Sigrid

Born: 10 Jan 1888 at Oslo, Akershus, Norway

Married: Einar Antonsen Strand on 10 Sep 1921 at Oslo, Akershus, Norway

Died: 26 Apr 1970 at Oslo, Akershus, Norway

Sigrid Sophie Olsen's family came from Eidsvoll, Norway.  Her father was a furniture maker.  She spent a few years in the United States as a young woman, working as a maid in Salt Lake City. 

She married Oscar Nikolay Kristiansen after she returned to Oslo following World War I.  Oscar died 6 months later in the Spanish Flu epidemic which swept across the world following that conflict. 

She was a young widow when she met my grandfather, Einar Strand.  They had four children: Per, Knut, Anne-Berit and Inger-Mari.

Sigrid had a beautiful singing voice.  She also had a sharp wit. She was intelligent and brave, meeting many challenges during World War II with grace and determination.

In her later years, she was plagued with joint problems and arthritis, which left her an invalid.  She would still direct the affairs of the household from a chair in the kitchen and keep a keen eye on everything.  She had scores of young girls who would earn extra money running errands for her, and a few trusted women who would help her with household chores.

Her husband called her "Siri-dotten" as a nickname.