Thorvald was born in Kongsberg, Norway, the second child of Jon and Marie Lie. At age 15, he went to Drammen, Norway, where he served a carpentry apprenticeship. At age 20 in 1869 he emigrated to the United States in quest of better economic opportunity. He went to Stoughton, Wisconsin, where friends had gone and reported back their successes. He worked at a wagon company in Stoughton. In 1871 he sent money back to pay the travel expenses of his brother, Ludwig, and his fiance Mathilda Hansdotter. After her arrival, Mathilda worked for two more years as a housekeeper in Stoughton and Edgerton until they were married in 1873. They established their home on a small tobacco farm near Edgerton. In 1879 they moved to an area opened up for homesteading in North Dakota. With periodic purchases, the size of their farm was 480 acres. The family, consisting then of six children, lived in a sod house until 1885 when T. J. built a 3-room frame house. T. J. and Mathilda were the parents of nine children. In 1890 they doubled the size of the house, then demolished it and built a more spacious two-story house in 1906. In their early years on the farm, T. J. also worked as a carpenter. T. J. was firm and stern as a parent in the European fashion.
Thorvald was born in Kongsberg, Norway, the second child of Jon and Marie Lie. At age 15, he went to Drammen, Norway, where he served a carpentry apprenticeship. At age 20 in 1869 he emigrated to the United States in quest of better economic opportunity. He went to Stoughton, Wisconsin, where friends had gone and reported back their successes. He worked at a wagon company in Stoughton. In 1871 he sent money back to pay the travel expenses of his brother, Ludwig, and his fiance Mathilda Hansdotter. After her arrival, Mathilda worked for two more years as a housekeeper in Stoughton and Edgerton until they were married in 1873. They established their home on a small tobacco farm near Edgerton. In 1879 they moved to an area opened up for homesteading in North Dakota. With periodic purchases, the size of their farm was 480 acres. The family, consisting then of six children, lived in a sod house until 1885 when T. J. built a 3-room frame house. T. J. and Mathilda were the parents of nine children. In 1890 they doubled the size of the house, then demolished it and built a more spacious two-story house in 1906. In their early years on the farm, T. J. also worked as a carpenter. T. J. was firm and stern as a parent in the European fashion.
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