Chicago is the second Norwegian settlement in Illinois. The first Norwegian settler in Chicago was the sailor, David Johnson, who came to Chicago to run the new press of the Chicago Demorcrat, Chicago's first newspaper. This was in 1834, and Chicago was then a very small village. It was not yet incorporated and no man could have foretold its marvellous growth, which surpasses any of the fictitious tales of the Arabian Nights

Lars Fruland still hale and hearty, living within the shadow of Chicago's skyscrapers, came to Chicago in 1837 the year it became incorporated and has beheld all this fabulous growth within his own lifetime.

The Norwegians have been pioneers in opening up this west country where commerce is drained by Chicago, and they have been prominent also as citizens of Chicago.

In 1925 Chicago had about 100,000 citizens; 24,481 born in Norway, 24,480 born here of foreign born parentage, and over 50,000 belonging to the third, fourth and fifth generations. It is the largest Norwegian settlement in America. It would be impossible to name all the prominent Norwegians in Chicago, even during the period 1825-1860. Suffice it to say that in 1836 a number of Norwegian immigrants settled in Chicago , among them were John Lawson from Kobbervik, Svein Lathe from Hardanger, Nils Rothe from Voss, and Halstein Tarrison from Fjeldberg. Torrison worked as a gardner for W. L. Newberry the founder of the Newberry Library. Tarrison built himself a fine house on the spot where the Northwestern Depot now stands.

In 1840 Iver Lawson the father of Victor Lawson, the present publisher of the Chicago Daily News, landed in Chicago, also Jens Olsan Kaasa, a master mason and builder of Our Savior's Church at Erie and May Streets.

John Anderson from Voss arrived in Chicago in 1846, then a ten year old lad. His father died of the Cholera in 1849, and John's school days were at an end. He peddled apples and sold newspapers on the streets, then secured a job in a printing office and became the best compositor in the city. In 1866 he founded Skandinaven now in its sixtieth year, one of the best newspapers in the country, and organized the John Anderson Publishing Company; which is still doing business at 511 North Peoria Street.

Paul Anderson was one of the earliest Norwegian pastors to use the English language in his pulpit and Sunday School. There could hardly have been a call for it at that time, but Paul Anderson believed in the use of English to such an extent that he did not teach his own children Norwegian. There are others equally foolish even in our enlightened day.