Swedes Around Orlando Florida and Americans Around Småland

Go south to visit Kalmar and Växjö to get the best possible dose of small-town and rural Sweden

2012-01-29T05:47:00.003-05:00

Rural Sweden

Glass, Castles, and Minnesotans

By Rick Steves

You can't see only Stockholm and say you've seen Sweden. Go south to visit Kalmar and Växjö to get the best possible dose of small-town and rural Sweden. The surrounding province, Småland, is famous for its forests, lakes, great glass, and the many immigrants it sent to the United States.

A six-hour train ride south of Stockholm, historic, coastal Kalmar has a rare Old World ambience and the most magnificent medieval castle in Scandinavia. In its day, Kalmar was called "the gateway to Sweden" — back when the Sweden/Denmark border was just a few miles to the south.

History students remember Kalmar as the place where the treaty establishing the Kalmar Union was signed. This 1397 "three crowns" treaty united Norway, Sweden, and Denmark and created a huge kingdom — impressive for its day, as most of Europe was fragmented and bickering. Today Kalmar is just a sleepy has-been: a gateway only to the holiday island of Öland.

Kalmar's moated castle is one of Europe's great medieval experiences. The stark exterior, cuddled by a lush park, houses a fine Renaissance palace interior. You'll walk up steps made of Catholic gravestones into faded but grand halls alive with Swedish history. As was necessary in the relatively poor north, the fine architectural details were mostly painted onto the walls. The elaborately furnished rooms are entertainingly explained in English. Check out the eerie exhibit on the women's prison.

From Kalmar, cross one of Europe's longest bridges to hike through Stonehenge-type mysteries on the island of Öland. A 60-mile automobile tour of the island's southern tip takes you by Gettlinge Gravfalt, a boat-shaped, Iron Age graveyard littered with monoliths and overseen by a couple of creaky old windmills.

Farther south is the Eketorp Prehistoric Fort, a very reconstructed fifth-century stone fort that, as Iron Age forts go, is fairly interesting. Several evocative huts and buildings are filled with what someone imagines may have been household items back then, and the huge rock fort is surrounded by strange, runty, piglike creatures — common in gardens 1,500 years ago. A sign lettered with Iron Age humor reads: "For your convenience and pleasure, don't leave your children alone with the animals."

An hour's drive inland, the pleasant, plain town of Växjö squats in the center of Småland. More Americans came from this area than any other part of Scandinavia, and the immigration center in Växjö tells the story well. If you have Swedish roots, this place is really exciting. Even if you don't, this small exhibit is a worthwhile stop.

The House of Emigrants is a tidy, user-friendly brick box filled with letters home to the old country, ships' registers, and Minnesotans pondering their roots. The Dream of America exhibit tells the story of the "American Fever" experienced from the 1850s to the 1920s.

Upstairs is an excellent library and research center. Root-seekers (10,000 a year from the U.S.) are welcome, encouraged to write well in advance and advised to bring whatever information they have — such as ship names and birthdates. An emigration festival, held for three days around the second Sunday in August, is a real hoot, as thousands of Minnesotans storm Växjö.

Connecting Växjö and Kalmar is Glass Country, a 70-mile stretch of forest sparkling with glassworks. Frankly, these glassworks would hardly raise a rattle elsewhere, but they gleam in Sweden's calm countryside air.

Of the several renowned glassworks in the area, Kosta is the oldest, dating back to 1742. Set up to appease the masses, it offers tours, daily glassblowing action, easy shipping, and nearly perfect crystal seconds at shattering discounts. The tiny Transjö Glashytta offers a much different experience — expensive but fine art pieces created on an old converted farm. Orrefors was once a glassworks with its own proud history, but is now part of the Kosta empire and plays second fiddle to the flagship brand. While Kosta does more of the handmade pieces, Orrefors focuses more on machine-made mass production.

2012-01-05T11:47:00.001-05:00

The sixth issue of the Swedish magazine Sven is now available online here

God Jul "A Swedish Christmas" by Anders Neumuller from Amazon.com

2012-01-02T09:42:00.001-05:00

God Jul A Swedish Christmas available on Amazon, click here

2012-01-02T09:37:00.000-05:00

Vasa Order Newsletter Oct . Dec 2011

2012-01-02T02:13:00.002-05:00

Follow Sweden

2011-12-02T03:17:00.000-05:00

Swedish American Museum click here

2011-12-02T03:06:00.003-05:00

Click here - the Sanford St. Lucia Website

When:
December 10th : 1 p.m. - 4 p.m.

