Wefald, Knud Magnus
House 1913-14 (District 60); House 1915-16 (District 49)
Party when first elected: Republican
Counties Served:
Clay
BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION
Date of Birth:
11/3/1869
Birth Place:
Kragero
Birth County:
Birth Country:
Norway
Date of Death:
10/25/1936
Gender:
Male
Religion:
Reported Minority: None Reported
Other Names:
City of Residence (when first elected):
Hawley
Occupation (when first elected):
Retail Lumber Business
EDUCATION
Krager Public Schools, Norway; Elementary School;
Krager High School, Norway; Secondary;
OTHER GOVERNMENT SERVICE
Municipal Council/Aldermen:
Hawley Village, Minnesota (Village Council, President);
1907 to 1912
Municipal Council/Aldermen:
Hawley Village, Minnesota (Village Council, President);
1917 to 1918
U.S. Representative:
9th Congressional District, Minnesota;
03/04/1923 to 03/03/1927
[Elected]
State Board/Commission/Council:
Minnesota Commission of Administration and Finance (Executive Secretary);
1931 to 1932
State Board/Commission/Council:
Minnesota Railroad and Warehouse Commission;
01/1933 to 10/25/1936
FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS
Spouse:
Sarah Skree (married in 1899)
Children:
Ten children: Knut Magnus, Harald, Egil, and Olav (sons); Karen, Martha, Elsie, Nana, Sarah, and Anna Marie (daughters)
Family Members Who Have Served in the Minnesota Legislature:
Knut Magnus Wefald
- Son
GENERAL NOTES
He came to the United States when he was 17 years old, in 1887. He moved to Hawley, Clay County, Minnesota in 1896.
He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection to the United States Congress in 1926.
He was the editor of a Norwegian newspaper in Fargo, North Dakota from 1929-1931. (Biographical Directory of the United States Congress)
He was a member of the Farmer-Labor Party when he was elected to the United States Congress. (Biographical Directory of the United States Congress)
He died in St. Paul, Minnesota. He was buried in Hawley Cemetery in Hawley, Minnesota.
His middle name and children's names were provided by his grandson.
Elected: 11/3/1914
Residence: Hawley
Term of Office: 1/5/1915 to 1/1/1917
Counties Represented:
Clay
Occupation: Retail Lumber Business
Party:
Nonpartisan Election
Committees:
-
Drainage
-
Engrossment
-
Mileage
-
Public Buildings
-
Reapportionment
-
State Fair
Elected: 11/5/1912
Residence: Hawley
Term of Office: 1/7/1913 to 1/4/1915
Counties Represented:
Clay
Occupation: Retail Lumber Business
Party:
Republican
Committees:
-
Commerce and Retail Trade
-
Elections
-
Grain and Warehouse
-
State Normal Schools
-
Temperance Legislation
-
Villages
Articles & Books By
Wefald, Knud. Dikt I Samling = Selected Poems. Telemark, Norway?: Telemark Historielag: Drangedal Historielag, 1987.
Articles & Books About
Wefald, Jon Michael. "Congressman Knud Wefald, a Minnesota Voice for Farm Parity." Minnesota History, Volume 38, No. 4, December 1962, p. 177-185.
Wefald, Jon Michael. The Role of Representative Knud Wefald of Minnesota in the National Congress from 1923 to 1927. Thesis (M.A.)-Washington State University, 1961.
Wefald, Knud. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
Archive Collections
Knud Wefald and Family Papers, 1817-1987
- Available in the Minnesota Historical Society's Collections
These files are available in the Legislative Reference Library.