NORWEGIAN EMIGRATION - THE DEBORA EXPEDITION
A Norwegian Colonisation Undertaking


The forty-seven persons who took part in the Debora expedition were:-

Captain Tobiassen and wife, mate Berentsen and wife, mate Oftedal, A Olsen and wife, I Iversen and wife, O Høidalsvig (Hiedalewig) and wife, J Finsen and wife, K Bang and wife with three children (Amanda, Severin and Knut), F Larsen and wife with six children (Angel, Emil, Sigvart, the three sons of the late Sivert Andersen Hordnes, and Petra, Ludvig and Karl), H Johnsen and wife with three children (Sina, Josefine and Karl), A Andreassen and wife with three children (I don't remember their names), R Andersen, R Rasmussen, K Jensen, Hesselberg, Grang, O Fosdal, E Eriksen, P Bang, E Ellingsen, widow Egelandsdal and Miss Serene Larsen. 

Two children were born on the voyage: a son to Mr and Mrs F Larsen and a son to Mr and Mrs Andreassen
The expedition was aborted in Madagascar, a few of the participants remained in Madagascar and the rest settled in Port Natal (Durban). 

Further information is now loading and follows this text - Please wait

LARSEN FAMILY - SOUTH AFRICAN DESCENDANTS 
OF 
LERVIG, NYGAARDSVIG, HORDNES AND SALBU FAMILIES 

Sivert Olsen Nygaardsvig's daughter Marie Elizabeth Olsen married Sivert Andersen Hordnes the son of Anders Tollevsen Salbu. Marie lived in Nygaardsvig, she was 21 and Sivert was 29 when they married. (see Askøy Church records - original register in Bergen State Archives). Sivert Andersen, age 32, and his father-in-law Sivert Olsen Nygaardsvig, age 62, were lost at sea on the 27th of February, 1869 in a "Strong Storm". Their bodies were never found. see Askøy parish register number A 9 (1863-1877).

 After the untimely death of her first husband, Marie married Fredrik Johan Larsen Lervig. Fredrik, son of Lars Findsen Lervig and Petrikke Marie Johannesdtr, was born March 24, 1845, and was baptized in the Askøy church on April 6, 1845. Fredrik was the oldest of eight children and was a second cousin to Marie. Fredrik and Marie's common great-grandparents were John and Marthe Sjursen (Siursen) (married Askøy January 1776 - see insert below).

 Fredrik married Marie in the church at Askøy on the 10th of September 1871 and he became the foster father to the three children of Marie and her late husband Sivert Andersen Hordnes - the children's names were 'Angele Edvard'Angel Sivertsen (born 1866) and the twins Sigvart Sivertsen and Emil Sivertsen (born 1868).

 The December 1875 "Folketaelling for Kongeriget Norge" show that Fredrik Johan Larsen Lervig (Lervik) - together with his wife Marie Elisabeth Olsdtr and the children 'Angele Edvard' Angel Sivertsen, Sigvart Sivertsen and Emil Sivertsen, Petra Bendikte Larsdtr (born 1872) and Ludvig Larsen (born 1875) - lived in Krohnviken, Aarstad where Fredrik worked as a carpenter. Krohnviken is now a part of Bergen, a little south of the centre of the town. In the 1870's a number of mechanical workshops and shipbuilders were located in this area.

The Larsen Family left Bergen on the 19th of July 1879 on the schooner Debora to establish a Norwegian colony on the Island of Aldabra. After spending some weeks in Madagascar the expedition was aborted. The Debora left for Natal and arrived in Durban on the 12th of November 1879. 

Some years later Fredrik Johan Larsen purchased a 1030 acre farm in Oribi Flats, on the southern coast of Natal - the Larsen farm was close to the Norwegian settlement of Marburg. 

Marburg was the "New Homeland" of the small group of Norwegian Settlers who arrived in the British Crown Colony of Natal in 1882. Marburg was comprised of 50 farm "Lots" of 100 acres each, together with 2000 acres of "commonage". 

The Larsen family lived on the Oribi Flats farm for many years . Fredrik and his wife Marie are buried in a small graveyard on the farm. 

Emil Larsen married Gusta Dahle of Lot 30 Marburg and Nancy Larsen married Peter Lind of Lot 3 Marburg. Ref: "Norwegian Settlers Marburg, Natal 1882" and "Centenary Supplement 1882 - 1982" 

Photograph: Fredrik and Marie Larsen and Family - circa 1895 : Children: anti-clockwise from back - Petra Bendikte, Sigvart, Angel, Emil, Ludvig, Carl Martin, Finn Atlanter, Johannes, Elias Johan, Marie Fredrica. 


