The Dodringshult Ladder

When we visited Sweden in 2012, a woman from the local genealogy society took us to some of the farms that I had identified as homes of our ancestors. Dodringshult, as you will see from the following photos, was a large, beautiful farm. It is located in the county of Jonkoping in southern Sweden; and it is here that our great-great grandfather Gustus Magnus Olausson (aka Gus Linn) was born.

The family, consisting of father Olaus Fredricsson, mother Catarina Johansdotter, and 8 children lived here from around 1825 until Olaus' death in 1830. Gustus was the youngest of the 8 children, born in 1829 at Dodringshult; and he was just 15 months old when his father died from a fever.

There is much to know about this family, all of which I would love to share if you post a comment or question that I can answer.

When we visited the farm, we were taken on a tour of the grounds, making our way to an old barn on the property. There, we saw the ladder pictured below. As we were told by the current owner, the ladder dates from the 1600's and was made of one piece of wood. Imagine carving the steps along with the center shaft for holding ALL from just one piece of wood. Because it dated to the 1600's, our Gustus and his siblings and parents would have used this ladder, climbed to the upper parts of the barn, perhaps using it for play.

If we could have taken the ladder home with us, we would gladly have taken this family treasure!



Ladder made from a single piece of wood - 1600's

Front view of Dodringshult



Side view of Dodringshult

Olof Ericsson was Murdered!

Olof was just 28 years old when he was murdered outside the church in Farila, Gavleborg Sweden. Who was Olof to us? And how and why was he murdered?

Olof was my 7th great grandfather on Maude Edith Olofson Linn's side. Is your head spinning yet? He was born on August 6, 1688; married Kjerstin Persdotter on January 20, 1713; and was murdered by Sergeant Olof Hook outside the parish church on January 20, 1717.

How do I know this? First, Olof's death record indicates the following:


"He died 20 January 1717 and was buried in the front of the church. He was beaten to death by the Sergeant Hook. Otherwise, he led a very quiet life only for 28 years and 19 weeks."

And when we were in Sweden in 2008, our tour guide found the transcript of the trial for Sergeant Hook. The brief story of the murder is that the Sergeant needed a horse to go to the next village; our ancestor Olof brought a horse to him and did not show proper deference to the Sergeant. Angry, the Sergeant beat Olof about the head but later invited him in to have a drink. As Olof was departing to go back to his home, he stumbled from his injuries, slipped on the steps of the church, and died. He was found the next morning.

Two wonderful things we should be thankful for as descendants of Olof Ericsson:

1. He and his wife had a child before he died. Their son Eric Olsson was born in 1716 and is our 6th g-grandfather!
2. The house pictured below was Olof and Kjerstin's house in the early 1700's and is being preserved as an example of the architecture of the time. We toured the house during our visit.

Back of Olof Ericsson House

Bed in the House

Dining Area on Second Floor

Cooking Area of House

 

What is THIS all about?

Over 35 years of genealogy research, I've accumulated many names, dates, places, photos, and just plain old stuff about our ancestors! But the real joy comes in not just discovering but sharing their stories and lives with you, my family.

If I promise to keep the "begats" that turn people off to a minimum, I hope you will enjoy seeing photos of places our ancestors lived and stories about their lives.

Please comment and let me know what you think and what else you would like to see.