Diary of a Swedish Immigrant Horticulturist, 1855^898 Carlton C. Qualey UNIQUE IN the collections of the Minnesota Histori­ trades, Swedish Baptist, and diarist lived for most of cal Society, and probably one of the few of its kind the years of the diary on his farm adjoining Waconia anywhere, is the multi-volume Swedish folk-language Lake, then known as Clearwater Lake. He not only mas­ diary faithfully kept for forty-three years by Andrew tered diversified farming but also became a leading Peterson of Laketown Township, Carver County, Min­ horticulturist of the entire Upper Mississippi Valley. nesota. This pioneer farmer, horticulturist, man-of-all- Besides winning recognition from the Minnesota Hor­ ticultural Society, which made him an honorary life member in 1888, Peterson achieved genuine prestige ' Vilhelm Moberg, Den Okanda Slakten, 39-61 (Stock­ among the fraternity of fruit growers and agricultural holm, 1950); Smaalandstidningen, December 28, 1961; experiment station staff members in the region. American Swedish News Exchange news release of May 26, 1960. See also Vilhelm Moberg, ""Why I wrote T/iC Emi­ Some fifty years after Peterson's death just before grants," in Industria International, 1964, p. 64, and the the turn of the century, his diary received prominent same author's "Why I Wrote the Novel About Swedish notice when the prestigious Swedish novelist, Villiehn Emigrants," in The Swedish Pioneer Historical Quarterly, Moberg, acknowledged its use in the preparation of his 17:67 (April, 1966). An English translation by Emma M. Ahlquist is included with the diaries, which were presented trilogy of novels concerning Swedish emigrants — The to the Minnesota Historical Society in 1939 by the Peter­ Emigrants (1951), Unto a Good Land (19.54), and son family through the courtesy of Joseph Ball, then of The Last Letter Home (1961). In fact, the character St. Paul, and Professor Wilfiam H. Alderman of the Uni­ Karl Oskar in the Moberg novels is said to have been versity of Minnesota College of Agriculture. See Minne­ sota History, 21:85 (March, 1940). modeled after Peterson.* One gains a remarkable cumulative impression, a Mr. Qualey, now a research fellow for the Minnesota His­ torical Society, is emeritus professor of history at Carleton College, where he will be visiting professor next fall. MHS coLLccrions Summer 1972 63 sense of creative living, from reading the entries that into a church." He found time to work on his home, Peterson made day after day, week after week, year too. On October 19 he wrote: "In the morning I fin­ after year, for the fort)'-three years from 1855 until ished chinking my cabin," and three days later he two days before his death on March 31, 1898. He did "finished daubing the cabin and the roof." He then not fight nature; he became its partner and shared in built a cowshed and, in the Swedish manner, covered its tragedies and beauties. With his strong Baptist faith it with hay. Finally, on November 15, he noted that he in the wisdom and watchfulness of his God, he used moved into his cabin. his considerable talents to the limit of his ability. Even Until his marriage on September 15, 1858, Peter­ in later years when cardiac trouble limited his physi­ son boarded or "bached it," but there was little differ­ cal activities, he kept up his efforts to seek better ways ence in his way of life before or after getting married. of producing better crops, especially apples. From 1856 until his death, in fact, he continued his Andrew Peterson was born on October 20, 1818, in yearly routines with little variation except for increas­ Sjoarp, in Ostergotland, Sweden, the son of a farmer ing preoccupation with horticulture. During the winter (bonde). He emigrated in 1849 or 1850, and we next weeks of 1856 he cut rails for fences, and on March 11, learn of him at Burlington, Iowa, in 1855. "What he 1856, he wrote: "Gut rails all day. Have now 2,000 did in the United States before this time is not clear, rails." A week later another annual item appeared: but on January 1, 1855, he was working near Burling­ "Made wooden troughs in which to gather maple sap." ton for a nurseryman named Neally, doing carpentry On May 20 his entry was "Last night we fished. Got the work and grafting. The daily entries in the diary record boat full. Got home at noon. Then I planted potatoes only "for Neally nursery" until April 30, 1855, when and grubbed the place for my cornfield." On May 23: he wrote: "Made up accounts with Neally and received "We church folks planted corn for Nilsson." $38.00." Several entries during the remainder of 1856 indi­ Membership in a small Swedish