List of Norwegian Relatives of Angel, Sigvart and Emil Sivertsen Nygaardsvig: CLICK HERE

Descendants of Marie Elizabeth Sivertdtr Olsen Nygaardsvig 
Marie Elizabeth married Fredrik Johan Larsen after the death of her first husband Sivert Andersen Hordnes. Fredrik adopted the three children of Marie's first marriage - ie Sivert's sons Angel, Sigvart and Emil.
 

 

  • Legend
  • B: born. 
    D: died. 
    L: lived. 
    W: occupation. 
    A: adopted child. 
    Di:divorced. 
    s/o: son of. 
    sen: son of. 
    dtr: daughter. 
    M: married. 
    S: single. 
    [name] woman's married name or nickname 
    [name] childs name acquired by adoption 

     
     
     
    Marie Elizabeth Sivertdtr Olsen Nygaardsvig [married Andersen - married Larsen] 
    B:1844-08-20 in Nygaardsvig 
    D: 1916-08 aged 72 Oribi - buried in graveyard on the farm called Fredheim, ie Oribi lot 8 
    L: Nygaardsvig/Oribi Natal 
    W: housewife - seamstress - farmer 
    M: 1865-09-17 
    Sivert Andersen Hordnes s/o Anders Tollevsen Salbu 
    B-1836-11-18 D-1869-02-27 aged 33 
    B: Hordnes 
    L: Hordnes/Nygaardsvig 
    W: Farmer - carpenter - shipwright -fisherman 
    D: Korsfjord - Fanafjord (drowned when sailing boat overturned in storm) 
    Children 3 
    Angel (Angele Edvard) 
    B-1866? s/o Sivert Andersen Hordnes (s: died as young man in South Africa) 
    Sigvart 
    B-1868 s/o Sivert Andersen Hordnes (m: Mary Ann Edwards of Birmingham) 
    Emil 
    B-1868 s/o Sivert Andersen Hordnes (m: Gusta Dahle of lot 30 Marburg) 
    M: 1871-09-10 - Marie's second marriage 
    Fredrik Johan Larsen Lervig (Marie and Fredrik were second cousin - see insert above) 
    B-1845-03-24 D-1924-09 aged 79 (see estate papers dated Sept. 1924) 
    The widow Marie Elisabeth Olsen married Fredrik Johan Larsen, age 26, and the son of Lars Findsen Lervig 
    W: Farmer - Preacher 
    L: Oribi Flats Certificate of allotment SG 3976-08 of lot 8 - 1030 acres 
    M: Norway 
    D: Oribi - buried in graveyard on the farm called Fredheim, ie Oribi lot 8 
    Children 3+7 (Angel, and the twins Sigvart and Emil were adopted by their stepfather Fredrik Johan Larsen) 
    Petra Bendikte 
    B: Feb. 3, 1872 [m: Thorvaldsen] 
    Ludvig 
    B: 1875 - Ludvig born Nov. 3, 1873 died as baby, the second child Ludvig born Jan. 10, 1875 
    The second Ludvig drowned as a young man whilst swimming in the Umgeni river mouth ? 
    Carl Martin 
    B: 1878 
    M: Florence Habgood : divorced - Florence then married Kerr, divorced a second time and married Wayne 
    M: Shuttleworth 
    Finn Atlanter 
    B: 1879 
    D: 1962-11-28 : aged 83 
    L: Was a bachelor and stayed on the Oribi Farm until he died as a result of a motor accident in December 1962 
    Johannes 
    B-circa 1882 (Meningitis left him simple-minded) 
    D-died before parents in Pmb 
    Elias Johan 
    B-1885 [m: Grace Maria Jones] SO/ST-1-10 
    Marie Fredrica 
    B-1889 
    M: Henry Pickering 
    -

