Travel Tuesday: A. T. Anderson's Visit to Sweden

In 1912, my 2nd-great-grandfather Andrew T. Anderson (born Andreas Troedsson) traveled to Sweden to visit his family. He arrived in Sweden in late May 1912. He stayed with his sister Carolina and her husband Nils Andersson on Ollof farm in Grevie, Skåne. He wrote a letter to his wife and children on 7 June 1912. He said that they had had Sunday School there the previous Sunday, and that he was not able to attend church because he only had his old clothes. His trunk of clothing did not arrive until the day before he wrote the letter. Later that Sunday, he, Carolina, and Carolina's son Elof and his family drove to visit Pat Johnson. He planned to buy dress material for his wife the next day.

He was asked to lead Sunday school in the American fashion on the following Sunday. He also planned to visit his brother Johannes that day.

Carolina made a cheese for him to take home to his family, and made another one for him to bring home to to their sister Johanna.

Andrew/Andreas said that he and his brother-in-law Nils went to the forest one evening and heard a nightingale singing in the treetops at 11:00.

Common Nightingale Luscinia megarhynchos, near Gordevio, Ticino, Switzerland. 12 May 2010. Photo by Noel Reynolds [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)]. Available from Flickr and Wikimedia Commons.

He thought that he might go to Helsingborg and Copenhagen the following week. On 28 June 1912, he planned travel on the Göta Canal and go to Stockholm and see museums and art.

Göta kanal (Göta canal) near road E20, Sweden. 7 July 2015. Photo by Pudelek (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)]. Available from Wikimedia Commons.

On 20 July 1912, he sailed from Liverpool, England to New York, New York on the Caronia.

RMS Caronia. Cunard Line, 1905-1933. Ancestry.com. Passenger Ships and Images [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007.

He arrived at Ellis Island on 28 July 1912.

Passenger manifest, Caronia. 28 July 1912. Microfilm serial T715, 1897-195, microfilm roll 1904, line 6, page number 24. Ancestry.com. New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1897. Microfilm Publication M237, 675 rolls. NAI: 6256867. Records of the U.S. Customs Service, Record Group 36. National Archives at Washington, D.C.

Passenger manifest, Caronia. 28 July 1912. Microfilm serial T715, 1897-195, microfilm roll 1904, line 6, page number 24. Ancestry.com. New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 1820-1897. Microfilm Publication M237, 675 rolls. NAI: 6256867. Records of the U.S. Customs Service, Record Group 36. National Archives at Washington, D.C.

This was probably the last time that he saw his family in Sweden. He died on 24 January 1916.

Wordless Wednesday: Postcard, Grefvie (Grevie) Church, Grevie, Skåne, Sweden

Mappy Monday: Skåne Län Before 1997

Old provinces of Skåne. By Lunnen2009 (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)]. Available from Wikimedia Commons.

Skåne län [county], the southernmost county in Sweden, was created in 1997. Two counties, Kristianstad and Malmöhus, were merged.

My 2nd-great-grandfather Andreas Troedsson/Andrew T. Anderson and his ancestors were from Grevie, which is part of the municipality of Båstad. It was located in Kristianstads län and is now in Skåne län.

World Down Syndrome Day

March 21 is World Down Syndrome Day. Since 2005, events have been held on this day to raise awareness of Down Syndrome and to show how people with Down Syndrome can play active roles in their communities.

 My 2nd-great-grandfather's brother Petter Troedsson was listed as idiot krympling [idiot cripple] in Swedish household examination records. Their mother Christina Jacobsdotter was 38 years old when Petter was born on 31 January 1855 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden. I suspect that Petter may have had Down Syndrome.

Grevie AI:14 (1870-1876) Image 80 / page 4 (AID: v99265a.b80.s4, NAD: SE/LLA/13113).

Petter died on 27 October 1908 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden. He was 53 years old and a pauper in the Grevie workhouse. The cause of death was dropsy.