Baptist group led cate his range of activities. On June 7 "afternoon — we to Peterson's leaving Neally's employ. The group was had a language meeting at Bengtsen." On July 1, 7, led by Fredrik Olaus Nilsson, Sweden's first Baptist and 9 he took Nilsson's mare to one Kessler's horse but convert who had been prosecuted under the infamous without result. In late July he needed money, so he Konventikalplakat of 1726 which prohibited unauthor­ went to Carver and got a job "at Noyes" from August 2 ized religious gatherings. With a small band of follow­ to August 16. With the money, on August 19, he "went ers, Nilsson emigrated to the United States, settled to St. Paul and bought a stove and provisions," travel­ brieffy in Burlington, Iowa, and then moved to Carver ing on the steamboat "Wave" from Carver. On Au­ County, Minnesota.- Peterson went along and recorded gust 29 he stated: "Today I began to feed myself." On in his diary the trip via steamboat to Rock Island, Ga­ August 30 he "picked cranberries," which no doubt lena, and St. Paul. The diarist was ill on arrival and helped vary his diet. On October 11 he received his remained in St. Paul from May 9 to May 22, 1855, first recognition as a local citizen: "Received our or­ while the others journeyed on the "Black Hawk" up der from the County Commissioner that I have been the Minnesota River. While recuperating, he recorded appointed road supervisor." He finished digging his carefully all his expenses en route from Burlington, his potatoes, he wrote on October 18, and "took over four outlays for medicine and food, and his extensive pur­ bushels to Johannes [his brother-in-law] to be made chases of equipment for himself and members of the into starch. I got about 30 bushels of potatoes from the group. On May 15, for example, he itemized medi­ four bushels planted. Lundsten gave me a half-pound cines for a total of $2.45, food to the amount of $4.45, of butter for my old songbook.' On November 22 he and deck passage from Burlington to St. Paul, includ­ wrote: "My cow calved yesterday. It was a heifer." ing chest, at $8.23.^ At last he "went up the Minnesota river," and on "Louise J. Ahlstrom, Eighty Years of Sivedish Baptist June 1 wrote: "Today I bought a claim from the Ger­ Work in Iowa, 1853-1933, 107-108 (Des Moines, 1933). man [Peter Fisher] for $25.00." It was on the eastern See also Grace Lee Nute, "The Diaries of a Swedish-Ameri­ edge of Minnesota's Big Woods. The next day he can Farmer, Andrew Peterson," in American Institute of Swedish Arts, Literature and Science, Yearbook, 1945, added: "Today I planted potatoes on my claim using p. 105-132. the grubhoe." He then told how he cleared the ground "The diary entry for May 15, 1855, reads: "Bought car­ for a cabin and cut logs. Frequently during his first pentry tools to take along to St. Peter. Those we all went year on his claim Peterson interrupted work on his together for . Total $15.20. Bought for myself . own place to help Nilsson build his cabin. In return Total $4.10." he ate his meals with the minister and his wife* On 'See manuscript diaiy of Reverend F. O. Nilsson, in possession of Bethel Theological Seminary, St. Paul (the August 1 Peterson wrote in his diary, "We organized Minnesota Historical Society has a copy). 64 Minnesota History On December 6 he made an important entry: '1 proved up my claim in Minneapolis." The shared-work system on the frontier is well il­ lustrated by this unusually long entry of November 28, 1856: "Borrowed Jonas Broberg's oxen to haul logs for the fence on the other side of the maples. Alfred was here with his oxen and hauled logs. He owed me 2)2 days work. One day I counted off for the oxen and the half-day I counted off for PETERSON the sinkers he made for the seine and the mend­ completed this ing of the net. In the evening Nilsson and I made log cabin up our account for the last period of boarding in 1855. and the 6;2 days of work I had done and the boards I had given that should count off when I built his cow shed because of the board I had when I built mine." Go-operative effort was again evident on April 1, stalks," Peterson wrote. "At noon John went with me 1857: "In the morning I went over to Johannes and we home and started plowing for the wheat. In the eve­ made up our accounts both old and new. We are now ning at 5 o'clock Elsa and my expectations became a square except that Johannes still owes me $3.00 for reality, a marriage." Business went on as usual, for the corn." In the spring of 18.57, too, Peterson recorded next day he wrote: "John was here and plowed and I daily his first large-scale operation to produce maple cut corn.