Sophia (Frederickson) Skaarup (abt. 1855)

Born about 1855 in Denmark

Wife of Ghorvald Løvenskiold Berg — married 16 Oct 1920 in Detroit, Michigan, USA

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Biography

Sophia was born about 1855.

Grandma Sophie had moved in with them. So when they sold the store they went into a partnership in another similar store 1/2 way between Van Dyke and St. Jean. Sophie and Peter then had a falling out and Peter took his half of the profits and opened a similar store at St. Jean and Charlevoix. They only had it a couple of years when the owner died, and they again had to move.

Peter then went into selling baking supplies for Chapman, Smith, and Co. He was 45 years old by now. He became the President of the Charlevoix Businessmen's Association while he had the store. Peter was also active in the Odd fellows, becoming Noble Grand and Past Grand of the Michigan lodge.

Despite his apparent business reversals Peter purchased several cars during this period: A 1931 Nash (used for $ 445.00), a 1933 ford “Tudor”, a new 1936 ford “Tudor” ($ 653.33 including $ 18.03 extra for a heater and defroster), and a 1940 Ford that he kept throughout the war.

Grandma Sophie had moved in with a family called Lansberg, and was taking care of the man's ill wife. It was during this time period that she met Thorvald Berg, who was rooming with Peter, and later married him (see ancestor section).

Charlotte’s brother, Henry and Sophia (Frederickson) Skaarup. Sophia became a step-mother to him. Stephen went to a wealthy family, but he died at the age of ten. Carrie believed that it was from the flu that swept America at that time. Eunice Bayer Mitchell, Carrie’s daughter, said she had heard it was the custom to give children to other families during that era when the mother died. Niels was never happy in the family where he was placed and continually ran away to Peter's house. Sophia would call the other family and let them know he was there again. Both boys were very bitter about being deserted by their father.

Hans apparently was a teacher, and went to Racine, Wisconsin, where he eventually became the principal of a school. He later remarried and had 5 daughters. A relative of his once called Carrie’s daughter, Eunice (Bayer Mitchell) wishing to discuss their family connections. Nothing came of the overtures due to the bitterness.

Peter stayed long enough with Sophia (Sophie) and Henry to call Sophia Mom.

Peter and Carrie’s children called her Grandma. Henry was a shoemaker. In those days he made custom shoes for people. Henry became an alcoholic and Sophia separated from him and moved to Detroit, Michigan where she worked in a rooming house and lived with her brother Niels Frederickson. (Eunice Bayer said the family used to go to Saginaw, Michigan to visit their cousins. It was apparently the Niels Frederickson family).

Sophia ran the kitchen of the rooming house, and then eventually bought a rooming house of her own on Forest Avenue off of Woodward in Detroit. She was then able to sell it for a profit. She also helped Peter Bayer in some of his business ventures. She seemed to Carrie to be a wealthy woman.

Sophia had a sister named Annie who came to Michigan many times for visits. Annie was such a good knitter that she knit dresses for all the society ladies of New York City. They would send her their dimensions and she would use those to knit the dresses. She also knit dresses for Beulah and Eunice Bayer. Carrie Nielsen Bayer has on one of her knitted dresses in one of her pictures. Carrie’s daughter, Eunice, had Annie's picture on a long scroll showing the Danish Fraternal Order. Sophie played an important role in Peter's family, and I'm sure for Peter’s brother Niels also. When her ex-husband Henry became critically ill, Peter went to Troy, New York, and brought him back to Detroit where he died at Peter and Carrie’s home. Sophie was a wonderful grandmother to Peter's children. She indulged their whims. When she took Eunice shopping for shoes, if she didn't like the ones Eunice liked, she would buy two pairs for her, the ones she liked and the ones Sophie liked. She did the same for Beulah. She would buy any doll they wanted, and outfit it with beds, linens, etc. Carrie said she never saw a child spoiled like she did Arnold, Carrie’s first born child.

Sophie was a small woman, about 5 feet tall. She never let her hair turn gray, she always dyed it red. She met Thorvald Berg at Peter's house, where he was a boarder. He was the black sheep of Danish royalty, his mother was a Duchess. He was a heavy drinker, and was known for his poor investments. Someone in Denmark paid him $1,000.00 a month to stay away from Denmark. He would waste his money each month, and be waiting for the next payment before he could pay his rent. He splurged on women and drink.

Sophie was older than him and was flattered when he wanted to marry her. Sophie married Ghorvald Løvenskiold Berg 16 Oct 1920.

Peter was very upset about it, but she married him anyway after Henry had died. He started losing her money too. When she became ill, with liver problems, Carrie would go over and clean her house, and fix dinner. Peter would bring the family over for dinner. Eventually Carrie had to stay overnight because Grandma Sophia was afraid of the day nurse. She felt Thorvald and the nurse were trying to kill her, but Carrie continued to have her help around the house.

Carrie was at the time pregnant with Bob. Sophie was sick from January until June. One night, Thorvald came home drunk, and when he didn't come in the house, Carrie went out to investigate. She found him slumped over the wheel with the engine still running. He was suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning. She opened the garage door and pulled him out. She felt it might have been a suicide attempt, but was never sure.

When Sophie died, Thorvald had a friend keep everyone out of the house during the funeral. He tried to keep Carrie out when she came for her clothes, but she got them anyway. The next day when she came for the rest of her things Thorvald said to take only her and Sophia’s clothes, and that the rest belonged to him. He had made Sophie sign everything over to him, even the house that Peter knew she had put in his name. A week later, he sold the house and everything in it. He and the nurse then moved to Ohio or Illinois.

