Swedish American Genealogist
Volume 30 | Number 2 Article 2
6-1-2010 The A" merica Journey" of Tilda and Emma Dorinda D. Lundin
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Recommended Citation Lundin, Dorinda D. (2010) "The A" merica Journey" of Tilda and Emma," Swedish American Genealogist: Vol. 30 : No. 2 , Article 2. Available at: https://digitalcommons.augustana.edu/swensonsag/vol30/iss2/2
This Article is brought to you for free and open access by Augustana Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Swedish American Genealogist by an authorized editor of Augustana Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The “America Journey” of Tilda and Emma
TEXT AND PICTURES BY DORINDA D. LUNDIN
One of the most exciting moments in journals, letters, and photo albums,1 family-history research is that it was quickly apparent the essential instant when all the details of an information needed to complete the ancestor’s “America Journey” come story of Tilda’s “America Journey” together and the story is made whole. had been lost to the ravages of time. For some, the story comes easily; for others the research is more intense Tilda in Sweden and then, there are those stories that On August 5, 1871, a fourth daughter, defy retelling. For years, Matilda Tilda Charlotta, was born to Lars Charlotta Larson kept her story Peter Nilsson and his wife Stina hidden. Kajsa Knutsdotter at Lundeby #2 in Matilda, born Tilda, was my hus- Persnäs, Kalmar län, on the island band’s maternal grandmother. In an of Öland. Lars Peter, originally from effort to create a family-history web- Södra Greda in Föra,2 married Stina site, I agreed to help him research in 1858 and moved to her home and record both of his grandparents’ parish of Persnäs. They established immigration stories. They had been themselves on a farm at Södravik strangers in America, Tilda from where the first four children were Öland and Lars from Dalsland, but born: Carolina Sofia (1859), Brita these two Swedish immigrants would Marie (1862), Nils August (1865), and eventually meet, marry, raise a fam- Kristina Emeli (1867). Tilda Char- ily, and live out their American lotta (1871) and Johan Peter (1874) Tilda (Matilda) Charlotta Larson shortly after arrival in America. dreams in a coal mining town called were born after the family moved to Grassflat. Lundeby #2, a small farm that Lars income. While unconfirmed, it is a While each story would begin long Peter owned.3 plausible tale. Some of Lars Peter’s ago in Sweden, it was important that During the mid to late 1800’s much ancestors had made their livelihood each grandparent had his or her own of Sweden endured years of crop on the sea and on an island such as voice and told his or her own story. failure, over-population, and econom- Öland, even the families of sailors We hoped that through the research ic depression. Persnäs, like other found it necessary to farm the land we would uncover the details of what rural regions throughout Sweden, for sustenance.5 their lives had been like in Sweden suffered acutely from the poverty In 1880 Lars Peter died from and why they chose to leave and these times created. Economic re- consumption.6 He was only 48 years come to America. We hoped to under- covery was complicated by an estab- old. Lars Peter left a family of six stand what it had been like to jour- lished agrarian way of life that children, the youngest only 6 years ney to America as a young immigrant required labor-intesive practices, but old, a wife whose health was begin- and why each chose to locate in the of Lars Peter’s six children only one, ning to fail, and serious debt. Accord- coal-mining region of central Penn- Nils August, was old enough to help ing to the estate inventory, his assets sylvania. till his 7/18th mantal of farmland.4 were 3,135 kronor and his debts The task presented many research While I can find no record confirming 3,517 kronor.7 Life had dealt harshly challenges, but none more frustrat- this story, family history recounts with Lars Peter. ing than my efforts to detail Tilda’s that Lars Peter would occasionally After settling the estate, the voyage to