    Comprehensive Listing of the "Larsen" Descendants
    ANGEL SIVERTSEN NYGAARDSVIG [LARSEN] [became LARSEN by adoption] 
    no children - died a young adult 
    SIGVART SIVERTSEN NYGAARDSVIG [LARSEN] [became LARSEN by adoption] 
    Alfred Ernest Larsen 
    no children - died as a baby 
    Angel Sivert [Wireless-Windy] Larsen 
    no children 
    Victor Theodore Larsen 
    David Victor Larsen 
    James David Larsen 
    - Thamar Lydia Larsen 
    - Naomi Angela Larsen 
    - David James Larsen 
    - Tabea Gisela Larsen 
    Steven John Larsen 
    Gernot Egon Larsen 
    Mark Sivert Larsen 
    Verena Karen Larsen [Adjriou] 
    - Gustav Carl Hordnes Adjriou 
    Roy Stretton Larsen 
    Antony Stretton Larsen 
    Dayne Edwina Larsen 
    Diane Lucy Egersdorffer [Larsen] 
    Bergen Victor Larsen 
    Cyril Larsen 
    Loraine Larsen [Bean] 
    Susan Bean [Hughes] 
    Jane Bean [Short] 
    Harold Stanley Larsen 
    Wayne Larsen 
    Grant Larsen 
    Ann Larsen [Blewett] 
    Craig Blewett Stephen Blewett 
    Matthew Blewett 
    Clarence Larsen 
    no children 
    EMIL SIVERTSEN NYGAARDSVIG [LARSEN] [became LARSEN by adoption] 
    Alvida [Mulla] Larsen [Blackburn] 
    Lorraine [Bobby] Blackburn [de Jong - Parker] 
    no children 
    Olga Blackburn [Lyndon] 
    no children 
    Theodore [Mannie - Blackie] Blackburn 
    Glenwyn Roland Blackburn 
    -Aaron Blackburn 
    - Nicholas Blackburn 
    - Matthew Blackburn 
    Bradley Wayne Blackburn 
    - Brendan Wayne Blackburn 
    Dora Larsen 
    no children 
    Gustav Larsen 
    no children 
    Thelma Larsen [McMurchie] 
    no children 
    PETRA BENDIKTE LARSEN [THORVALDSEN] 
    Elling Engelbert Johann Thorvaldsen 
    Edith Joan Thorvaldsen [Goldhill] 
    Malcolm Christopher Goldhill 
    - Warren Goldhill 
    - Kirsten Goldhill 
    - Dean Goldhill 
    Sharon Anne Goldhill [Keogh] 
    - Gregory Keogh 
    - Adrian Keogh 
    - Kathryn Keogh 
    John Derek Goldhill 
    Beverley Joan Goldhill 
    Ronald Ian Thorvaldsen 
    Elise Thorvaldsen [Macadam] 
    Paula Thorvaldsen 
    Andrew Thorvaldsen 
    Anne Thelma Thorvaldsen [Bach] 
    David Bach 
    Juliet Bach 
    Norman Michael Thorvaldsen 
    Gary Sven Thorvaldsen 
    Julie Anne Thorvaldsen 
    Sara Adele Rosalie Thorvaldsen 
    Sheila June Thorvaldsen [Morris] 
    Gareth Morris 
    Kari Morris 
    Frida Marie Thorvaldsen [Lello] 
    No descendants 
    Theodora Thelma Thorvaldsen [Cowley] 
    Thorvald William Cowley 
    - Mary Sylvia Cowley 
    Petra Inga E Hannah Thorvaldsen [Everitt] 
    Jennifer Everitt [Vermeulen] 
    - Roger Vermeulen 
    - David Vermeulen 
    Pamela Everitt [MacPherson] 
    - Charmagne Yvonne MacPherson 
    - James MacPherson 
    LUDWIG LARSEN 
    No descendants - drowned whilst swimming in the Umgeni river 
    CARL MARTIN BRYAN LARSEN 
    Mildred Violet Habgood Larsen [Bean] 
    Noel Gwendoline Bean [Seager] 
    Anthony Leonard Seager 
    - Wayne Seager 
    - Brent Seager 
    Lynette Mildred Seager [Finlay] 
    - Grant Scott Finlay 
    - Colette Finlay 
    Norman Bean 
    Norman Charles Bean 
    - Norman ?? Bean 
    - Gavin ?? Bean 
    Virginia Anne Bean [Green] 
    - Judy Green 
    - Michael Green 
    Pamela Elizabeth Bean [Wentzel] 
    - Grant Wentzel 
    - Linda-Lee Wentzel 
    Roy Michael Bean 
    Jennifer Delise Bean [Clark] 
    -John Clark 
    John (or Reginald) Bean 
    no children 
    Philip Henry Alec Bean 
    Susan Bean [Hughes] 
    Jane Bean [Short] 
    Ninette Dawn Bean [Heaven] 
    Mildred Adeline M Heaven [McCluskey] 
    - Arlene Ninette McCluskey 
    - Tracy May McCluskey 
    Trevor Habgood Bean 
    David Charles Bean 
    Caryn Bean 
    Harold [Pop] Larsen 
    Anne Margeret Larsen [Harlow] 
    Arthur Neil Harlow 
    - Nicola Anne Harlow 
    - Laura Wendy Harlow 
    Julie-Anne Day Harlow [Day] 
    - Kathleen Louis Day 
    - Anthony Ian Day 
    - Alan Keith Day 
    James Alan Harlow 
    Carl Alexander Robert Larsen 
    no children 
    Lukas Harold [Harry] Larsen 
    Angela Larsen 
    Pearl Larsen 
    no children 
    Reginald Larsen [Wayne] [adopted the name of his stepfather] 
    Roy Anthony Wayne 
    Helen-Christi Wayne 
    Christopher James Wayne 
    Terrence Reginald Wayne 
    Lucy Wayne 
    Alginal Larsen [Wayne][adopted the name of his stepfather] 
    no children 
    FINN ATLANTER LARSEN 
    No descendants - remained a bachelor and lived on the family farm in Oribi 
    JOHANNES LARSEN 
    No descendants - died at an early age. 
    ELIAS JOHAN LARSEN 
    Nancy Larsen [Lind] 
    Anders Lind 
    Sharlene Lind [Schultz] 
    Justin Lind 
    René Lind 
    Robin Lind 
    Edna Larsen [Gascoyne] 
    Sherwyn Gascoyne 
    Corolla Gascoyne 
    Frederick James Larsen 
    Bruce Frederick Larsen 
    Andrew Larsen 
    Kim Larsen 
    Sylvia Larsen [Hugo - Robinson] 
    Barry J Hugo 
    Siobhan Kathleen Hugo 
    MARIE FREDRICA LARSEN [PICKERING] 
    No descendants 

