I'd long noticed this TWEET headstone in what I thought was Greenwood Hills Cemetery, with "TWEET" on it.
OLE N. TWEET, 1855-1942 / EMMA G. TWEET 1861-1909 - Photo by J.Miller
Recently, I studied it more closely, and saw that it was for OLE N. TWEET, and his wife EMMA.
Then I realized that "OLE N" is an anagram for you know who! ELON.
How apropos to post a blog article now, as Elon Musk just killed Twitter and thinks he's rebranding it as "X". Will TWEETs die too? It could be worse! Just kidding. — J Miller
The TWEET gravestone is just north of the 'Back Loop' in Greenwood Hills Cemetery.
Location of TWEET gravestone - Map based on OpenStreetMap.org
Ole was born in Norway, in 1856
Find-a-Grave photo of Ole Nilson Tweet added by Diane M Anderson
Ole Tweet was born about 1856 in Norway.
Ole evidently immigrated at age 5, and lived in Wisconsin. He was a member of U.S. Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.
Ole married Emma Claudine Tollefson, born in Sept 30, 1861, Barre Mills, La Crosse County, Wisconsin.
Ancestry photo of Emma Tweet, source unknown.
It appears that Ole & family moved to Portland in 1905. Sadly, Emma died from cancer four years later in 1909, on, October 22, aged 48 years, making Ole a widower.
The Oregonian reported a 'gasoline stove' explosion causing a fire on July 6, 1910, which destroyed multiple buildings including one that Ole Tweet owned and evidently had a paint store in it. Mostly a loss. The report mentions automobiles, and a telephone call to the fire department. This was reportedly in the Montavilla neighborhood.
From the 1940 Census, Ole was 84 years old and lived in Portland, Oregon, with his son and grandson. It seems that Oli was being cared for by his son Wilbur. Some of the family lived at 2343 SE 52nd (See the house below).
Oli's death certificate listed his vocation as office clerk & bookkeeper.
Emma's death certificate lists "Housewife" as her occupation.
Children
Ole and Emma had children Oscar, Mabel, Mabelle, Wilbur, and Osmond - all born in Wisconsin.
The first two, Oscar & Mabel, lived short lives. They did not live to come to Oregon. They are both buried in Evergreen Cemetery in Menomonie, Wisconsin. The others all outlived Ole and Emma.
Oscar died from gangrene of bowels, around 5 years old.
Mabel aged only 2 months.
Mabelle lived 85 years, and is interred at River View Abbey Mausoleum.
Likewise, Wilbur lived to 86.
Osmond lived to 70. He was born March 15, 1894 in Wisconsin. In Portland, Osmond was a
truck driver and glazier with W. P. Fuller & Co. for 45 years, retiring in 1960. He was a member of Teamsters Local 162 and was a veteran of World War I.
Summary of Oli Tweet's Life
Oli came to America from Norway, probably on a steamship, at 5 years old.
Oli met Emma, also of Norwegian descent, and married her.
Oli & Emma lost their first two children - aged 5 years, aged 2 months.
Oli & family moved to Oregon in 1905, probably on a steam locomotive train.
His son served in World War I, and survived.
Lost his wife Emma to cancer in 1909.
Lost his business in a freak fire that destroyed several other buildings.
Died aged 86 years.
Where Ole Lived in Portland
Ole lived spent his final years living with his son in the Mt Tabor neighborhood.
2343 SE 52nd / Portland
This house was built in 1914.
Obviously Ole & family lived some other place(s) in the years after arriving in 1905.
It would be possible to determine other addresses where Tweets lived by examining census records, etc.
References
A link appears with each reference, to the source.
We think this gravestone is in the I.O.O.F. section of River View Cemetery. At some point, the IOOF was formed out of Greenwood Hills Cemetery (GHC) in 1880's. (?)
In 1943, the I.O.O.F. plot was transferred to River View Cemetery.
It's all very confusing, and beyond the scope of this article. Perhaps we will research and write an article about the boundary between RVC and GHC.
Corrections, explanations, and clarifications are welcome!
As stated at the top, the grave marker was noted as interesting years ago, but the recent kerfuffle around Twitter bumped an article about TWEET to the top of our list.
Photos: TWEET gravestone by J Miller. Mt Tabor house from Google Street View.
Evidently the photo of Ole came from Ancestry.com.
Editor: J. Miller
Questions for Our Readers
Why did Ole move his family to Oregon, for the The Lewis & Clark Exposition?
Did they travel by the Pacific Railroad to California, then north to Oregon?
Are there any interesting aspects of Ole or Emma's life that we should note?
Why does there appear to be an entry for Ole in Montana marriage certificates? Did Ole meet and marry Emma in Montana, then move to Wisconsin? ANSWER: It was for daughter Mabelle! (Thanks to Kate in Hazel Grove.)
?
Comment on Nextdoor, or drop us an email via graves at newcollinsview.blog.
How this was posted on Nextdoor
Ole N Tweet was born in Norway in 1856, and came from Wisconsin to Portland in 1905. He is buried along with his wife Emma in Greenwood Hills / River View Cemetery. Read what we have compiled about Mr Tweet and his family. Can you answer any of the questions in this article? [URL]
Comments submitted on this article
Comments will appear here —
To be curated from Nextdoor, then posted a week or so after article is published.
(At this time, we don't support commenting directly on the blog.)
