Bold Spirit recounts Estbys' long walk
Norwegian immigrant Helga Estby's entire life seems to have prepared her for the stunning adventure she undertook in the late 1800s, to prove not only her own strength, but that of all women.
Estby's cross-country walk across the U.S., with her eldest daughter Clara, is documented in Bold Spirit, a historic account patched together by author Linda Lawrence Hunt. Despite the destruction of Estby's careful notes, her letters and sketches, along with the Estby children's lifelong condemnation of their mother's story, Hunt crafts a convincing story.
A "rag rug" patchwork of news stories, a deep and fascinating knowledge of women's history and conversations with Thelma Estby, who was committed to preserving her family's stories, make Bold Spirit an interesting read. Helga was a true American pioneer, emigrating to Manistee, Michigan from Norway at age 11, at a time when Manistee's citizens were fully involved in the question of women's suffrage.
At age 15, Helga's life changed dramatically, although the specifics are not well known. She found herself pregnant and, before the child was born, married Ole Estby, a 28-year-old logger and carpenter. The couple moved cross-country to Yellow Medicine County in Minnesota, and Clara was thereafter presented as Ole's natural child.
A devastating blizzard and a destructive spate of cyclones likely made an employment opportunity in far-off Seattle seem very attractive. As Ole and Helga settled there, Helga filled the traditional role of a Victorian-era wife, enduring 10 pregnancies, the deaths of two children and the dramatic natural and social disasters that shaped the course of her family's life.
Trapped in bad financial situation, with her husband unable to work, Helga found her interest piqued by an ad offering $10,000 to any woman who would walk across the country, in part to promote a new line of women's clothing denounced as brazenly inappropriate because it exposed the ankles.
As she explores the deal itself, Hunt provides a fascinating look at the stifling cultural restrictions faced by Victorian women - and then goes on to show how, with ingenuity, endurance and sheer strength of will, two women stepped into a torrent of criticism and outright hatred, all for the love and preservation of their family home.
LEARN MORE:
Linda Hunt's Web site - includes updated information about Helga's journey
Norway Times - Helga's Historic Walk
Oregon Quarterly Historic Review