Þorvaldur Björnsson was born in N. Múlasýsla on October 15, 1869. He died in Minneota in March 1949. He took the name Thorvaldur (Walter) Gislason in the west.
Spouse: October 7, 1896 Effie C. Griffing b. August 8, 1871 in Rochester, Minnesota, d. 1956.
Children: 1. Melba b. March 13, 1898 2. Virgil Voltaire b. February 21, 1900 3. Io b. 1902 4. Wilbur Waldo b. 1904 5. Leonard L. b. 1908 6. Valdeen b. July 5, 1913
Þorvaldur emigrated west to Minnesota in 1879 with his parents, Björn Gíslason and Aðalbjörg Jónsdóttir, and his siblings. He grew up in the Icelandic community near Minneota and attended country school there. They moved to Minneota and lived there until 1906 when they moved to Minneapolis. After living there three years, they moved to Badger in Roseau County in Minnesota where they lived until 1917. They moved back to Minneota where Þorvaldur owned and operated the Gislason Hardware Store and was also involved in real estate sales.