Free
Museum of Seminole County History
300 Bush Blvd. , Sanford , FL , 32773
407-665-1489 (Phone)

The annual celebration of Seminole County's Swedish heritage will include history displays, a giant Dala horse, replica Viking ship, live music, and Swedish decorations.
.

Vasa Order Lodges in Sweden

2011-11-22T08:23:00.003-05:00

Vasa Lodges In Sweden - Link

Glasriket Events November-December 2011

2011-11-22T07:22:00.001-05:00

2011-11-20T04:14:00.002-05:00

2011-11-18T12:29:00.002-05:00

Swedish News in English

2011-11-16T14:04:00.001-05:00

Swedish Church in Florida

2011-11-16T08:47:00.001-05:00

Deep in the Swedish Forest (Småland)

2011-11-15T14:27:00.000-05:00

Nordstjernan Newspaper Link

2011-11-15T14:24:00.000-05:00

Colonial Swedes in America

St. Lucia Celebration Sanford, Florida December 10, 2011 Orlando Area

2011-11-13T06:46:00.007-05:00

Website Link Sanford Lucia

A Celebration of Seminole Country Swedes, Sanford, Florida
December 10, 2011

St.Lucia Celebration, Sarasota, Florida USA December 9, 2011 Swedish Club of Sarasota

2011-11-13T06:25:00.003-05:00

Lucia Celebration

Friday, December 9th, 2011
Doors Open at 6:30 PM
Lucia Program at 7:00 PM (Sharp!)

Cost: SCoS Members, Non-Members & Guests, $10
Children under 12 Free

Location: St Armand’s Key Lutheran Church, Sarasota

Lucia! Sankta Lucia!
You are all invited to that most Swedish Celebration at the St Armand’s Key Lutheran Church. This is a non-reservation event, but come early to get good seating!

We will commence the program with Light Holiday Music from 6:30 as Guests are seated –
This should allow us to present the Lucia Program at 7:00 PM Sharp!

Following the program Swedish Holiday Treats, Special Lucia Bread ("Lusse Katter") and Ginger Bread Cookies together with our famous Glögg will be served to all.

2011-11-11T09:36:00.001-05:00

Kalmar Slott Julmässa 2011 November 24-27. This is the best Julmarknad in Sweden

Julmässa 24 - 27/11
Här möts du av levande ljus från marschaller och facklor som strålar ikapp med ljuset från stan i Kalmarsunds mörka vatten.
Julmässan på Kalmar Slott är en upplevelse utöver det vanliga. Julmässan är landets mest stämningsfulla mässa och också en av de största.
Julmässans öppettider:
Torsdag kl 11-21
Fredag kl 11 - 20
Lördag kl 10 - 18
Söndag kl 10 - 16
Entré 70:-. Barn under 12 år gratis.
WEEKENDPAKET
Hotellboende med entré och presentkort till butikerna i Kalmar City.
Fr 460 kr/pp. Boka online här Bokningstel 0480-417700
Vasa & Co
Restaurangen på Kalmar Slott, se Meny (pdf 54,2kB) under mässdagarna
Julmässans arrangör: Svenska Slottsmässor

Uppdaterad av: Brita Andrée

Senast uppdaterad: 2011-09-28

Carl Cunningham-Cole, Porcelin Master, Algutsboda Art, Sweden

2011-11-06T15:21:00.003-05:00

One of the great ceramic artists in the world, Carl Cunningham-Cole, Algutsboda, Sweden. Smäland.

Carl Cunningham-Cole

"If I can make a piece sing to its beholder, I feel I have succeeded in expressing not only the estethics of art, but the estethics of life itself."

Having been picked out as one of the shining stars of ceramics in the early sixties when, at this first major exhibition, his work stood toe to toe with Miro, Chagall and Picasso, Carl Cunningham-Cole left England and settled in Scandinavia.

American Thanksgiving in Sweden 2011 in Nybro for all from Småland, Nybro, Kalmar, Borgholm, Öland, Duvemåla, Emmboda.....more

2011-10-14T02:58:00.007-04:00

Happy Thanksgiving

What: American Thanksgiving in Småland (Nybro)

Where: Madesjö Prästgård, Hermanstorpv. 4

When: Saturday, November 26, 2011

Time: 1:00pm (13:00)

· Costs based on number of attendees (but around 100 SEK) we will collect at the event.