America. While we were “go to sea” to supplement the family household examination records in- fortunate to have access to family Swedish American Genealogist 2010:2 1 dicate that Stina continued to live mid 1890’s Stina’s health had wors- gratis on her husband’s land, but one ened to the point where she could no by one her children left to make their longer be left alone. Now unable to own lives. Between 1878 and 1882 work away from the home, Tilda re- three daughters left to work on area alized that something must change. farms and by 1889 both sons had It was agreed that Stina would go to immigrated to America. One son, Nils Löt and live with her married daugh- August, appears to have left Sweden ter Kristina Emili, and Tilda would without obtaining the necessary per- journey to America.10, 11 Daughter mission although his name continued Tilda emigrated in 1895 Aug. 31 from to be listed as a household member. Persnäs. Only Tilda remained in Sweden to provide and care for her widowed Tilda is missing mother. Between 1895 and 1900 all traces of Tilda had become a talented dress- Tilda disappear. She does not re- maker and now she used this trade appear in any records until 1900 to support her mother. To find work, when she marries Lars Magnus she traveled about the region staying Larson in Peale, PA. A check of Amer- with her patrons while she sewed for ican census records uncover two pos- their families. Even with this income sible dates for Tilda’s emigration there was never enough money to from Sweden, 1895 and 1897,12 but, cover the expenses of her mother’s as shown above, she did leave in Emma Carolina Jonsson, a.k.a. Emma C. home. Wanting to remain indepen- 1895, though she has not been found Peterson. dent and keep Stina safe, Tilda in the Swedish databases Emihamn, who was named Emma. When Emma moved her mother to a nearby cellar Emibas, or Emiweb. Searches for her heard that Tilda was leaving for house described in family journals as arrival in East Coast ports also prove America, she pleaded with her friend a kellarstuga.8 When these accom- futile. Every effort is made to find and co-worker to go along. Her pro- modations proved too expensive to records for Tilda, including the use testations were successful for she maintain, a small cottage was ob- of alternative spellings, parallel fam- appears in photo albums with her tained behind the village school- ily searches, and pure guesses, but American family and a note that house. From time to time after Lars each ends with a dead end. “Aunt” Emma Peterson was not a real Peter’s death, usually between jobs, Today, I rely on the digital re- aunt. marriages, or emigration, family sources available to the amateur If I could find Emma’s immigra- members moved back and forth researcher, but I began researching tion details then perhaps I could find through the family home, but none family history long before many of Tilda’s, but while there was some in- stayed long enough to relieve Tilda these tools existed. In today’s media- formation about her American life, no of the physical or financial burden. saturated age it is important to re- details survived about the Swedish While it appears in 1894 that Tilda’s member that many non-digital re- Emma. older brother, Nils August, is still at sources remain available to the ama- home, a note in the entry indicates, teur family historian. The Internet . 9 The Swedish-American “… he visits in America ” and document subscription services Family records indicate that by the provide swift and convenient access church Records to primary sources once unavailable While visiting the Swenson Swedish to the non-professional genealogist, Immigration Research Center locat- but they do have limitations. As my ed at Augustana College, I had in- frustrations with Tilda’s missing in- cluded time to review their collection formation grew, a soft voice from the of Swedish-American church records. past reminded me not to forget the I knew that Tilda and her husband basic rules of research. I must slow Lars had been married in the Nebo down and carefully review all of my Lutheran Church in Peale, PA, and prior work, information, and sources. included that parish in my research The tactic proved beneficial. I had with the intent of copying the records forgotten about a story told to me that pertained to the family and early in my research. Tilda had not study them later. The records were traveled to America alone. According sparse and difficult to read. One page The “kellarstuga” in Persnäs. to family documents, Tilda had was so badly damaged it had to be worked with an assistant seamstress copied in a negative format to insure
