One of the primary missions of the Valdres Samband is to help its members with research into their Valdres family roots. Members can take advantage of our extensive library at the annual stevne, and our genealogist responds to member requests and provides invaluable assistance throughout the year.
We ask new members to fill out a membership questionnaire to assist us in building a database of Valdres descendants.
Our organization maintains a database of Valdres ancestors with over 280,000 names. You can search for your family and submit updates from your research. You must be a member of our organization to use the database. Login with you membership number and password.
Valdres Samband Genealogical Database (www.valdresgenealogy.com)
Genealogy Resources – We have compiled an updated list of resources for Norwegian American Genealogy research.
Our Samband Library
The Valdres Samand has an extensive collection of family histories, Valdres bygdeboker, and other reference materials donated to us over the years. Most of these are housed in our storage unit in St. Louis Park, Minnesota. We bring many reference books to our annual stevne for members to research.
Valdres Bygdeboker
Bygdeboker (Farm Books) are unique to Norway and are an important resource for Norwegian genealogical research. They tell the history of the farms in a region and the families that owned or lived on each farm. The Samband owns the following hard copy bygdeboker for the Valdres region, all written in Norwegian. Many libraries in the US have nice collections of these books. Some of these books are available on line if you have a Norwegian IP address. (Learn about how to get one with a VPN).