Among the mountains and valleys of southern Norway, along Langesund Fjord and back of Nordsjo, skien of Kragero, lies the ancient province of Telemarken. In Telemarken the oldest church is known as Hitterdal church and its history dates back to 1180 — to the time of St. Olaf. It was from Telemarken that some of the earliest settlers of Minnesota came, and they have proved to be an enterprising, thrifty people. Among these Telemarkens is the Rev. T. A. Hagen, pastor of the United Lutheran church at Hendrum and in spiritual charge of three other congregations of that communion in that vicinity. He was born at Saude, Telemarken, March 12, 1863, son of Anders and Bergete (Naset) Hagen, also Telemarkens, who came to Minnesota in 1885 and located on a farm in the neighborhood of Ashby, in Grant county, where they spent the remainder of their lives. Anders Hagen and his wife were members of the United Lutheran church and their children were reared in that faith. There were thirteen of these children, of whom the subject of this sketch was the first-born, the others being as follow : Ingeborg, who married Ole Olson ; Anna, who married Andrew Eken ; Margaret, deceased ; Bergete, deceased ; Ingeborg, who married B. B. Schmidt, and Halvor, Torsten A., Ole, Andrew. Tillia, Louis and Hulda.

T. A. Hagen remained in his native land until he was twenty years of age, when, in 1883, he came to the United States and proceeded on out to Minnesota, locating at Ashby, in Grant county, where he remained until 1887, in which year he moved up into the valley of the Red river and for ten years thereafter was engaged in teaching school in Norman county, meanwhile sedulously pursuing his studies with the design, entertained from boyhood, of entering the gospel ministry.' In 1898 he entered the seminary of the United Lutheran church at Minneapolis and upon completing the course there was ordained to the ministry of that church, the ordination ceremony taking place at Minneapolis on June 17, 1900. Following his ordination the Rev. T. A. Hagen was stationed in charge of a congregation in Kittson county and remained there for thirteen years, during which time he organized three congregations and before he left had three ministers in charge of a large field originally covered by his ministrations. It was in 1913 that Mr. Hagen was transferred to the charge at Hendrum, a change which brought him back to Norman county, the scene of his earlier endeavors as a school teacher, and he since has been located there, doing an excellent work. There are four churches attached to Mr. Hagen's pastorate, those besides the church at Hendrum being the church at St. Pauli (north), the church at Concordia (east), and the church at Pontopidan (east), his earnest personal influence and power for doing good thus being directed over a wide territory. During this long period of ministry Mr. Hagen has held several offices in the United Lutheran church. By appointment he, for some time, held the office of visitator for the Crookston circuit and was then elected to that office, serving thus for four years. He also, for four years, was a member of the mission board of the church.

On January 2, 1884, the year after his arrival in America, the Rev. T. A. Hagen was united in marriage to Anna Lia, daughter of Ole Gjertson Lia and Anne Jørgensdatter Vestgarden, also Telemarkens, and to this union nine children have been born, namely : Clara, wife of the Rev. Conrad B. Runsvold ; Bertha, wife of John A. Emanuelson. a farmer, and Anna, Alfred, Olga, Esther, Olaf, Valborg and Alice. Mrs. Hagen's parents, both of whom are now deceased, spent all their lives in their native country, their home being on a farm.