Across the Atlantic Again: Celebrating 200 Years of Norwegian Emigration to America

On July 4, 1825, the sloop Restauration set sail from Stavanger, Norway, carrying 52 Norwegian immigrants — later known as the “sloopers” — on a journey to pursue religious freedom in America. After months at sea and the birth of a newborn, they arrived in New York City on October 9, 1825, marking the beginning of organized Norwegian emigration to the United States.

Two hundred years later, a replica of the Restauration departed from the same port in Stavanger, again on July 4. The vessel completed its transatlantic journey with a celebratory arrival in Lower Manhattan on Thursday, October 9, 2025 — 200 years to the day.

Downloadable Broll and SOTs for journalists

“The millions of stories that make up two centuries of Norwegian emigration to the United States tell of hope and disappointment, success and also challenges, but above all, they bear witness of generations of Norwegians who were inspired to seek a new life of freedom and possibility,” said Crown Prince Haakon of Norway during the celebration in New York following the docking of the Restauration.

The Norwegian government organized the commemorative journey, but members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints joined the celebration to remember family ties to Norway and, for some, ancestors who were part of the original sloopers.

“I grew up knowing that our ancestry all went back to Norway. I didn’t know I was related to the original sloopers,” said Ivan Nelson, who joined in welcoming the Restauration into New York Harbor.

“It was more than just a ship sailing in. This is part of my history, part of my ancestry. There’s a spiritual connection there,” said Nelson.

Using FamilySearch, a family history program offered by the Church of Jesus Christ, Nelson discovered he was related to nearly the entire ship of immigrants.

“I checked one, and I found that I was related. And I checked another and another and another, and everyone I was related to. The two [immigrants] I wasn’t related to — I logged into my wife’s [FamilySearch account], and she was related to the two that I wasn’t,” said Nelson.

Elder Paul V. Johnson, Sunday School General President of the Church, spoke at a devotional in New York the night before the ship’s arrival and was present when the ship sailed in. Many of his ancestors are from Norway, and he served as a missionary in Norway for the Church 50 years ago.

“Norway [is] a big part of my heart and the people of Norway — and to see this connection, with this ship coming in … the connections between Norway and America and Norway and the Church of Jesus Christ, it’s been a powerful experience for me,” said Elder Johnson.

Many of those first immigrants joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in America, and many more would later join in Norway and sail to America.

“The early Norwegian Saints were really critical for the growth of the Church. They came at a time when the Church needed strength. In fact, if you look over the course of that first century of Church growth in Norway, almost half of [the members] who joined the Church in Norway emigrated to the United States and strengthened the Church,” said Elder Johnson.

Steve Washburn and his family wanted to pay tribute to the sacrifices of their ancestors who sailed on the original Restauration to America.

“We are excited to come to this event because two of the people on the ship — Kari Pedersdatter and Cornelius Nilsen — are my great-great-great-grandparents, and they boarded the ship 200 years ago with four of their older children and made the voyage across to America,” said Washburn.

For Olivia, Steve’s daughter, this event was a full-circle moment. She served as a missionary in Norway for the Church of Jesus Christ and was in Stavanger, Norway, for the departure of the ship in July of this year. In October, she witnessed the boat sail into New York.

“It’s just so special to celebrate our ancestors, who sacrificed so much,” said Olivia. “It makes me so grateful for the journey that the Norwegian people made 200 years ago.”

Rolf Idar Isaksen, a Norwegian historian for the Church of Jesus Christ, is grateful for the commemoration of this journey and the opportunity to remember the immigrants.

“This has been an opportunity for us to come more out of obscurity,” Isaksen said. “We are on common ground of interest in our ancestors and want to celebrate [these immigrants] who wanted religious freedom. And that’s a story that needs to be a part of the Norwegian immigration history.”

Download Photo

The skipper of the modern-day Restauration, Kjell Morten Ronaes, was proud to be a part of this historical moment. After three years of planning, three months aboard the ship, and 70 days in the open ocean, he helped the sloop reach its goal.

“It’s emotional. It’s big for an ordinary guy like me from Norway,” said Ronaes. “The whole voyage has been very exciting.”

He also hopes this moment makes a difference moving forward.

“I hope [participants] feel pride to befriend the Restauration, to be descendants of the first sloopers. I hope they feel bonding with Norway, that we are all one people and we are all friends.”