The End

 It's the end of 2023 and the end of this blog. 

Together, we've taken a look at the Linns, Olofsons, Barquists, Rasks, and others to whom we are related. We have much to be thankful for in our ancestry.

Farmers: John Barquist who gave up his position as fire manager in Sweden to bring his family to the United States, purchased land and farmed successfully only to see his land taken away by the state of Iowa in a case that went to the US Supreme Court. Peter Linn and other farmers who were Litchfield tenants/sharecroppers. 

Helpers: Peter Linn and a neighbor hauling a large rock over 2 miles and 2 days to Dayton to serve as a memorial to the World War I veterans from the Dayton area. Doctors like Louise Blanche Linn, an early osteopathic MD. Relatives who cared for other relatives in their later years i.e. Veryl Olofson and his two sisters who took turns caring for their mother Olivia Rask Olofson.

Those with difficulties: Olof Olofson who was blind the last 40 years of his life. Kerstin Larsdotter, his mother, who was severely hard of hearing her entire life and whose twin sister died in Sweden of epilepsy. Olivia Rask Olofson who, in later years had dementia and paranoia about people trying to break into her house.

Religious leaders: John Linn who served as Bishop over 3 states and who started many churches in the Midwest. Peter Berg, husband to Julia Linn, who was also a well-respected minister.

Soldiers: Too many to list, going back to the early days of Sweden. Bertil Monsieur who, when Sweden was at war against Norway in 1719 got frostbitten feet so bad that he couldn't continue as a soldier.  Louis Linn who marched with Sherman and was badly wounded. Gustus Linn who was taken prisoner during the Civil War and spent over a year as a POW. Frank and Peter Linn who served in France in World War I. 

Those who were musical like Ivan Linn who performed on the Ted Mack Amateur Hour.

Ancestors who struggled with alcoholism and drug use.

Governors and advisors to the King in Sweden.

Those who lived to be over 100 and those who died way too young.

We are a family rich in history. And together, they have brought us to this point. I thank each for their contribution to our DNA, to our history, to our lives. And thank YOU for reading, for your questions, and for the new connections we have made.

I'm here anytime you have questions and want to email or call me. I'll still be working on our family history, scanning photos and documents, posting to my Ancestry.com tree.

Happy New Year! 

Diane

On our cruise August 2023

When They Came to Iowa and Wisconsin

Our ancestors were far from being the first European settlers in the United States. The first ancestor in my tree who came to the US was John Linn and his wife Brita Maja Eriksdotter in 1849. As we know, they settled in what was to become Webster County, Iowa. Next, in 1850, were my direct-line Olofsons. Olof Olsson and wife Kerstin Larsdotter, along with their 5 living children including my 2nd great grandfather Olof Olofson, came to Wisconsin in 1850.

We are not going to find Revolutionary War soldiers, become members of the Mayflower Society, or trace anyone to the early days where the East Coast was developed by European settlers, unless you have someone in another line of your family ancestry.

When I have read about those early settlements, the stories and the drawings show a very difficult life. But our ancestors, John Linn and Olof Olsson, found very primitive land in both Iowa and Wisconsin.

The link to the map of Iowa below from 1845, shows that only the Eastern third of the state had been settled at all. Where John, Gustus, and Peter Linn went up the Des Moines River or across from the Mississippi was unknown and unsettled territory. 

Iowa 1845 Map

Much of Wisconsin had been platted, especially those areas around Lake Michigan where settlements began. The map below shows what the Olssons would have found in 1850.

The total population for Iowa in the 1850 US Federal Census was 192,214. Iowa had become a state on December 28, 1846. See the following for details on ethnicities, county populations, churches, schools, and more in 1850.

Iowa 1850 Statistics

The total population for Wisconsin in the 1850 US Federal Census was 305,301. Wisconsin had become a state on May 29, 1848. See the following for details on ethnicities, county populations, slave population, churches, schools, and more in 1850.

Wisconsin 1850 Statistics

Much of the above is very interesting reading to see more about what our ancestors found when they made the long trip from Sweden to Iowa. Hope you enjoy reading this.

The Lundgren Name

Charles Warner Lundgren (1882-1957) married my great aunt Lilly Sophy Olofson (1892-1979) at Ascension Lutheran Church in Boone, Iowa on March 1, 1911. Where did the Lundgren name come from? Because I've traced this family back several generations, we will see where the name came from, but the "why" might be more of a mystery.

We would normally think that the last name that was carried down generations would come from the father's surname. And normally, especially in more recent times, it did. Long ago in Sweden, the husband kept his last name and the wife kept her own last name and the children took a version of the husband's first name but added "-son" or "dotter" to it. But something else happened with the Lundgrens.

