About the project

A few words from the site administrator:

Being an adoptee who was blessed in finding my birth-family after thirty years, the memoirs of my great-great-grandfather have established a sense of continuity that had been missing in my life - a link to my past that, upon the death of my birthmother, Elizabeth Anne Westbo (1950 - 2000), I had abruptly shut down. For some inexplicable reason, I recently found the need to revisit Olavus, his ancestry and my own heritage, paving the way for the foundation of this project.

I have found in my great-great-grandfather a kindred spirit - one that embraces exploration not only of one's surroundings, but of one's self - and, in many ways, "Finnoybu" is as much a testament of my own journeys through life as it is of Olavus' journeys at sea.

I was given a copy of the manuscript shortly after my reunion with Elizabeth, and immediately began to scan through the text. To that point, she had worked diligently to transcribe the document to digital format, research Olavus' ancestry and gather documentation related to the stories. When a battle with cancer subjected her to both MRSA (Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus) and VRE (Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus) infections, her work, and her life, were cut short. It is a bittersweet gift that I have the opportunity to complete her work.

Dedication

This site is dedicated to the three most important and influential women in my life:

  • My mother, Florence (Pomerantz) Tannenbaum, for giving me a chance in life,
  • My birthmother, Elizabeth (Westbo) Buckley, for giving me a chance at life, and
  • My wife, Irene (Kosman) Tannenbaum, for bringing purpose to my life.

I couldn't have done anything without you.

I would also like to extend my gratitude to both Aunt Carolyn and Aunt Veronica, Elizabeth's sister and sister-in-law, respectively, for all the time and information they have provided - and the love and acceptance they have shown my family; to Uncle Warren, for helping to re-ignite the creativity and perseverance that lay dormant for so many years, and; to Uncle Sam, for making realize that life needs a bit of humor and sarcasm to keep it from being a boring journey.

A Final Note

In an attempt at maintaining the historical integrity of his work, I have recreated Olavus' manuscript (translated from his native Nynorsk to English circa 1960) in its original form - complete with the misspellings, grammatical errors, and other errata that appear in the text, and in the verbiage of its time. There are many opinions and perspectives that, in today's society, may appear to be less tolerant of cultural diversity than our society now attempts to be. To those who find the positions unappealing or offensive, I can only offer this consolation: it is refreshing to see just how tolerant society has become over the past century. By reviewing the perspectives of our ancestors, we can gain a better appreciation of this simple fact.