Carrie kept Sophie’s shoes and clothes, and one day when the girls were playing dress-up they couldn't get their toes in the shoes. They found over $1,000.00 stuffed in the toe of one of Sophie’s shoes. That's all that Peter and Carrie ever got from Sophie’s estate. Her dining room set was worth over $1,000.00 at that time. When she entertained she always went first class, with crystal goblets, Havilland china, and silver service. The children always had to use their best manners. Her dishes were washed only by her, so they also must have been worth a fortune. She died in 1929, the year Bob was born.

Henry P Skaarup New York, State Census, 1905 Name: Henry P Skaarup Residence Place: Troy, Rensselaer, New York Age: 50 Birth Year (Estimated): 1855 Birthplace: Germany Relationship to Head of Household: Head Race: W Page: 18 Household Role Gender Age Birthplace Henry P Skaarup Head M 50y Germany Sofia Skaarup Wife F 40y Denmark Nelson Byer Adopted Boy M 21y United States Peter P Byer Adopted Boy M 20y United States Nels Hanrickson Nephew M 18y Denmark Peter Hoffman Head M 43y United States Nellie Hoffman Wife F 42y United States Family Number: 96 , Reference ID: 42 , GS Film number: 549905 , Digital Folder Number: 4296237 , Image Number: 00294 Attach to Family Tree View the document View the original document to see a piece of history Download document New York, State Census, 1905 Search collection About this collection Citing this Record New York, State Census, 1905, index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MVBL-3B1 : accessed 31 May 2015), Henry P Skaarup, Troy, Ward 15, E.D. 01, Rensselaer, New York; citing p. , line , county offices, New York.; FHL microfilm .

Skaarup, Sophia Age: 48 Year: 1920 Birthplace: Denmark Roll: T625_803 Race: White Page: 7B State: Michigan ED: 47 County: Wayne Image: 0903 Township: Detroit

Sophia Skaarup United States Census, 1920 Name: Sophia Skaarup Event Type: Census Event Year: 1920 Event Place: Detroit Ward 1, Wayne, Michigan, United States Gender: Female Age: 48 Marital Status: Single Race: White Race (Original): White Can Read: Yes Can Write: Yes Relationship to Head of Household: Housekeeper Relationship to Head of Household (Original): Housekeeper Birth Year (Estimated): 1872 Birthplace: Denmark Father's Birthplace: Denmark Mother's Birthplace: Denmark

Household Role Gender Age Birthplace Emil Landsberg Head M 78 Germany Oscar P L Peterson Roomer M 33 Denmark Thorbald Berg Roomer M 33 Denmark Henry W Madsen Roomer M 26 New York Albert E Madsen Roomer M 24 New York Frank Poenix Roomer M 30 New York Sophia Skaarup Housekeeper F 48 Denmark

District: 47 , Sheet Number and Letter: 7B , Household ID: 142 , Line Number: 86 , Affiliate Name: The U.S. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) , Affiliate Publication Number: T625 , GS Film number: 1820802 , Digital Folder Number: 004311640 , Image Number: 00906 Attach to Family Tree This image is available:

Citing this Record "United States Census, 1920," index and images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MZ7T-S5K : accessed 28 May 2015), Sophia Skaarup in household of Emil Landsberg, Detroit Ward 1, Wayne, Michigan, United States; citing sheet 7B, family 142, NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); FHL microfilm 1,820,802.

Name: Ghowald L. Berg Age (Expanded): 34 years Birth Year: 1886 Birthplace: Denmark Spouse's Name: Sophie Frederickson Spouse's Age (Expanded): 50 years Spouse's Birth Year: 1870 Spouse's Birthplace: Denmark Event Date: 16 Oct 1920 Event Place: Detroit, Wayne, Michigan Father's Name: Ghowald Mother's Name: Mamie Lorenskjold

Spouse's Father's Name: Henry Spouse's Mother's Name: Mary Jorgensen GS Film number:2342741 ,Digital Folder Number:4032480 ,Image Number:623 ,Reference ID:v 9 p 437 rn 204147 ,

Sophie Frederickson Michigan Marriages, 1868-1925

Name: Ghowald L. Berg • Sex: Male Age: 34y Birth Date: 1886 • Birthplace: Denmark • Father's Name: Ghowald • Mother's Name: Mamie Lorenskjold • Spouse's Name: Sophie Frederickson • Spouse's Sex: Female Spouse's Age: 50y Spouse's Birth Date: 1870 • Spouse's Birthplace: Denmark • Spouse's Father's Name: Henry • Spouse's Mother's Name: Mary Jorgensen • Marriage Date: 16 Oct 1920 • Marriage Date: 16 Oct 1920 • Marriage Place: Detroit, Wayne, Michigan • Marriage Place: Detroit, Wayne, Michigan

Sophie's child Johanne Christensen was born in about 1855 and baptised on 28 June 1885 in Sankt Johannes Sogn, Københavns Amt, Danmark (Denmark).^[1]

Hendrik Pederson Skaarup [born 13 Nov 1853 in Denmark] immigrated to the U.S. in 1882, departing at Hamburg Germany on May 17, on the ship Gellert, and arriving at New York. With him was his brother Rasmus Skaarup. Henry married Sophia Frederickson about 1876, in Denmark. Henry and Sophia had no children but raised her sister Charlotte’s sons Nelson and Peter Byer. Henry is listed in the 1890 Troy, New York City Directory as a maker of boots and shoes at 81 Broad, Waterford.

Sources

1. ↑ Baptism of child Johanne Christensen: "Denmark, Church Records, 1812-1924"
   Rigsarkivet; Danmark; Kontraministerialbog; Reference: 8025828111
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 61607 #39031941 (accessed 28 June 2023)
   Sophie Ane Frederiksen's child Johanne Christensen baptism on 28 Jun 1885 (born about 1855) in Sankt Johannes Sogn, Københavns Amt, Danmark (Denmark).