Helga, like Stephan, had been raised within the tenets of an orthodox Lutheran Church in Iceland. Unlike Stephan, however, Helga continued to engage with her faith throughout her life. While both she and Stephan attended church in Wisconsin and Dakota, by the time they were settled in Markerville Stephan had cut ties with the church and organized religion. Even so, “it appears that Helga was concerned for her children’s moral upbringing. Family members, sans [Stephan], partook in readings from the Bible and attended the Markerville church whenever Hjalmsson or another minister preached.” (Poet of the Rocky Mountains, p.108)
Perhaps she may even have attended an Easter service at the Markerville Lutheran Church.
Image courtesy Provincial Archives of Alberta, “Markerville, Alberta”, [between 1905 and 1907]. A4661.
Obtained from an Easter 2025 post on the Stephan G. Stephansson Facebook page.
A black-and-white photo from between 1905 and 1907 shows a group gathered in front of a white wooden Lutheran Church with a tall steeple. Men, women, and children stand in formal attire on the grass and church steps.
Baldur Stefánsson was born on September 25 in 1879 at Shawano, Wisconsin. At the age of ten he would leave with his family for their new home near Markerville, in the North-West Territories (now Alberta).
The photo below was taken in Dakota, shortly before they left. Baldur is on the left, Gudmundur in the center, and Jakob on the right.
Image courtesy Provincial Archives of Alberta, PH75.28.3.
Baldur is on the left, Gudmundur is seated in the center, and Jakob on the right.
On September 15, 1972, the Markerville Creamery closed its doors. It would re-open as a historic site in 1986.
The Creamery was started by the Tindastoll Butter and Cheese Manufacturing Association Limited, which was formed in August 1899 in Tindastoll, now Markerville, Alberta. The association was composed of a board of directors, which included a president, vice president, and three directors. The members of the first board of directors included Dan Morkeberg, J.M. Johnson, S. Goodman, J. Benedickson, and G. Thorlakson, with Stephan G. Stephansson as the first secretary. On March 5, 1910 the name of the association was changed to the Markerville Butter and Cheese Manufacturing Association.
Images of Dan Morkeberg at the Creamery, 1899 P7725, the Markerville Creamery [1901], P7726 and Markerville Creamery [1908], P7726 courtesy Red Deer Archives.
Helga Stephansson’s life was marked by resilience, quiet strength, and a deep commitment to both family and community. Born in Iceland and married at 19 in the first recorded Icelandic wedding in the United States (1876), Helga’s early years were spent doing domestic work to support her family before starting her own.
In 1889, pregnant and seeking a better future, Helga moved with her husband Stephan to the Markerville area. There, they built not just a home, but a life rooted in hard work and mutual respect. Their marriage may not have been a romantic love story, but it was a true partnership—one in which Helga had equal say in farm decisions and retained ownership of her earnings, a rare and significant stance for a woman at the time.
Raising eight children over 21 years, Helga’s days were filled with childrearing, homemaking, and letter writing. She remained the steady hand at home while her husband traveled widely for speaking engagements. After the tragic death of her son Gestur, Helga developed a lasting fear of thunderstorms—an enduring symbol of a mother’s grief.
Beyond her family, Helga gave generously to her community. She was a dedicated member of the Vonin Ladies Aid Society, contributing to the care and well-being of Markerville and its residents.
Her story is one of quiet leadership, enduring strength, and the often-unseen labour that built strong prairie communities.
Today, visitors to the Stephansson House Historic Site see not just a poet’s workspace, but also glimpse the life of Helga—the steadfast partner whose contributions made it all possible.
💛 Celebrate Helga’s legacy: the unsung pioneer woman whose dedication and endurance shaped a family and community.
In 1888, after arriving with the first group of Icelandic settlers in the area, Jónas Húnfjörður (Hunford) suggested June 27th be designated as Markerville’s official founding date. That first group included the following men and their families: Sigurður J. Björnsson, Ólafur Ólafsson from Espihóli, Benidikt Ólafsson, Einar Jónsson, Sigurður Árnason, Bjarni Jónsson, Jónas J. Hunford, Benidikt Jónsson Bardal, Gísli Jónsson Dalmann. The group also included single men: Guðmundur Þorláksson, Jón Guðmundarson and Jósef Jónsson. In Winnipeg, the families of Jóhann Björnsson and Eyjólfur Helgason, and one single man, Jón Einarsson, joined.
