Sunday

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun - Where were my ancestors in 1900?


Randy Seaver has issued the latest challenge for Saturday Night Genealogy Fun: Where were your ancestors in 1900?

1900, is not so far away? NONE of my ancestors had yet emigrated to the U.S. to settle in the Swedish and Norwegian neighborhoods of early 20th century Chicago.

According to my family tree;

*my paternal grandparents 
Rikard Severin Källman 1887-1968,  he, his father and five siblings had just moved to  Spångsholm, Veta, Östergötland, Sweden to work in the factories there. 
Lydia Abrahamson 1890-1978 was living on the family farm Stommen in Östra Frölunda, Älvsborg, Sweden with her parents and seven siblings.

*my maternal grandparents
Paul Skoglund Sevaldsen 1896-1971  was living in Fredrikshald, Østfold, Norway with his parents and two siblings.
Dagmar Gundersen 1900-1991 was born in June of that year  and lived on the farm, which had been in the family since the mid 1600's, Øvald in Eidanger, Telemark, Norway with her grandfather, an uncle, an aunt, her parents and an older sister.

*my paternal great grandparents
Karl Teodor Andersson Källman 1853-1910 was a widowed factory worker living in Spångsholm, Veta, Östergötland, Sweden with his five children
Klara Sofia Bergvall 1854-1898: had died two years previously of Tuberculosis
Robert Albin Abrahamson 1860-1923 was a gentleman farmer living on the farm Stommen in Östra Frölunda, Älvsborg, Sweden with his wife, mother and eight children.
Anna Karolina Karlsdotter 1859-1925 lived on Stommen in Östra Frölunda, Älvsborg, Sweden with her mother-in-law, husband and eight children.

*my maternal great grandparents
Anders Sevaldsen 1863-1915? was a missionary for the Seventh Day Adventist Church living with his wife and two children in Fredrikshald, Østfold, Norway
Anne Marie Halversdatter Høyset 1871-1909 was a missionary wife with her husband and two young children in Fredrikshald, Østfold, Norway.
Nils Gundersen Øvald 1875-1961 was a sailor living on the family farm Øvald with his father, sister, brother, wife and two children
Gunhild Marie Olsdatter 1875-1959 lived with her father-in-law, brother and sister-in -law, husband and two children on the farm Øvald in Eidanger Telemark, Norway

*my paternal great great grandparents
Anna Lisa Pehrsdotter 1817-1904 was a widow living on the farm Knutstorp in Lerbäk, Örebro, Sweden with her son, daughter-in-law and seven grandchildren
Charlotta Majholm Abrahamson 1826-1904 was a widow living with her son, daughter-in-law and eight grandchildren on the farm Stommen in Östra Frölunda, Älvsborg, Sweden.
Sara-Brita Larsdotter 1821-1906 was a widow living on the farm Skäremo in Håcksvik, Älvsborg, Sweden with her daughter, son-in-law and six grandchildren.

*my maternal great great grandparents
Sevald Andersen Stubskin 1818-1900 had been ill for some time and died in 1900 on the farm Stubskin where he lived with his son, daughter-in-law, four grandchildren and three tenant workers.
Gunder Andreas Nilsen 1843-1930 was a tenant farmer living on the farm Øvald in Eidanger, Telemark Norway with a daughter, son, another son and his wife and two grandchildren.
Ole Helliksen 1842-1904 was a tenant farmer and ice harvester living on the farm Røra in Eidanger, Telemark, Norway with his wife, unmarried daughter, three unmarried sons, married son, daughter-in-law and two grandchildren.
Hanna Matea Gunuldsdatter 1848-1902 was a housewife living with her husband Ole and their extended family

believe it or not 
*my maternal great great great grandmother
Maren Kirstine Andersdatter 1826-1912 was living with her unmarried son and three other tenants on the farm Lillegaarden in Eidanger, Telemark, Norway

I had nineteen ancestors alive in 1900. Eight lived in Sweden and eleven in Norway. It would be an additional six years before my first ancestor ventured to the United States.

Thank you Randy, that was fun and also showed me some areas I need to research.



