Looking for the parents of Matilda Olsen

+2 votes
220 views

I am looking for the parents of Matilda (Olsen) Bjork (1849 - 1929), Olsen-5717 married to John Aug Bjork Bjork-227

I found one unsourced reference to her mother as Britta Maria. Any help would be greatly appreciated.   Approx. birth date & location for Britta Maria could be around 1820-25 • Alsborgs, Sweden, if she is, indeed the mother.

WikiTree profile: Matilda Bjork
in Genealogy Help by Deborah Nystrom G2G6 Mach 1 (15.6k points)

I am now exploring this in Family Search with the names Olause Kling and Maria Kristina (the middle name on the family tree in my possession). 

I'm researching the mother, Maria Kristina Stina Pettersdotter

1820  (estimated)  • L1YX-3D9​​ (In Family Search)

From the Kling family tree I show the siblings of Matilda Olsen [Kling] as:

* Ulrich Olson  (spouse Clare) in Sweden (did not emigrate)

* Claus Olson (spouse Augusta) who came to the US and went back to Sweden

* Emma Ryberg  (spouse Svante) emigrated to the USA

* Betty Lorang  (spouse Ludwig Person) emigrated to the USA

and final sibling on Kling family tree list:

* Eva Gustafson  (spouse August) emigrated to the US

All as siblings of Matilda (married John Aug Bjork) subject of this inquiry, to clarify her parents -- family located in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois

Now that Kling has showed up in the research, along with my copy of a family tree, I will look further for the lineage via the siblings as well.

Thank you for helping me get oriented on this via the Kling name, Eva and Wayne. 

1820 – Deceased​​

1820 – Deceased​​

3 Answers

+5 votes
Illinois Deaths and Stillbirths,1916-1947, Mathilda Bjork,born Dec 13 1849

Ulriksshamm,Sweden,

Illinois birth certificates, Child name Bjork,Father John A..Bjork, Mother

Mathida Kliny, How do you have Mathilda Olsen ???
by Wayne Morgan G2G Astronaut (1.1m points)

I have a Kling family tree that includes Olsen, and . Maybe the Olsen name is in error. I will check.  John Aug Bjork and Matilda (Olsen) Bjork could have an error for the maiden name.

Hössna, where they lived when they emigrated, is not far from Ulricehamn.

Mathilda's birth family seems to have moved a lot - not all that far by American standards, but the problem is that the parishes are small and all heve their own records.
+6 votes
Son Karl August Fritiof was born in Hössna parish 7 October 1878 to worker Johan Adolf Johannesson and his wife Mathilda Olausdotter.

Hössna kyrkoarkiv, Födelse- och dopböcker, SE/GLA/13256/C/4 (1861-1894), bildid: A0019287_00035 https://sok.riksarkivet.se/bildvisning/A0019287_00035

This seems a good place to start looking for Charles August's parents before they emigrated.
by Eva Ekeblad G2G6 Pilot (570k points)
The corresponding household record shows that Karl August was their first child. It gives birth data for the parents and says that they moved within the parish in 1879.

Hössna kyrkoarkiv, Husförhörslängder, SE/GLA/13256/A I/11 (1878-1891), bildid: C0046217_00131 https://sok.riksarkivet.se/bildvisning/C0046217_00131
They lived in a croft called Björket, had two daughters, Anna Elisabeth (dead in infancy) and Anna Mathilda before they left for America in October 1882. So it seems the name changes took place when they immigrated.

The surname Bjork will surely be derived from the croft where they last lived in Sweden.

Hössna kyrkoarkiv, Husförhörslängder, SE/GLA/13256/A I/11 (1878-1891), bildid: C0046217_00216 https://sok.riksarkivet.se/bildvisning/C0046217_00216
In the household records where Mathilda is with her husband, her birth date is given as 13 December 1849, which is the same as the date on her profile. The profile states that she was born in Älvsborg - which is a county with over 200 parishes. The household records say she was born in Åsarp. Well, there are two different Åsarp, I haven't found her birth in either.

However, she does seem to be the daughter of Olaus Kling and his wife Maria Stina Pettersdotter. The family arrived from Yllestad to Timmele in 1851. Kling, BTW, sounds like a soldier name, which would typically not be used by the rest of the family.

Timmele kyrkoarkiv, Husförhörslängder, SE/GLA/13551/A I/6 (1847-1862), bildid: C0045182_00105 https://sok.riksarkivet.se/bildvisning/C0045182_00105
The family moved a lot - in one book it says her birth place is Yllestad. But I haven't found her there, either.

Vist kyrkoarkiv, Husförhörslängder, SE/GLA/13625/A I/4 (1847-1862), bildid: C0045209_00021 https://sok.riksarkivet.se/bildvisning/C0045209_00021 - the family is in the bottom left corner.
In this record, also from Vist parish, like the previous one, Mathilda Olausdotter is in the middle of the page, while her parents are listed bottom left. If you scroll right you can see that Mathilda moved to Hössna parish in 1873. For me that is enough to connect her to her married version, although the gap could probably be bridged by some more searching.

Vist kyrkoarkiv, Husförhörslängder, SE/GLA/13625/A I/5 (1862-1874), bildid: C0045210_00098 https://sok.riksarkivet.se/bildvisning/C0045210_00098

Thank you Eva! As I commented above, I will also check the Kling family tree that I have that includes Olsen, Maybe the Olsen name is in error. I will check.  John Aug Bjork and Matilda (Olsen) Bjork lines.

Wow, I just viewed the other string of comments attached including your note that:

  • "Mathilda moved to Hössna parish in 1873. For me that is enough to connect her to her married version, although the gap could probably be bridged by some more searching."
All good!

Well, her father was named Olaus Kling.

Kling is probably a soldier name - those were assigned when a soldier enrolled and were usually not inherited (at this time). She was Olausdotter when she left home. But Kling could well have popped up in America, in response to being asked for the name of her father. In America this would then have been assumed to have been her maiden name.
+3 votes
Birth record for Maria Stina Pettersdotter: 26 Aug 1818 in Norra Åsarp. Norra Åsarps kyrkoarkiv, Födelse- och dopböcker, SE/GLA/13403/C/3 (1793-1845), bildid: C0044709_00122 https://sok.riksarkivet.se/bildvisning/C0044709_00122

Parents: Petter Gunnarsson & Sara Larsdotter.
by Gerry Hagberg G2G6 Mach 1 (17.8k points)
Thank you Gerry. Much appreciated. My family tree only has names. Great to have sources.

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