· We will need turkey carvers and setup volunteers at 1230!

· Bring your own drinks & table decorations

· Please bring something to share – salad, dessert, or a dish, let us know in advance what you will bring.

· We will also have a book exchange, to trade or giveaway

· Children under 15 free.

Please RSVP by November 21, 2011

kal.mar.winner@gmail.com

Margareta Uhler 073 80 48 880

Bruce.uhler@kahrs.com

Kalmar, Öland, Flerohop, Orrefors, Emmaboda, Trekanten, etc...

Kalmar Castle

2011-09-26T05:45:00.001-04:00

Kosta Boda Glass Sweden

2011-09-08T11:48:00.001-04:00

Kosta Boda Glass

2011-09-08T11:42:00.001-04:00

Bridge to Sweden

Bridge to Sweden
Swedish-American Genealogical Research and Travel

Marie Louise Bratt

Vigesjöhödjden 1B

76 152 Norrtälje

Sweden

011 46 176 10992

The small cottage, stuga from where one young Swede emigrated to AmericaPhoto: Floyd Bush
	Did your family emigrate from Sweden to Amerika? Then explore our website to learn how to find out where in Sweden your ancestor came from. And one day you might want to make that trip you dreamt about, across the Atlantic ocean, to visit the old homestead. You might even be able to find some of the cousins who live in Sweden today. Newsletter There is a lot to learn and our free newsletter can help. Just send an email with your full name and the word "subscribe". (Remember to let us know, if you are already a subscriber but have changed your email address!) If you would like to, add a question or two about your Swedish family. Absolutely no charge! Many previous newsletters can be found here. About our trips After a decade of summer trips to Småland, Västergötland, Östergötland, Värmland, and more Swedish provinces, we'll now discontinue our trips. Even though we have had lots of fun with many of you, and experienced so much with you, it's time to slow down. But this does not mean that you will no longer get any help with your trips to Sweden!

2011-09-08T11:37:00.001-04:00

http://www.orrefors.com/

Swedish Roots -Geneaology

2011-09-08T11:35:00.003-04:00

http://www.swedenroots.se/

2011-09-08T11:22:00.002-04:00

Located in Fort Myers, Florida
Royal Palm Shopping Center
Serving the Scandinavian Community for
1400 Colonial Boulevard
Ft. Myers, Florida 33907
888 867 9567

