Vanished, 52 Ancestors

 

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 Maja Brita Nilsdotter Sandborg Family

Maja Brita Nilsdotter was the third surviving sibling. She was born in Törnevalla parish to Torpare (crofter) Nils Nilsson and Brita Johansdotter on 4 December 1797. Like so many other errors in the family's records, her birth year was soon recorded incorrectly, with most records showing her birthdate as 4 December 1798. Only her birth record and her father's probate support the earlier date. 

Maja Brita was the oldest surviving girl. When her younger sister was born in 1803, Maja Brita would have been asked to watch her and help care for her. Knowing little girls, Maja Brita would have been like a second mother to the baby. The sisters stayed physically close to each other throughout their lives, while their older brothers moved away in different directions.

Their father died when Maja Brita was 16 and their mother died four years later, when Anna Catherina (Cajsa) was not quite 15. The records of Törnevalla have gaps in the timeframe when the girls were teens. What is recorded is that Maja Brita had left home and was working elsewhere by the time she was 15, and had left for neighboring parishes by the time her mother died. Anna Cajsa also left the parish after that death, as she was then responsible for herself. She initially went in an opposite direction from Maja Brita, but within a year had joined her sister in Värna parish.

The parishes of Värna and Björsäter adjoin along one side. Maja Brita moved to Björsäter two years before Anna Cajsa, but even so, they lived within three miles of each other. Maja Brita left briefly, but soon returned. From 1826 on, the sisters both lived in Björsäter parish -- the parish that was home to my Ekström ancestors for over 100 years. The sisters married in the parish and each had one son and one daughter. 

On 21 October 1831,  Maja Brita Nilsdotter married snickaren (carpenter) Fredric Sandborg or Sandberg. The name appeared with both spellings in the records. Fredric had been born in the nearby parish of Örtomta on 6 September 1796. Their children were Carl Johan Sandborg, born on 13 February 1833, and Gustava Sandborg, born on 9 June 1835. By marrying a tradesman, Maja Brita had improved her life. However, that improvement didn't last. Fredric died of tuberculosis on 24 August 1838, less than seven years after marrying. 

Maja Brita and her two small children were thrust into poverty, noted in the church records as fattighjon or pauper. However, they did not move in with her younger sister. Anna Cajsa had married torpare (crofter) Sven Persson. Crofters often struggled to feed their own families, so adding three people to a family of four could have been disastrous. However, Sven was named as the guardian of the children and their assets. The guardian was usually a male relative of the deceased husband, but Maja Brita must have felt more comfortable with a man she knew.

The family moved to the lands of Missmyra, where they boarded with an unrelated family. They would have provided whatever labor they could in return for food and second-hand clothes. It is possible that they required poor relief from the parish, which would have paid a tiny bit to the farmer who hosted them; however, that was not noted in the church books.

When Carl Johan reached the age of 15, he went to live, work for and train with one of the tailors in the parish. Tradesmen often moved around to learn and work with different master craftsmen. After a couple of years, Carl Johan moved to Yxnerum parish, where he was recorded as a skräddare lärling, or tailors apprentice. 

In the fall of 1851, he moved to the city of Stockholm.  His sister, 16-year-old Gustava, also moved to Stockholm, taking a job as a maidservant in the same parish, Maria Magdalena. The records of Stockholm are many and are not as detailed as those of the rural parishes. The siblings moved from place to place, parish to parish, within the city. Gustava returned to her rural home in late 1853 and moved back to Stockhom in late 1854. 

Both Carl Johan and Gustava vanished from the Stockholm records about 1856. The last entry found for Carl Johan was when he left the parish of Storkyrkoförsamlingen (Sankt Nikolai) in October, 1856, as a single man, with an unknown destination. The last entries found for Gustava were in November, 1855, when she moved into Klara parish, and in the survey of January, 1856, where she was listed as a single maidservant.

Their mother's death record closes the book on the family. Maja Brita Nilsdotter Sandborg died of dropsy, in the poorhouse, on 16 May 1859. A brief paragraph in the death book described her life and states that her children had predeceased her.

Carl Johan Sandborg would have been 26 when Maja Brita died. Gustava Sandborg would have been 23. It is unlikely that either of them married and had a legitimate child in the three years prior to her death. Carl Johan, as an apprentice, would have made an agreement not to marry. Gustava was young for marriage, though it was possible. Maja Brita's death record did not mention grandchildren, though there could be some. Also, there could be illegitimate children. The question of living descendants is not answered conclusively.

The paragraph for Maja Brita's death in the church book is lovely. 

I wish everyone had such a descriptive death record. Any errors in transcription, translation or interpretation are mine.

The columns show:

• Maja Brita Sandborg
• died on 16 May 1859
• was buried on 22 May
• died of vattusot or dropsy
• was a female aged 60 years 5 months and 12 days
• was a widow and a pauper

Her brief biography:

Enka efter aflidne Snickaren Fr. Sandborg i Missmyra. Född år 1798 den 4 December i Törnevalla församling, def hennes föräldrar Inhyses folket Nils Nilsson och hustru Brita Jansdr bodde på Skackelstads ägor. Tjenat i flere församlingar på flere ställen sednast i denna församlings Prestegård hos afl Kyrkoherden Magnus Linde, der hon ock infrädde i äktenskap år 1831. Haft en son och en dotter i äktenskapet, redan före henne döda. Blef enka 1838. Intogs i fattigstugan år 1856 såsom sköterska. Afträdde denna befattning i Mars månad 1859, emedan helsa och krafter betydligt minskades. Varit en glad och synnerligen hjelpsam menniska, ferm i christolig fromhet o endat ståghet altid var nöjd med sin knappt lite skurna lott.

My rough translation:

Widow of the late Carpenter Fr. Sandborg in Missmyra. Born in 1798 on December 4 in Törnevalla parish, her parents, lodgers Nils Nilsson and wife Brita Jånsdotter, lived on Skackelstad's land. Served in several parishes in several places, most recently in this parish's Presbytery with deceased Church Priest Magnus Linde, where she also married in 1831. Had a son and a daughter in marriage, who [both] died before her. Became a widow in 1838. Entered the poorhouse in 1856 as a nurse. Resigned this position in the month of March 1859, as her health and strength were considerably reduced. Was a happy and extremely helpful person, firm in Christian piety and steadfastness and was always satisfied with her limited lot.

The family primarily lived in parishes in the area marked in orange. Stockholm is near the top right of this map. Maja Brita Nilsdotter Sandborg was from the generation marked with the star.

To Do List

• Continue to search indexes for Carl Johan Sandborg and Gustava Sandborg during the period 1856-1859.

Sources

• Church records for parishes in Östergötland: Björsäter, Törnevalla, Örtomta, Värna, Grebo, Kimstad, Yxnerum
• Church records for parishes in Stockholm: Maria Magdalena, Hedvig Eleonora, Klara, Katarina, Storkyrkoförsamlingen (Sankt Nikolai)
• Bankekinds District Court Probate Records
• Åkerbo District Court Probate Records
• Lantmateriet.se Historical Maps