Omaha daily bee., 1893-12-10
THE SWEDES IN AMERICA
History of the First Colony and the Later
immigration,
PROGRESS IN HALF A CENTURY
Active Forces In the Development of the
Country-5O,Oo in Nebraska ana
100000 In the Country-ln-
structive Statistics.

Sweden, owing to its isolated location in
an age when telegraphy and steam did not
disseminate news as rapidly as now, was the
last European nation, of any Importance, TO
catch the American colonization fever. One
Hollander by the name of William Usselinx
came TO Sweden and laid before Gustavus
Adolphus an elaborate plan Tor a Swedish
commercial company in the new world. The
great klnE, who with warmth embraced every
plan that mad an object to advance the wei
fare OF his people, approved the project and
on the l4th of June, 1926, granted n charter
for the formation of n commercial company.
But this project, which also included the es-
adjustment of u Swedish colony in America,
was not realized during his reign owing to
the German war that occupied his entire at
tention. The commercial ompany project
was never revived, but Axel Oxenstjerna,
Sweden's greatest statesman and prime
minister, in 1885 commenced TO make practi-
cal steps toward establishing a Swedish
colony in America.
The result was that in the fall of 1857 the
Swedish ships knlmar NICKEL and Gripen
sailed from Gothenburg for America, and in
the month of March, 1898, the first Swedish
settlers landed on the banks of the Delaware
river, and the new settlement was called
New Sweden
On the goth of March, 1898, the colonists
c~onsummated the purchase of u large tract of
land from the aborigines, and Immediately
commenced the erection of u fort, which was
named christina in honor of the then
reigning queen of Sweden. 1t was upon the
present site of Wilmington.
A good commencement had now been
made, but owing to the fact that Sweden
was impoverished anddrained of able bodied
men by the many wars it had been engaged
in, it was almost impossible to secure volun-
teer emigrants to go to the new world.
From 1887 to 1875 ten small and unim-
portunt expeditions left Sweden for its pos
sessions in America, and the last one upon
It's arrival, the Path of March, 1856, found
| tho Hollanders in possession of New Sweden.
According to Il published statement made
in 1893 there were then living in what had
formerly been New Sweden, 139 Swedish and
Finish families, or $50 souls.
Made Its Mark.
AS small as this first Swedish immigration
seems to be, it nevertheless made its i'm.
preston upon the new nation that a century
later was born.
Many of the leading families of Pennsyl
vania and Delaware trace their lineage from
the ''Swedes on the Delaware" but the
Swedish names have undergone changes and
adoptions to the English language so as tc
be hardly recognizable, as for instance
Beugtson has become Bankson; Boncle
Boone, Cock, Cox; Gostassen, Justice
Jocum, Yocum; Kyn, Keene. Voncallen
Carlin; Wihler, Wheeler, etc.
WIN Tue loss Oh NSW SWeQen coupled
with the severe drain upon Its resources anC
population by the thirty years war, all fur
Their emigration to tho new world ceased.
The census reports show conclusively tina
there was no immigration to speak of int
the United States from Sweden until
quite recent period. From 1921 to 1880 onl.
ninety-one emigrants, had arrived from
Sweden and Norway. and from 1881 to 1874
the number had increased to only 1,20l
principally from Norway, while during TIL,
same decade Ireland had sent 2O7, ISL, anc
Germany l52, 454. y.
The New 1 immigration.
In the year ls45, from the neighborhood o
Kisa, in the southern part Of Sweden,
number of emigrants left for the new world
They landed at the seaport of Philadelphia
followed the canal until the Ohio river was
reached, when they embarked on a steame
down the river to its confluence with tn,
Mississippi, and then up the Father o
Waters until Keokuk, Ia, was reached
From this point the pioneers continued thei
journey west until they made a settlement
along the banks of the Skunk river, in JET
ferson county, and they christened it "Ney
Sweden"
Several of these early pioneers and thei
descendants are to be found in Nebraska
principally in and around Stromsburg.
Early the following year, 1916, arrived a
New York a shipload of Swedish emigrant
from the northern part of Sweden. Thes
were followed by several other shipload
from the same part of Sweden during tina
and the following year. This exodus wa
under the leadership OF Eric ~Jansson, Il dis
senter from the established church O
Sweden, who were driven from their. nativ
land by religious persecution.
AT this period QS46) there were not ex
ceeding a score of Swedes scattered over tn
entire western country, that is west of tn
Allegheny mountains, but from that time o
the second emigration from Sweden con
menced and increased in volume with eac
succeeding year.
In the decade from 1871 to 1850 the imm
grafton from Sweden and Norway had il
creased from ! POI in the previous decade t
10, 7O3, and from 1851 TO 1860 it still furthe
increased to 2 0.93l.
The close of the war gave immigration t
this country from Sweuen and Norway
great impetus, and in the decade from lSf
to 1870 the arrivals from Norway were 40
772, from Sweden s. 26, and from 1871 t
1880 reached it's maximum, when Norwa
sent 9S, $3.50 and Sweden l2T, 55S.
Per cent of total immigration of the LEAF
ing contributing nationalitics:
I~lS4l-5O ls5l-GO 1861 10 l871-S
Ireland ...,....,. 45.hDI 35.lel 1881 15.t
Germany. ..,.... 2O.3II SO .U3l 1914 20.
,vln ANnlnal