2 Swedish American Genealogist 2010:2 its readability. me Emma’s Swedish records. Emma Though I had used these records Carolina Carlson had been born on several times since they were copied, October 14, 1873, in Högsby, Löt, I had never discovered additional Kalmar län. She was the daughter new information. Even so, I was of Carl Peter Jönsson and Kajsa determined to look at everything Stina Olsdotter. When she left Löt for carefully one more time. When I America on August 31, 1895, Emma scanned the documents this time was listed as living at No. 2 Öfra with an eye for different information Wannborga Utmark with her wid- I was amazed to read the last two owed mother and brother Gustaf Vic- entries on the negatively copied docu- tor.14 Emma was found in Emibas as ment. There, hiding in plain sight, Emma Carolina Jonsson, but not in were my two young women: Matilda Emihamn. C. Larson, now using her American It is important to note that emi- name, and her friend, Emma C. Carl- gration from Öland did not always son. The entries revealed identical follow the traditional routes of other Tilda and her husband Lars Magnus immigration dates and destinations Swedish regions. Before a bridge was Larsson. (1895 to Antrim, PA), identical constructed, the island was isolated on Sweden’s west coast. Though not church transfers (1897 to Nebo Lu- and dependent upon ferries and a major embarkation port for Amer- theran in Peale), and personal infor- ships for transportation. Emigrants ica, Helsingborg was a port of call for mation about Emma including her from Öland could either leave by the German-owned Hamburg-Amer- birth date of 1873 and her last traveling north to Stockholm or south ican Line. An interesting note accord- residence in Sweden, the Kalmar vil- towards Europe and the southern ing to Ancestry is that Helsingborg’s lage of Löt, a parish just south of Swedish cities. Tilda and Emma emigration data was not listed on 13 Persnäs. could have come to America by way Emihamn until 1929 complicating of a European port. my efforts to find the women.16 Back to Swedish I returned to Ancestry to re-search According to the ship’s “Customs records East Coast arrivals but this time List of Passengers,” the two travelers omitted any suggestion of departure boarded the immigrant ship Venetia Armed with this information, I next port. Finally, success! Within an hour, in Helsingborg. It steamed to Göte- returned to the household examina- I had my travelers in New York City borg for more passengers, then to tion records for Löt parish in Kalmar. 15 on September 28, 1895. Kristiansand in Norway for its re- A search for a female born in 1873 Tilda and Emma had left their maining complement of 680 emi- with a father named Carl soon gave villages and traveled to Helsingborg grants, cargo, and cabin passengers. From Norway the Venetia traveled west directly to New York, discharg- ing its passengers at the Hamburg- American Line docks in Hoboken, NJ.17 Once cleared through customs, the two women most probably board- ed an immigrant train in Hoboken for transport to the coal fields of An- trim, PA, the home of Tilda’s brother Nils August. Once the two women arrived in Antrim, contrary to family stories, Emma may not have left Tilda for work in Jamestown, NY. It is more likely that both young women were drawn to that vibrant city18 for periodic employment and a Swedish social life. There was even a sugges- tion that Tilda may have met her husband-to-be in Jamestown, but all that is known for sure is that Antrim remained both Tilda and Emma’s Persnäs church on the island of Öland. home parish until 1897.
