On January 16, 1895 18 men of Norwegian heritage gathered in North Minneapolis to form Sons of Norway as a self-insurance group. Soon, Norwegians from other parts of the city joined in and formed separate groups known as lodges. The original group became Nidaros Lodge #1, in North Minneapolis, followed shortly by Oslo Lodge #2 in South Minneapolis and the original Draxton Lodge in Northeast Minneapolis. By June 22, 1898, the Order was incorporated as the Independent Order of Sons of Norway. Today, Sons of Norway has approximately 60,000 members in over 400 lodges stretching across Canada, the United States and Norway.
The mission of Sons of Norway is to
- promote and preserve the heritage and culture of Norway
- celebrate our relationship with other Nordic Countries
- provide quality insurance and financial products for our members
The objective of District One is to
- promote an interest in the Nordic heritage stretching from the Vikings to the present
- participate in the Nordic culture by providing activities which share the language, foods, and handcrafts with everyone.