In the Lundgren tree, we go back from Charlie to Olof Lundgren (1845-1930) to Erick Lundgren (1818-1910) to Olof Ersson/Erickson (1787-1848). Ersson? So how did the name Lundgren come to be?

Olof Ersson was a laborer who married Sophia Lundgren, the daughter of a tailor, Johan Fredrick Lundgren and his wife Sophia Hammerstrom. It is unlikely that Johan's original/birth surname was Lundgren but rather was formalized because of military experience, perhaps from a location where his ancestors had lived (Lundgren = grove + branch), or to differentiate the family surname from others that were identical (too many Olofsons or Larssons in one area).

Whatever the reason, the Lundgren named was passed down for several generations to Johan Fredrick Lundgren and also to his 7 children, including Sophia Lundgren. When Sophia married Olof Ersson, the reason for her children and all other descendants to take the surname "Lundgren" is hard to know. 

Was it because Olof was simply a laborer with a very common surname and Sophia's father was a tailor with a more unique Swedish name? 

My friends and family, I have no idea! But what I do know, is that the Lundgren name did not come from the male surname line but from Sophia Lundgren and her ancestral line.

I know I've said this before, but this is one reason I love genealogy. There are often no simple answers. Research takes time and the ability to find and read/translate records. If the Lundgren name were closer to my direct line and not just through the husband of my great aunt, I'd definitely be working on the reason behind this change in the norm. 

We've had mysteries before in this blog. Maria Barquist Olofson. When did she die and where is she buried? The Reinquists/Linns who adopted a boy who was related to the famous Nobel family. Why did his parents leave Sweden, have 3 sons and give them up for adoption? So many mysteries in this great hobby.

We are definitely winding down on my blog as we have just 3 days left in the year. Do any of these mysteries intrigue you? I'm always happy to work with others on our mutual ancestry. 

PHOTOS OF MY GREAT AUNT LILY AND GREAT UNCLE CHARLIE LUNDGREN

The Hatmaker

We recently took a look at Barquist ancestors who worked in the forest and with making coal. The Barquists were on Maude Olofson Linn's part of the tree. Today, let's look at an ancestor on Peter Linn's tree who was a hatmaker. And not just ANY hatmaker, he was a MASTER hatmaker and worked for the King's Artillery.

Anders Fogelqvist, my 4th great grandfather, was born in Uppsala county in Sweden in 1744. He was married twice. His first marriage was to Anna Marie Lundeberger who was 14 years his senior. It appears that Anna Marie had some wealth when she, as a widow, married Anders in December 1775. Anders had moved into Anna Marie's home early in 1775, so there is speculation that Anna Marie was helping to fund Anders hatmaking business and introduced him to clients in her circle.

Anna Marie died in 1790, and, in 1791, Anders Fogelqvist married my 4th great grandmother, Lisa Lagerstrom who was 21 years younger than Anders. They had 4 children including my 3rd great grandmother, Margaretha Elizabet Fogelqvist.

From the marriage records and clerical surveys available in Uppsala County, Anders was already a MASTER hatmaker when he married Anna Marie Lundeberger and became a hatmaker for the King's Artillery during that time..

There's no way for me to determine what type of hats Anders made for the King's Artillery, but the attached article shows complete uniforms that were worn by the Artillery during that 1775-1800 timeframe.

Anders died at age 56 of tuberculosis on 30 March 1800. His widow Lisa married another hatmaker, Nils Holstrom, in 1801 and had 3 more children with him before he died in 1805. Lisa lived until 1821.

Military Uniforms

Andrew Linn Letter to his son Peter

After I posted the letter that Peter Linn wrote home just before the end of World War I, my older brother showed me the following letter that Andrew Linn wrote to his son Peter during the same time. Andrew's letter was sent to Peter on 21 April 1919, Frank Linn's birthday.

A couple of things stand out to me: 

• The letter is 4 pages long. It's full of details and is very newsy about what has been going on locally. 
• Andrew, while born in the United States, would not have attended school on a regular basis, having to help on his father's farm. Yet, his grammar and spelling are quite good. His handwriting is very clear. The only problem is that Andrew doesn't seem to know when to stop and when to start a new sentence. 
• Andrew mentions Maude, Peter's girlfriend, showing his approval for this "good girl".
• He seems worried but hopeful about Peter's return from the war. With both of his sons serving, it must have been difficult for Andrew to keep his farm afloat during that time.

Enjoy seeing Andrew's handwriting and the details of his letter to Peter in France.

Andrew ends with his reminder to Pete to take care of himself and return safely home soon. 

"With love from us all to you, From Father"

Isn't that a sweet, caring side of Andrew that we hadn't seen before? I've been told that Andrew was a large, sweet man; and this letter clearly shows that side of him.

