A Weekend With Grandma

Today's post will be a short one as I just returned from Iowa where my brothers and I went through our 93-year old mom's 10 x 20 storage unit. We organized, tossed, and labeled the items she had accumulated and saved.

We laughed at some of the things we found and the number of funeral notices and obituaries that she had in duplicate, triplicate, and more. Recipes cut out of a magazine that were never used and every birthday, Christmas, or Mother's Day card she had ever received! I cried when we talked about our memories or saw items that had belonged to our grandparents. We talked about the school books, some dating to the late 1800's that now were moldy and not salvageable. And I was saddened by the huge number of photos, mostly unlabeled, that will one day be tossed because we can't identify the subjects.

It was an emotional week. And now mom's 93 years are downsized even more, from a 10 x 20 unit to a 10 x 10 unit. 

For all of us, I ask that we label photos or cherished family items for future generations so they will survive and be enjoyed beyond our time. I wrote the following post a couple of weeks ago, and today it seems most appropriate:


Do you have an item from one of our relatives or ancestors that makes you smile or remember a special time?

I have a few small items from my grandparents, and even a couple from great-grandparents. A vase. A teapot. A dish. A violin. None are worth any large sums of money. Most were items that they used, that I remember, that I saw in their houses.

My Grandma Linn (Maude Edith Olofson) was known to some to be a difficult woman with a temper and a memory to match. I never saw any of those characteristics. To me, Grandma was a great cook (although the only way I could stomach the lutefisk was to smother it with white sauce and dump a ton of cinnamon on it), a left-handed crocheter,  a lively piano player, and a hugger who always wore shirtwaist dresses and had her short curly hair perfectly arranged.

Grandma and Grandpa had 5 sons, then 2 grandsons, and then me. Maybe there was a special bond between us as she had to be a bit weary of seeing nothing but males in the family. But whatever the reason, I always had a good time visiting with Grandma and always loved eating anything she cooked.

We all know about Grandpa's bleeding ulcers and how he suffered with them. There were times he spent at the Veteran's Hospital for treatment of his ulcers. And during one of those stays, when I was 11 or 12, I spent a couple of days keeping Grandma company.

At that time, we lived just a block away. Grandpa and Grandma lived in a one-story, two-tone bungalow at 1430 5th Avenue. We lived at 1464 Fourth Street in a two-story house built in the late 1800's that had a horse barn/garage behind the house, complete with steps to a second floor attic. That was where all of our toys were stored, where we often played. It was just a short walk through the alley, around the corner, past the World War I shell-shocked man and a few good friends' houses to reach Grandpa and Grandma's house.

I had many times alone with Grandma, many times that I wish now I had asked her questions about her own parents, about traditions, about the photos she had on the mantle. How I wish I had asked her about life on the farm, about her memories of her grandparents, about how she and Grandpa fell in love. But I didn't.

When I stayed with Grandma, she sat me down in the kitchen at the back of the house, next to a large bucket of apples. We were going to make jars and jars of applesauce, and my job was to use the apple corer/peeler to start the process. We had a great time, a special time, that I will always cherish.

And I have that apple corer/peeler today. Every time I see it, I think of Grandma and the time we spent, just the two of us, making applesauce.

Grandma's Rusty Apple Corer

Do you have an item from one of our ancestors that you cherish? I hope that most of us do. And I hope that these items stay in the family, being displayed, passed down to the next generation so they know some of the stories about their family.

If you ask my siblings, they will tell you that I just might border on being a hoarder. I would not agree. But what I would say is that these items, when gone, are gone forever. Photos. Vases. Military uniforms. Recipes. Family Bibles. Please don't toss what you have. If you don't have anyone in your family willing to take these treasured family heirlooms, I'm here. And I promise to take good care of our family history in all of its forms and do my best to pass it on to the next generation.

Want one of your items displayed on this blog? Send me a photo and a story and we can all enjoy. I've spent alot of time these past few days while writing this post, just thinking about my Grandma. And each time I did, I smiled, just remembering that one special day, but also so many special days we had, whether playing cards, listening to her play the piano, or eating her great food.

