How to Trace Your Roots in Finland
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How to Trace Your Roots in Finland ElisabethElisabeth UUschanov,schanov, KKristerrister BjörklundBjörklund & JouniJouni KorkiasaariKorkiasaari Siirtolaisuusinstituutti Migrationsinstitutet Institute of Migration – 1 – The Institute of Migration The Institute of Migration was founded in 1974, published in other countries around the world and has its headquarters in Turku. The Insti- and to many specialist periodicals dealing with tute is maintained by a non-proit-making trust migration. The library counts more than 7 000 and is basically inanced by an annual operating titles, and information service is available for the grant from the Finnish Ministry of Education and public. One important way in which the Institute Culture. promotes a greater awareness of migration is The Institute carries out and promotes re- through arranging exhibitions. search in the ield of migration, historical as well The Emigrant Register was established in as contemporary and also collects and stores dif- 1989 as a service for genealogists and the de- ferent kinds of material relating to migration and scendants of Finnish emigrants. The foundation ethnic questions. The Institute maintains a reg- of a computerized register was a part of the Del- ister of researchers working in these ields, ar- aware 350 Anniversary, to commemorate the be- ranges seminars and conferences to promote ginning of Finnish Emigration to North Amer- scholarly collaboration. The Institute is respon- ica. The data is mostly related to the migration sible for six series of scholarly publications and event, the databases of the main sources of in- publishes its own quarterly periodical Siirto- formation, oficial passport registers and pas- laisuus-Migration. senger lists of the Finland Steamship Company The Archives of the Institute contain approx. are available on the Internet. 220 meters of documents, ca. 14 000 photo- The web site of the Institute at http://www.mi- graphs, letters, post cards, interviews, musical grationinstitute.i provides articles, reports, the recordings, museum pieces etc. institute’s periodical, statistics, picture galleries, The Institute Library specializes in scholarly exhibitions, a web shop where you can buy books, and other publications relating to international useful links and other information concerning and domestic migration. The Library subscribes Finnish migration. to most of Finnish newspapers and magazines Institute of Migration Eerikinkatu 34, 20100 Turku FINLAND Tel. +358-2-2840440 http://www.migrationinstitute.ϔi – 2 – Contents The InsƟ tute of MigraƟ on .............................................................2 IntroducƟ on .................................................................................4 Overview of Finnish MigraƟ on to America .....................................5 Start Your Search in North American Records ................................6 Family Papers ....................................................................................6 Official Records in North America ......................................................6 Vital Records ...............................................................................................6 Census 7 The SSDI ......................................................................................................8 Church Records ...........................................................................................8 Other Documents .......................................................................................8 Documents Related to the Journey ..............................................10 Lists of Arrivals ................................................................................11 St. Albans Border Crossings .............................................................12 Lists of Departures ..........................................................................12 The Passenger Lists of the Finland Steamship Company (F.Å.A) ........12 The Passport Lists ............................................................................13 Finnish Names ............................................................................15 Emigrants Changing their Names .....................................................16 Records in Finland .......................................................................17 Church Records ...............................................................................17 The Genealogy Method and available Church Records .....................17 Other Archival Sources ....................................................................18 Literature ....................................................................................20 Research Guide Books .....................................................................20 Finnish History and Migration .........................................................21 Addresses ...................................................................................22 Web Sites ...................................................................................23 – 3 – Introduction The popularity of tracing one’s roots seems to be of information. For those who plan to visit Finland constantly increasing. Many genealogists feel at to ind their roots, good preparation is crucial, as some point in their research that they have reached much of the information can be gathered in ad- a point where no more information can be dug into vance and the better they prepare, the more they daylight and those who are tracing their overseas can ind during their trip. roots are more likely than other to run into what The purpose of this booklet is to help Finnish seems to be a brick wall. To carry on the search for descendants to trace their roots. In the follow- their relatives, the information needed is to identi- ing pages the most important information sourc- fy the place where the ancestors lived. Those who es in Finland are described and what the geneal- have Nordic ancestry are better off than others, as ogist can expect to ind. Many of the sources can the parishes have kept good records, which reach be utilized at home, through the Internet, by mail hundreds of years back, but the genealogist still or telephone, but some of the basic information needs to know where to search. Many start with can only be researched on the spot. The reader great enthusiasm and high hopes, but the abun- should not expect a complete guide to genealog- dance of information on the internet easily leads ical sources in Finland, but these pages give an astray and guidance is needed through the jungle outline where to ind the most important sources. The number of emigrants by province in 1870–1914 Province Persons % Uusimaa 13 200 4,4 Turku-Pori 43 800 14,5 Emigration Häme 8 800 2,9 1870 – 1914 Viipuri 16 000 5,3 Per 1,000 of of population Mikkeli 5 000 1,6 10.0 – Kuopio 9 900 3,3 5.0 – 9.9 Vaasa 158 400 52,3 3.0 – 4.9 Oulu 47 700 15,7 1.0 – 2.9 Total 302 800 100,0 – 0.9 – 4 – Overview of Finnish Migration to America The great migration of Finns to North America oc- cans. The Finnish settlements concentrated in curred during the late nineteenth and early twen- Minnesota, Michigan and Massachusetts. Also in tieth century. Between the years 1864 and 1914 Oregon and New York the Finns were numerous. well over 300,000 Finns settled in the USA and In Canada about 60 per cent of the Finnish pop- Canada. The “America Fever” started in the 1870s ulation lived in Ontario, especially in Toronto, and became a mass movement in the following de- Sudbury and present Thunder Bay. Many Finns cade. The crest of the wave was reached the year also settled on the West Coast, but relatively few 1902 when over 20,000 Finns emigrated. Emi- in prairie territories or the French-speaking ar- gration continued on a large scale until the out- eas. Although the Finns formed less than one per- break of World War I. When the U.S. Government cent of the European immigration to North Amer- began to restrict the admission of immigrants in ica their concentration, e.g. in Michigan and in the 1920s, Finnish emigration shifted to Cana- Thunder Bay in Canada had a considerable im- da. The Finnish emigration to the U.S. was high- pact on the local population. In mining in upper er than the oficial statistics of these years reveal, Michigan the Finns were quite visible, especially because many immigrants who oficially were not in the industrial strikes. A study made at Northern admitted to the U.S. went irst to Canada and then Michigan University drew the conclusion that the crossed the border between the countries. American Finns had inluenced the English spo- The Finnish emigrants to America originated ken in northern Michigan. mainly from north western Finland. Nearly half Since the Second World war Finnish migra- of them came from the province of Vaasa. They tion to North America has been quite insignii- were young people, around 20 years of age; the cant; around 15,000 emigrants went to the Unit- majority was men and unmarried. The structur- ed States and 27,000 to Canada. In North Amer- al change in agriculture had created a population ica there are about 45,000 irst generation and surplus, and jobs outside agriculture were scarce 180,000 second generation Finns. Including lat- in Finland. In North America work was available er generations there are over a million people of for men in mines, lumber camps, factories and Finnish extraction – a substantial contribution to railroad construction. Women gained employ- the ethnic and cultural mosaic of the