Peter Troedsson death record, 27 October 1908. Grevie FI:3 (1895-1943) Image 580 / page 53 (AID: v516961.b580.s53, NAD: SE/LLA/13113).

European Maritime Day

May 20 is European Maritime Day. The purpose of the day is to raise awareness of the importance of the oceans and the role that they play in the lives of Europeans.

On 20 May 2008, the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union, and the European Commission signed a Joint Tripartite Declaration Establishing a "European Maritime Day".  This was done as part of the Integrated Maritime Policy, which was proposed by the European Commission in October 2007 and endorsed at the European Council on 14 December 2007.

Each year, a European Maritime Conference is held. This year's conference is in Piraeus, Greece.

The sea has played a role in the lives of Europeans in my family. My great-great-grandfather's brother Ola Peter Troedson was a sjöman (seaman) in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden. My great-great-grandmother's brother Andreas Eriksen was a skipperborger (skipper/ship master, social layer above the working class) in Haugesund, Rogaland, Norway. My 4th-great-grandfather Hugh Winters lived in the port city of Leith, Scotland and worked as a fireman, probably on ships. James Mapplebeck's father's family was from Rawcliffe, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, which is about 3 miles from the port city of Goole. His father's brother Robert Mapplebeck was a mate of a home trade passenger ship, and his father's brother William Mapplebeck was a captain who drowned when his ship was lost at sea.

References
European Commission: European Maritime Day
European Commission - PRESS RELEASES - Press release - 20 May: European Maritime Day set up by European institutions
European Maritime Day

Wednesday's Child: Botilla Troedsdotter

Death/burial record for Botilla, January 1862. Grevie FI:2 (1861-1894), image 11.

Botilla, the youngest child of my 3rd-great-grandparents Troed Andersson and Christina Jacobsdotter, was born on 12 December 1861 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden. She lived for only a few weeks. Botilla died on 3 January 1862 and was buried on 6 January 1862.

52 Ancestors: #29 Ola Peter Troedson

Ola Petter Troedsson, the brother of my great-great-grandfather Andreas Troedsson, was born on 11 December 1841 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden, and was baptized on 14 December 1841. He was the first child of Troed Andersson and Christina Jacobsdotter. Household examination records list him as Sjöman (seaman) Ola Petter Troedsson.

On 12 April 1871, Ola Petter boarded the ship Friedeburg in Hamburg, Germany, headed for Australia. The passenger list showed that his previous residence was Copenhagen, Denmark (which is near Skåne, Sweden). He arrived at Moreton Bay, Queensland, Australia on 12 August 1871. The 15 August 1871 issue of the Brisbane Courier contains an account of the voyage. The text is faded and difficult to read, but additional information about the voyage can be found on a Web page about Jørgen Berthelsen's voyage to Australia. He traveled at the same time as Ola Petter.

After immigrating to Australia, he modified his name slightly and was known as Ola Peter Troedson. He married Rosina Catharine Louise Walter on 20 August 1878. Rosina was an immigrant from Pfedelbach, Württemberg, Germany. She had come to Australia with her family in 1865, when she was eight years old. The couple lived in Brisbane and had nine children: Theodore Christopher (born 17 October 1879), John Frederick (born 17 July 1881), Annie Christina (born 25 January 1883), Alfred William (born 3 August 1884), Ellen Louisa (born 26 July 1886), Peter Henry (born 4 August 1888), George Arthur (born 12 April 1890), Matilda (born 1 August 1891), and Otto Edward, later known as Edward Otto (born 20 January 1893).

Ola Peter took an oath of allegiance on 18 July 1901. Three years later, he lost two members of his family almost at the same time: his son John Henry died on 5 June 1904, and his wife Rosina died on 11 June 1904. Two of his other children also predeceased him: his daughter Annie Christina (Troedson) McDonald died on 20 January 1916, and his son Peter Henry died on 16 May 1923.

Ola Peter died at his home in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia on 12 May 1926. He was buried in Toowong Cemetery.

