Henry and Hulda Overgaard Family  

On September 29, 1914, Henry Overgard married Hulda Eliza Mellegaard.  To this union, 13 children were born.  Harold died in infancy and Keith and Kenneth, the twins, died at birth.

Starting with the oldest, LaVaun married Ole Grudt and had five children:  Gordon, Harlen, Morris, Mary Ellen and Darlene;
Lorraine married Elmer Jorgensen and had four children:  Elaine, Larry, Glen and Judy;
Helen married Donald Jensen and had no children, but raised Jean Overgard and Patricia and Danny Lee;
Ruth married Bernard Benning and had three boys: David, Jerry and Steve;
Evelyn married Ezra Petterson and had two children: Duane and Debra;
Charles married Lurline Anderson and have five children: Bruce, Brian, Julie, Bradley and Janet;
Doris married Edward Olson and had three children:  Rodney, Sandra and Shari;
Lillian married Harold Lee and had three children:  Jean Ellen, Patricia and Danny;
Alfred married Zeta Knock and had three children: Randy, Pamela and Vicki;
Earl married Carol Christensen and had two children: Michael and Connie.

Henry and Hulda farmed all their married life in Yankton and Turner counties.  Hulda suffered from crippling arthritis most of her life.

The kids have fond memories of growing up.  They remember working hard on the farm helping shock grain, milking cows and planting large gardens.  In the fall, Henry used a potato digger which brought all the potatoes up on the ground and the kids would have to put them into five-gallon pails and carry them to a triple box wagon.  When that was full, they would pull it back to the house, fill the pails again, and carry the potatoes down in the cellar to the potato bin.  There would hopefully be enough to last all winter.

Hulda and the girls would can food for the winter.  Hulda made many batches of homemade bread, and they can remember coming home from School very hungry and finding bread rising in the kitchen.  They would cut off a piece, stretch it out, and fry it on the stove.  BOY!  THAT WAS GOOD!

They had one bicycle and one horse and three miles to go to school.  So they had to fight over taking turns.  Dad said when it got too cold, the Ol’ Model A would not start!  Everyone wanted to ride the horse because he was warm.

Hulda died at the age of 57, and Henry died at 75, both of cancer.  Lillian and Harold died in 1967; Evelyn and Doris died in 1970, and Lorraine died in 1973.