Crossings 200: Canadian Connections

It has been 200 years since the start of organized Norwegian migration to North America. In 1825, a group of 52 men, women and children left Stavanger, Norway on the sloop Restauration, looking for religious freedom and economic opportunities in the United States. They arrived in New York City on October 9 after a 14-week journey. In the century that followed, a significant percentage of Norway’s population moved to North America. Though most Norwegians arrived via Canadian ports between 1850 and the late 1860s, they generally moved on to the US. However, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many Norwegians moved to the Canadian Prairie Provinces, both directly from Norway and via the American Midwest. 

The Crossings 200 anniversary gives us a chance to not only learn more about Norwegian migration to North America, but also to reflect on the worldwide processes and impacts of migration, both past and present. It is being commemorated in Norway, Canada and the United States by over 170 organizations with activities taking place throughout 2025. Please join us on October 9, 2025 at the historic Bailey Theatre in Camrose to find out more about the Canadian chapters of this migration 200 hundred years after the Restauration landed in New York. In addition to a short presentation by Ingrid Urberg, professor of Scandinavian Studies, we will also be viewing Jan Harald Tomassen's documentary film The Journey, partially filmed in Camrose and the surrounding area.

Doors Open: 6:30 p.m. | Program Start: 7:00 p.m.