Swedish American Historical Society of Wisconsin

“Lucia, the symbol of light shall be, the eternal light from above, that dispels the darkness in every hart, that shines and revives.”

What a wonderful day it was! On December 17, 2023 Lucia Day Celebration was held in the beautiful Fox Point Lutheran Church. 25 children and teenagers participated in the Lucia program directed by Stina Lemery. Amanda Balistreri red the Lucia Story and introduced each song in the program and piano was played by Matt Byszynski. The Lucia Program was done together with the Swedish School of Milwaukee. 175 people attended the event.

Josie German is the 2023 Lucia, and her procession included Attendants, Starboys, Pepparkaker, and Tomtar. This is the second time Josie was the Lucia, her impressive credentials can be found in 2022 Lucia Day post.

• Attendants(Tärnor): Anna Einhorn, Aubrey Wright, Nadia Wright, Ella Lemery, Emilia Lemery, Leighton Ehrengren, Nova Balistreri, Claire Svedin, Mila Leon, Ella Cutler, Willa Sjöberg  
• Starboys: Thomas Cutler, Camden Ehrengren, Joseph Kaltenberg 
• Pepparkaker: Evelyn Coons, Eli Kaltenburg, Nora Thode-Edström, Isla Thode-Edström 
• Tomtar: James Einhorn, Joey Leon, Quinn Svedin, Annika Cutler, Oscar Erkander, Orion Balistreri 

The Lucia Crown

THE FIRST CHRISTMAS CANDLE – Aubrey Wright 

När första ljuset brinner, står julens dörr på glänt, och jubel psalmen klingar i helig tid advent. (When the first Christmas candle is burning, we know Christmas is close by.)

THE SECOND CHRISTMAS CANDLE – James Einhorn 

När andra ljuset brinner, vi höra löftets ord, om Konungen som kommer med frälsning till vår jord. (When the 2nd Christmas candle is burning, we hear the promise of old that a Savior is coming.)

THE THIRD CHRISTMAS CANDLE – Nadia Wright

När tredje ljuset tändas i kulen vinter tid. Vi höra himlens klockor, som ringa fröjd och frid.(When the 3rd candle is lit, we hear the bells of heaven wishing all peace and goodwill)

THE FOURTH CHRISTMAS CANDLE – Ella Cutler

Vi se i fjärde ljuset en stjärna underbar, som ger åt livets gåtor ett evighetens svar. (As the 4^th candle is lit, we see a beautiful star with promise to all of life eternal.)

THE FIFTH CHRISTMAS CANDLE – Anna Einhorn

Sist julens lilla tomte med gran och juleljus, nu önskar juleglädje och frid i hem och hus. (At last the little Christmas elf with Christmas tree and lights, is wishing all a joyful and blessed Christmas.)

Julbord, Dance around the Christmas tree, Raffle and Jultomten (Santa Claus)  

The Julbord, with all dishes donated by members and people joining the celebration included everything you could ask for, fabulous open face sandwiches, succulent Swedish meatballs, gastronomical cardamon bread and limpa, and how about the delicious cookies and sweets. Noone was leaving this celebration hungry.

Then the children from the Lucia program danced and many other joined in the “long dance“, a traditional Swedish dance during Christmas and other celebrations, continuing with dances around the Christmas tree, including “små grodorna” (the little frogs), and “så går vi runt ett enerbärssnår” (this is how we walk around a juniper bush) and other popular Swedish songs.

Then Santa stopped in to greet the children making this the perfect end to the 2023 Lucia celebration.

Tack så mycket

Many thanks to everybody attending, all volunteers and all who donated food, making this a very successful event. There were so many positive comments like “The Lucia program was beautiful”, “The kitchen crew is impressive.” “What a bright and friendly church”, “Great food” etc.

Special thanks to Fox Point Lutheran Church for the warm welcome, help and support, Kelly Price for all the preparations, Pastor Bill for staying and helping us through the evening. Special thanks to Teri Vega Stromberg and her late husband Kurt for donating the Santa suit, previously worn by Santa Kurt and special thanks to Sherri Burbach and IKEA for inviting the Lucia program to perform at IKEA and for donating food and drinks.

SAHSWI participated for the first time in the Holiday Folk Fair International, together with Vasa Order Linde Lodge representing Sweden in the Nordic Council Cultural booth, along with our local sister organizations representing Denmark, Norway, and Finland. The fair took place at Wisconsion State Fair Park Expo Center, Friday, Nov 17 to 19, 2023.

Articles related Sweden in general, Midsummer, Santa Lucia, and Christmas were on display. Volunteers answered questions about Sweden and told their stories relating to the items. The facts.

 Read the rest of the story.

