terkild ? b1480

? Terkelsdatter b147x


Descent Chart


The following document on GRUNNET family history was written in 1956 in Copenhagen by Niels GRUNNET. I've done my best to translate it. I know no Danish, but I used a Danish/English dictionary. Any hints or corrections would, of course, be appreciated. I'll show the Danish and English side-by-side.

Original Danish

En Soskendeflok af SLAEGTEN GRUNNET og dens Efterslaegt i Danmark, USA og Canada

Kobenhavn 1956

Ved Udgivelsen af Bogen "Slaegten Grunnet", som Personalhistorisk Institut udsendte i 1939, fremlagdes for forste Gang for en Kreds af Slaegtens Medlemmer Resultatet af flere hidtil forgaeves Forsog pa at tilvejebringe en Slaegtsbog. S. OTTO BRENNER, Forfatteren til Vaerket, havde inden Udarbejdelsen gennemgaet et stort, uordnet Materiale, for at na frem til en overskuelig og holdbar Sammenstilling af Fakta og mundtlige Overleveringer. Han erklaerede i et forord, at han havde kunnet onske sig et endnu bedre Resultat. Hans Slaegtslinie-Opstilling skildrede Grunnet-Slaegten fra Bjertegnen i Sydjylland, han fremdrog og fastslog, hvad der med Sikkerhed kunne konstateres vedrorende Forbindelsen mellem forskellige Baerere af Navnet igennem et Par Hundredar forud for den Tid, da der optoges Mandtalslister her i Landet, og disse Grunnet'ers Efterslaegt noteredes savidt muligt indtil selve Udgilvelsesaret; desuden medtog Brenner nogle Navne pa Folk, som ifl. Slaegtstraditionen matte formodes at have haft Forbindelse med Grunnet-Slaegten. Dette gjaldt saledes den navnkundige Praest og Skolemand Jens Pedersen Grundet (ca. 1510 - 65), fra hvem man endog har villet mene at kunne pavise nedarvede Karaktertraek i en langt yngre Efterslaegts Handlemade og Livsvaerk.

Ti Ar efter at Bogen "Slaegten Grunnet" la faerdigudarbejdet og var blevet udsendt som Manuskript til et Antal spredtboende Medlemmer af Slaegten, hvoraf kun de faerreste havde haft nogen indbyrdes Forbindelse - i mange Tilfaelde havde de end ikke anet ret naere Slaegtninges Eksistens - fandt jeg Tiden inde til et Forsog pa at viderefore og udbedre Vaerket. Brenner havde overfor mangelfuld Samvirkelyst hos flere nulevende Medlemmer af Slaegten, der rent ud naegtede at oplyse noget om deres Slaegtsforhold, mattet give op i en Raekke Tilfaelde; Vanskelighederne ved at fa Oplysninger indhentet fra Efterkommere af de til De forenede Stater i Slutningen af forrige Arhundrede udvandrede Slaegtsmedlemmer, som, helt eller naesten helt, havde tabt Erindringen om, at deres Forfaedre ikke havde vaeret Amerikanere, men Danske, havde ikke vaeret til at overvinde.

Jeg tog i 1949 fat pa at arbejde med at forny Bogen - vidende at det ville blive brydsomt, langvarigt og maske kraeve mere Talmodighed end jeg kunne stille til Radighed. Jeg lagde Brenners Vaerk til Grund for et Forsog pa en Videreforelse, men jeg opgav at fore alle kendte Slaegtslinier frem til vore Dage, jeg valgte at soge fremskaffet, hvad der havde manglet i Brenners Bog af Oplysninger om Efterkommerne af et enkelt Medlem af Slaegten, Gardmand i Bjert, senere i Gesager, PEDER LAURSEN GRUNNET og dennes to Hustruer.

Flere hundrede nulevende Medlemmer af Slaegten, spredt over Danmark, U.S.A. og Canada, har Peder Laursen Grunnet i deres Stamtrae; de faerreste af dem kender deres nulevende Slaegtninge, og naeppe mere end et Par enkelte vidste noget om Peder Laursen Grunnets Liv og Tilvaerelse i Begyndelsen af det Nittende Arhundrede. Sa kortvarig er ofte Erindringen hos en Slaegt, at blot man sporger, hvem der var de nulevende Medlemmers Oldeforaeldre, er det de faerreste, der aner blot Navn eller Hjemsted.

