FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Kathy Davison
October 5, 2009
(701) 328-4725
BISMARCK – Claudia M. Pratt of Fargo has been chosen as the winner of the 2009 Editor’s Award, sponsored by the state’s history agency, the State Historical Society of North Dakota. The award goes to Pratt for her article, “Sculpting Lincoln: North Dakota’s Gift to the People of Norway,” which appeared in Volume 74.3& 4 of North Dakota History, the quarterly journal of the State Historical Society.
North Dakota History is the quarterly journal published since 1926 by the state’s history agency, the State Historical Society of North Dakota (SHSND).
The Editor's Award is given annually to the full-length article published in North Dakota History in the preceding year that best exemplifies the highest standards of research, writing, and scholarship.
Pratt’s article describes the 1914 gift from the citizens of North Dakota to the people of Norway, who were celebrating the 100th anniversary of the adoption of the Norwegian constitution and declaration as an independent nation. The sculpture of Abraham Lincoln was an interesting choice, as was the choice of the sculptor. Paul Fjelde (1892-1984) was just 21 years old when he began working on the bust of Lincoln, to be placed in Frogner Park, Kristiania (now Oslo), Norway. After his father, a noted sculptor in Minneapolis, died, Fjelde’s mother homesteaded near Wing, North Dakota, with her son and three daughters. Eventually they moved to Valley City, where the head of the art department at then-Valley City Normal School (now Valley City State University) recognized Fjelde’s talent and arranged for him to study with Lorado Taft, a noted sculptor and art critic in Chicago.
In 1913 the North Dakota Legislative Assembly appropriated money for a statue and exhibit to be sent to Norway and created a committee to oversee the project. The committee was headed by Governor Louis B. Hanna (1861-1948), who was up for reelection in 1914. Fjelde’s uncle, Dr. Herman Fjelde, who was also a member of the commission, suggested young Paul as the artist for the Lincoln statue gift to Norway, and he was selected. The bronze was completed and arrived in Kristiania in May 1914, followed in June by a large party from North Dakota that included Governor Hanna and his family, Smith Stimmel, a Norwegian Civil War veteran, and other North Dakota notables, many of Norwegian descent. After touring Norway for several days, the party arrived in Kristiania before the elaborate July 4 event dedicating the Lincoln statue. The day ended with fireworks and a formal banquet for more than 2,000 people. The event was considered a great success, and Hanna and his party continued to tour Norway and Europe, encouraging immigration to North Dakota, before returning to North Dakota at the end of July. By this time Hanna, with strong support from Norwegian North Dakotans, had won the primary election and went on to win another two-year term that November. Fjelde went on to a distinguished career as a sculptor and as a teacher and scholar at the Pratt Institute in New York City. He died in 1984 at the age of 91.
The Lincoln bust has remained in Frogner Park, the scene of July 4 celebrations and peaceful protests since its placement in 1914. Perhaps the most poignant story is mentioned by Fjelde’s son Rolf, who told of a silent demonstration in front of the statue on July 4, 1940. The Nazi German occupiers did nothing to stop the display, he said. This year, a group from the U.S. attending the annual Independence Day celebration included several who had ancestors who participated in the 1914 dedication ceremony. The group also included the twin grandsons of sculptor Paul Fjelde.
The Editor’s Award was presented during the 21st Annual Governor’s Conference on North Dakota History September 25-26 at the North Dakota Heritage Center in Bismarck.
Pratt is the great-granddaughter of Dr. Herman Fjelde, a member of the Lincoln Statue Commission. She is the owner/operator of CMP Consulting, which assists small museums and non-profits, and executive director of the Nordic Culture Clubs. She was the State Historical Society’s outreach programs coordinator from 1994 to 2000.
The Editor’s Award has been given annually since 1988. Past winners are Dr. W. Raymond Wood; Dr. John Hoganson, Dr. Terry L. Shoptaugh (two times), Dr. Anne Kelsch, Dr. David B. Danbom (three times), Dr. Gregory Camp, co-authors Paulette F. Molin and Mary Lou Hultgren, Dr. Elaine Lindgren, Dr. Charles M. Barber, Dr. Barbara Handy-Marchello, Dr. Gordon Iseminger, Dr. William Lass, Bill Snyder, Dolly Holiday Clark and Dr. Paula Nelson, Erling Sannes, Frank Vyzralek, Dr. William Pratt, and Dr. James Vivian.
For more information about North Dakota History and the State Historical Society of North Dakota, call (701) 328-2666 or visit the agency's web site at www.history.nd.gov.
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