I hope that you have an item that brings back those same kinds of memories.

A Woman's Right

This week's post is about something I take for granted. Something I do regularly, something I do without remembering that there was a time that someone like me would not have had the right to do. I vote.

The 19th Amendment was ratified on August 18, 1920. Soon we will be celebrating 100 years since women were given the right to vote through this simply stated amendment: "The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex."

Such a simple statement, but with a long and difficult history. What was Iowa's role in allowing women to vote? And what was the atmosphere like where our ancestors lived, in Boone, Webster, and Hamilton counties?

Here's a bit of the history that our ancestors lived.

In 1848 a women's suffrage convention was held in Seneca Falls, New York, at which time there was a call for expanding political rights for women. Little attention was paid in Iowa which had just become a state two years prior. Only after the Civil War when debate centered around the status of former slaves did some Iowans begin to argue for women's right to vote.

In 1894, the Iowa legislature granted women "partial suffrage," the right to vote on bond issues and similar matters but not where there were candidates (men) running for office. In 1916, a bill was voted on in the Iowa state legislature to remove the word "male" as a requirement to vote. But it was defeated, in large part because it was opposed by pro-alcohol advocates and liquor manufacturers (that thought most women were prohibitionists who would curtail the use and sale of liquor), as well as the Catholic Church which stated that, according to the Bible, man was the head of the family, interpreted to mean that only men could vote.

The following anti-suffrage ad appeared in the Iowa Homestead newspaper in 1916:

One argument against women's suffrage was higher taxes

In October 1908, a parade was held in Boone, demanding that women be given the right to vote. And today the monument below honors those who marched in this important event. I wonder if any of our ancestors, male or female, marched in this parade.

Monument located just outside the birthplace of Mamie Eisenhower.

The church in this photo is the United Methodist Church in Boone.

I was recently in Iowa celebrating mom's 93rd birthday. We drove to Boone where I took this picture of the same UMC still standing 110 years later.

As you might expect, Iowans both supported and rejected women's right to vote. Following are several articles, opinions, and jokes from the local newspapers of the day. Just a warning that some of them just might, well,... you'll see.

Stratford Courier, February 25, 1909

Stratford Courier, May 20, 1909 - A cocktail to make for a man

Dayton Review, January 13, 1911 - Sarcasm??

Stratford Courier, May 15, 1913 - Hmmmm

Stratford Courier, July 23, 1914 - Shrill lungs?

Dayton Review, appeared 6 different times in 1916; "the woman who despises her home"

Shortly after the amendment passed, this survey of women voters in Marion Township in Hamilton County (home to many of our ancestors) appeared:

Stratford Courier, September 2, 1920

And, the following, as women were preparing to vote for the first time, shows us again a different thought in our history:

Stratford Courier, October 7 1920

Well, that's a sampling of the views expressed during the time our Linn and Olofson, Barquist and Rask, ancestors lived in the Dayton and Stratford areas. These are articles they would have read and might have been influenced by. How would our grandparents have reacted to these articles, these jokes, these put-downs, and the disrespect? How did our own ancestors feel about a woman's right to vote? I wish I knew. None of them were quoted in any articles I found. But I would guess that some were FOR and some were AGAINST the issue.

A major women's advocate for the right to vote in Iowa was Mary Jane Whitely Coggeshall. You can read about her at this link: Mary Jane Whitely Coggeshall.

Carrie Chapman Catt, born in Wisconsin but graduated from Iowa State University in 1880, was also a voice for the suffragette movement.: Carrie Chapman Catt. She was founder of the League of Women Voters.

A quick look at the movement in Iowa, a PowerPoint presentation by the University of Iowa Libraries: The Suffrage Movement in Iowa

Where do you think our Linn and Olofson ancestors stood on this issue? Do you think that our female ancestors voted the very first opportunity they had? It was 100 years ago, yet two women I loved and admired, my grandmothers, would have had the right to vote for the first time around the time they married. I'd like to think that they voted. Your thoughts?

A Confederate Soldier?

