Knowing that my ancestors in Smaland were farmers, I was very surprised to see very little farmable land here. There are thick forests and many lakes, but the land that is without trees is also full of very large rocks and boulders.
We headed down a small gravel road, lined with wildflowers when we suddenly came upon a group of 4 or 5 LARGE pigs! They were rolling in the mud and lolling about...No farm directly in sight, these pigs belonged to a local farmer...
We continued to the farm named Gronhult, where our Great-Great Grandmother has been born. As we rounded the bend we saw an old person, dressed to work in the gardens, using a walker to get around the yard. Carina asked us to stay in the car and she would inquire as to whether this person knew our family. After a short conversation, the old woman, aged 94, Gullewi Carlson (spelling??) we were invited to visit a bit in the gardens with her. It was not clear if we were related, but the visit was magical and the gardens were splendid. We will research a little more to see if we can find a connection. **UPDATE - Ms. Carlson gave Carina's note to her sone and he called. He gave Carina some additional information to help us place their family into our tree, but so far I do not have the information.
Continuing down the gravel road, we were going to look at the farm named "Stahult" and once again, there were people out in the yard. Again Carina went out to pave the way and the farmer, a Mr. Vikingsson 74 years old came over to meet us. He told us that he was the 13th generation of his family in this farm. I believe some of our family had at one time worked as laborers here. He directed us to the location of a backstugga, which would have been similar to one in which our Hokanson family relatives lived. A backstugga is a VERY small house usually built into a hill. A family who lives here is quite poor financially and has little other choice.
The Backstugga
On to the church where our ancestors of this area worshipped, we found the church itself was not accessible, but the surrounding cemetery was....after a bit of searching, we found the grave of a few relatives, but not the ones we had hoped to find. The very old stones are removed to a remote area of the cemetery once they are no longer readable, or the family has stopped caring for them.
Finally, we made the stop at the home and farm of our great-grandfather, Gustav Swanson. We were warmly greeted by the current owners Mats Runesson and his wife Inger in addition to Leif Runesson and his wife Janet. Mats and Leif are the grandsons of our great grandfather's youngest brother. We had a wonderful Swedish lunch....cold meats, eggs (from their chickens), salad, and beverages. A tour of the farm was exciting as we saw some of the old furniture that has been in the family for many generations, and some of the old farming and household tools. Inger runs a wildflower seed farm out of this farm and sells the seeds all over Sweden. The gardens are spectacular, as you might expect.
Carina left us a little early as she had a long drive alone back to Gothenburg, and Inger was kind enough to drive us to the train station in Alvesta.
It was truly a magical and exciting day that we will not be forgetting.
1937 - Gustav went home to visit after his retirement.
Same house in the back...2 and 3 generations and 75 years apart.
Same house in the back...2 and 3 generations and 75 years apart.
Next stop: Stockholm
Glad to see you're having fun. Thank you so much for sharing it with us not-so-fortunates. Love the pictures!
ReplyDeleteDo we know the date of our families departure from their homeland, the name of the ship or where they landed in America? Would there be records of the manifest, etc. available? And other questions along this line. Not to pressure you, but if we don't have this info, perhaps this would be a good time to look.
I know you were in need of something else to do there in Sweden (hah!).
Wsh I was there.
Jim