Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1921-06-01

cal church in America, and his wife,
Caroline Dorothea Margrethe KeyseE%z
Christian kevfser rreus recelved n
early instrus ftion from Erivat
teachers. He lame to Ia Haatthler- -colleg
in 1900 but his attendance wa
interrupted during the first fall b,
an attack of typhoid fever. In 1866
67 he accompanied his father on ;
tour to Norway, but enrolled at Lu
ther College again in 1868. In 1875
he was graduated from Luther Col
lege with the degree of Bachelor OF
Arts. The next three years were
spent at Concordia Seminary, St
Louis, Mo-, where he was graduated
in 1876. Later that year he was
ordained at Washington Prairie to
De his fathers assistant in the
Spring Prairie charge Before TAX
ing up this work he served Our
Saviour's church in Chicago tempor-
arily.
In 1877 President Preus was mar
ried to Miss Louisa Augusta Hiort
eldest daughter of Rev. Owe Jacob
Hort, pastor at Painted Creek, ALA
makee County, Iowa. Of the eleven
children born to them, two daughters
and five sons are living. Henrietta
is In nurses training at the North
western Hospital in Minneapolis.
Cathinka Hort, wife of Knute d.
Stalland, lives in st. Paul. The eld
est son, Owe Jacob Hort, is pastor
at DeForest, Wis, Johan Carl Kevser
is pastor at Rockdell, near Roches-
ter, Mimi; Jacob Aal .Ottesen. is
governor of Minnesota; Paul Arc
tander is treasurer of the Federal
Land Loan Bank of st. Paul: and
herman Amberg is an attorney in
st. Paul.
For seventeen years President
Preus served the Spring Prairie
charga and thereafter served Our
Saviour's church in Chicago an adj
altl0nal two and one half years. In
1898 and again in 1896 he was
elected Vice President of the SYNOD
of the Norwegian Evangelical Luth-
eran Church in America. He de- |
,llned both times. Since his father.
Who was President of the SYNOD AT |
he time, died in 1894, his accent
ince on the former occasion would
lave made him President in the fol-
owing year. In 1911 he was again
'iected Vice President and accented
position which he held until the
merger of the three Norwegian In
heran church bodies in 1917. At the
lme OF the merger he was elected
ice PRESIDENT of the Iowa district
I the Norwegian Lutheran Church I
! america, position which he held
the time of his death.
he returned to Spring Prairie in
$40, but poor health compelled him
resign from his charge /. in 1897
e settled in Decorah in order that
= cnlldren might take advantage
the educational opportunities that
utner College affords. Shortly af-
Y arriving in Decorah, he. with his 9
'ys,, built private parochial school e
ms own land for his own and
e nelghbors' children. In 1898 be b
'came an instructor at Luther Col a
ge and in 1902 he was elected p
resident of the college upon tba n
signation of DR.. Laur Larsen. n
his efforts to promote the welfare e
the institution of which he was lc :
: nineteen years the head were ~
instaklng, unceasing, and to a l.
atifylng degree productive of re- ol
Its. During his administrator In
er College grew from little moro to
an a one building institution 10 q F,
81 class college plant. In 1eOS bl
gymnasium, originally built in he
$685. was nearly tripled in size. le