Val Bjornson

Kristjan Valdimar "Val" Bjornson (August 29, 1906 – March 10, 1987) was an American writer, newspaper editor, and politician who served as the State Treasurer of Minnesota for more than two decades.^[1]

K. Valdimar Bjornson, known in politics as Val Bjornson, in his 20s.

Bjornson was born in Minneota, Minnesota of Icelandic descent.^[2] In World War II, he served in Navy intelligence, stationed in Iceland.^[3] Besides English, he was fluent in Icelandic, Finnish, Danish, Swedish, and Norwegian.^[4]

He was part owner of the Minneota Mascot newspaper and an associate editor at the St. Paul Pioneer Press.^[5]

Running as the Republican candidate in the 1954 United States Senate elections, Bjornson lost to Hubert Humphrey, with whom he sometimes shared a car to travel around the state.^[6]

Bjornson died in Minneapolis on March 10, 1987.^[7] The University of Minnesota, his alma mater, and the University of Iceland have a student exchange scholarship named in his honor.^[8]

Bibliography

Bjornson, Val (1969). The History of Minnesota. West Palm Beach, Florida: Lewis Historical Publishing.