While the community was originally known as Tindastoll, after a mountain in Skagafjörður, Iceland, it was renamed Markerville in 1903 after Alberta Dairy Commissioner C.P. Marker, who established a government creamery there.
You can find some of Jónas’ account in the 1909 edition of the Almanak.
The Republic of Iceland was formed on June 17, 1944, aligning with the birth date of Jón Sigurðsson, a key leader early in the fight for independence.
In keeping with Iceland’s peaceful nature and the preservation of its culture despite foreign rule, here are some key historical points on Iceland’s independence:
870s – 1222: Initial Viking settlement and clan wars. 1222 – 1264: Age of the Sturlungs, ending with unification under Norwegian rule. Late 1300s: Union with Denmark, leading to harsh conditions for Icelanders. 1550: Execution of Reverend Jón Arason for resisting Danish religious changes. 1811: Birth of Jón Sigurðsson, who led the national awakening. 1904: Home rule granted, but Denmark retained control over key affairs. 1918: Iceland became a sovereign kingdom under Denmark. WWII: British and later US troops occupied Iceland to prevent German invasion. 1944: Full independence achieved on June 17, with the US being the first to recognize it.
Throughout this period, Iceland maintained its cultural identity and built key institutions like the University of Iceland, consecrated in 1940.
Iceland’s Independence Day commemorates all these milestones while looking towards the future of this resilient nation.
Stephan and Helga Stephansson’s family about 1905: Gestur, Jakob, and Guðmundur standing left to right; Baldur, Fanny, and Jenny seated, with Rósa in front.
Built in 1895, Helgi Jonasson decided to build a cheese factory west of Tindastoll. He felt that if farmers in the area sold him their cow’s milk, he could then make cheese to sell back to the community. However, Jonasson found it very expensive to buy all the necessary equipment to operate the factory. The Icelanders had difficulty travelling all the way to the factory to sell him milk. As well, many were too poor to buy the cheese. In 1897, Helgi went into partnership with Einar Johnson & expanded the enterprise to include buttermaking. They experienced business difficulties when another entrepreneur, Jon Benediktson decided to set up a small store & cheese factory just 2 miles north. In 1899, the Dominion government approached 34 Icelandic farmers to form a joint stock company call the Tindastoll Butter & Cheese Manufacturing Association. Benediktson & Jonsson were convinced to sell their factories to the Association so it could develop one creamery for the community. And…so it began. The Markerville Creamery opened in 1902 in the location where it stands today. A much larger Creamery for the community.
Above images and article originally posted on Historic Markerville’s Facebook page in June 2021.
You can find out more about the Creamery, the history of the dairy industry in Alberta, and how Markerville got its name. CHURNING BUTTER by Rolf Buschardt Christensen is a newly released book available now at the Kaffistofa. The story is framed around the life and times of Christian Peter Marker, Alberta’s first Dairy Commissioner.
In 1891, Helga Stephansson, along with Sigurlaug Kristinnson (Stephan’s sister), established Vonin (or “Hope”), a ladies’ aid society.
In the early years, the members met in each other’s homes to plan social events through which they could raise money for community projects. Their projects were wide-ranging. For example, if a woman living in the area, whether of Icelandic descent or not, was ill, Vonin was there with personal items such as a nightgown or slippers, or perhaps a box of oranges. Other fundraising targeted specific projects. Perhaps the library needed money to subscribe to Icelandic newspapers or perhaps a family lost its home to fire or was in dire straits.
As today is Random Acts of Kindness Day, how will you show kindness to someone today?
Image courtesy Provincial Archives of Alberta, “Picnic at Markerville, Alberta”, 1921, A2236. — Facebook post from February 17, 2024 by Stephanson House Provincial Historic Site
Photo of Evelyn Johannson and six of her eight kids, taken one day on the way to school about the end of the school term 1957/58. The Johannson’s were some of the many people and families who lived in the Buttermaker’s House over the years.