Birth/christening record for Ola Petter, 1841. Grevie CI-5 (1837-1861), image 27.

Birth/christening record for Ola Petter, 1841. Grevie births, 1829-1874. Page 47.

Household examination. Grevie AI-13 (1864-1869), image 80.

 Household examination. Grevie AI-14 (1870-1876), image 80.

Brisbane Courier, 5 June 1926

Photo by Terry McMahon

Mappy Monday: Grevie, Skåne, Sweden

Map showing the parish Grevie in the hundred of Bjäre, Skåne, Sweden. Based on Generalstabskartan, relief from a digital elevation model of the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission. Edaen (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)]. Available from Wikimedia Commons.
  
This map shows the location of Grevie in the Bjäre district of Skåne lan (county), Sweden. Skåne was created in 1997, when the counties of Kristianstad and Malmöhus were merged. Skåne was formerly in Kristianstad lan. The map also shows the locations of parish churches.

My great-great-grandfather Andreas Troedsson, also known as Andrew T. Anderson, and his ancestors were from Grevie. Grevie is now part of Båstad.

52 Ancestors: #24 Andreas Troedsson/Andrew T. Anderson

My great-great-grandfather Andreas Troedsson was born on 24 February 1851 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden, and was baptized on 2 March 1851. He was the son of Troed Andersson and Christina Jacobsdotter. The EmiHamn database records his date of emigration as 11 March 1872; he left from Copenhagen, Denmark, and his destination was Chicago, Illinois. He was the first of his siblings to come to America; two brothers and two sisters followed him. After he arrived in America, he changed his name to Andrew T. Anderson. His middle initial was from his original patronymic, Troedsson, and his new surname was probably chosen because it was a modified version of his father's patronymic. His brothers also adopted the surname Anderson and used the middle initial T.

He married Marthe Elisabeth Erickson, an immigrant from Avaldsnes, Rogaland, Norway, in Chicago on 31 March 1877. They had seven children: Anna Matilda (born 13 April 1878), Emma Christina (born 2 June 1880, died 9 June 1881), my great-grandfather Edward Theodore (born 10 August 1882), Albert Bernard (born 28 March 1885), Esther Elizabeth (born 1 September 1889), Reuben Alexander (born 19 December 1892), and Ruth Elvira (born 18 June 1896).

He was a wood turner. He made a set of chairs and gave one to each of his children (except baby Emma). My father has the chair that belonged to Edward Theodore. By 1910, he was a clerk for the Cook County Board of Review.

In 1912, he returned to Sweden to visit his sister Carolina. He also saw his brother Johannes while he was there. He returned to the United States on 28 July 1912. He arrived at Ellis Island on the Caronia, which had sailed from Liverpool, England.

He died in Chicago on 24 January 1916 and was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery on 27 January 1916.

Birth/christening record for Andreas, 1851. Grevie CI (1837-1861), image 79. (AID: v99277.b79, NAD: SE/LLA/13113)

Cook County, Illinois Marriage license and return, Andrew Anderson and Marte E. Eriksen, 1877.

Anderson family ca. 1906: Esther, Andrew, Albert, Reuben, Ruth, Edward, Marthe, Anna.

1910 United States census, Chicago, Cook, Illinois, Ward 31, population schedule, enumeration district 1351, page 15B.

City of Chicago, Department of Health. Certificate of death no. 2930, Andrew T. Anderson, 24 January 1916.

Chicago Daily Tribune, 26 January 1916

Census Sunday: Not Just a Servant

In 1880, my great-great-grandparents Andrew and Martha (Erickson) Anderson and their children were living in Chicago, Illinois. Also in the household was a 15-year-old servant, Christine Nelson.

1880 United States census, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, population schedule, enumeration district 177, page 12. NARA microfilm publication T9, roll 198, image 360.
 
