In the book's own words, not ours, with obvious scanning errors fixed. Families often supplied these stories to the publisher, so check key dates.
Born 1837
From An illustrated history of Jackson County, Minnesota (1910)
SIMON OLSON (1861), deceased, was one of the pioneers of the county and a gentleman worthy a place in its history. He was born in Tolgen, Norway, June 14, 1837, and came to America in 1856. From that date until 1861 he lived at Jefferson Prairie, Wisconsin.
In the spring of 1861 Mr. Olson, in company* with a colony of Norwegian settlers came to Jackson county, then very sparsely settled, and took a homestead in Belmont township. In the summer of 1861 he enlisted in Brackett's battalion of the Second Minnesota and served in the army nine months.
He again took up his residence in Belmont in 1862, only to be driven out in August by the Indians. He went to Spring Grove, Houston county, Minnesota, in 1863, was married there, and came back to his former home in Belmont in 1864, being with the first party to return to Jackson county after the mab- secre. Mr. Olson engaged in farming from that date until his death on April 27, 1907. During his long residence in the county he held several offices of trust, among them being county commissioner and judge of the probate court.
Judge Olson was married at Spring Grove, Houston county, Minnesota, in 1868, to Bertha Olson. She died April 17, 1877, and in 1883 he married Anna Minde. He was the father of ten children.
As printed in An illustrated history of Jackson County, Minnesota (1910). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.
Their biographies name Simon Olson: Lars O. Teigen (b. 1864)
The printed record stops around 1910. We trace your line from there down to you, with every source cited.