Parker Hall in Tacoma was our Lodge's first meeting place. The lodge moved several times during the period from 1909 until 1923. In 1923 the Lodge moved to its present location in Normanna Hall.
Over the many years of its existence, Norden 2 has been active in many District 2 activities. The Lodge has hosted several district conventions and participated in many more. When the Seattle hosted the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition in 1909, Norden 2 rented a steamer to take members there. Norden 2's band and drill team performed at the Exposition as well.
Norden 2's first female member, Clara Jonassen, was admitted to the Lodge in 1924. this ushered in a new era of female participation in Lodge activities. The female members of Norden 2 have been very active ever since. The Lodge's first woman president was Gladys Eide, elected in 1951.
There was much discussion during the 1920s about the use of Norwegian language at the meetings, but it wasn't until December 18, 1941 that the first business meetings minutes were recorded in English. The old Norwegian Language minutes are still in existence at the Lodge.
The lodge has been very active in District 2 events. Norden 2 played a large part in the construction of District 2's recreational facility on Stampede Pass in the Cascade Mountains. The lodge organized several work parties that helped Trollhaugen become a reality. Many lodge members, in the past 30 years, have held positions of responsibility on the Trollhaugen Board of Directors.
The lodge participated in the Tacoma Daffodil beginning in 1957 and the lodge's last float was in 1984. Norden 2 won two Queen's Awards, one Mayor's award and in 1983 the lodge's entry was selected as the Sweepstake winner. Our participation in the Daffodil events help to build the lodge's membership.
In 1983 Norden 2 started the Norwegian Heritage Camp for boys and girls ages 13 through 15. Poulsbo Lodge No. 44 and Oslo Lodge No. 35 helped to create this camp. The Trollhaugen Lodge and recreational facility was selected as the place to have the camp and it is still used today. In 1984, during a District Convention, District 2 voted to make Trollhaugen Heritage Camp a district undertaking. In 1999 all youth camps in district 2 were combined under one committee and called District 2, Sons of Norway Youth Camps. These camps have been very successful since there very beginnings.
Norden 2 Lodge has been involved with the community. The lodge has participated in the Paint Tacoma Beautiful campaign and the restoring of the statue of Henrik Ibsen at Wright Park in Tacoma. Lodge members were instrumental in the renaming of the City Waterway to Thea Foss Waterway to honor one of the city's longtime Norwegian families.
Norden 2 has received several awards for excellence from District 2. The lodge won Lodge of the Year in 1996, Most Improved Lodge in 1997, and the Gold Merit Award in 1996 and 1997. Our members have also been honored by the district. In 1988 Helen Fosen was selected as District 2' woman of the year and in 1996, Liv Engen was so honored. Thor Aanes, Russell Gunderson and Don Anderson have been selected as District 2's Man of Year. Thor in 1982, Russ in 1996 and Don in 2002. Additionally, many of our members have served as District 2 officers.
Norden 2 celebrated 100 years as an active Sons of Norway Lodge in 2004. It is the hope of this lodge that the next 100 years will be as good as the last.
Lodge and Buiding Name History
Some of our newer members have expressed a desire to know the history of the names used in our lodge. The first immigrant ship to sail from Norway to the New Wolrd was a ship named Restaurationen in the year 1825. The second immigrant ship was the Brig Norden that sailed from Norway on July 20, 1836. Our lodge was named after the Brig Norden.The Brig Norden was two masted square rigged sailing vessel that carried 110 passengers and had a displacement of 290 tons. The trip was comparatively brief but encounted heavy seas resulting in much sickness. Five passengers died during the voyage. The manifest of the passengers list indicates several names familar to the history of our lodge, but no connection has been established.
There was a Norwegian immigrant town established in Texas early in the century. The name of the town was Normanna, and there appears to be a connection regarding the name of our lodge building. Norden, in Norwegian, translates to north in english. It is hypostatized some of the Norwrgians from Normanna, Texes moved to Tacoma and had a part in the early formation of our lodge, and had a part in the naming of our lodge building.