Thursday

Swedish Military Conscription

Between 1901 and 2010 Sweden had mandatory military service for all young men.
My great uncle Seth Abrahamson (1892-1964), the younger brother of my grandmother Lydia, was conscripted to serve in the Swedish military.

My great Uncle Anders (Andrew) Olof Söderstrom (1888-1960), the husband of my great aunt Ruth, also served in the Swedish military before his emigration to the United States in 1910.

@1907 Anders Olof Söderstrom in uniform

A sad commentary on the unrest in the world at this time:
 Mainly because of the escalating unrest in the Baltic, at the beginning of this year (January 1 2018) Sweden reintroduced mandatory military conscription. 4000 young people born in 1999 were picked from a pool of about 13,000 men and women. The Swedish Armed forces is reportedly planning for 4,000 troops called this year and 4,000 called next year for basic training. This is about 4% of those born in 1999 (eligible for the 2018 draft) and 4% of those born in 2000 (eligible for the draft in 2019). 
And yes, this time both men and women will be called to serve equally.

A very interesting, informative piece about military fears in Sweden today can be found in the Atlantic article "Why Sweden Brought Back the Draft" click → HERE


Matthew 24:6 (King James Version)
"And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled:
for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet."

Saturday

Occupation investigation - Olof Meijholm, Borgaren

Many of the old Swedish parish records list an ancestors title or occupation.
The words are often confusing, antiquated and make little sense to me.
Now and again I like to investigate, do some research.
What is the meaning of my ancestors title or occupation?
How did he support and feed his family in his time?

My 5X great grandfather Olof Meijholm was born in 1711. This I know from a household examination. There is no available records of birth that early. On his death certificate he is listed as "Borgaren". Translated this means burgher (citizen) which is more of a class distinction than an occupation. 

A person who lived in a town earned his living from a skill such as carpentry or blacksmithing or worked as a merchant/salesperson. A burgher was one of the skilled tradespeople or merchants in town with his own business and was considered a citizen. A Burgher could be elected a member of the towns governing body and had a right to voice his opinion at town meetings.  Becoming a burgher/citizen in town required owning a house in town and have a few different people testify to your abilities and the towns need for the product, service or skill that you offered. Being a burgher was a step ahead socially from the majority of town dwellers who worked for the burghers as housekeepers, servants, apprentices etc. A burgher had responsibility to the town not only in its governing but also in its defense, responsible perhaps for night watch and fire watch.



I have not seen written verification of exactly what his business was but we know that trades were often taught and handed down generation upon generation. Olof's son, also named Olof (1755-1810) was also listed as a "Borgaren" and his grandson, another named Olof (1780-1827) was a  card/comb maker which I wrote about in an earlier blog which can be read HERE. So I believe it would be pretty safe to assume that Olof also manufactured and possibly had a shop that sold card/combs.

A woman took part in her husbands business helping in any way she could, along with her numerous household and child rearing duties.  She often would be very knowledgeable in the business. Enough so that upon her husbands death she could sometimes take over the business and become a citizen on her own. Let's hear it for the Swedes, among the first in Europe to recognize a woman's contribution and rights (well some anyway).





my 5X great grandfather
Olof Meijholm
b: 1711 Östhammar, Stockholm, Sweden
d: 7 Aug 1779 Östhammar, Stockholm, Sweden

and his wife
my 5X great grandmother
who most likely knew the business as well as he
Catharina Johannsdotter Landberg
b: 1714 Östhammar, Stockholm, Sweden
d: 6 Nov 1792 Östhammar, Stockholm, Sweden

Olof Meijholm & Catharina Johannsdotter Landberg→Olof Meijholm→Olof Majholm→
Charlotta Majholm→Robert Albin Abrahamson→Lydia Abrahamson→Carl Melvin Kallman→Me!


Tuesday

FETTISDAGEN ! - Fat Tuesday

FETTISDAGEN !
or Fat Tuesday for those of you non-Swedes
The day before the beginning of Lent is celebrated in Sweden with what else?
SEMLOR !!!!