The 3-day event brought in a lot of people with heritage from all over the world. The atmosphere was festive with music and dancing, different ethnic food and sale items. The Swedish booth along with the rest of the Nordic Council member countries booths were visited by many. SAHSWI members Mary Stetson and Carol Gustafson and their extended group Goda Vänner performed playing different folk music tunes.

Thank you very much to all volunteers (L=Linde Lodge, S=SAHSWI)

A special thanks also to GooGooGaaGaa Childrens Boutique store owner Ginny Gerczak for lending us the mannequins for the Folk Dresses.

2023 SAHSWI Annual General meeting was held Saturday October 21, 2023, at Martin Luther Lutheran Church. The meeting was divided into two parts, an Annual Business meeting for SAHSWI members and a program presented by member Cookie Anderson about the island of Gotland, Sweden.

Business Meeting

The business meeting elected two new Directors, John Engel from West Allis and Tracy Redman from Sun Prairie to serve SAHSWI for a 3-year term starting Jan 1, 2024. Officers and Directors presented 2023 annual reports. Joann Kreimendahl showed 2022 Business meeting minutes which were unanimously approved, Irene Roberts, Treasurer, presented the Treasury report and Janet Taylor presented reports for Hospitality, and Midsommar Committees, Bev Wenzel, Membership Secretary presented the membership report. Jan Ehrengren reviewed the past year activities. Overall, 2023 was a good year for the organization, all events well attended, program presentations very interesting, Genealogy research team growing, general membership maintained, spending and income well balanced, and progress made in the Historical Marker project. Reports and summary of events can be found in the presentation below:

2023 SAHSWI Summary

“Tack så mycket (thank you very much) to everyone that has made this past year a very successful year for the organization. Our members and other meeting participants, all volunteers at our meetings and celebration events, the Program Presenters, our Officers, Board and Committee members, our Historical Project Team members, Leader and members of the Swedish Genealogy Research Group, all contributing to a very good year. We can now look forward to a new year of exploring and celebrating our Swedish heritage and advancing our Swedish American agenda in Wisconsin.” Jan Ehrengren, President SAHSWI

Gotland

After the business meeting SAHSWI member Cookie Anderson talked about her experience and impressions of a trip to Gotland, the largest island in Sweden.

Gotland, the Swedish island located in the Baltic Sea is rich in history going back to the Stone age, there are burial mounds from the Bronze age, it was a merchant center during the Viking age, both Germans and Danes have occupied the island but since 1645 it has remained under Swedish rule. Russians invaded in 1809 during the Finnish war but were defeated.

Cookie also discussed Gotland’s important role it plays today for Sweden. A popular vacation destination for Swedes, it was the home of the Swedish film maker Ingemar Bergman and the children’s character Pippi Longstocking, and Prince of Sweden and Norway Oscar Bernadotte, the Duke of Gotland.

Cookie Anderson Gotland Presentation

Fika and Swedish Food

After the presentation Fika was enjoyed by all. Starting last year with “Exploring our Swedish Food Heritage” meeting, a recipe of a Swedish dish is shared by a meeting participant bringing his or her dish to the meeting. This recipe is then published on the SAHSWI website.

At this Fika meeting, SAHSWI new member, Chris Fleissner shared her recipe Swedish Rhubarb Tart with Vanilla Cream. Chris commented “I just joined the sahswi this year. I am enjoying learning about Swedish culture and learning to research my ancestors. I have been very impressed with the Fika and wanted to contribute. This is the first Swedish dish I have made. I used fresh rhubarb from my garden.“

For the May 2023 meeting Mary Stetson and Mary Yokus both submitted their favorite Bakery. Mary Stetson shared her Grandma Nelson’s Cardamom Bread, and Mary Yokus shared a Swedish Nut Cake. Go to the SAHSWI Dessert and Bakery webpage to learn more about these dishes and recipes. SAHSWI desserts and Bakery

The SAHSWI project to honor Gustaf Unonius, New Upsala, and the Scandinavian Parish with an official State of Wisconsin Historical Marker will in a new section of the website publish stories told by descendants of the New Upsala colonists. Gustaf and Charlotta Unonius and friends arrived in the Territory of Wisconsin in October of 1841, they claimed land and settled in an area east of Pine Lake, later named New Upsala. As a result of the published America Letters, a number of Swedish people—some with families–arrived to join the settlement in 1842 and 1843. The section “Descendants of New Upsala Colonists” will focus on the first settlers and their descendants.

The first story published is the story told by Cletus Hasslinger.

Cletus Hasslinger, a registered architect in Milwaukee grew up on a farm near Hartland not far from where the first Swedish pioneers settled east of Pine Lake. Cletus is a 5th generation descendant of early settlers George and Ebba Bergwall, or 6th generation of Ebba’s parents Bengt and Charlotta Peterson.

See the story in “Descendants of New Upsala Colonists” web page.