Nordic Way

2011-09-08T11:15:00.002-04:00

http://www.nordicway.com/search/places/places_florida.htm

Florida

Florida has, for a long time, been a favourite holiday destination for Swedes. Many maintain a seasonal home here, while others pipe dream of the Sunshine State as a great place to start a business or to retire in. Many Swedish Americans end up in Florida after they have lived and worked in more northerly states. There have, in fact, been Swedes here since the pioneering days, and many of whom have played a prominent role in the development of the state and are given prominence in the historical annals of Florida.
Swampland Lots
are all that many Swedes got when they bought real estate in Florida. Many bought site unseen with $10 down and payments of $10 a month from Carl Magnuson Jr. whose father from ml in Sweden pioneered real estate in Miami. Junior bought thousands of acres, incorporating them and making himself the mayor and controlling his own town council. He became the subject of many a lawsuit by disgruntled buyers, but always managed to come away clean. And now with rapidly rising land values, some of his quarter or half acre lots, water-logged as they may be, could actually be worth something.
South Beach
in Miami was for many years a run-down slum until developers realized the beauty of the Art Deco buildings. Today it is the place to stay, shop and be entertained in. Ulf Johansson, who came to Florida to sell Swedish log houses and ended up making money renovating houses, was one of the first to see the potential of South Beach. He bought and renovated the beautiful Waldorf Tower’s Hotel (860 Ocean Drive, 1-800-933-Beach) that became “South Beach’s most photographed hotel” and for a long time the most “in” nightclub.
Lars de Jounge
is your quintessential Swedish Floridian. A tall and distinguished retiree with a permanent tan, he lives in Vero Beach where Swedes settled as early as in 1904 and where they organized the Evangelical Mission Covenant Church in 1942. For your Swedish content today you can visit the Wahlstrom Sculpture Garden at the Vero Beach Museum of Art and admire the sculpture “Sunglitter” by Carl Milles.
But Lars de Jounge moved to Vero Beach because he found a property here that came with a landing strip for his Klemm and Tiger Moth planes. Close by, at the Vero Beach airport, another flying enthusiast is helping the Swede to restore a Saab Safir 91D. Lars took his flying certificate in a Klemm 35 - the open type of plane where the passenger sits in front of the pilot - in 1949 while he was studying in Stockholm to become a mining engineer. Later Lars found one of only five remaining Klemms in Sweden as well as a Tiger Moth and shipped them to California where he restored them and painted them with their original Swedish colours. Now he flies with his two planes to events all over North America and Europe still performing loopings and stunt events. When it gets too hot in Florida, Lars moves over to his house at Le Nid de Merle in France.
Hallandale
is a busy city that is growing by leaps and bounds, thanks to an explosion of new condominium developments. It is hard to imagine that this modern retirement haven was founded by the Swedish pastor Bengt Magnus Halland in 1897. He arrived in the United States in 1855 as a lone 17-year old. His widowed mother had died on the sea trip over. Without money or any education, he became a farm worker and a teacher to immigrant children and eventually he saved up enough money to enroll at the Augustana Synod and be ordained as a pastor. He changed his name from Johansson to Halland in honour of his province of birth. Seeing the endless influx of Swedes, he made a deal with a railroad company and founded the Iowa towns and churches of Stanton, Bethesda, Nyman, Creston and Red Oak. When he was taking in the sun and wintering in Florida north of Miami, he could not help but found a new church and that was the foundation of Hallandale.
SHOPPERS
tourists and sunbathers were some of the subjects of hyper-realistic pop sculptor Duane Hanson (1925-1996). Born in Minnesota, he was an art teacher at the U.S. Army Dependent School System in Germany when he started experimenting with synthetic moulds from bodies to make three-dimensional life-size sculptures that he painted and accessorized to make them realistic. After working in Atlanta and in New York, Hanson moved to Broward County in Florida where he also started working in bronze and making sculptures of clusters of people. The artist who always tried to “ennoble the commonplace, the ephemeral” was named “Florida Ambassador of the Arts” in 1983.
The Valencia Orange
is the basis of the Florida orange concentrate business and it was developed by a young Swedish botanist. Carl Leonard Vihln, who was educated in Uppsala, even has a street named after him in what was once called New Upsala but today is part of the city of Sanford, named after the general, lawyer, diplomat and entrepreneur Henry Shelton Sanford. Credited with developing the citrus industry on the 12 000 acres he bought in 1870 for $2 an acre, Sanford was actually simply following in the footsteps of Johan Anders Bostrm, who founded the towns of Ormond Beach and Daytona Beach. The young seaman and son of a teacher from the island of Gotland decided to stay in Florida in 1855 after he was shipwrecked for the third time. He was the first one to start cultivating oranges that were growing wild in this area. He brought over his siblings and had hundreds of workers helping him with his growing operation. For ten years whole John Andrew Bostrm was Florida’s citrus industry. It was after this that Sanford started importing workers from Sweden and getting into the act. With the help of the Uppsala judge Lars Henschen, 400 Swedes were eventually recruited. They founded New Upsala, building a school, post office, railway station and two churches. Nearby there are some beautiful Swedish-built “Victorian” houses, that the Swedes left behind when the 1894-1895 “double freeze” destroyed the citrus crops and many Swedes packed up and left.
