Life at Camp Little Norway
Campbell Norsgaard Documents Life at Little Norway
Norsgaard was a professional photographer and cinematographer, originally from Norway, but for much of his late life he lived in Lakeville, Connecticut. Campbell Norsgaard was the official photographer for the Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNAF) and its training facilities in Canada from nearly the beginning of World War II until its closure. During this period, he photographed the servicemen and their airplanes, the Royal Family, various training facilities and many official and unofficial activities. Later in life, Norsgaard made nature documentaries for the National Geographic Society.Photographs of the soldiers and Royal Family at Camp Little Norway
The photographic collection by Campbell Norgaard consists of over 1,600 images. Most of the color transparencies are from Canada, including aerial views of Vesle Skaugum, portraits of Colonel Ole Reistad and examples of pilots and their planes. A majority of the slides are from the RNAF airlift of transport aircraft from Canada to India during the war. Some slides show airplane hangers and training facilities, as well as crewmen interacting with the people of India. The slides document the return of King Haakon VII to norway.The black and white negatives cover different geographic locations from Canada, India, Norway, and England, not to mention Sigrid Undseth’s trip across the Soviet Union to Japan and the United States during the war. There are also some negatives of the Royal Family and Armistice in Norway. Furthermore, there are negatives of peace days in Norway, the 199th Division United States Forces on Parade in Oslo (1945) and the RNAF in Canada in relation to the India airlift. Finally, there are approximately 300 portraits of Norwegian pilots standing with their aircraft which are signed in ink by the pilots.
Unique Film Treasures
Nineteen 16mm reel-to-reel films from about 1942-1946 exist, much in black in white with no sound. The films document life at Camp Little Norway in Canada, the Royal Family in Canada, the Royal Norwegian Air Force, the Royal Family returning home, and more. Photographs and film are available online here.