The 3rd Heritage Tour reminding us of the first Swedish and Scandinavian colonists in Wisconsin, the first Swedish Settlement, New Upsala, it’s founder Gustaf Unonius, and the Scandinavian Parish was held August 19, 2023. The first tour was held in 1991, when the monument of Gustaf Unonius was unveiled at Nashotah House Episcopal Seminary and the second tour was held in 2008. All three tours stopped at Nashotah House, the Holy Innocents Cemetery, at the site of New Upsala in Chenequa, and at St. Anskar’s Episcopal Church in Hartland.

The 2023 tour started with Reverend Jason Terhune discussing the history of the Nashotah House Episcopal Seminary and leading a walking tour, starting at Shelton Hall, the student common room, and continued to the Chapel of St Mary, the Virgin, past Michael, the Bell Tower, and then to the Blue House, where the first students lived and the Red Chapel.

The Blue House and the Red Chapel were the original facilities, and are today among the oldest standing buildings in Wisconsin. Marge Jothen remembers the days when she worked with the SAHSWI team to establish the monument that honors Gustaf Unonius as the first graduate of the Nashotah House. See more history from Nashotah House website.

The tour then continued to the Holy Innocents Cemetery where Paul Turek, Chairman of the Cemetery Committee, St. Anskar’s Episcopal Church presented the history of cemetery and the Scandinavian Parish. In January of 1844 Bishop Jack Kemper visited New Upsala and in March the same year the Holy Innocents cemetery was consecrated for the Scandinavian community, and the Pine Lake Scandinavian Parish was established. Gustaf Unonius was ordained as its first pastor in 1845. A few years later a small church was built on the cemetery grounds.

The next stop was Chenequa Village Hall, where Chenequa Village President Jo Ann Vilavicencio presented the history of Gustaf Unonius, who with wife and friends in 1841 traveled from Sweden to Wisconsin and their adventures establishing a living and the New Upsala settlement by Pine Lake. Jo Ann (Joni) told the story how the settlement during 1850’s faded and many of the Swedes and other Scandinavians moved on. In the late 19th century, the community began to be referred to as Chenequa, the Potawatomi Native American word for Pine and in1928 the Village of Chenequa was incorporated. Joni’s whole story will be published at a later date.

The final stop of the tour was at St. Anskar’s Episcopal Church in Hartland. Senior Warden Doug Haag, his wife and SAHSWI member Meg, JR Warden Sarah Hintz, and Fr Thomas Buchan welcomed participants. Historical documents were on display for visitors to see and church and society members were there to answer any questions. St. Anskar’s history goes back to the Scandinavian Parish and the Holy Innocents church, which merged with Grace Church and together forming a new church which today is known as St. Anskar’s Episcopal Church.

The 2023 Heritage Tour was arranged by the SAHSWI project team working to erect an official State of Wisconsin Historical Marker honoring Gustaf Unonius, New Upsala, and the Scandinavian Parish. The application for the marker has been approved by Wisconsin Historical Society and is now on order. The team is currently informing the public and seeking donations to cover the cost. So far $2,475 has been received, for more information go to Historical Marker Donation page.

Link to a short presentation of the project including all monuments visited at the tour and the text of the State Historical Marker that is to be erected at St. Anskar’s Episcopal church.

The Heritage Tour was very well received by the participants. A special thanks to the tour guides and presenters, Jason Terhune, Paul Turek, and Jo Ann Vilavicencio for making this a very interesting day. Thanks also to St. Anskar’s Church, Doug and Meg Haag, Sarah Hintz, and Thomas Buchan for hosting the “Fika” meeting, SAHSWI members Tracy Redman and Bev Wenzel for handling the Welcome table, and members of the SAHSWI hospitality team Janet Taylor, Karin Konrad, and Irene Roberts for arranging and serving the coffee and pastry, and thanks to all who brought the pastry. Thanks to everyone that participated and “Tusen Tack” for the donations received!

Come, celebrate the traditional Scandinavian Midsommar on Sunday, June 25, 2023 from 1 – 4 p.m. at Heidelberg Park by Bavarian Bierhaus, 700 West Lexington Blvd., Glendale, Wisconsin

To celebrate Midsommar in Wisconsin, is to celebrate the longest day of the year the Swedish way! This means decoration of the Majstång (Maypole) with greens and flowers, joining in the procession of raising the decorated pole led by Goda Vänner playing “I sommarens soliga dagar” (In the sunny days of summer) on violin. Then dancing around the majstång and singing the special Swedish songs like “små grodorna” (the little frogs) and “vi äro musikanter” (we are all musicians). The Midsommar celebration includes a lot more…

• Make your own flower crown to wear.
• Enjoy traditional Swedish folk songs.
• Learn and play the game of Kubb, known as “Viking chess.”
• Listen to Goda Vänner, Mary Stetson and Carol Gustafson, playing violin.
• Have your children participate in games and crafts.
• Learn about the first Swedish settlement in Wisconsin, New Upsala.
• Learn about Swedish Genealogy, maybe research your own ancestors
• Win a basket filled with delightful Swedish items!

