Is it possible that the siblings of my 3rd-great-grandmother, Anna Catherina Nilsdotter, have living descendants? Three siblings died in childhood, while three lived to be adults. Did the three have children and grandchildren?
The Story of the Anders Nilsson Family
Anders Nilsson was the second oldest of the surviving siblings. He was born in Törnevalla parish to Torpare (crofter) Nils Nilsson and Brita Johansdotter on 17 July 1796. Unlike his brother, Jonas, who was featured in the previous post, Anders became a torpare.
How could two brothers have lives that turned out so differently? Jonas moved north and east, away from their rural home parish and into the fringes of the city of Norrköping. He was over 21 when his father died, yet he didn't take over the torp. It seems that he wanted something different from his life. Unfortunately, his choices moved him downward in the socioeconomic system.
Instead of chasing dreams, Anders stayed within seven miles of his childhood home, working as a farm laborer in a handful of different parishes. When there was an opportunity to become a crofter in Askeby parish in 1827, he and the landowner came to an agreement. Anders must have built a reputation for reliability, teamwork and common sense.
Teamwork was crucial for crofters, as the fields of many farms were laid out in narrow strips as a way to make sure each farmer had access to equal land of various qualities. The fields worked by a crofter were not adjacent to each other and he might have to access a field by crossing the field of another farmer. The men had to agree on what to plant and when to till, plant and harvest.
The 1823 map of the Juby village and fields shows a cluster of homes in dark pink, with the fields radiating out in many directions. Accompanying the map is a long list of the fields being reallocated, a process which was done over many years with the intent to make the fields more contiguous. Anders Nilsson first farmed for a year at Östergården, then moved to Brunnsgården, marked with the letter E on the fields.
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| Juby Bys, 1823, Historical Map from Lantmateriet.se |
In January of 1827, the banns were called for the February 9th marriage of Anders Nilsson and Maja Cajsa Nilsdotter. She had been christened Maria Catherina when she was baptised in Örtomta parish on 7 October 1798. Her parents were Nils Larsson and Maria Josephsdotter of Måssänder, both of whom died before she was 18. Her mother died two years after her birth. Her father soon remarried to Anna Svensdotter and moved to Askeby parish. Maja Cajsa would have seen Anna as her mother, though she doubtless learned that her mother had died.
Her father died when she was 17, and her step-mother, Anna, remarried to Anders Jonsson. Maja Cajsa must have had a good relationship with her step-parents, as she lived with them until after she turned 21 years old. Her birthdate changed in the records to be 7 July, due to two different errors in interpretation by the ministers or clerks.
When Maja Cajsa left home in 1821, she stayed in Askeby parish and took a job as a maidservant at Nartomta Storgård, the same place that Anders was working as a farm laborer. They had a couple of years to get to know each other before Anders moved to a neighboring farm. When he became a Torpare, he needed a wife and Maja Cajsa became that wife.
The couple lived out their lives at Brunnsgården, at a cottage named Nybygget. They had five children, all of whom died in childhood -- a tragic loss. Maja Cajsa had suffered both loss of parents and loss of children. She died at age 55, on 29 August 1854. Anders died of "frailty" on 20 December 1858, at the age of 62, with no living descendants.
Their five children were:
- Anna Greta 07 March 1828 - 03 September 1828, age 6 months
- Johanna 20 April 1830 - 13 August 1838, age 8 years
- Nils Fredric 01 January 1834 - 23 January 1836, age 2 years
- Catherina (twin) 25 October 1836 - 19 January 1837, age 3 months
- Anders (twin) 25 October 1836 - 31 January 1837, age 3 months
The family lived in parishes in the area marked in orange. Anders Nilsson was from the generation marked with the star.
Sources
- Lantmateriet.se Historical Maps
- Church records for parishes: Törnevalla, Örtomta, Askeby, Rystad, Östra Harg, Östra Skrukeby
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