Organizations
bring together the thousands of Swedes and Swedish-Americans in Florida. In the south there is SWEA - Swedish Women’s Educational Associ-ation (phone 561-395-0959) that organizes networking evenings, Valborg, midsummer, crayfish, and Lucia celebrations for Swedish-speaking women and their families. Swedish-speaking women in Sarasota have an informal group under the auspices of the Swedish Club (941-925-0454) that was founded in 1988. Four Vasa lodges - Royal Palm Lodge in Deerfield Beach (954-427-9987), Jubilee Lodge in DeLand (386-736-7443), Holiday Lodge in Gulfport and Miami Lodge in North Miami (305-891-2606) serve the social needs of Swedish-Americans. SACC - the Swedish American Chamber of Commerce (305-371-2029) takes care of the business people. In Miami there is a Swedish school (305-278-8565) and in St. Petersburg men can rip their hearts out with the Suncoast Swedish Veterans men’s chorus. In Winter Garden there is the Swedish American Society of Central Florida (407-656-8178) that aims to provide an educational link between Swedish-Americans and Sweden and in Jacksonville you have the active Scandinavian American Society of the South (725-1665).
St. Petersburg, FL
is today a city with a quarter of a million inhabitants but it started out as just the end station of Florida’s first railway. The Orange Belt Railway named the places where it opened stations after its investors. When the railway reached the end station the only investors whose names had not been used for a station were the Swedish-born Joseph Henschen (the son of the Uppsala judge who recruited the workers for Sanford) and the Russian-born Demeens. According to the city archives, Henschen felt that both names were too difficult to spell so he suggested that the station be called after Demeens’ place of birth, St. Petersburg. “It will never amount to much of anything anyhow, so its name won’t make any difference,” predicted the Swede!
Ingemar Johansson
was for long the most famous Swede living in Florida. The bricklayer from Goteborg who made Sweden proud when he knocked Floyd Paterson out and became the World Heavyweight Champion in 1959, now lives in a nursing home in Sweden. For years “Ingo” ran the Sea Cay Motel in Pompano Beach, with 14 rooms, almost single-handedly. He was also often seen playing golf with the mayor and the chief of police. After he sold the motel he divided his time between houses in Florida, Dalar in the Stockholm archipelago and Mallorca. Always friendly and approachable, Ingo was always ready to dish out autographs whether he was running the New York marathon or coming off the golf course. Today you may run into Sven Tumba on a golf course or catch a glimpse of journalist Ulf Nilsson, singer Ove Trnquist or entertainer Robert Welles who all have apartments here.
Saga Skafte-Lindblom
is Jacksonville’s honorary Swedish Consul Emeritus and will be honoured by the community when she celebrates her 100th birthday this fall. “She is the Queen Mother of Jacksonville’s international society,” says Darlene Hutto of the Scandinavian-American Club that was, together with the Italian-American Club as well as the German-American Club, founded by Skafte-Lindblom who speaks five languages and still potters in her garden, attends consular meetings and chairs a Dag Hammarskjld Memorial Committee, dedicated to establishing an international research institute at the university.
Cocoa Beach
has a Swedish fashion boutique that looks like it belongs on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills. The Season Tickets Boutique (204 West 520 Cocoa Beach Causeway, phone 407-784-8005) and Bianca (on A1A) are run by fashion-savvy se Berggren from the small village of Rangrd near Boliden. She bought a one-way ticket to Miami determined to succeed. Her large boutique is now a landmark for “the cosmopolitan woman of discriminatory taste.” Sofia Sohl in Key Biscayne is another entrepreneur with her Fia Stockholm one-person fashion company bringing over and showing Swedish fashion lines by Agneta Eckemyr and others in her beautiful home. Sohl works both as a representative and orders her own lines that sell as far away as in hotel boutiques in the Bahamas.
A motel in the sun
is a pipe dream for many Swedes. When Gunnar Hedqvist left a pulp and paper career at Sunds Defibrator, he and his wife Monica bought the Sunrise Resort Motel (727-446-9911 www.sunriseresortfla.com) in Clearwater Beach on the Mexican Gulf. The 22 room and apartment-motel is within walking distance of the beach, restaurants, nightclubs and shopping. Monica and Gunnar, who have a nice apartment on the premises, love their new lifestyle. In Sarasota, Mikael Mosti bought the motel and apartments at Southland Inn (941-954-5775 www.southlandinn.com) also because of the climate and lifestyle. Roger Stjernvall felt he was working too hard at his job for Silja Line so he bought the New Sun Gate Motel in Lake Worth (561-588-8110 www.new-sungate.com) that is dedicated to and decorated in honour of “the stars”, from James Dean to Marilyn Monroe. Not far from here you will find Palm Beach Bakery & Cafe with the smiling and friendly Ingrid Olsen at the counter. She and her husband have sold their Polar Bakery in Lantana whose limpa and other goodies Swedes are still talking about.
Anders Althin
can thank Florida for a fortune and a remarkable success story. After years as president of the giant dialysis company Gambro, he quit and bought a small fledgling medical corporation in Miami Lakes, carving out a niche, manufacturing dialysis equipment. After taking Althin Medical to a world leading position, he sold the company to Baxter and returned to his native Skane where he is now a major real estate player with properties in Lund and Blekinge worth about SEK 150 million.
From the June 2005 issue and Swedish Press