Gardmand Peder Laursen Grunnet har ikke vaeret kendt i Offentligheden, naeppe engang udenfor sit Sogns Graenser; hans Liv var, som andre smatstillede Bonders og Handvaerkeres pa Napoleonskrigenes Tid, indrammet af Navnloshed og Fattigdom. Bag de fa Oplysninger om ham, der kendes, om hans Kreds, hans Born og disses Udvikling og Skaebne anes dog endnu Efterklange af et andeligt Liv og Praeget af en hard og haevdet Vilje, som har sat sit Stempel dybt og livsvarende pa mere end et enkelt Led af den Efterslaegt, der aldrig har hort om ham og hans Born, men som i mangfoldige Tilfaelde har mattet sporge sig selv, hvorfra den har faet en Arv af saerpraeget Sind og staedig Viljestyrke, som i nogle Tilfaelde betod, at han eller hun i sit Liv tornede mod skarpere Kanter end Naboen, og som slog sig Skrammer til, der gav Ar, som holdt sig laenge efter. De havde, disse forlaengst afdode Forfaedre, et Sind og en Udholdenhed, som bevaredes i Slaegten, og som forte senere Slaegtled frem til handgribelige Livsresultater. Dette gaelder savel for Efterkommere, som forblev bosat pa Slaegtens Hjemegn, det sydostlige Jylland, men iovrigt isaer for den Del af Slaegten, der forlog Landet og begyndte en ny, slidsom Tilvaerelse i Amerika. De Udvandrede medbragte hjemmefra en Livsindstilling og en Udholdenhedstrang, som viste sig at have vaeret et bedre Rejseudstyr, end om de Udvandrede havde fort en Startkapital i gangbar Mont med sig. Det synes ikke, som denne Slaegt har fostret noget Eksempel pa "Springere"; nogen Aladdintype er ikke opstaet. Man fulgte i de Gamles Fodspor, Vejen gik sjaeldent opad pa den sociale Rangstige, den forte hverken til de store Stigninger, ej heller til noget Fald.

Jeg har, som naevnt ovenfor, holdt mig til Peder Laursen Grunnet og hans direkte Efterslaegt. Helt udtommende er det ikke blevet. Flere af Efterslaegtens Linier star kun svagt i Traekkene, blot noterede ved Navn, Bestilling og Data. De Pagaeldende har ingen Oplysninger kunnet eller villet give mig.

Efter Faerdiggorelsen af dette Arbejde i 1950 modtog jeg en Del Rettelser og Tilfojelser til Navnestoffet. Dette forte til en Gennemskrivning af Manuskriptet Aret efter, og nu i Foraret 1956 har jeg yderligere modtaget en Del nyt Navnestof. Dette er Grunden til, at jeg pany har ladet Manuskriptet gennemskrive.

Jeg takker enhver af Slaegten, som har hjulpet med til, at vi har faet samlet, hvad hermed fremlaegges. Jeg er fhv. Stabsofficiant VIGGO PETERSEN, Fredericia, Tak skyldig for hans Medarbejderskab. Det er vaesentligt ham, der har faet mig til at medtage de Personer i Slaegtsopstillingen, som Traditionen laenge for hans og min Tid indsatte pa Slaegtstraeet, og som hverken han eller jeg har kunnet finde Forbindelsesbeviset for. Han har i vore Undersogelser, som endte blinkt, vaeret mere trofast mod Traditionen, end jeg har ment at kunne vaere; han er gaet ud fra, at Beviset for Nedstamningen fra de aeldst kendte Baerere af Navnet Grunnet, om det end ikke kunne findes i Arkiverne, dog matte kunne hentes ud af de dokumenterede Faellestraek i Karakter og Handlingstilbojelighed. Maske har han Ret; Opstillingen af Forbindelsen tilbage i Tiden indtil ca. 1480 er foretaget af S. Otto Brenner i Vaerket "Slaegten Grunnet". Beviset for Slaegtskabet mellem Jens Pedersen Grunnet og "Gamle Peder Pedersen Grunnet", der dode i Bjert ca. 1660, mangler, men er fastholdt af Slaegtstraditionen som vaerende uomstodelig. De efterfolgende Slaegtleds Data og Slaegtskabsforhold er fremgaet af Kirkeboger og andre Dokumenter.

I Navnestoffet, det tidligere indsamlede og det nye, jeg har fremskaffet, er udeladt en Gentagelse af den Skildring af de 9 Soskendes Hjem i Gesager, som var medtaget i Manuskript-Udgaven 1950, ligesom ogsa Meddelelserne vedrorende Pastor N. P. Grunnet (naerv. Udgave Side 22), dennes til U.S.A. i 1871 udvandrede Broder N. P. P. Grunnet (Side 33) (Hutchinson-Familien) og Pastor Grunnets Son, Victor Emanuel Grunnet (Side 25) og disses Efterslaegt er udeladt. I Stedet er Opstillingen af de 9 Grunnet-Soskendes Efterslaegt gjort mere overskuelig, og der er indfojet et Navneregister indeholdende ialt 444 Navne. Efter hver af de 9 Soskendes Efterslaegt er indsat en ubeskrevet Side til Tilfojelser og Rettelser.