The Kolare and Foresters in the Family

Many of our ancestors were farmers. But we have learned about a few who had other careers or had careers in addition to farming. Fredric Smedbom was a teacher; Olaus Fredricsson was a juryman; and Louise Linn was an osteopathic doctor.

Back several generations in Sweden, our Barquist line includes people who also had other occupations. John Barquist, my 3rd great grandfather (1807-1878), was born in Amot, Gavleborg Sweden, married Marget Pehrsdotter, and had 6 children including my 2nd great grandmother Maria Barquist Olofson. One might have thought that John was a farmer in Sweden since that is the occupation he chose when he and his family immigrated to the United States. But let's take a look at the following:

When laws were passed in Sweden making it next to impossible for the common people/farmers/iron ore workers to own property, there were just two choices to be made. File for bankruptcy and lose the property and home to the foundry owner OR they could sell everything and go to America. From "The People of the Red Barns" Elsa Lagevik, 1996, page 37, "The sudden increase of emigration from Ockelbo parish 1855 and several years following lies certainly in time with those judgments which were handed down during the years of 1854 and 1855. As an example, the former forest ranger Johan Bergqvist who was affected by the law was chosen as firemaster at the Parish meeting in Amot 3 May 1857. At the correction to the minutes on the 17th of the same month, this election was changed as Bergqvist was going to emigrate to America."

According to the Swedish American Genealogist, Vol. VI, June 1986, #2, page 68, (ISSN 0275-9314) Jan Berqvist, former forestor, was born in Amot 24 December 1807, son of Jan Bergqvist, laborer, and Maja Jonsdotter. He was married to Margta Pehrsdotter, born in Amot 13 September 1810, daughter of Pehr Jonsson, farmer, and Margta Andersdotter. They had the following children all born in Amot: Jan, born 13 Feb. 1836; Andres Gustaf, born 6 June 1840; Maja Helena, born 28 September 1842; Peter Olof, born 14 September 1845; Lars Erik, born 22 May 1848; and Anna Margareta, born 6 April 1857.

You can see that John Barquist was a forest ranger and later was selected to be the firemaster for Amot. These positions are similar to what you might see today. The area around Amot parish was forested, requiring men to be on the lookout for fires. In addition, this area also produced coal that was piled into mounds in the forest, requiring men who would stay in the woods for weeks, making sure that the coal being made out of burning wood did not become a large fire.*

When we visited Sweden a few years ago, we were taken to one of these areas where a very crude thatched "building" held two straw beds. Between them on the wall were taxidermized animals. The foresters slept in these buildings for weeks, watching for any fires that might start in the forest or in the coal piles.

John Barquist's father, Jan Bergqvist (1779-1850), was my 4th great-grandfather. Jan was a charcoal maker aka Kolare. He made charcoal out of the wood in the forest. He would cut the trees, burn the wood, and watch to make sure the fire did not get out of hand. His death record states that he died of a chest infection and severe cough. (Caused by coal???)

And Jan Bergqvist's father (1750-1801) was a dagaarl, a day laborer working with coal.

Foresters and Kolares were jobs held by at least 3 generations of the Barquist family. Just another look at how our ancestors made a living generations ago in Sweden.

* On a basic level, charcoal was produced by burning any type of wood in a low oxygen environment. Doing so removes water and other volatile elements, allowing the finished product, the charcoal, to burn at high temperatures with very little smoke.

How to make charcoal

Lloyd Linn

Lloyd Linn was my first cousin, twice removed, son of John August Linn and grandson of Gus and Catharina Linn.

During World War I, Lloyd entered service at Camp Dodge and later was stationed at Camp Funston at Ft. Riley, Manhattan, KS, in the 164th Depot Brigade. The role of depot brigades was to receive and organize recruits, provide them with uniforms, equipment and initial military training, and then send them to France to fight on the front lines. The depot brigades also received soldiers returning home at the end of the war and completed their out processing and discharges.

While he never served in active combat, Lloyd's assignment was of note for two reasons.

First, he was at Camp Funston in 1918, which was the epicenter of the pandemic influenza outbreak that killed so many recruits. Soldiers often came to the camp already infected, and the disease spread. But compared to some other bases, Camp Funston had just 239 confirmed cases per 1,000 soldiers. Lloyd likely did not contract the influenza or had a very mild case, and so was spared this very serious disease.

Second, his Brigade posed in 1918 for a picture that became a famous poster housed at the National Archives. It is said that 10,000 men of the 164th Depot Brigade, Camp Funston, near Fort Riley, Kansas, posed on the polo field, in formation of the Living Service Flag.

Does this story and photo remind you have the one taken at Camp Dodge, in which Peter and Frank Linn posed for the Statue of Liberty photo?

I've also found a letter written by Lloyd Linn that was published in the newspaper about his service.

Lloyd Linn died in 1964 and is buried in the Linn Cemetery. He never married.

Camp Funston