Carl Erik Engelbert Sjödahl was born in Pohja (Swedish: "Pojo") in the Uusimaa region of Finland. Pojo was then subject to the crown of Russia. His family were Swedish-speaking Finns. Linn was the son of the manager of an ironworks owned by the ancient company of Billnäs Bruk. He was attending the Royal Academy of Turku when the city burned in the Great Fire of Turku. He joined a sailing crew and became an accomplished seafarer, crossing the Atlantic Ocean 53 times and circumnavigating the globe three times before immigrating to the United States. He settled in Montgomery, Alabama in 1838 and opened a mercantile store.