52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks: #6 Esther Mathilda Ekstrom Johnson of Chicago

Quick drop page from Two Hearts, Designs by Anita, Scrapper's Guide (now Digital Scrapper), Sep, 2012

Esther Mathilda Ekstrom was my great-aunt. I've seen only a few photos of her, as she died young of diabetes complications in 1923. Had she lived another year, insulin would have been readily available and that miracle drug would have enabled her to live a normal lifespan.

She was born on December 16, 1894, in Chicago, to Agnes Emilia Fors Ekstrom and Gustaf Emil Ferdinand Ekstrom. According to her birth record, she was born at her mother's home at 79 Baxter Street, Lake View Ward.

Esther married George Walter Johnson on December 18, 1912, at Bethany Swedish Methodist Church, Chicago. To this union was born only one child, Russell, in 1913. I suspect Esther's pregnancy triggered an unsafe diabetic state, discouraging any further pregnancies.

She died on May 1, 1923. Her brief obituary was published in a Swedish language newspaper.

Svenska Amerikanaren

Torsdagen Den 10 MAJ 1923
Dödsfall i Chicago
Esther M. Johnson, född Ekström, 2157 Summerdale ave., maka till George W. Johnson, moder till Russell, dotter till Gust Ekström och dennes maka, afled den 1 maj, 28 år gammal.