    Notes: 

    Parents of Marie Elizabeth Olsen - Nygaardsvig 

    Sivert Olsen Nygaardsvig 
    B: Nygaardsvig 
    D: Nygaardsvig 
    L: Nygaardsvig 
    W: Captain of small ship - carpenter - shipwright 
    Married 
    Severine Toredtr Nygaardsvig 
    Children - number unknown 
    Marie Elizabeth Olsen - Nygaardsvig 
    -
    Notes: (Spelling differences have not been corrected) 

    The Fana Bygdebok (4) records: "Jana" Johanna Hansdtr Hordnes (Hordneas),was the daughter of Hans Paulsen who died in 1792, Hans Knudsen, who had no children of this own, married "Siri" Sigrid Iversdtr Birkeland the widow of Hans Paulsen. Jana, being Hans Paulsen's only child, inherited her fathers portion of the farm Hordnes. Jana and Anders Tollevsen Salbu were the parents of Sivert Andersen Hordnes. 
     

    The following information was sourced by Yngve Nedrebø 

    The Askøy records show: Sivert Andersen, age 32, and his father-in-law, Sivert Olsen Nygaardsvig, age 62, were lost at sea Feb. 27, 1869 in a "Strong Storm". Their bodies were never found.

    The Askøy records show: Sept. 10, 1871 the widow Marie Elisabeth Olsen married Fredrik Johan Larsen, age 26, and the son of Lars Findsen Lervig. They had a daughter Petra Benedikte Feb. 3, 1872. A son Ludvig Nov. 3, 1873, another Ludvig born Jan. 10, 1875. In 1875 Fredrik Johan Larsen Lervig - together with his wife Marie Elisabeth Olsdtr and the children Angele Edvard, Emil, Sigvart, Petra Bendikte and Ludvig, born 1875 - lived in Krohnviken, Aarstad. See: Folketaelling for Kongeriget Norge den 31te December 1875 P28 and P29 - in this census record Angele Ed(e)vard B-1866, Emil B-1868, Sigvart B-1868 were recorded as Sivertsen and not Larsen 

    The Askøy records show: Fredrik Johan Larsen Lervig and Cathrine Marie Tollefsdatter had (out-of- wedlock) a daughter Cathrine Johanne March 8, 1866, but the child died Jan. 29, 1869. 

    Askøy records - page references: Deaths of Sivert Olsen and Sivert Andersen on page 217b, numbers 12 and 13, death of the child Cathrine Johanne on page 262b, number 7, marriage of Marie Elisabeth and Fredrik Johan Larsen on page 189b, number 27, birth of Ludvig Nov. 3, 1873 on page 148b, number 78, and the second Ludvig, born January 10, 1875 on page 153d, number 11. 

    -
    -
    Complied by David Victor Larsen Tuesday, December 3, 1991
    summary W478-P168-30? 
    ALDABRA
    The Aldabra archipelago is one of the least affected by man of any of the Indian Ocean Islands. So immense that one cannot see from one end of the vast lagoon to the other. Volcanic in origin, it is a harsh yet incredibly beautiful and unique eco-system rising out of the oceans depths off the eastern rim of the Mozambique channel. "Aldabra" wrote Sir Julian Huxley in 1970 "is one of natures treasures and should belong to the whole world". Charles Darwin himself was well aware of Aldabra's importance to naturalists and pleaded for its protection over 100 years ago. Incredibly, Aldabra had been off limits to all but a hearty few scientists and explorers until 1991 when it was officially opened to selective and small groups of eco-tourists, primarily birders and divers. 


    RETURN TO MAIN TEXT