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Keep those additions & corrections coming! Rene's Web Site A Tale of Three Brothers
This is a
compilation from various published sources such as censuses, cemetery
information, published histories and family stories, and generous contributions
of individuals. It lacks much information about individuals added to the family
post-1950 Census.
This is the genealogy of three Lindgren brothers after their arrival in America. Their parents were Anders Nilssön (born 18 Oct 1806 in Sweden) and Maja Greta Andersdötter (born 21 Nov 1816 in Sweden). This means that, under the Swedish surname practice, the brothers should have carried the surname of Andersson (Son of Anders). Oral history indicated that an Anderson man took his wife's name of Lindgren. This has been shown to be untrue by a Swedish genealogist who contacted me and provided the parents’ information. (Their Possible Family? click here) The Three Brothers: Anders Alfred "Andrew" (Andersson) Lindgren, born 30 September 1840, died 08 February 1908 Nils Fredrik Lindgren, born 12 May 1847, died 09 February 1916 Edward William Lindgren, born 25 February 1851, died 07 September 1933.
The Lindgren Surname The name Lindgren is one of the more common names in Sweden. The name translates literally as a "branch of the Linden tree". Sometimes a lower status man would take the name of a higher status wife. This may be what happened with the Anders Nilssön/Maja Andersdötter marriage. None of the known brothers had a wife with the surname Lindgren. So, how they came to choose Lindgren as their surname, is still a mystery. Why They Left Sweden Factors leading to the migration to America included a population boom in Sweden and lack of jobs. In the 1860's, several years of bad weather caused crops to fail. Famine stalked the land when imported wheat and potatoes proved too costly for poverty-stricken citizens to purchase. Letters arriving from America painted pictures of hope, and the mass migration of the late 1800's began. Oral history supplied by Bill & Donna Lindgren (Edward's line) suggests that the father of these brothers (Anders Nilsson?) was a member of the Royal Swedish Guard, and that the brothers chose to emigrate to America to avoid the Swedish Army's universal draft. Coming To America The three brothers arrived in America and joined friends and relatives who had set up a Swedish community in Knox County, Illinois. According to an interview with Hazel Shanahan, conducted by Mark Schmidt, the brothers worked in the coal mines there. Anders came to America in 1865, Nels arrived in 1868, and Edward arrived in 1870. It is probable that, like so many other Swedish families, this family pooled resources to pay passage for Anders, who then worked to help pay passage for his brothers. After living several years in Knox County, some of the more adventurous Swedes packed their belongings and headed off to homestead the new lands opening up in Dakota Territory. According to Hazel, Edward bought a parcel of land in what became Nebraska, and the three brothers divided it up into their respective parcels. Edward is listed in US censuses in Saunders County, NE for 1880 through 1920. Nels was living in Saunders County by March of 1876, when his son, Adolph was born. Anders and his family were settled in Mariposa Township, near Wahoo in Saunders County by April of 1878 when their daughter, Hulda, was born. Susanna Andersdötter Carlstrom, possible sister-in-law, arrived with her surviving children in 1886. She was living in Mariposa Twp., Saunders Co., NE, at the time of the 1900 US Census, as were her 4 adult children. At some point, Edward purchased land on what became the border between Boyd County, Nebraska and Gregory County, South Dakota. He sold this farm on contract to his son, Arthur (Art). Upon Art's death, his sons operated the farm, and the place is still owned by the family. In 1905, Charles followed his Uncle Ed northward, buying a farm located east of Fairfax, Gregory County, South Dakota. Special thanks go to Donna (Abbey) Tyburec, whose information provided most of the foundation upon which I was able to connect the branches of this family tree, and to Dwayne E. Lindgren for his oral history which helped to fill out the branches. Also, thank you Lorean Schoepf, for filling in many of the blanks on the Julius Lindgren line! Additional thanks to Tommy Jacobsson for his research on the Swedish side of the family history. There are still plenty of blank spaces to be filled, and contributions of information or corrections are always welcomed. I'm especially lacking information on the descendants of Amanda L. Lindgren & her husband, John Theodore Olson.
(Click link above to view older History) Disclaimer: Information presented on this site is as accurate as I can make it. However, it relies heavily on secondary source information. Therefore, be careful when using this information as a research tool. Always refer to original sources whenever possible. If you find that there is an error in the data presented, or if you have information that can assist to fill in blanks in the data, please contact the webmaster. All corrections and contributions of information are gladly accepted. This is a free website. Reproduction or use of information contained in this website in any form, for the purpose of profit-making is strictly forbidden. Updated Aug 8, 2024 to include information on the Descendants of Adolf Frederick Lindgren provided by Jim Lindgren of Sun City West, AZ. And to include the latest member of the Tichelaar family. Copyright © 2024 by Rene B. Kantack. contact e-mail: Renekan2003@gmail.com |