Bridge to Sweden

Bridge to Sweden Newsletter no 14 February 2004
Norrtälje river in winter Photo: Marie Louise Bratt
Hej! A Winter Wonderland is what we have experienced this winter, both in Sweden and in parts of the US and Canada. Incredible beauty some days, and annoying slush other days. But spring is coming....
Where is that place? Your grandmother, mormor or farmor, probably told your mother or father about that place in Sweden, where she grew up. Perhaps your parent didn't pay much attention at the time, or the place name was distorted as one family member told another one, and the result is a name you don't know how to spell or pronounce. Why is it so important to know that place? Because Swedish records are organized by parish! If you don't know the parish, your search for Anders Karlsson, your grandfather, and his family, is like looking for a needle in a haystack. No idea what the name of the parish might be? Not even a hint? (see newsletter no 16) Where is the place located? Even when you know the name of the place, you still have to find out in what län (county) it's located. There are a couple of issues you should be aware of: You will often find the same place name in several län! For example, there are hundreds of places named Torpa and Berga, some being parishes, others villages or farms. Cities often include several parishes, especially bigger cities, like Stockholm, Göteborg and Malmö. Confused about parishes, counties and more? Here is some help: Landskap (province): a cultural division. Your grandfather might have talked about the landskap he came from, e.g. Småland. However, this name is not too important for your research. Län (county): an administrative division, e.g. Kalmar län - the one to use in your research. Församling or socken (parish). a geographical district, somewhat similar to a school district in the US and Canada, but for the Swedish Church. The minister of this church was responsible for all record keeping of the parish. I can help you find the parish send me an email with the place name, as you heard or read it or send me a copy of the letter or envelope where the place name is written (please do not send an original letter!) add any other information you might have about the place or the family I'll do my best to tell you the name of the place, and also add the county where it's located. Maps After finding the location of your parish or village, you probably want to find it on a map. Here are several options: Internet Stadskartan, with maps of each county. Click on the area you are interested in and you will see a more detailed map on your screen. Buy a printed map Kartbutiken, a map store located in Stockholm, has a web site, in English. You can pay with a credit card and you'll have your map in the mailbox within a few days. They have many different kinds of maps: Detailed maps: Fastighetskartan (the most detailed one at 1:12,500) Terrängkartan/Gröna kartan (at 1:50,000). Overview maps: Blå kartan (the blue map, 1:100,000) Röda kartan (1:250,000 ) Distances between Swedish cities Would you like to know how far it is from one Swedish city or town to another one? Then this website might interest you. It's in Swedish, but easy to deal with: just chose the first, then the second city and you will get a response - in kilometers, of course. Remember that one kilometer is about 1.6 miles. This conversion table is helpful.
The Census of 1890 It includes every person living in Sweden in the year 1890! About 4.5 million people. Quite exciting! I'll give you an example: I entered my great grandfather, Sven Iwan Bratt and found his year and parish of birth, his address, and best of all, his whole family: his wife and children, with each person's name, year and place of birth. Other people who lived in the household were also included. This CD is now fortunately in my possession, so please contact me, if you wonder about those who lived in 1890! If this is your first question, it's free!
Do you want to plan your own trip, but need a guide? Perhaps you want the freedom to travel on your own, but you would like some help during part of the trip. These are services I could perform: Acquire maps and other materials from the area Make contacts with your relatives and local historians Help you with travel arrangements (make travel arrangements, buy train and bus tickets etc.) Serve as interpreter, often necessary in the rural areas Help you with your research in the Swedish archives Help with car rental - I'd even do local driving I charge per day, with a minimum of three days. Check for prices. More about our trips here. Please contact us for costs and other details.
A couple of interesting links worth exploring Swedish roots, written by well-known genealogist Elisabeth Thorsell, has much interesting information you'll find helpful in your research. All in English! Genline has church records available online, for a fee. At this time the following counties (län) are available: Kalmar, Östergötland, Värmland, Kronoberg, Göteborgs & Bohus and Jönköping. Also in English.
If you found this newsletter interesting and helpful, please forward it to relatives and friends. And if you no longer want to receive it, just let me know, and I'll remove your name from my subscribers' list right away. Wishing all of you a delightful spring, which is on the way, even in our northerly parts of the world. Marie Louise Bratt www.bridgetosweden.com (a click here will take you to the home page)