Swedish American Genealogist 2010:2 3 In 1897, with coal production Endnotes 12) U.S. Census for Cooper Township, waning in the Antrim mines, the Clearfield County, PA, 1900, 1910, Ancestry.com. mine owner, Clearfield Bituminous 1) The family of Tilda’s daughter, Edith, Coal Company, encouraged its Tioga 13) Swenson Swedish Immigration Re- retains a private collection of family search Center, Rock Island, Ill., The County miners to move south to their journals, letters, and scrapbooks. Swedish-American Church Records newest mines and a utopian planned 2) Husförhörslängd Föra (Kalmar) (1851- Collection, Nebo Lutheran Parish community called Peale. Emma, 1860 p. 26) Genline AB. Register, Peale, PA. Tilda, and other family members 3) Husförhörslängd Persnäs (Kalmar) (1861-1870 p. 203), (1871-1880 p. 171), 14) Husförhörslängd, Löt (Kalmar) 1871- picked up and moved on once again, 1885, p. 218, 1886-1897, p. 357, Gen- this time to the Peale-Grassflat (1881-1885 p. 163), (1886-1894 p. 178), Genline AB. line AB. mines.19 4) Husförhörslängd Persnäs (Kalmar) 15) New York Passenger Lists, 1820- (1871-1880 p. 171) Genline AB. 1957, “Venetia, September 28, 1895,” One Final Note 5) Anderson, Larry Alan, My Wallander Ancestry.com. Swedish Family, Vol I and II, 2006, 16) About Swedish Emigration Records, In wanting to know how Tilda and 1783-1951, Emihamn, Helsingborg Emma might have traveled from Privately published, Crosby, Texas. (This volume is a comprehensive 1929-1950, Ancestry.com. Öland to Helsingborg, I investigated genealogy which includes Lars Peter 17) Blanck, Maggie, “The Steamship the railroad history of Sweden. While Nilsson’s ancestors on Öland and was Companies and Railroads in Ho- ferries could still have transported developed in conjunction with Swed- boken,” http://maggieblanck.com/ them in 1895, the railroads were now ish genealogists. Mr. Anderson’s rela- Hoboken/Hoboken.html fairly well developed including nar- tives are connected to Tilda through 18) Ebersole, Helen G. “The New City: row-gauge secondary routes that her sister Kristina Emili.) What Jamestown was like in 1886,” Jamestown (NY) Post-Journal, 29 connected trunk rail lines to port 6) (Persnäs F:1) (provided by SAG editor). March 1986. Tempo, cities. http://prendergastlibrary.org/ After consulting an 1890’s Swedish 7) Vadstena archives, Ölands Norra Mot, volume Fll: 77, page 1023 (provided jamestown;1886, htm railroad map,20 I realized that the by SAG editor). 19) Feldmeier, Jeffrey L., “An Overview easiest and fastest route for our 8) Kellarstuga is most likely a coined of the Underground Coal-Mining Era travelers would have been by rail term used by the family. “Källare” is a at Grassflat and Environs,” http:// south from Kalmar, then west across Swedish word that means basement, grassflat.bravehost.com/ southern Sweden to the coast on a cellar; older spelling could be “kellare.” mining.html rail line connecting to both Malmö 9) When merging family documents and 20) Rail map of Sweden (1901), History of rail transport in Sweden, http:// and Helsingborg. parish records conflicting information often emerged. The 1910 U.S. Census en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ In 2002 my cousin and I visited my history_of_rail_transport_in_Sweden relatives in Skåne. As a way of gave 1886 as the immigration date for Tilda’s brother Nils August. Parish helping us understand what Sweden records continue to show him as part Address for the Lundin family website: was like during my grandmother’s of his Swedish household in the 1886- http://web.me.com/lundind/ time, the same period as Tilda and 1894 household examination and a The_Larsons_of_Grassflat_II/ Emma’s, we were treated to a day note that “he visits in America.” There Welcome.html (user name: grassflat, excursion aboard a historically pre- is no record of his leaving Sweden. Nils password: matilda) . served narrow gauge railroad. With August may or may not have had offi- its period-attired conductor, preser- cial permission to leave the country. ved carriages, and steam locomotive, U.S. Census, Cooper Township, Clear- the train traveled a route across field, PA, 1910, Ancestry.com, Husför- hörslängd Persnäs (Kalmar) 1886- southern Sweden first towards the 1894, Genline AB. The author: Baltic, then on its return towards the 10) Family journal entry by Edith west coast. It is possible that a little Matilda Larson Lundin about her Dorinda D. Lundin, 5 Smith over a hundred years before, on just mother. Road, Woodstock, CT 06281 such a train, perhaps along that very 11) SAG Editor’s note: Stina Kajsa died Her e-mail is rail bed, two young women sat and in 1896 Aug 1. She is recorded as liv-
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