PETER OLSSON was born Mar. 19, 1817, in Bön, Gestad, Sweden. He married first Stina Svensdotter, who was born July 1, 1817, in Holm. They married on Nov. 11, 1840, in Bolstad, Sweden, and had seven children. Stina died on Jan. 28, 1857, at the Fagerlid homestead in Markustorp, Holm, Sweden. The homestead is no longer farmland, having been consumed by urban development. But, the name has survived. A school now stands on the land once farmed by PETER - it is Fagerlidsskolan. Nearby is the Fagerlid bus stop.

STINA LISA ERIKSDOTTER was born on Apr. 8, 1834, at Källstorp, Ånimskog, Sweden. She married PETER on Sep. 10, 1858, in Holm, Sweden. PETER was said to have had "one of the best farms in Dalsland." They had ten children, two of which did not survive. The children were born in the 1860's and 1870's, all on the homestead Fagerlid, in Markustorp, just south of Mellerud. By then the mining industry had withered away. It was replaced for a short while by the timber and paper mill business. But those, such as PETER, who were farmers suffered from poverty and famine. During the second half of the 19th century there was a wave of emigration to America. On Aug. 10, 1883, PETER and STINA moved to Backen in Skållerud, and during the following years five of their children immigrated to America..

STINA died of tuberculosis on April 16, 1898, in Kasan, Skållerud, Sweden, and is buried at Skållerud Church, on Road 45, 6 km SSE of Håverud. It is a beautiful 17th century church, made of wood and painted red. It is often referred to as "the most beautiful church in Dalsland." After 1900, PETER lived with his eldest child, Kristina. He died July 1, 1907, while living with Kristina in Bolstad.

Skållerud Church

Kristina married Anders Jonasson on Dec. 29, 1873, and the moved to Södra Hagen, Bolstad the following year. A stone marker for the familjgrav stands in the churchyard of Bolstads kyrka. They had five children:

Olof moved from Markustorp, Holm to Hassle, Holm. He stayed in Hassle the remainder of his life, until he died Oct. 19, 1895.
 

Sven Fredrik and his wife came to America, leaving Grinstad on May 7, 1886, and settled in Peale, Clearfield, PA. Sven died there Mar. 31, 1913. Britta died there Apr. 4, 1923. They had two children.

Sven Fredrik May 7, 1886 (from Göteborg, destination Chicago)

Maja Katarina moved with Olof from Markustorp, Holm to Hassle, Holm. On July 10, 1885, "Katherine" moved from Hassle to Oslo, Norway. She married and had two children, Harold and Anna Simmons. The circumstances of "Katherine" and her husband are unknown, but the two young children immigrated to America in 1905. Harold was living with his Aunt Hannah and her family in Duluth, MN, in 1920.

Anna married Franklin Horace Haws about 1923, and they were living in Minneapolis, MN, in 1930 with a son Franklin Harold Haws. Dr. Franklin Haws practiced medicine in Minneapolis. Anna continued living in the Twin Cities area until her death in 1978.

Five of the children went to America in the late 1880's and early 1890's. Johan was the first to emigrate, leaving on Dec. 2, 1887, from Kasan, Skållerud. Four years later, Ulrika (widow of Lars) went with her two children. Johanna went in the same year, leaving from Gustavi, Göteborg. KARL was the next to emigrate, leaving Kasan, Skållerud on Apr. 1, 1892. He embarked from Göteborg on April 15, 1892. Axel lived first in Forsbo, Skållerud, before leaving for America on Apr. 14, 1893. Augusta left on Aug. 8, 1898, from Kasan, Skållerud.

Johan (John) Dec. 2, 1887 Ulrika Sep. 28, 1891 Johanna (Hannah) 1891 (U.S. Census) KARL (Charles) Apr. 15, 1892 (from Göteborg, destination New York City) Axel Apr. 14, 1893 (from Göteborg, destination New York City) Augusta Aug. 8, 1898

Lars Peterson Dahl was the only family member, that we know, who took a second last name. In Swedish tradition, it was common for a person to attach a second name, often the name of the family farm. In this case, Dahl is probably a reference to the homeland of Dalsland.

Lars moved from Markustorp to Stockholm. He died Mar. 6, 1891, while living in the Swedenborgsgatan area of Södermalm, in the southern part of Stockholm. His wife, Ulrika, was born in Norra Fågelås. She left for America Sep. 18, 1891, and settled in Worcester, MA, with their two children, Lars Gosta Dahl and Elsa Ulrika Dahl. "Gosta" was a successful stock broker in Worcester. Elsa taught public school there. Passenger ship records show that Lars and Elsa made a number of trips back to Sweden in the 1930's and 1940's.

In the early 1950's, Lars married. His wife's name was Karin. He died Nov. 2, 1955. Karin is listed in the 1956 Polk Directory as "widow of Lars Dahl."

Elsa died Dec. 12, 1960, leaving no family survivors. Her estate went to her cousins, the grandchildren of PETER OLSSON and STINA ERIKSDOTTER.
 

Axel Peterson
photo courtesy Suzanne Sears

Axel married about 1889/90, and he and Ida began raising a family. Ida's parents were opposed to the children immigrating to America at such a young age. So, in 1893, Axel came by himself to Duluth, St. Louis, MN. He lived at a boarding house in Duluth with his brother, John. The house was at 522 Lake Avenue South, since torn down, and now the location of Grandma's Saloon and Grill. He found work as a carpenter and Ida came two years later, bringing their two young daughters.

In the 1900 Census for Ward 9, St. Paul, Ramsey, MN, the family is found living in a rented house at 119 Sherburne Ave, in an area near the capitol called Frogtown, where he was a laborer. In 1905, Axel was living at 480 Blair St., in St. Paul. His brother CHARLES was living with the family. In 1910, Axel was living at 944 Albemarle St., in St. Paul. His occupation was engineer - stone quarry.

Axel died in 1915. His widow, Ida, is listed in the 1920 census, with four children living with her. Olga is a clerk, Esther a stenographer, and Walter a night reporter for the newspaper. In 1930, Ida was living with her daughter Esther and Esther's husband Vernon Smith.
 

John Peterson

John immigrated to America in 1887. John appears in the 1895 state census, living at at a boarding house in Duluth with his brother, Axel. His occupation is given as engineer, and he stated he had been a resident of Minnesota for seven years.

In the 1900 Census for Ward 9, St. Paul, MN, he is living at 544 Park St. This address is just about a block from where John's brother Axel was living. John's wife, Ida, emigrated in 1875 at the age of 3. Oldest son, Lawrence, is listed in the census. CHARLES is listed in that same census, living in the same household with John and his family. The census gives the occupation of both John and CHARLES as stone sawers.

In 1905, John was living at 237 W. University Avenue, just a few blocks from the capitol, in Frogtown. He was a stationary engineer, possibly working on the construction of the new capitol building, with his brothers.

In 1910, John was still living at 237 W. University Avenue, employed at the stone works as a stationary engineer. His family had grown to five children. By 1920, one more child was in the family, still living at 237 W. University Avenue.

In the 1930 census, the family was living at 1223 Hamline Avenue, in the Como Lake area of St. Paul. His son, Lawrence, was also living there, married with two children.
 

Augusta was the lastborn child of PETER OLSSON and STINA ERIKSDOTTER. Augusta came to America in 1898, at age 20, and settled in Duluth, MN. She never married and was active with the Salvation Army, in Duluth, throughout her life.