Members and friends,
This is a long story but a good one. I hope you all enjoy reading it and, more importantly, I hope I can find some help and some answers. Here is my story. (The links will be good until they are not.)
At the university where I worked about 15 years ago I was discussing a Swedish Christmas party that I was planning. A co-worker, Kelley, asked if I could trace my family all the way back to Sweden. When I said yes she said that she should get the family records from her relatives to see if we are related. I laughed and said Millions of Swedes came to the US back then and we are probably not related. But, go ahead and get that information because it would be fun to find out.
She continued to tell me that her family settled in Holdrege, Nebraska. I mentioned, curiously, that Holdrege was where my father was born. She went on to say that, before Nebraska, her family first immigrated to Kane, Pennsylvania.
What!!! Now she had mentioned two, very small, communities on two sides of the US where we both had ancestors. She said her ancestor was John Erickson, born in Floda Socken.
I went back to my desk and emailed my father this funny story. He sent right back that he had always heard that his great grandfather, Peter Flodman, came over from Sweden with the family of his school mate named John Erickson. I told Kelley this and she immediately got in contact with her relatives to get more information. By the way, Kelley has been calling me cousin Bill ever since. Well, I don't know if we are related but I have always had a curiosity about this Erickson family. A few times over the past 15 years I've researched trying to find more of the story. I would love to figure this out.
Now for a few interesting facts about these two families:
* I am not sure they came over together. In the 1900 and 1910 US census Peter answered 1871 both times for the year he came to the US. John Erickson answered 1870 both times. I cannot believe that they would both answer wrongly both times 10 years apart. I am starting to believe that John Erickson came over first and that Peter joined him in Kane, PA afterwards. The old story from my family would now be that he came over, not with but, to join the Erickson family.
* 07-Jul-1871 -- Pehr Eric Johnsson (became Flodman) did board a boat in Göteborg and may have been traveling with two Ericsons from Västra Vingåker. I'm not sure if they are the same family.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/22614693/Flodman/1871-passengers.png * 19-Sep-1871 -- A Peter Flodman relative, who I met here (
thanks Anbytarforum), found these Ericssons leaving Gothenburg and I found the same Ericssons arriving in NY 12-Oct-1871. I don't know if this is the right family but very many of the names fit and some of the ages do too. I still haven't found John Erickson, his father or older brother.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/22614693/Flodman/GothenburgSwedenPassengerLists18691951_ 196536544.jpg
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/22614693/Flodman/NewYorkPassengerLists18201957_290907628 .jpg
* Jun-1873 -- Peter Flodman is living in Philadelphia, PA and marries Anna Christina Pehrsdottor (also from Floda). John Erickson is living in Kane, PA. The two live about 300 miles (482 km) from each other.
* ~1879 - Peter Flodman moves to Omaha, Nebraska and John Erickson moves to Holdrege, Nebraska. Maybe they even moved West together? Now they lived 200 miles (321 km) from each other.
* 1880 - census - Here are a few of the Erickson family in Kane, PA. Peter Flodman is in Omaha, NE and John Erickson and his brother Axel in Holdrege, NE. Living very close to the Erickson's, in Kane, are the parents of Peter Flodman's wife Anna: Peter and Anna Christina Olson (also from Floda).
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/22614693/Flodman/1880-census-Pennsylvania-McKean-Wetmore -r1154-i664-0617.jpg
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/22614693/Flodman/1880-census-Nebraska-Douglas-Omaha-0607 -r748-i128.jpg
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/22614693/Flodman/1880-census-Nebraska-Phelps-Divide-0617 -r753-p775.jpg
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/22614693/Flodman/1880-census-Pennsylvania-McKean-Wetmore -r1154-i665-0618.jpg
* Aug-1896 - Emma Flodman, Peter's daughter marries Carl Thorson (from Torup Socken, Hallands) in Omaha. This is how my name enters the story.
* ~1913 - Bertha Flodman, Peter's youngest daughter, went from Omaha to Holdrege to visit the family of her fathers childhood friend, John Erickson, and there she met her future husband, Emil Hanson.
* ~ 1920 - Paul Thorson, Carl and Emma's son, visits his aunt Bertha (Flodman) Hanson in Holdrege and meets his future bride Luella Smith. These are my grandparents.
Here is more about the Ericksons. Kelly says that their family story is that the name was Ersson before they changed it to Erickson. I am noticing that the spelling Ersson was somewhat common in Sweden but is very rare here. I would guess that they most took the name Erickson in the USA.
The parents. I'm not sure if they emigrated but I think they may have. This is Kelley's note about them.
Andrew Erickson (Ersson) and wife Britta Christina, they were wed in Sodermanland, Maj. Floda Soken, Sweden. My notes say 'Changed name to Erickson' and we assumed this happened when they emigrated to the US.
The children. Kelley believes they were all born in Floda parish. Birth dates, from a family bible, and death locations that I added
Eric Albert 23 Oct 1851 Kane, Pennsylvania
Andrew John 29 Jul 1853 Holdrege, Nebraska
Anna Sophia 15 May 1855 (died young)
Gustof Albert 3 Aug 1857 Kane, Pennsylvania
Charles August 11 May 1860 (died young)
Peter Axel 26 May 1862 Holdrege, Nebraska
August Edward 16 May 1864 Kane, Pennsylvania
Henry Henning 8 Oct 1866
* much of this information came from an only family bible.
I would love to find more information about this Erickson family and would appreciate any help I can get.
Thanks,
Bill Thorson
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