Click  HERE for the recipe and get baking.

for all sorts of Swedish goodies check out all the different recipes 
that can be found on one of my favorite blogs
↓   ↓   ↓   ↓   ↓








**p.s. I cheat, my hubby does all the baking in our house. I do the eating. 
Explains the chubby cheeks and the big smile, yes?**

Monday

Occupation Investigation - Olof Majholm, Kardmakarmästare

Many of the old Swedish parish records list an ancestors title or occupation.
The words are often confusing, antiquated and make little sense to me.
Now and again I like to investigate, do some research.
What is the meaning of my ancestors title or occupation?
How did he support and feed his family in his time?

This 1811 parish record of the marriage of my third great grandparents Olof Majholm and Brita Broberg. They were the parents of Charlotta Majholm, Robert Albin's mother. They posted banns in the church as was the custom for three consecutive weeks; September 1,8 and 15. They exchanged their vows the following week on September 22, 1811.


År 1811 -recorded by a local parish priest, church of Sweden, Arboga Landförsamling

What is noted is just before his name is his title or occupation. "Kardmakarmästare" or Master Card maker was an honorable occupation and skill. No, great great great grandpa Olof was not the first guy to work for Hallmark. He handmade a wool comb or card maker. Carding is the processing of brushing raw or washed fibers to prepare them as textiles. A large variety of fibers can be carded, cotton and wool are probably the most common fibers to be carded. Carding is used to take non-aligned fibers and prepare them for spinning or to produce webs of fiber to go into non-woven products such felt. 

The woman on the right is combing wool with her card.
The woman on the left spins the carded wool into yarn.
This was the early 19th century mind you, and fabric or yarn for knitting was made by hand individually by each family or by a local artisan. It wasn't until the industrial revolution that making of fabrics and yarns became mechanized. A sturdy well made wool comb/carder was a treasured household item.

My 3X great grandfather
kardmakarmästare
Olof  Majholm
b: 20 June 1780 Östhammar, Stockholm, Sweden
d: 13 January 1827 Arboga landsförsamling, Västmanland, Sweden


Thursday

Alma Charlotta Abrahamson Lindberg 1892-1965

My grandmother and two of her sisters emigrated from Sweden to the US but her remaining six siblings remained in Sweden. For her brothers in particular that choice was not hard to understand. Their father, my great grandfather Robert Albin, owned a fairly large estate/farm that they would one day inherit. Most young Swedes at the turn of the 20th century worked as farmhands or milkmaids as the family plot (if the family even owned one) was small and their family was too large to be supported by that farm. Add to that a country that was economically poor, not yet very industrialized and had in the past century suffered droughts and crop failures.  Those young people with seemingly bleek futures were also reading newspaper articles and letters from siblings, cousins and friends now in the US promising opportunity, jobs, adventure all to be had if you could scrape together the boat fare to the US. Many of my grandmothers cousins also heard the siren call of "Amerika" and one by one I am finding them now settled in the US.

my cousin twice removed
Alma Charlotta Abrahamson Lindberg
b. 30 Dec 1892 Dräggved Öfre, Håcksvik, Ålvsborg, Sweden
d: 21 Nov 1965 New Britain, Hartford, Connecticut, USA

Alma was the second of seven children born to Anders Abrahamsson and Anna Susanna Karlsdotter. Anna Susanna was the younger sister of my great grandmother Anna Karolina Karlsdotter Abrahamson. Alma's older brother Luther Abrahamson emigrated to New Britain, Connecticut in 1912 and perhaps with his encouragement the unmarried Alma at the age of twenty four also left for the US.

She left Gothenburg Sweden Sep 7 1916, headed for Kristiania (Oslo) Norway. In Kristiania she boarded the Oscar II. It appears she did not travel alone but with two friends, Signe and Agnes, who also had connections in New Britain, Connecticut. Traveling steerage class the three friends entered Ellis Island on September 19, 1916.

Alma never ventured beyond New Britain. In 1921 she married Carl Lindberg, also a Swedish immigrant and they had two children, Herbert Carl 1921-2003 and Dorothy Alma 1923-2013. With her daughter Dorothy, Alma visited Sweden just a few months after the death of her mother Anna Susanna in 1947.

Alma died in 1965, her husband Carl the next year and they are buried in the Fairview Cemetery in New Britain, Connecticut.

photo by E Greer, findagrave.com ←click to view


Vila i fred Alma och Carl †