Jóhannes Frímann Melsted Photo: SÍND
Jóhannes Frímann Magnússon was born on August 29, 1859 in S. Þingeyjarsýsla. He died in Wynyard, Saskatchewan on August 15, 1930. He took the last name Melsted in the west.
Spouse: 1886 Jóhanna Jóhannesdóttir b. 1865 in S. Þingeyjarsýsla. They divorced in 1910. The widow Hólmfríður Hörgdal moved in with Jóhannes with four children. She had been married to Edward Crowston, a Canadian.
Children: 1. Valdimar b. February 20, 1887 2. Elín b. October 4, 1888 3. Emilía b. April 20, 1890, d. December 28, 1923 in Wynyard 4. Leó b. February 29, 1892 d. same year 5. Rose d. at birth 6. Laufey b. May 23, 1896 7. Óskar b. February 8, 1898 8. Bertel b. March 15, 1900, d. May, 1907 9. Leó Roosevelt b. January 28, 1902 10. Valgerður b. July 9, 1903 11. Elmer b. May 18, 1906.
Jóhannes emigrated west with his mother and siblings to New Iceland in 1876. They lived at Melstað, a settlement south of Gimli. Jóhannes and his brothers chose the name of the place as surname and were Melsteds. They moved to N. Dakota in 1881 and settled in the Garðar Settlement. Jóhannes homesteaded there and lived there until 1910 but then moved to Vatnabyggð (Lakes Settlement) in Saskatchewan.