Ragnvald Bødtker (29 June 1859 – 22 March 1946) was a Norwegian engineer, known as the director of

log driving Log driving is a means of moving logs (sawn tree trunks) from a forest to sawmills and pulp mills downstream using the current of a river. It was the main transportation method of the early logging industry in Europe and North America. History ...

in Halden Municipality for 42 years.

Personal life

He was born in

Overhalla Municipality Overhalla is a municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Namdalen region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Ranemsletta (also called ''Overhalla''). Other villages include Melen, Hunn, Skogmo ...

as a son of district stipendiary magistrate Job Dischington Bødtker (1818-1889) and his wife Fredrikke Sophie Sejersted (1825-1872). He was the brother of military officer

Carl Fredrik Johannes Bødtker Carl Fredrik Johannes Bødtker (20 June 1851 – 22 January 1928) was a Norwegian military officer, teacher and writer. Personal life Bødtker was born in Oslo, Christiania, the son of district stipendiary magistrate Job Dischington Bødtker and ...

and County Governor

Eivind Bødtker Eivind is a Norwegian masculine given name of Norse origin, ''Auja-winduR''. It is made up of two parts: ''Auja'' meaning "lucky/gift", and ''winduR'' meaning "winner and/or warrior". The name ''Eivind'' is also used in Denmark and Sweden, and ...

, a second cousin of theatre critic Sigurd Bødtker and chemist Eyvind Bødtker and an uncle of banker and art collector

Johannes Sejersted Bødtker Johannes Mathias Sejersted Bødtker CBE (29 May 1879 – 17 January 1963) was a Norwegian banker, art collector and patron of the arts. Early and personal life Bødtker was born in Kristiansand, as a son of Major General Carl Fredrik Johann ...

and radio personality Carl Bødtker. In November 1887 he married Inger Marie Soot (1858–1939), a daughter of another log driving inspector.

Career

The family moved to

Tønsberg Tønsberg (), historically Tunsberg, is a List of towns and cities in Norway, city in Tønsberg Municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. It is located about south-southwest of the capital city of Oslo on the western coast of the Oslofjord near ...

in 1861, and despite ill health he graduated from middle school. He then attended Trondhjem Technical School between 1878 and 1881. He worked as a road engineer from 1882 to 1883, and with mapping from 1883 to 1889. From 1890 to 1932 he was the director of

in the Halden Watershed. Several dams and canals were constructed during his period; the lakes Setten,

Rødenessjøen Rødenessjøen is a lake in the municipalities of Aurskog-Høland in Akershus county and Marker in Østfold county, Norway. See also *List of lakes in Norway This is a list of lakes and reservoirs in Norway, sorted by Counties of Norway, ...

Femsjøen Femsjøen is a lake in the municipality of Halden in Østfold county, Norway. It is the source of the river Tista. Referencesrences See also *List of lakes in Norway This is a list of lakes and reservoirs in Norway, sorted by Counties ...

(twice),

Øgderen Øgderen (also known as Hemnessjøen) is a lake in the municipalities of Aurskog-Høland in Akershus county and Trøgstad in Østfold county, Norway. See also *List of lakes in Norway This is a list of lakes and reservoirs in Norway, sort ...

, Ertevann,

Øymarksjøen Øymarksjøen is a lake in the municipalities of Aremark and Marker in Østfold county, Norway. See also *List of lakes in Norway This is a list of lakes and reservoirs in Norway, sorted by Counties of Norway, county. For the geography ...

Aspern Aspern () is a neighbourhood in Vienna, Austria, within Donaustadt, the Districts of Vienna, 22nd district of Vienna. It has a population of 52,375 as of 2023 and covers an area of 19.89 km2. History The area is known for the Battle of Asp ...

and Ara were regulated. In 1907 the

Tista Tista, also called Tistedalselva or Tistakanalen, is a river in Halden municipality, in Østfold county, Norway. It is the main river in the Haldenvassdraget system and flows from Femsjøen lake to Iddefjorden fjord. The river is less than 5&nb ...

Canal was finished. He was also a member of the executive committee of the

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough cou ...

of Halden Municipality. In 1932 he retired, and took on writing the history of log driving in Norway. This was released in two volumes, ''Norsk fløtnings historie inntil 1860'' (1938) and ''Norsk fløtnings historie 1860 inntil 1943'' (1945). Bødtker died in March 1946 in

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boedtker, Ragnvald 1859 births 1946 deaths Norwegian engineers 20th-century Norwegian historians People from Overhalla People from Tønsberg People from Halden Østfold politicians