About Stackskär, Lemland

Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: Stackskär, Lemland, Åland, Finland

Alternate spelling(s); Staggskär, Stakskär

Information about Stackskär from Berit Lindqvist

How people came to Kuggholma

Domain of Crown offered the 16 islands on auction. It happened 22 of May 1781. Anders Simonsson from Söderby in Lemland offered to pay 6 riksdaler and 21 shillingar. He didn’t got ownership just only took possession of the area. The new homestead should still be Domain of Crown and still a Homestead of Crown. Anders Simonsson was old, 70 years and did this for his son Anders Andersson Södergren. His son was not interested.

They only brought logs to Kuggholma, but never build a house. Anders Södergren renounced Stackskär and a new auction was 5 of May 1795.

Two farmhands, Isak Mickelsson from Hellestorp and Mats Mårtensson from Knutsboda gave the blue ribbon and they became the first citizens at Kuggholma. They were 36 and 29 years old, strong and two, which certainly was necessarily to help each other to build houses aso.

Farm A and Farm B (which Lindqvist got one day):

Isak Mickelsson married Brita Hansdotter and Mats Mårtensson married Anna Mattsdotter, but none of them got any children.

A. Mats Mårtensson left Kuggholma 1806 and a new farmer came after him, Per Persson from Flaka. He wasn’t married and then gave his half part of Kuggholma to Karl Eriksson.

B. Isak Mickelsson had no children together with his wife, she was 50 years old when they married 1797. Instead they took his wife´s sisters son Erik Lemberg (from Lemböte in Lemland) as a farmhand to the farm at Kuggholma and then he got the farm after them.

A. Karl Eriksson`s son Erik Holmberg took over the other half of Kuggholma after his father and after him his son Karl Johan Eriksson (1853-1929) He was the last one who lived on this farm(A). His son Ivar Karlsson lived in Flaka in Lemland. He sold islands and died 1960. Harry remembers this last relative to the half part of Kuggholma. He also remembers rests of the houses which were left after them.

Erik Lemberg, (27.02.1781), born in Enköping Sweden (when his parents temporary lived there, they really came from Norrgård, Lemböte in Lemland). He took over the farm (“Lindqvist half part, B”) after his aunt Brita Hansdotter and her husband Isak Mickelsson. Erik married Stina Henriksdotter and they got a lot of daughters and only one son ( who died young). Children, born in Kuggholma: Anna Greta, 1806, Brita Stina 1810, Maria Lisa 1812, Helena 1813, Lovisa Eriksdotter 1815, Helena 1816, Kajsa Eriksdotter 1818, Helena 1819, Johan Erik 1820, Johanna 1822, Albertina 1826.

The Seafarers`Inn at Rödhamn (At the Island Gloskär close to Rödhamn Pilot Station)

Because of their position, the Åland Islands have been a vital thoroughfare for shipping through our the centuries. Along the fairway there were places where ships could seek shelter in stormy weather.

One of those places was Rödhamn in Lemland. Oral traditions say that a simple seafarer`s chapel existed there in the Middle Ages. In the 17th century there was an offertory box at Rödhamn where seafarers could give a coin in gratitude for a successful voyage or as a prayer for help in a forthcoming voyage across the sea. This confirms that Rödhamn was a significant harbour at that time.

In 1758 Eric Lindström obtained a licence to maintain an inn at Rödhamn. The lease was for 25 years, and the innkeeper was obliged to provide travellers with meals and accommodation for a reasonable payment. He also obtained a licence to serve beer and spirits. It was the leaseholders`s duty to build and look after the houses and buildings which he needed for his work. He also had to provide hay for the livestock which farmers brought on the ships to sell in Stockholm.

The last innkeeper at Seafarer`s Inn at Rödhamn was Herman Ekholm from Flaka, Lemland. He had earlier been servant at the inn. He got his license 1915. But he had no licence for beer and spirits, only for meals. 1930 he went through the ice and was drowned. 1940 his son Nils Ekholm capsized with his fishing-boat and also drowned. That meant the end of almost two centuries of permanent residence at the inn.

The special story about how Johan Lindqvist came to Rödhamn and Kuggholma

In former days it was not unusual for the profession of pilot to be handed down from father to son. One man who became progenitor of a line of pilots was Johan Lindqvist. He was born on 31 July 1801 in Söderby, Lemland, where his father was district police superintendent. When Johan was eleven, his father died of spotted fever, leaving hit mother alone with four young children. The family lived on village property and had no land of their own to cultivate. Without anyone to provide for them, the children had no other future than to find jobs as farmhands and maidservants. Reports say that their mother lived in poverty.

Johan became a farmhand on various farms, his work in the summer being to carry firewood by sloop to Stockholm and Åbo. In 1824 he was employed as handyman at the Island Inn at Rödhamn, which was leased at that time by a pilot named Gustaf Hacklin. Johan began courting the eldest daughter (Anna-Greta) on an neighbouring island homestead (Kuggholma). They wanted to get married, but the girl`s father (Erik Lemberg) said no, his daughter was not going to marry a poor farmhand!

In 1826 Johan`s life changed completely. The pilot Hacklin had been showing rather too much affection to the maid at the Inn, and she was expecting a baby! But Hacklin was already married and to get out of the embarrassing situation, he persuaded Johan to take paternity upon himself, and in return Hacklin would help Johan into pilotage service as a pilot…

Johan complied and married the maidservant in December 1826. His wife died in childbirth and shortly after also the newborn baby died too. That was in February 1827.

Johan wasn`t sure, but Hacklin kept his promise, and when a post as pilot became vacant in 1829, Johan obtained it. He then had a different social status in the community, and he married the girl he wanted, Anna-Greta Lemberg from Kuggholma and moved to her home, where they settled down. A new life began for Johan. Besides piloting ships, pilots had to maintain buoys and beacons and put out sparbuoys in the spring. In 1837 regular service commenced between Åbo-Degerby- Stockholm with the steam schooners FURST MENSCHIKOFF and SOLIDE. A new era in shipping experienced a feeling of pride when standing on the bridge piloting these ships which could be propelled without wind power.

In 1845 Johan acquired a sloop, FREDEN, which he used in carrying trade, mainly taking firewood to Åbo for farmers. During 1854-1856 was almost all sailing ceased, and Johan sold his ship.

Also a special story about Johan Lindqvist

Johan got three children in his marriage with Anna-Greta: Karolina, born 1831, Brita Stina, 1832 and Johannes Lindqvist, 1842, your great great grandfather.

Johans wife`s younger sister Helena also lived in their home. She was unmarried but got six sons… Family tradition says that Johan was the father of the boys. He took care of all sons and helped them to become pilots in the pilotage service.

When Johan was 69 years old he married his third wife, Johanna Thomasdotter. Johan served as a pilot until his death. He lost his life through drowning, on weak ice, on 30 December 1874, and the burial service was held in Lemlands Church 6 January 1875.