| Biography/History | Anton P. Ness was born May 14, 1880 near Clarkfield, Minn. He was educated in Clarkfield, and at Willmar Seminary in Willmar, Minn. He moved to Vancouver, B.C. to work in the real estate business, and worked with a Dr. Sheldrop of Minneapolis, and also in Chicago. He married Elise Caroline (Lena) Haugen in 1913, and the two moved to a farm near McClusky, N.D. They had eight children: Merle Paul, Carroll Peter, Evelyn Addie, Emil Ralph, Paul Haugen, Emil Anton, Eloise June, and Peter. In 1915 or 1916, Anton began doing faith healing. He became increasingly busy with his healing, to the point where he had no time for farming. In 1924, the Ness family moved to Mandan, N.D. to take advantage of better railroad and hotel facilities for the patients. It was estimated that Ness treated 30,000 patients between the time he started in McClusky and before moving to Mandan. Ness operated out of the Lewis and Clark Hotel in Mandan, and his wife acted as his secretary. Ness also traveled and healed throughout Minnesota, the Dakotas, and Montana. Anton P. Ness died in Mandan on April 13, 1940.
Elise Caroline (Lena) Haugen was born in Tracy, Minn. in 1886. She married Anton P. Ness in 1913. |
