The Hjemkomst Viking Ship: The Story and What Is True

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The Hjemkomst Viking Ship is a Minnesota story with a documented core at Hjemkomst Center, Moorhead, Clay County. The sources are named below.

HistoryKind of story
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Red River ValleyRegion
Nov 1Checked, 2026

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The Hjemkomst Viking Ship

People say a Moorhead school counselor read about Viking ships, decided to build one, and spent years of evenings doing it. He did not live to sail it, but his family and a crew took the ship across the Atlantic to Norway. The name means homecoming. Today the ship sits under a roof in Moorhead, next to a replica stave church, and visitors can walk around the hull that made the crossing.

What The Record Shows

The Minnesota Historical Society says Robert Asp got the idea in 1971 while recovering from a fall. First lumber was milled on July 4, 1972, the Hawley shipyard was set up in January 1974, and Asp was diagnosed with leukemia in 1974. The ship was unveiled on July 17, 1980 and made its maiden voyage in Duluth Harbor on August 9, 1980. Asp died on December 27, 1980. In May 1982 a crew of thirteen, including four of his children, left Duluth, reached New York on June 8, 1982, then crossed the Atlantic; a storm cracked the keel about 14 feet. They reached Bergen, Norway, on July 19, 1982 and Oslo on August 9, 1982. The Asp family donated the ship to the City of Moorhead in 1986. The Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County gives tours of the ship at the Hjemkomst Center, 202 1st Avenue North. The MNHS article does not mention the Gokstad ship in its text, though its audio segment says the design was based on it.

Sources: Hjemkomst (Ship) (MNopedia, Minnesota Historical Society); Hjemkomst Center (City of Moorhead); Clay County Historical Society and Hjemkomst Museum (Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County).

A Note

Robert Asp became ill while building the ship and did not see it sail. Hours change, so check with the center.

Its home: Hjemkomst Center, City of Moorhead. Official page.

On this site: Historic Sites, Red River Valley Events.

Looked for and Not Found

The ship's weight or length on an official page

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is the story of The Hjemkomst Viking Ship true?

The Minnesota Historical Society says Robert Asp got the idea in 1971 while recovering from a fall.

Is this a legend?

It is a story with a documented core. The facts are listed on this page with their sources.

Where do these facts come from?

From the named sources listed on this page: Hjemkomst (ship) (MNopedia, Minnesota Historical Society); Hjemkomst Center (City of Moorhead); Clay County Historical Society and Hjemkomst Museum (Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County).

Sources

Read on November 1, 2026. Stories are for fun; the facts come from these sources. How we check: editorial standards; spot a mistake? tell us.

Cite this page: It's Minnesota, “The Hjemkomst Viking Ship”, itsminnesota.com/legends/hjemkomst-viking-ship-moorhead/ (updated 2026-11-01). By the It's Minnesota editorial team. Free to quote with attribution and a link to this page; data and tables are licensed CC BY 4.0.