Osten Knudsen
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| Name at Enlist | Osten Knudsen |
| Birth Name | Østen Knudsen Børte |
| Other Names | Osten Borthe, Osten Knudtsen, Osten Knudson |
| Lived | 8 Oct 1843 – 27 May 1864 |
| Birth Place | Nedre Børte, Lunde parish in Bø, Telemark fylke |
| Birth Country | Norway |
| Resident of Muster-In | Winchester, Winnebago County, WI |
| Company at Enlistment | B |
| Rank at Enlistment | Private |
| Muster Date | 25 Nov 1861 |
| Cause of Death | Wounds |
| Death Location | Battle at New Hope Church, at Allatoona, GA |
| Mother | Bergith Østensdatter Kloppe |
| Mother Lived | 5 Dec 1811-13 Feb 1881 |
| Father | Knud Torjussen Børte |
| Father Lived | 18 Sep 1816- |
| Immigration | 30 Mar 1854 |
Osten Knudsen was born Osten Knudsen Børthe in Bø, Telemark, Norway to Knud Torjusen and Bergith Ostensdatter. He emigrated from Bø parish on March 30, 1854 with his parents, 3 brothers and 2 sisters.
He joined the WI 15th Infantry, Company B. The men of the company called themselves the “Wergeland Guards” in honor of Henrik Wergeland, the famous Norwegian writer and poet. The army listed him as living in Winchester, Winnebago County, WI, age 19, and a farmer. He had blue eyes, light hair, light complexion, and stood 5’8”. He enlisted for three years on November 19, 1861, at Madison, WI, and mustered there on November 25, 1861, as a Private (Menig). Knudsen was wounded at Chickamauga, GA. He was mortally wounded in the Battle at New Hope Church at Allatoona, GA, on May 27, 1864, and died of his wounds later that day.
Sources: Series 1200: Records of Civil War Regiments, 1861-1900, Wisconsin Adjutant General’s Office, Archives, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, box 76-4,-18; Regimental Muster and Descriptive Rolls, 1861-1865, Wisconsin Adjutant General’s Office, Archives, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, vol. 20, p. 32; Det Femtende Regiment. Wisconsin Frivillige [The Fifteenth Regiment, Wisconsin Volunteers], Ole A. Buslett, 1894, Decorah, IA, p. 386; Oberst Heg og hans gutter, Waldemar Ager, 1916, Fremad Pub. Co., Eau Claire, WI, p. 295; Roster of Wisconsin Volunteers, War of the Rebellion, 1861-1865, Vol I & II, compiled under direction of the Adjutant General, Madison, WI, 1886, Democrat Printing Co., Madison, p. 809; The Military History of Wisconsin in the War for the Union, Edwin B. Quiner, 1866, Clarke & Co., Chicago, pp. 625, 629; Nordmændene i Amerika, Martin Ulvestad, 1907, History Book Co., Minneapolis, MN, p 303; History of the town of Winchester, Winnebago County, Wisconsin, Peter L. and Karen C. Christianson, 2002, Winchester Area Historical Society, pp. 4-16; arkivverket.no, Bø parish register # 7, born and baptised, p. 112, Marriage, 1838, p. 264, Parish register no. 5, Chronological list, 1812, p. 245-246, Parish register no. 6, Birth and baptism, 1816, p. 20-21, Parish register no. 8, Migration records, 1854, p. 356; findagrave.com; genealogical information provided by Tove D. Johansen.