Minnie Almedia Barquist was my first cousin, 3 x removed, the granddaughter of John Barquist, and niece of my second great grandmother, Maria Barquist Olofson.

Normally, I wouldn't blog about such a distant cousin. There's nothing extraordinary about Minnie's life. Minnie was born in Galesburg, Illinois, to Anders Gustaf Barquist and his wife Christina Anderson on July 23, 1876. Her family moved to Hamilton County, Iowa, sometime between the 1880 US Federal Census and the 1885 Iowa State Census.

But one quiet day as I sat researching the Barquist line, I took a closer look at Minnie. On March 17, 1908, Minnie married Thomas Basket. Thomas was originally from Tennessee. And his father, Jonathan Basket, had served in the Civil War from Tennessee.

My eyes opened wide. Did we have a Confederate soldier in the family? I'm so proud of Gus Linn's service and his strength to survive as a POW. I tell people of how Lewis Linn, John Linn's stepson, marched with Sherman on his famous March to the Sea. Both of these men served in the Civil War--on the Union side.

I admit that I felt a bit of sadness, disappointment, that a Confederate soldier might be an ancestor, no matter how distant. Perhaps that makes little sense today as so many years and distance is between all of us and an ancestor who served in the Civil War. The cause that the Confederate soldiers fought for, no matter how I felt about it, was one that they believed in, just as important as our Gus and Lewis must have felt. But still....

The following map from the National Geographic website shows the breakdown of the states during the Civil War, and clearly, Tennessee was a slave state, a Confederate state.

Jonathan Basket. Civil War soldier. Tennessee. Greene County. I kept reading. Researching. And this is when I learned a bit more about the Civil War. Greene County, Tennessee, in the northeast part of the state, is thought to be one of the few places in the United States that has memorials to BOTH Union and Confederate soldiers. As it turns out, Greene County, Tennessee, provided MOSTLY Union soldiers, even though Tennessee itself was a slave state and part of the Confederacy.

And when the state voted whether to secede, the percentage of citizens from Greene County who voted FOR secession was just 21.7%. Greene County was clearly outvoted, though, as Tennessee seceded and joined the other Confederate states.

According to the Greene County Genealogical Society website, the variance of votes for and against secession by county created a "Civil War within a Civil War" where neighbors and family members killed one another as they chose sides.

So which side did Jonathan Basket, father to Thomas Basket, father-in-law to our Minnie Barquist, choose?

He chose the Union side. Jonathan Basket was a private in the 10th Regiment, Tennessee Cavalry.

After the war, in 1866, Jonathan Basket married Louise McMackin and they had 7 children, the middle child being Thomas Basket. Jonathan died in 1905; his wife died in 1915; they are buried in Tennessee.

Thomas came to Iowa around 1900. He died in 1944 at the age of 68. Minnie died in 1941 at the age of  64. Thomas and Minnie are buried at the South Marion Cemetery just outside Stratford, Iowa.

Thomas Basket and Minnie Barquist Basket, South Marion Cemetery, Hamilton County, Iowa

Jonathan Basket, Greene County, Tennessee

I'll admit that I'm relieved that Jonathan Basket fought for the Union side during the Civil War. But I probably shouldn't have reacted as I did. I have to remind myself from time to time as I research that my ancestors' successes and failures, the choices my ancestors made, were all made at a different time, under circumstances that I may never fully understand. I don't own their choices, their great triumphs or their failures.

So for now, I can say that my ancestors fought ONLY on the Union side during the Civil War. But my research is far from over....

Are We French?

There's something different about my 6th great-grandfather's name. While Swedes followed a patronymic naming pattern, giving children the father's first name followed by SON or DOTTER (i.e. Lars Mansson's children might be Brita Larsdotter and Olof Larsson), we do have an ancestor with a name that sounds anything but Swedish.

In Gavleborg County, Hanebo Parish, lived a man named Bertil Monsieur, and he is my 6th great-grandfather on Maude Edith Olofson Linn's line. Sounds French, right? Here's what I know.

