Histories

    ERIK ARNESEN RIISNAES was born at Risnes farm, Masfjord, Norway, and christened the same day at Sandnes Church. His parents were keen to develop his abilities and he began to read when he was 4 years old. At this same early age he left home to live with his mother's parents at Froyset, a few miles away, until he was 9. When he returned home he had to help on the farm. He recorded how he once enjoyed a journey in his father's boat as far as Sogne. His father was still concerned about his education, and he was sent to a teacher named Stoldahl in Eivindvig to improve his writing. At the age of 12 he again left home to live with Pastor Hjortoy at Lindaas, and learned writing, arithmetic and geography with the Pastor's children. He also learned how to make and repair shoes and to bind books.
    At the age of 16, Erik started teaching in Lindaas parish for 9 speciedollars (equivalent to 36 English shillings) per annum. After 3 years he was appointed to a new school on Fedje at 25 speciedollars per annum. He said he found the ignorance, immorality and roughness of the children very discouraging, and this was probably the basis for his later interest in the improvement of education in Norwegian country districts.
    In 1839 Erik was enrolled as one of the first group of students at Stord Teachers College founded by Claus Daae. Two years later he passed the final examination with "excellent ability". He became the teacher and leading church singer in his home district in place of his father who died that year. Two years later he took over the Risnes farm as his inher-itance, his mother, brothers and sisters receiving sums of money instead.

    MARTHA ANDERSDTR LAASTAD came from Lindaas.

    As time went on Erik took increasing responsibilities in local and ultimately central government. He became an Elector in 1847, and in the following year was made chairman of the Lindaas-Masfjord District Council, the first "of peasant stock" to reach the post. He appears to have won a high reputation for his administrative ability and integrity. Two local develop-ments, for which he was reputed to be largely responsible, were the founding of the Lindaas (now Lindaas-Masfjord) Fire Insurance Society in 1856, and the Lindaas Savings Bank in 1865. He was also an active member of the County Council for many years.
    In 1857 he was additionally elected to the Storting, the Norwegian Parliament, for Sondre Bergenhus County (now Horda-land), and belonged to the "Liberal" Party. He remained an MP for the next 16 years. As the records show he played an active part in debates and other parliamentiary activities. He was a member of the Committee for Roads during the whole of his parliiamentary career, and tried to promote improved communi-cations throughout the country and not just in his own area. His familiarity with all aspect of Norwegian communications, together with his integrity, caused him to play an increasingly influential part in the committee's activities as time went on. In the 1869-1870 session he helped to arbitrate between a number of conflicting demands for improved roads, railways and telegraph systems throughout the country.
    As an MP he also took a particular interest in education. He was instinctively in favour of improvements, though he was careful not to support measures, such as that demanding a permanent school in all
communities where at least 30 children lived, which he felt the poorer parts of the country would not be able to afford. In general he was conservative over the expenditure of taxpayers money. Most of his views had popular support, though his opposition to religious freedom surprised many people who were unaware of the strength of his religious beliefs and his adherence to Lutheranism.

    Erik did not neglect his family or his farm throughout this period. He built a new farmhouse at Risnes in 1851 which stood for nearly 120 years. When away from home he wrote many letters to his wife and family which are still preserved at Risnes.

    In the early 1870's he retired from both his parliamentary and District Council posts, though he did return as Chairman of the District Council in 1876-77. At that time the question whether Masfjord should become an independent District, separate from the rest of Lindaas, was being discussed. Erik strongly supported the split as travel between the two areas was difficult and dangerous. When the change finally came, by Royal Proclamation on 1 March 1879, he was, not surprisingly, elected first Chairman of the new Masfjord Council. However he resigned on 30 December on being appointed the new District's first Police Officer.
    The new appointment also did not last long. Erik died within 2 years and was buried at Sandnes Church on 22 February 1881.
    Erik was an intelligent, diligent and upright man, clearly held in high regard by nearly all his contemporaries. He was fond of books and built up a large collection at Risnes.



    ARNE GABRIEL DAAE graduated from Stord Teacher College in 1867 and became an assistant teacher at Risnes day school in February 1868. On 1 January 1880 he was appointed cantor to Masfjord Church at Sandnes. He married (9 Jul 1883) Sophia, daughter of Gjert and Ollegaard Daae (see 9), who was born at Froyseth and had trained as a housekeeper.
    Arne took over his father's farm in 1883, the legal convey-ancing being complete in 1884. He took on a number of local responsibilities, including Representative to the District Council (1886-1901), Commissioner of the Court of Conciliation (1887-1920), Head Guardian to Minors (1881-1908), Head of Post Office (1884-1917), Elector (1891, 1894, 1897, 1900 and 1903), Auditor to Lindaas Savings Bank (1871-1885), Dirctor of Lindaas Savings Bank (1885-1901) and Director of Masfjord Savings Bank (1902-1920).
    Sophia was buried at Masfjord Church. Arne lived another 25 years or so and was buried in the Risnes family grave alongside the new church at Froyseth.
    Arne and Sophia had 5 children, Margit (b 2 Jun 1884), Gudrun (b 1886), Erik (b 23 May 1890), Oystein (b 24 Feb 1892) and Borghild (b 13 Aug 1895). Erik took over Risnes Farm from his father and his descendents still occupy and run it.

    CHRISTEN ANDREAS LAASTAD joined the Army, becoming a Corporal in 1871 and a Sergeant in 1874. He resigned in 1877, and in 1878 was employed in the office of the Director of Road Works at Kristiania (Oslo). He contracted tuberculosis and had to resign the following year. After a few months stay in Fredrikshald he returned to Risnes to die. He was buried at Sandnes with an ornate iron cross to mark the grave. He was considered very able in arithmetic and composition.

    CASPAR MARTIN went with his father to Oslo in 1865 and there attended Quam's School. In 1866 he went to Holck's School in Bergen, and in 1867 to the Cathedral School, where he made very good progress and was a friend of Christian Michelsen, later Prime Minister of Norway. Caspar died in Bergen. He was considered a lovable and highly gifted youth, of whom much was expected.

    ELIZABETH MARIE also went to Oslo with her father, in Jan-uary 1873, and attended Albidro Housekeeping School until October. In 1876 she married Hans Engel Daae (b 2 Aug 1858), a Sergeant, who then took over his father's farm Nedre Tvedt in Alversund. (Hans was the grandson of Hans Engel Daae - see 33). They had 11 children, the last but one of whom, Sverre Prest ("Sverre the priest") was a National Socialist and a friend of Claus Riisnaes (see 4). Hans died 28 Aug 1908.

    HARALD JOHAN was educated at Hambro School, Bergen till 1884 and qualified as a lawyer in 1894. He settled in Vik, Sogne in 1895 as a solicitor. In 1896 he published a short book on the history of Lindaas and Masfjord. In 1919 he was appointed Superintendent of Police in Sogn. He married (1896) Petra Rasmussen (b 1854) and had 3 children, the eldest, Sverre, becoming a lawyer also, and Minister for Justice under Quisling during the German occupation of Norway (1940-1945), for which he was subsequently imprisoned.

    KATRINA MARTINA went to a housekeeping school in Sondfjord in 1880. In 1894 she married Nils Walde (b 1866), a seaman engineer, and they had 2 children. Nils died in Gibralter in 1900, and 1n 1902 she married Emanuel Andreassen (b 1850) and had one further child. Emanuel died very soon after Katrina, on 27 March 1928.