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My FarFar's father & grandfather, East Longmeadow, MA quarrymen
My recent paternal ancestors were Swedes who worked in the redstone quarries of E. Longmeadow, MA. My great grandfather Andrew was born December 1, 1858 in Torestorp, Elfsborgs Lan, Vastra Gotalands. He came to the US in 1882 and was naturalized in Middletown, CT in 1884. His father, Nils, was born in February, 1827 and came to the US in 1890. Both men used the surname Johnson in the US.
I'm having trouble tracking them back in Sweden... I'm wondering if Andrew was born Nilsson. Nils' father is listed in his death record from 1901 as John Anderson, so he had formed his surname from his father's first name. So, did Andrew perhaps change his surname when he entered the US?
The 1900 US Census for E. Longmeadow lists Nils' wife, but the name can't be made out. It looks something like Julia, but a search of the records shows no results.
At this point, I seem to be at a dead end. Any ideas/help would be most welcome.
Ron
I'm having trouble tracking them back in Sweden... I'm wondering if Andrew was born Nilsson. Nils' father is listed in his death record from 1901 as John Anderson, so he had formed his surname from his father's first name. So, did Andrew perhaps change his surname when he entered the US?
The 1900 US Census for E. Longmeadow lists Nils' wife, but the name can't be made out. It looks something like Julia, but a search of the records shows no results.
At this point, I seem to be at a dead end. Any ideas/help would be most welcome.
Ron
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Lynn Anderson on
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In Torestorp parish I see an Anders born to Johannes Gustavsson and Stina Petersdr on 1 dec 1858
On 17 dec there was a Johan born to Nils Johansson and Christina Nilsdr. There is another baby boy Anders Magnus with nothing else matching.
It must be a small parish, there are only 7 births in dec 1858. It is a different birth book. It shows the farm name which should make it easier to find the HFL entry for the family.
None of the births match your specifications exactly. Is this what you found?
Anders is high probablility the Swedish name of Andrew. -
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Permalink Reply by Ron Johnson on
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Thanks, Lynn, for that information... I'm tending to lean toward Nils & Christina as Andrew's parents... I'll upload the 1900 US Census to see if anyone else can make out the first name of Nils' wife... They are at the top, lines 53 & 54...
Ron - Attachments:
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1900 page 2.jpg, 777 KB
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My take on the census taker handwriting is Irmia. Not a name I know but you never know. First letter is like the last name on that page, Idora. Not a G C H could be a J... but looks like the last name on the page which is probably Idora. So lets call it an I.
Did you look at the census on Ancestry.com? If so, what did they say they name is? One more opinion...
Remember, sometimes you have to look creatively at what people see in handwriting. Or what the census taker thought he heard. They can get very messed up. Do they show up on 1910 census? You are going to have to find more information. -
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I think they had: ?Junia
They also had "Niele" for Nils... Nils died in 1901 and she is not listed with son Andrew in 1910...
Thanks for your thoughts... Ron -
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Permalink Reply by Eva Larsson on
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Do you have any thoughts about Nils wife? Did she leave Sweden for USA at the same time as Nils?
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Hi, Eva... Yes, I've tried to think of how to find her... trying all sorts of possible first names, but nothing... Yes, she came to the US in 1890, as well. It is hard enough to find some of these folks with both names, but without her maiden name & an unreadable first name, she remains a mystery!
If the US 1890 Census had not been destroyed, we might have found them both there living with Andrew/Anders... -
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Have you checked the church records at St Paul Lutheran Church on Elm Street? It was founded in 1890 as Gustavus Adolphus Swedish Lutheran Church in 1890 and was orginally on Somers Road, also referred to as S Main Street. I wish I had seen this earlier as I was in East Longmeadow last weekend for Mothers' Day.
Based on the information you provided, I think Lynn Anderson was correct that the parents are Johannes Gustafsson and Kristina Petersdotter. In addition to having the correct date of birth, this Anders/Andrew Johnson emigrated to N America in 1882 according to the Torestorp parish survey for 1882 -1896 (p 83). Could Nils be the father-in-law rather than the father? -
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Hi, Carl...
Thank you for your response! I have emailed Rev, Hedberg and I hope there will be something of use in the early church records.... As for Andrew's parents, the 1900 US Census clearly shows Andrew Johnson as head of household with his father listed as Nils and his mother as ?Junia? (not so clear for her), and we know that Andrew's wife Augusta had parents whose names were John Nelson and Inger Larson (named Ingren L. Nelson on the gravestone of Andrew & Augusta). Also, Andrew listed his year of arrival in the US as 1881 in the 1910 US Census, so that date is a bit up in the air...
Did you grow up in EL and perhaps graduate from ELHS? If so, do you know about the big 50th Birthday party for the high school?
Ron -
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Another thought is that many of the Swedish quarrymen in East Longmeadow came from Sweden by way of the quarries in Portland, CT. The fact that your grandfather was naturalized in Middletown suggests that this is a pretty good possibility in your case. There might be records in Portland.
Yes, ELHS '66. If you want to compare notes on East Longmeadow, perhaps we should go offline. You can e-mail me at crswanson(at)comcast(dot)net . -
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