Decorah Posten
Decorah-Posten was a Norwegian-language newspaper in Decorah, Iowa. It was founded in 1874 by Brynild Anundsen, who came from Skien, Norway. The paper served Scandinavian immigrants in several states.
Its roots go back to Ved Arnen, a Norwegian-American literary magazine that began in La Crosse, Wisconsin, in 1866 and later became a regular supplement to Decorah-Posten. Anundsen moved his printing operation to Decorah in 1867, and on September 18, 1874 he launched Decorah-Posten. The paper was well edited and careful to avoid political or religious controversy that had damaged other papers. Anundsen’s good judgment and business sense helped it grow.
Decorah-Posten often carried news from Norwegian immigrants and their descendants in the upper Midwest. In the Ved Arnen section, it published Norwegian-language stories and books, including works by Hans Andersen Foss. The serial The Cotter’s Son, published in 1899, is credited with helping save the paper from bankruptcy. A comic strip, Han Ola og han Per, began in 1918 and became a signature feature; it was drawn by Peter Julius Rosendahl.
Editors over the years included Johannes B. Wist (1901–1923), who also edited the Norwegian-language Symra magazine. Kristian Prestgard led as editor-in-chief from 1923 until his death in 1946, with Simon Johnson serving as co-editor from 1929 to 1945. The paper absorbed Minneapolis Tidende in 1935 and Skandinaven in 1941.
By 1948, Decorah-Posten claimed to have a larger circulation than all other Norwegian-American newspapers combined.
The Decorah-Posten ended in 1972 when it was purchased by Western Viking. It lives on as part of The Norwegian American, a bilingual publication that continues the legacy of several former Norwegian-language newspapers, including Ved Arnen, Minneapolis-Tidende, Minnesota Posten, Washington Posten, Norrøna, and Skandiaben. It is not clear whether there is an index to its articles or where one might be found.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 08:45 (CET).