Magnús Ketilsson, Sheriff # 61112
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Magnús Ketilsson, sheriff. By Þorsteinn Þorsteinsson.
Magnús Ketilsson (29 January 1732 – 18 July 1803) was the sheriff of Dalarna in the latter half of the 18th century, a great agriculturalist and experimenter in gardening and tree cultivation. He was also one of the main leaders of the Hrappseyjar printing press and published the country's first magazine.
Magnús was the son of Ketil Jónsson (1698 – 24 March 1778), a priest in Húsavík, and his wife Guðrún Magnúsdóttir, sister of the bailiff Skúli. He studied at the University of Copenhagen and became sheriff of Dalasýsla in 1754, at the age of 22, and held that position until his death, or for 49 years. He lived in Búðardalur on Skarðsströnd and ran a large farm there, one of the largest in West Iceland. Magnús was considered a capable and efficient official, but somewhat domineering and hard to corner, controlling and took a particularly hard line on begging and vagrancy, but he fulfilled his office well even though he was somewhat of a drinker in his later years.
He was well-educated, very well-versed in Latin and Greek, and also read English, French, and German in addition to Danish. He wrote on topics such as theology, law, history, and genealogy, and many of his works were printed at the Hrappseyjar printing press, which he played a major role in shaping. He published the first magazine printed in Iceland, Islandske Maanedstidende, which was in Danish and reported news from Iceland.
Magnús was a great enthusiast for all kinds of knowledge and progress, especially improved farming methods, and wrote various books on agriculture and farming methods to guide farmers. He himself conducted extensive experiments in agriculture and gardening and such, and grew various kinds of vegetables in his garden in Búðardalur. Among the things he grew or tried to grow were potatoes, turnips, turnips, carrots, radishes, beetroot, horseradish, onions, cabbage, kale, lettuce, spinach, cress, parsley and sage, and in 1778 he grew asparagus.
He also grew barley and oats and tried to grow rye and wheat, but that didn't work. He also tried to grow flax and hemp and even tobacco. He also tried to plant various types of trees with varying success. He had a watermill built in a ravine above the town, and may have been one of the first to do so in Iceland.
Magnús was twice married. His first wife was Ragnhildur Eggertsdóttir (1740 - 6 November 1793), daughter of Eggerts rika Bjarnason of Skarð, and his second was Elín Brynjólfsdóttir (1741 - 15 June 1827) from Fagradalur, and they were Ragnhildur's nieces and both from the Skarð family. When Magnús died after a fall from a horse in 1803, his son Skúli took over the office of sheriff and lived at Skarð. After him, his son Kristján Skúlason took over and when he retired in 1859, the great-grandfathers had been sheriffs of Dalarna for 105 consecutive years.
(wikipedia.org)
Magnús Ketilsson (29 January 1732 – 18 July 1803) was the sheriff of Dalarna in the latter half of the 18th century, a great agriculturalist and experimenter in gardening and tree cultivation. He was also one of the main leaders of the Hrappseyjar printing press and published the country's first magazine.
Magnús was the son of Ketil Jónsson (1698 – 24 March 1778), a priest in Húsavík, and his wife Guðrún Magnúsdóttir, sister of the bailiff Skúli. He studied at the University of Copenhagen and became sheriff of Dalasýsla in 1754, at the age of 22, and held that position until his death, or for 49 years. He lived in Búðardalur on Skarðsströnd and ran a large farm there, one of the largest in West Iceland. Magnús was considered a capable and efficient official, but somewhat domineering and hard to corner, controlling and took a particularly hard line on begging and vagrancy, but he fulfilled his office well even though he was somewhat of a drinker in his later years.
He was well-educated, very well-versed in Latin and Greek, and also read English, French, and German in addition to Danish. He wrote on topics such as theology, law, history, and genealogy, and many of his works were printed at the Hrappseyjar printing press, which he played a major role in shaping. He published the first magazine printed in Iceland, Islandske Maanedstidende, which was in Danish and reported news from Iceland.
Magnús was a great enthusiast for all kinds of knowledge and progress, especially improved farming methods, and wrote various books on agriculture and farming methods to guide farmers. He himself conducted extensive experiments in agriculture and gardening and such, and grew various kinds of vegetables in his garden in Búðardalur. Among the things he grew or tried to grow were potatoes, turnips, turnips, carrots, radishes, beetroot, horseradish, onions, cabbage, kale, lettuce, spinach, cress, parsley and sage, and in 1778 he grew asparagus.
He also grew barley and oats and tried to grow rye and wheat, but that didn't work. He also tried to grow flax and hemp and even tobacco. He also tried to plant various types of trees with varying success. He had a watermill built in a ravine above the town, and may have been one of the first to do so in Iceland.
Magnús was twice married. His first wife was Ragnhildur Eggertsdóttir (1740 - 6 November 1793), daughter of Eggerts rika Bjarnason of Skarð, and his second was Elín Brynjólfsdóttir (1741 - 15 June 1827) from Fagradalur, and they were Ragnhildur's nieces and both from the Skarð family. When Magnús died after a fall from a horse in 1803, his son Skúli took over the office of sheriff and lived at Skarð. After him, his son Kristján Skúlason took over and when he retired in 1859, the great-grandfathers had been sheriffs of Dalarna for 105 consecutive years.
(wikipedia.org)