Christine was not just a servant. She was Andrew's niece. Andrew's sister Elna married Nils Jonsson, and their first child, Christina, was born in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden on 5 November 1864. Her surname would have been a patronymic derived from her father's given name, Nils. In the United States, other members of her family used the surname Nilsson instead of Nelson. Christina came to the United States before her mother did, and she would have been 15 years old at the time of the 1880 census. Her father never came to the United States; he died in Sweden in 1892. Because Christina came to the United States without her parents, it makes sense that she would live with her uncle and his family.

Sibling Saturday: The Five Anderson Siblings Who Came to America

Five of the children of Troed Andersson and Christina Jacobsdotter left Sweden and came to the United States.

Andreas Troedsson, my great-great-grandfather (born 24 February 1851 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden), was the first come to the United States. He immigrated in 1872 and changed his name to Andrew T. Anderson; the middle initial T was from his original patronymic, Troedsson. He settled in Chicago, Illinois, where he married Marthe Elisabeth Erickson on 31 March 1877. They had seven children. He died in Chicago on 24 Jaunary 1916 and was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery.

Johanna (born 16 February 1849 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden) came to the United States in the mid-1870s and settled in Chicago. She married Frans Ludvig Oscar Sandquist, a widower, on 19 December 1885. They had four children. Johanna died in Chicago on 4 February 1934 and was buried in Oak Woods Cemetery.

Sven (born 30 December 1856 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden) came to the United States in the mid-1870s. He changed his name from Sven Troedsson to Sven T. Anderson. In 1880 he lived in Suez Township, Mercer County, Illinois. By 1885 he had moved to Morris County, Kansas. He married Hannah Louise Abramson on 18 October 1887. They had thirteen children. Sven died on 6 October 1914 and was buried in Hebron Lutheran Church Cemetery in Morris County, Kansas.

Nils (born 14 November 1852 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden) came to the United States in the early 1880s. He changed his name from Nils Troedsson to Nils T. Anderson. He settled in Chicago, where he married Ida C. Anderson on 27 November 1886. They had three children. Nils died in Chicago on 6 July 1928 and was buried in Rosehill Cemetery.

Elna (born  in 23 August 1845 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden) married Nils Jonsson in Grevie on 15 April 1864. Their children came to the United States. In 1903, Elna and her son Sven Peter Nilsson came to the United States. Elna changed her name to Elna Nelson, because her children used the surname Nelson. Elna died in Chicago on 27 September 1925 and was buried in Graceland Cemetery.

Treasure Chest Thursday: Andrew T. Anderson's Chair

My parents have a chair that was made by my father's great-grandfather (and my great-great-grandfather) Andrew T. Anderson, who was born Andreas Troedsson on 24 Feb 1851 in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden. He was a wood turner. He immigrated to the United States and settled in Chicago, Illinois, which must have been where this chair was made.

So many discoveries!

In the last week I have found so much information about my family. I learned more about several of the siblings of my great-great-grandfather Andrew T. Anderson (born Andreas Troedsson in Grevie, Skåne, Sweden). I found the passenger list which documents the arrival of his sister Elna and her son Sven Peter Nilsson/Nelson. They arrived in Boston, Massachusetts on 2 September 1903, and then went to Chicago, Illinois. I found their brother Sven T. Anderson on Find A Grave, and there is a photo of his tombstone. According to the family history compiled by my grandmother's cousin, their oldest brother Ola Petter Troedsson went to Australia. A few days ago I confirmed that he did settle there; he emigrated from Sweden to Brisbane, Queensland.

I also learned more about the family of my 3rd-great-grandfather John Bennet Winters. He was born in Scotland, and was with his parents and siblings in Leith, Midlothian, Scotland in 1841. By 1859 he was in Tonawanda, Erie, New York, where he married Anna Walker. I did not know if he emigrated alone or with family. I could not find his family in Scotland in 1851. I looked for them in England too, but did not find them. According to the 1841 census, his parents, Hugh Winters and Mary Bennet, were born in Ireland. Last night I found out that they emigrated to the United States and lived in Brooklyn, New York; they were there by 1851, when another child of theirs was baptized.