Niels Grunnet

 English Translation

The GRUNNET family and their descendants in Denmark, the USA and Canada

Copenhagen 1956

The publication of the book "The Grunnet Family" by the Personal Historical Institute in 1939 allowed much family information, hitherto sought in vain, to be compiled for the first time in a family book. S. OTTO BRENNER, the author of that work, had to sift through a large amount of unorganized material, including both written sources and verbal interviews with survivors, to produce this profitable and durable result. His statements in the foreword to his book may be the most valuable result of his work. He traces how his family descends from the Grunnets of Bjert in South Jutland and establishes many interesting facts about Grunnet family history ranging over two centuries. Until his work, this information had been contained only in unpublished family notes and papers. He even discusses a number of other people supposed by family tradition to have connections to the Grunnet family. One of those is the well known priest and scholar Jens Pedersen Grundet (ca. 1510-1565), from whom some later Grunnets could be supposed to have inherited certain character traits related to their occupational interests.




Ten years after "The Grunnet Family" book was published and distributed to a number of family members scattered around the world, only a few family members had been able to use it to find connections with relatives, most of those to people they hadn't known existed. I found that many family members were interested in seeing a revised and improved version of the work. Several mistakes had been identified by living family members, whose contributions were able to clear up some confusions, especially related to American descendants. Many of the latter, having traced their roots to the earliest American immigrant in the last century, had lost track of the Danish lineage before that.





In 1949, I began the task of updating the book, a task perhaps more prolonged and requiring more patience than I could muster. I set out to use Brenner's work as a foundation on which to build a revision, carrying forward all known family lines to our day. To narrow the scope, I chose to focus on a line not well documented in Brenner's book, that of the Bjerk (later Gesager) famer PEDER LAURSEN GRUNNET and his second wife.



Several hundred living family members in Denmark, the U.S.A. and Canada are descended from Peder Laursen Grunnet; only a few know their living relatives and hardly any know anything of Peder Laursen Grunnet's life and existence early in the 19th century. So short is the memory of family history that many don't even know the names or places of origin of their own grandparents.




The farmer Peder Laursen Grunnet was no celebrity, he scarcely left his parish boundaries; his life was one of humble prayers and working with his hands during the time of the Napoleonic Wars, admittedly a life of anonymity and poverty. Beyond his basic life milestones (birth, marriage, death), it would be interesting to know about his childhood, circle of friends and the development of his character and destiny. One suspects there are lasting effects (likely continuing to this day and beyond) resulting from a life of spiritual awareness and resolved willpower, which left their deep and lifelong stamp on many of his descendants. Although they had not been consciously aware of his legacy, many had wondered about the origin of their sharp minds and stubborn willpower, which in some cases meant they took greater risks than their neighbors and sometimes received long-lasting scars as a result. They had carried on these family character traits of their ancestors and translated them into tangible life-results. This family legacy follows not only those descendants who remained near the family homestead in southeast Jutland in Denmark, but also those who left Denmark to begin a new life in America. The wanderers took with them from Denmark a mindset and stamina which better equipped them for their task than any seed capital or currency they had. It does not appear that members of this family were ones to make dramatic leaps; someone like Aladdin (to grant their wishes) had not arisen. One follows in the ancient footsteps of family tradition, seldom moving upward on the social ladder, the pioneers rarely ascending at all, more likely falling.


As noted already, I have focused my efforts on researching Peder Laursen Grunnet and his direct descendants. I merely note some other branches of the family about whom I was not able to gain much information.


After the final revision of this work in 1950, I developed some further additions and corrections to it. This led to a rewrite of the document during the following year, and now in the Spring of 1956 I have received even more information. This 1956 edition accounts for all of these changes up to now.

I wish to thank all family members who have helped me pull all of this information together for publication in this document. I also thank the former staff assistant to VIGGO PETERSEN, Fredericia, for creative assistance. His help was essential in helping to track down many items, although in some cases neither of us were able to find proven links. In our unsuccesful investigations, he persisted beyond when I would have given up. He noticed similarities in character traits and occupational inclinations between the earliest Grunnets and later generations, even though hard proof of these links could not be found in the archives. Perhaps he's right; Otto BRENNER traces the line back to ca. 1480 in his book "The Grunnet Family." Proof of the connection between Jens Pedersen GRUNNET and "old" Peder Pedersen GRUNNET (d. in Bjert ca. 1660) could not be established, except by the common thread of strong family traditions. From there on, family links were found in church records and other documents.





I have avoided repetition of the paths of the 9 children born in Gesager, which was covered in the 1950 edition, as well as information about Pastor N. P. GRUNNET (present edition p. 22), his brother N. P. P. GRUNNET (who went to the U.S.A. in 1871, p. 33, Hutchinson [MN] families) and Pastor GRUNNET's son, Victor Emanuel GRUNNET (p. 25) and their descendants. Instead of individually covering all the descendents of the 9 children, their names are merely included in the list of names, which comes to 444 entries. Following this list of names is the page for additions and corrections.



Niels Grunnet


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