Why should my tree include the stepchildren of the sister of my 4th great-grandfather? Those are the types of unrelated people that I have been removing from my tree. I certainly don't want to add new ones. But, of course, the ancestors had a different idea.
Olof Ericsson, my 4th-great-grandfather, and his sister, Catherina "Caisa" Ericsdotter, were the children on whose shoulders fell the responsibility of family duties. Olof, the eldest son, took over the torp (croft) when his father could no longer be effective. Caisa, with younger sister Lisa, assumed the housekeeping duties when their mother died. The families of Olof and Caisa wove together in an unexpected way.
After Olof married, Caisa and Lisa left home to find jobs as maidservants in the wealthier homes in and around the parish of Grebo, in Östergötland. The tax records show they were sometimes with family and sometimes elsewhere. Caisa was the daughter who spent time living with their father as he aged. Her father, Eric Ericsson, died on 15 July 1796, at Lilla Björksved, a torp where he had lived for 48 years. His death marked the end of his family's long connection to that torp.
Caisa had been born on 16 March 1763, so was 33 years old when her father died. It was the first time in her adult life that she didn't have any responsibility toward her parents. She had no time to grieve or to ponder her future. Life was difficult for crofters and their families. She left the old family cottage behind and moved to her brother's torp of Åhagen, where she lived for a time with her brother, Olof, and sister-in-law, Catherina Andersdotter. Catherina was pregnant at the time and was very close to her due date. Little Lovisa was not yet three, while Olof's eldest daughter was ten. Caisa was a helpful pair of hands, though also another mouth to feed.
Meanwhile in Åtvid, the next parish to the southeast, the Muraren (mason) Anders Månsson Molander and his wife were raising their two small children. When his wife died in May, 1797, Anders was suddenly in need of a wife. Somehow Anders and Caisa connected. The social network of 1797 was person-to-person, through family and friends. Anders had spent some time in Grebo about 10 years earlier, so perhaps they had met previously or perhaps there was a family connection.
Caisa Ericsdotter and Anders Molander married in her home parish of Grebo on 10 December 1797. Caisa joined Anders near the town of Åtvidaberg, about eight miles away from her rural home, and became the stepmother of Stina, born in 1792, and Anders, born in 1794. Anders and Caisa added daughter Helena to the family in 1798.
When Stina Molander turned 16 in 1808, she left home to become a servant. Reversing Caisa's move, she took a job for about a year at Tälltorpet, which was next door to Åhagen, where her step-cousins lived. Their father, Olof, had died six years earlier. Stina's job would have allowed her very little free time, but she would have had an opportunity on Sundays to build a relationship with cousin Lovisa Olofsdotter, who was a year younger.
1810 brought devastating loss to Stina and Lovisa and their families. Lovisa's mother, Catherina Andersdotter, died in July, orphaning her three children with Olof. She also left two children from a second marriage, as well as her older step-daughter. Anders Molander died in December, leaving Caisa as the single parent of three children, though Stina was an adult, working in Åtvid.
Caisa's niece, Lovisa, age 16, was also old enough to get a job and support herself. Lovisa moved to Åtvid parish and took a position as a maid at Stora Ramshult, about 4 miles from Caisa. Step-cousin Stina had a position at Glasgård, about 2 miles away. Lovisa may have spent time with her Aunt Caisa or her cousin Stina on her few days off. Her step-cousin Anders Molander was 6 months younger than Lovisa. At age 16, he was still living at home with his stepmother and his younger half-sister, Helena. Lovisa had the opportunity to become better acquainted with all three of her cousins during the years that she spent as a single woman in the Åtvid area.
Lovisa moved back north into the rural parish of Grebo, taking a job at Hedingstorp, which kept her within 6 miles of Åtvid. There she met the laborer Johann (or Johannes) Samuelsson, whom she married in the Grebo Kyrkan (church) on 20 June 1817. Johann leased the torp of Lilla Kongshäll, even further away from her families in Åtvid and Åhagen. Their marriage record lists the dates that the banns were called. Lovisa could have moved into the cottage when the banns were first called in April.
Lovisa and Johann had a daughter, Maria Catherina, who was born on 29 December 1817. The couple was living far enough from Lovisa's families that none of them were listed as godparents or witnesses at the christening. The family's happiness was short-lived. Johann Samuelsson died of pneumonia on 19 February 1819.
Lovisa was left a widow at the age of 25, with a 13-month old child. She was unlikely to find a position as a maid. Fortunately, she was able to stay at the torp another year, which is puzzling. The husförhörslängd does not show that she had any laborer with her to do the farm work. But in the longer-term, Lovisa needed a husband.
Her step-cousin, Anders Molander, was the answer. The family and social connection between Lovisa and Anders brought them together. Whether for practical or romantic reasons, they married on 3 April 1820. Lovisa must have been relieved to no longer be a single mother. The two families, Olof's and Caisa's, were now connected in a second way.
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Anders had started working at the Åtvidaberg Kopparverks. One of the most important copper deposits in Sweden was being mined near Åtvidaberg and a smelter was in operation to extract the copper from the ore. Anders moved to a location called Kopparverket at the end of 1819 or the beginning of 1820. His step-mother Caisa moved along with him and Lovisa joined them. Perhaps that was company housing.
Lovisa Olofsdotter and Anders Molander had seven children, six of whom lived to adulthood. Lovisa's oldest daughter, Maria, also used the surname Molander, rather than her father's name.
Tuberculosis claimed Caisa, Lovisa and Anders. I didn't find information about the air quality in the area of Åtvidaberg. Did the mining and smelting make tuberculosis worse? Was the Kopparverket housing area a breeding ground for tuberculosis with too many people in close proximity?
Caisa lived only a short time with the couple, dying in 1822. The couple were married nearly 30 years, with Lovisa dying in 1850. After her death, Anders lived with his son, Frans Theodor Molander, who also worked at the copper works. Anders never remarried, dying in 1865.
I have not followed the many descendants of Lovisa and Anders. A number of them emigrated to North America, including two daughters. The Wikipedia page for Åtvidaberg states that as the copper mines shut down in the area, about one-third of the population emigrated to the mining area of Ishpeming, which is in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. A number of my family's DNA matches live in that area of Michigan or had ancestors who lived there. I suspect that researching the descendants of Lovisa and Anders will reveal our relationship to those as yet unidentified cousins.
For orientation, this family lived in the orange area on the map and Olof and Caisa are in the generation where the star appears.
To Do List
- Follow the descendants of Lovisa Olofsdotter and Anders Molander.
- Try to connect the Michigan U.P. DNA matches to this family.
Sources
- Grebo Church Records for births, deaths and marriages
- Grebo Clerical Survey records
- Grebo Mantals Tax Lists
- Åtvid Church Records for births, deaths and marriages
- Åtvid Clerical Survey records
- Wikipedia article on Åtvidaberg
- Mindat.org page on Åtvidaberg Mining Field
- Lantmateriet.se Historical Maps
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