Bring your own lawn chairs, and join us for a FREE afternoon of fun at our Scandinavian Midsommar Celebration. If possible, bring greenery and help decorate the Majstång. Bavarian Bierhaus staff will provide a variety of food for sale, including Swedish meatballs and other Swedish items. Note: No food may be brought into the Park.

Reminder of the Fika meeting at 1:30 PM Saturday May 13, 2023 at Martin Luther Lutheran Church, 9235 West Bluemound Road, Milwaukee located just east of Milwaukee Zoo. As posted earlier, we welcome John Norquist to discuss Swedish Architecture, and specifically about renowned Swedish Architect Kjell Forshed (see previous post)

30 years ago

30 years ago John was serving as the Mayor of Milwaukee, John’s father Pastor Ernest Norquist was serving as an officer of Swedish American Historical Society of Wisconsin (SAHSWI) and his sister Mary Norquist (now Stetson) was playing the violin at Society Midsommar celebration and other events. The Norquist family is of Swedish descent exemplifying the SAHSWI mission. (Ernest served SAHSWI as president 1983-87, officer until 1998, and Mary has played violin at SAHSWI events for over 30 years)

SAHSWI Mission, statement of purpose:Swedish American Historical Society of Wisconsin is dedicated to promote a greater knowledge and appreciation of the role played by persons of Swedish descent in the growth and development of the State of Wisconsin through the story of immigration, settlement and contributions Swedish Americans have made the American Experience as well as to maintain continuing appreciation of their Swedish traditions and culture.

Don’t miss the Fika meeting at 1:30 PM Saturday May 13, 2023 at Martin Luther Lutheran Church, 9235 West Bluemound Road, Milwaukee located just east of Milwaukee Zoo. The meeting is open to the public. Program…

Kjell Forshed, Swedish Architect & Consultant.

Former Milwaukee Mayor John Norquist will present a program about Kjell Forshed, Swedish architect who is focused on urban development creating housing for common people, with the aspect of social interaction. John Norquist is now the John M DeGrove Fellow at Florida Atlantic University and Adjunct Professor at DePaul University Real Estate Program.

Then there is fika.

After the presentation join our traditional Fika where we together enjoy coffee and treats brought in by our members and other guests. Would you like to prepare some authentic Swedish dishes?  Check out the Food Heritage Main Food tab on our website, SAHSWI.org.  Several members have shared their favorite recipes as well as their memories of those dishes. You will find links to the dishes presented at last September’s program, “Exploring Our Swedish Food Heritage,” as well as favorites from recent Fika meetings, such as Risgrynsgröt (Rice Pudding), and Chokladboll (No Bake Chocolate Balls).  Do you have a favorite Swedish recipe that you like to share? The list will keep growing as we keep enjoying Fika together in the Swedish way!

Happy Easter in Swedish is Glad Påsk. Easter is a real family celebration in Sweden. They celebrate Easter somewhat differently than it is done in the US. They don’t have an Easter bunny but Easter witches, they play jokes with each other and they also get time off on Good Friday.

Holy Wednesday, or Dymmelonsdag is the Wednesday before Easter. The word doesn’t seem to translate literally but would be something like “joke Wednesday”. Similar to “April fools!”, The Swedes say: “April april din dumma sill, jag kan lura dig vart jag vill“. (April, April you dum herring, I can fool you in any way I want)

At Easter, Swedes decorate eggs and hang colored feathers on Easter branches in their homes. Children are given a colorful paper egg with candy inside.

Easter witches. On Holy Saturday (the Saturday between Good Friday and Easter Sunday) the children dress up as Easter witches and go from door to door. They sing songs and hand out drawings. In exchange, they are rewarded with sweets. So the current Swedish Easter Witch is a cute and friendly witch and not a scary witch as in the middle ages.

The Easter witch tradition is said to date back to the Middle Ages when hundreds of women were executed in Sweden for witchcraft. It was once believed that the witches flew on their brooms to Blåkulla Island on Maundy Thursday to meet with the devil. On Holy Saturday there are many Easter fires that, according to tradition, were supposed to keep the witches at bay.

Easter meal. Most of the Easter buffet are egg dishes. Furthermore, herring and salmon are served and sometimes Janssons frestelse, Jansson’s temptation..

In Sweden, Good Friday, Easter Sunday and Easter Monday are official holidays.

Related Swedish vocabulary

• Happy Easter: Glad Påsk
• Maundy Thursday: Skärtorsdagen
• Good Friday: långfredagen
• Holy Saturday: påskafton
• Easter witches: påskkärringar
• Twigs with colored feathers/easter twigs: påskris

Happy Easter from Swedish American Historical Society of Wisconsin, Inc.