In the 1600's and 1700's in Gavleborg County, iron was abundant. And the Swedes, including many of our ancestors, were able to mine the ore. But they didn't have the expertise to refine the ore. And so, they brought in skilled people from France, Belgium, and Finland to help with the process and to teach Swedes the craft.

In 1640, Sweden exported just around 11,000 tons of iron, but by 1740, that amount had increased to over 40,000 tons per year, thanks in part to the skilled iron ore workers who were brought to Sweden during that time. Sweden was a major supplier of iron for armaments, both at home during the many wars Sweden was involved in, as well as for exporting and trade, and so, having the ability to mine AND to refine the ore was a real benefit.

One of the people who was brought to Sweden to refine the ore was Bertil Monsieur's father, and to my knowledge, based on information I've exchanged with Swedish researchers living in Sweden, he came from Finland. So, technically, Bertil Monsieur was a Swedish resident and citizen born in Sweden, but of Finnish descent.

Bertil Monsieur was born on Tonsen Farm in Hanebo Parish in 1693. He met and married Ella Olsdotter who was born in 1686. They had 4 children including my 5th great grandmother, Karin Bertilsdotter.

Bertil Monsieur was a soldier between 1711 and 1719. From 1718-1719, Sweden was in war against Norway as part of the Great Northern War; and during a march back in December 1719, Bertil's feet were so badly frostbitten that he couldn't continue as a soldier. And so, he became a farmer in Hanebo Parish.

Bertil died in 1773 at the age of 80.

I'm not sure what your reaction is, but we are not French. If, however, you go back far enough into the 1600's on Maude Edith Olofson Linn's line, we are Finnish.

Almost Royalty

It's not that I am not proud of the many farmers and laborers who are my ancestors. But sometimes, when I am talking with other genealogists, friends and genealogy enthusiasts, they often tell about how they are related to George Washington, or Mary Queen of Scots, or George Patton. The list goes on and on and on...and I have to admit that finding a rich or famous or titled ancestor would be exciting.

We have none.

But we ALMOST did. So, here's the story....

Amund Persson is one of my 5th great-grandparents, a Linn ancestor. He was born in 1723 in Sodra Ekeby farm in Malexander Parish in Ostergotland County. He came from a long line of successful farmers. It's a line that I've traced back to my 9th great-grandparents.

Amund was well respected in his parish and was a jury man, meaning that he was elected by the parish to serve on court-related issues. An upstanding citizen said to be "well-behaved and intelligent". On February 11, 1749, Amund Persson married Catharina Margareta Strahle.

Catharina was from an extremely prominent and well-connected family. Her father was a captain. Her mother's father was also a captain and a governor of one of the Swedish provinces. And as we continue back in Catharina's ancestry, we see more governors, priests, and then we find an ancestor who served on the King of Sweden's inner circle. Catharina's family was Swedish royalty. You can google some of their names to see their pedigrees:

Maternal grandfather Nils Gripenhjelm (1653-1703)
Maternal great-grandfather Edmund Figrelius Gripenhjelm (1622-1675)
A second maternal great-grandfather Gustaf Carlsson Bonde (1620-1667)

Gustaf Carlsson Bonde

 Each of Catharina's ancestors had a family crest, at least one castle, and the money and servants to support a lavish lifestyle.

So, why aren't we descended from Amund Persson and his wife Catharina Margareta Strahle? Why aren't we Swedish royalty?

After being married for 5 years, Amund and Catharina were finally going to have a baby. In 1756, at the age of 26 years and 8 days, Catharina Margareta Strahle died in childbirth. Her child also did not survive.

And so, the line of Amund Persson and Catharina Margareta Strahle stopped. Amund did marry a second time. On June 24, 1757, Amund married the maiden Ingeborg Jonsdotter. They had 4 children, one of whom is my 4th great-grandfather, Anders Amundsson. Anders is the father of Maria Andersdotter who married Carl Lundblad. Maria and Carl had our Catharina Lundblad. And that's the line from which we Linns descend.

We were almost royalty. Almost rich. Almost famous. Almost written in Swedish royal history. Almost....