All it took was one impromptu meeting between educator Ann Dittmer and Elverhoj Museum Executive Director Esther Jacobsen Bates to seal their fates as the future co-authors of The Spirit of Solvang: A History of the Danish Capital of America.
It was a spring day in 2007, Bates recalled.
“Ann walked into my office unannounced,” she told the Sun. “We could never have guessed that encounter would lead to a partnership that would grow to include more than a decade of work, thousands of hours of research—and this book.”
Roughly 13 years later, the 220-page publication is shelf ready, and it’s the first to document Solvang’s complete history in depth, starting with the town’s roots as a Danish colony. Dittmer did the “heavy lifting” in terms of research, Bates said, and compiled data from countless sources near and far—universities, libraries, state archives, etc.
Using remnant personal effects and correspondence between the town’s founders—most of which were handwritten in Old Danish—were critical, Bates added. These sources detail the founders’ earliest challenges, including the search for land, establishing Solvang’s original folk school, and the financial roadblocks that nearly doomed the colony.
Although Solvang was founded more than a century ago, “there has been a lack of complete and accurate information regarding the town’s history and evolution,” Bates said. The initial goal of the book was to fill in as many “knowledge gaps” as possible, she explained.
“The more we learned, the more questions we had in need of answers,” said Bates, who was most interested in researching the town’s earliest residents—Danish pilgrims who abandoned comfortable surroundings to become “pioneers in a new community.”
“Some lived in tents while their homes were being built and worked very hard to create new lives in a new and unfamiliar environment,” Bates said. “Most were farmers, who labored tirelessly to provide food, housing, and an income.”
A special reception to celebrate the book’s release takes place at Elverhoj Museum, which produced the book, on Jan. 25, at 4:30 p.m. In conjunction with the book’s anticipated debut, the museum opened The Spirit of Solvang exhibition last November.
“My goal was to align the timing of the book release with the exhibition,” Bates said. “I was close.”
The exhibit will remain on display through Feb. 16 and showcase many of the same photos featured in the book, all meticulously restored by photographer Paul Roark. Both the book and exhibit were group efforts, Bates said, acknowledging support from members, volunteers, and the board of directors at Elverhoj.
“This book wouldn’t have been produced if not for the contributions of a great many individuals who volunteered countless hours in the process, along with foundations and families that provided financial support,” Bates said. “Requests for funding were met with enthusiasm and generosity, making it possible to produce this beautiful and informative publication.”
Arts Editor Caleb Wiseblood wants Drunk History to tackle the same content. Reach him at cwiseblood@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Jan 23-30, 2020.
