The Jacobson family emigrated from Laerdal in Sogn og Fjordane County, Norway to Greenwood Township, Vernon County, Wisconsin between 1857 and 1882. They were members of the Greenwood Norwegian Lutheran Church and were part of the Greenwood Norwegian-American Settlement in Vernon County.

This genealogy is part of a prosopographical study of the Greenwood settlement. Prosopographical research has the goal of learning about patterns of relationships and activities through the study of collective biography. Prosopography is interested in the details of individuals' lives and relationships not only with family but also with in-laws, friends, clients, business contacts and so forth. Even one-time contacts may be important.

An example of such a study is Robert Anderson’s article “The Joys of Prosopography: Collective Biography for Genealogists,” in the American Ancestors magazine, where he discusses applying the principles of prosopography to genealogical research in his Great Migration study.