Hans H. Sandvig, a renowned agriculturist and respected citizen of Minnehaha County, was born in Norway on October 18, 1848. After settling in the United States in 1870, he established himself as a successful farmer in Goodhue County, Minnesota, before relocating to Minnehaha County, South Dakota. Sandvig’s dedication to agriculture led him to own a valuable farm of four hundred and forty acres, known for its fertility and excellent livestock potential. Alongside his wife, Ida O. Brown, Sandvig raised two daughters and became actively involved in his community, holding important official positions and contributing to the development of education in the county. Throughout his life, Sandvig exemplified integrity, intelligence, and success in his endeavors, leaving a lasting legacy in Minnehaha County.
Hans H. Sandvig, one of the leading agriculturists and representative citizens of Minnehaha County, was born in Norway on the 18th day of October, 1848. Reared on a farm, he early selected agriculture for his life work and followed the same in his native land until 1870, at which time he came to the United States and settled in Goodhue County, Minnesota. After spending three years there in successful prosecution of his chosen vocation, he, in the fall of 1873, changed his abode to Minnehaha County, South Dakota, where he took up a homestead which he improved and upon which he lived and prospered until the latter part of 1880. In December of that year, Mr. Sandvig moved to Lyons Township, where he continued to reside until the spring of 1903, when he rented his farm and took up his residence in Baltic, which place he has since made his home, living practically a life of retirement though still devoting much attention to his large agricultural interests and to the management of his business affairs.
Mr. Sandvig owns a valuable farm, consisting of four hundred and forty acres, all in cultivation and well improved with good buildings, and everything considered, there are few as fine tracts of land as his in the county of Minnehaha. It is admirably situated for agricultural and livestock purposes, being fertile, well-watered, and capable of producing abundantly all the grains and vegetable crops grown in South Dakota. Mr. Sandvig cultivates the soil according to the most approved methods, employs the best modern machinery, and by systematic and energetic effort seldom fails to realize large returns for the time and labor expended on his fields. In the matter of livestock, he has also been quite successful, having for a number of years devoted considerable attention to the raising of fine cattle, sheep, and hogs, which, as all know, have long been considered a reliable source of wealth in Minnehaha County and throughout the state.
Mr. Sandvig was married, after settling in South Dakota, to Miss Ida O. Brown, who, like himself, is a native of Norway but who had been living for some years prior to her marriage in the county of Minnehaha. Two daughters have been born to this union, Hilda O. and Christina A., both living and, like their parents, highly esteemed in the social circles in which they move. Mr. Sandvig’s long residence in South Dakota, covering a period of over thirty years, has made him widely known throughout Minnehaha County, and today there are few as popular men in the community and none more active or influential in promoting the material welfare of this section of the state. Never an office seeker or an aspirant for leadership in any undertaking, he has been honored at different times with important official positions, including the chairmanship of the Lyons Township Board, which he held for many years, and a place on the local school board, in which capacity he was instrumental in building up the educational system within his jurisdiction and making the schools among the best in the county. Mr. Sandvig possesses in a marked degree the physical characteristics and mental qualifications essential to success, being a man of wide practical intelligence, good judgment, clear perception, and invincible integrity. His career throughout presents much that is commendable and worthy of emulation, and measured by the highest standard of excellence, his life as a neighbor, friend, and enterprising citizen has been eminently honorable and above reproach.
Source: Robinson, Doane, History of South Dakota: together with mention of Citizens of South Dakota, [Logansport? IN] : B. F. Bowen, 1904.