Elizabeth Fedde

In episode 25 of 200 Norwegians, you’ll meet Elizabeth Fedde, known as the “Norwegian Florence Nightingale.” Born in Feda, Kvinesdal, in 1850, Fedde became a deaconess and in 1883 travelled to New York to serve Norwegian immigrants in need. She went on to establish hospitals and training homes for deaconesses in Brooklyn and Minneapolis, creating new opportunities for women in nursing and social care at a time when women had few professional paths. The episode is a conversation with Gracia Grindal, Professor Emerita at Luther Seminary and author of Sister Elisabeth Fedde: To Do the Lord’s Will. Together, they explore Fedde’s extraordinary life, the Norwegian-American immigrant experience, and the role of faith, women’s leadership, and service in the late 19th century.