Near Willmar in Kandiyohi County, Minnesota — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)

Guri Endresen-Rosseland

Vikor Lutheran Church · Solomon Lake

Photographed by K. Linzmeier, July 16, 2014

1. Guri Endresen-Rosseland Marker

Inscription.
This monument has been placed to honor Guri Endresen-Rosseland and other early settlers of the Solomon Lake community. The settlers were predominately immigrants from Hardanger, Norway. Among the special characteristics of these pioneers were their courage and faith in Almighty God.

No one of them exemplified these characteristics more than Guri Endresen-Rosseland whose heroic deeds have resulted in her being acclaimed one of the most outstanding heroines of the nation. The State of Minnesota has recognized her heroism by erecting a monument alongside her grave. This monument is located in this cemetery.

During the Sioux Indian Uprising of 1862, a band of Indians attacked the Endresen cabin, killing the husband, Lars, and a son, Endre. Guri Endresen escaped with her infant daughter, Anna, by hiding in the cellar. After the Indians left, she hitched the family oxen to a cart and set out with her child for refuge at Forest City, some thirty miles away. Enroute she stopped at the homes of other settlers, attending to the needs of those wounded in the massacre. Some she took with her. All travel was by darkness.

Following the submission of Chief Little Crow and his warriors, Guri returned to the family homestead to rebuild her home. The cabin and graves are preserved in the Guri Endresen Cabin Site,

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located two miles west of the church at the end of the marked trail.

The Vikor Lutheran Congregation was organized at the Endresen cabin in 1871. It was named after the Vikor Church in Norway which was built by Lars Endresen.

This plaque has been place in this centennial
year of the Sioux Uprising in the State of Minnesota
by the Vikor Memorial Association and the
Council of Bygdelags, June, 1962.

Erected 1962 by the Vikor Memorial Association and the Council of Bygdelags.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Religion & Religious Structures • Settlements & Settlers • Wars, US Indian. A significant historical year for this entry is 1862.

Location. 45° 11.137′ N, 95° 4.713′ W. Marker is near Willmar, Minnesota, in Kandiyohi County. It is on County Road 5 0.2 miles north of 60th Avenue Northwest (County Highway 25), on the left when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 6289 County Rd 5 NW, Willmar MN 56201, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Central Minnesota

and specifically in Southwest Minnesota. It is also in the American Midwest

and in the Corn Belt.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once Rupert’s Land,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Louisiana Purchase.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 4 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Turning Back Time (approx. 0.4 miles away); Welcome to the Endreson Cabin (approx. 1.4 miles away); Haugen Homestead (approx. 2.2 miles away); Kandiyohi County's First Church

Photographed by K. Linzmeier, July 16, 2014

2. Guri Endresen-Rosseland Marker

background: Vikor Lutheran Church Cemetery

(approx. 2.8 miles away); The Erickson Cabin (approx. 2.8 miles away); Fullerville (approx. 3.2 miles away); Foot Cabin (approx. 3½ miles away); Grasshopper Plague (approx. 3.9 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Willmar.

More about this marker. In August 1862, the Minnesota Dakota, also known by the French term, “Sioux," waged war against the United States following two years of unfulfilled treaty obligations. After attacking the Redwood (Lower Sioux) Agency, a remote government outpost, the Dakota moved with speed and surprise in southwestern Minnesota and what was then eastern Dakota Territory, killing nearly everyone in their path. They killed approximately 800 settlers and soldiers, took many prisoners, and caused extensive property damage throughout the Minnesota River Valley.

Also see . . .
1. Guri Endresen, Frontier Heroine. Minnesota Historical Society PDF (Submitted on April 9, 2024, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.)

2. Guri Olsdatter Endresen Rosseland. Find A Grave website entry (Submitted on April 9, 2024, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York.)

3. 1862 Dakota War. "It was the largest Indian war in American history. The

Photographed by K. Linzmeier, July 16, 2014

3. Guri Endresen-Rosseland Marker

background: Vikor Lutheran Church

main battleground was the entire Minnesota River Valley in southern and central Minnesota. The uprising spread into the Dakota Territories and sent panic into Nebraska, Iowa and Wisconsin." (Submitted on July 25, 2014.)

4. Dakota War of 1862. Wikipedia entry. (Submitted on July 29, 2014.)

5. Memorial for Guri Endresen-Rosseland 1813-1831. Guri Endresen-Rosseland is buried in Vikor Lutheran Church Cemetery • Willmar, Kandiyohi County, Minnesota. This link takes you to a memorial page on her behalf. The memorial was established by Cindy K. Coffin, May 25, 2009. There are corresponding links to her husband and four children. G.W. Perrault sponsors this Find A Grave memorial.

The text on the marker was taken from the churchyard plaque honoring Guri Endreson. The plaque was installed and dedicated in 1962, on the 100th anniversary of the events which took the lives of her husband and son, and is pictured to the right (middle). A 1962 photo showing Governor Elmer Anderson dedicating the plaque is also attached to this memorial.

(Submitted on May 8, 2025, by Luci j Baker Johnson of Seattle, Washington.)

Additional keywords. U.S.-Dakota War of 1862; Norwegian-Americans

Vikor Lutheran Church image. Click for full size.

Photographed by K. Linzmeier, July 16, 2014

4. Vikor Lutheran Church

Photographed by K. Linzmeier, July 16, 2014

5. Vikor Lutheran Church

Sign Attached to Church image. Click for full size.

Photographed by K. Linzmeier, July 16, 2014

6. Sign Attached to Church

Historic Marker
State Monument in Churchyard
where Sleeps
Guri Endreson
the Heroine in the Indian War
Old Home Log Cabin two Miles West on the Lake
Solomon Lake (Vikor) Church

Guri Endresen Rosseland State Monument image. Click for full size.

Photographed by K. Linzmeier, August 27, 2014

7. Guri Endresen Rosseland State Monument

The cemetery monument noted in the marker text.
(State Monument Number 10 • Erected 1907)
Guri Endresen.
1813 — 1881.
Erected by the State in Memory of Her Heroic Deeds During Indian Massacre 1862
Rosseland

Trail to Guri Endresen Cabin Site image. Click for full size.

Photographed by K. Linzmeier, July 16, 2014

8. Trail to Guri Endresen Cabin Site

(Cabin site is beyond the gate.)

Credits. This page was last revised on May 17, 2025. It was originally submitted on July 25, 2014, by Keith L of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. This page has been viewed 2,246 times since then and 71 times this year. Last updated on May 8, 2025, by Luci j Baker Johnson of Seattle, Washington. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on July 25, 2014, by Keith L of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. 7. submitted on October 9, 2014, by Keith L of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. 8. submitted on July 25, 2014, by Keith L of Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.