Kährs Nybro, Sverige 154 Years of Making Beautiful Hardwood Floors

2011-09-05T07:50:00.000-04:00

2011-08-05T03:07:00.001-04:00

History

The history of the Swedish immigration to America flowed into Florida too. In the mid-1800s, Sweden was a land of poverty, want and social frustration. Labor recruiters sent to Sweden touted America as a place to start a new life and through this promotion began a tidal wave of Swedish immigration. For the most part, these immigrants had to give up everything they owned, except for a few possessions that could fit into a steamer trunk. So great was this immigration that by the early 1900s, roughly one fifth of all Swedes lived in the United States.

The main story of Seminole County’s Swedish heritage begins with Henry Shelton Sanford’s labor problems in trying to establish his agricultural enterprises. In 1870, he purchased 12,548 acres on the south side of Lake Monroe, which became known as the Sanford Grant. Sanford, like many other entrepreneurs of the time, was infected by “orange fever” and the exaggerated promises of high profits for citrus growers. Due to labor problems, Sanford decided to replace his labor force with foreign immigrants under the Contract Labor Law.

History

Josephine Jacobs & New Upsala School Children courtesy of the Sanford Museum

What Was Turmoil In The Groves

2011-08-05T03:05:00.000-04:00

What Was Turmoil In The Groves

February 14, 1988|By James C. Clark of the Sentinel Staff

When the Florida citrus industry started in Sanford more than a century ago, finding laborers was a problem. Henry Sanford, the father of the modern citrus industry, first hired white residents, but soon dismissed them for failing to do the work correctly.

Next, Sanford hired black workers, who did good work, but were soon threatened by the fired whites. At one point, the whites attacked the blacks. The black workers left town.

Henry Sanford decided to try foreign labor. He hired 25 Swedish workers and brought them to Florida. The Swedes were to work for Sanford in exchange for their transportation from Europe, room and board, and a small salary.

The Swedes began arriving in 1871. There were 21 men and four women.

Almost from the start, there were problems. Florida's climate was radically different from Sweden's, and the Swedes were used to working inside. There was not enough work for some of the immigrants, especially the women. Some of the workers attempted to flee to Jacksonville. Three Swedes did make their escape, but were returned.

A second group of Swedes arrived in 1872, and caused even more problems. It was difficult to get them to work, even with encouragements such as extra food. They informed their bosses that in Sweden, Christmas was a three-day holiday and they expected to have the same holiday in the United States.

When their contract expired, those who had worked received 5-acre tracts near Sanford.

Henry Sanford gave up on immigrant labor and again hired blacks. And again there was violence as whites tried to force blacks from the groves. But eventually the attacks subsided.

The Swedes who remained in the area? They founded a town 3 miles west of Sanford and named it New Upsala.

2011-08-05T02:58:00.000-04:00

A team of Swedish researchers has found what some are calling a UFO under about 300 feet of water between Finland and Sweden. According to a piece in the Vancouver Sun,

"While using sonar to survey the Gulf of Bothnia last month, Ocean Explorer commander Peter Lindberg noticed an unusual 60-foot round object. According to the Ocean Explorer website, Lindberg said he had "never seen anything like it" even though has "spent hundreds of hours watching sonar images of the sea floor." While the object seems unusual, it's entirely possible that it could have occurred naturally. Lindberg refused to speculate on the object's origins, but in doing so he may have generated even more conjecture, making reference to one of the most famous and mysterious sites in the world "Since it might be nothing we cannot afford spending funds just to have a look at it," he adds. "Even if it might be a 'new' Stonehenge standing on the bottom."

American Contacts Nybro, Kalmar, Småland, Öland, Kingdom of Crystal, Glassriket, Orrefors, Kosta Boda

2011-08-03T08:24:00.002-04:00

If you are living or visiting the in Nybro, Kalmar, Smålöand, Kingdom of Crystal area and looking to make contact with Americans or English language people for questions, tips, you can contact bruceuhler@gmail.com.

We live in the Nybro area from Orlando, Florida.

Mvh,
Bruce

Arnold Lindberg (click on article to enlarge) translated to English by Google

2011-07-11T21:36:00.003-04:00

1997 Swedish American of the Year Arnold Lindberg, Orlando, Florida

2011-07-11T21:31:00.003-04:00

1997 – Arnold Lindberg

He began his career at Disney working as a mechanic, and after a few years progressed to head of technical constructions. By the time Lindberg retired, after 40 years with Disney, he was the Technical Director of all workshops at Disney World, overseeing more than 400 employees. He is also a gifted singer and folk dancer and has made several recordings of Swedish songs.

(Arnold and his lovely wife Eira were two of the founders of the Scandinavian Hagar Viking Club in Orlando. They and a few others started the club after moving from Los Angeles to Orlando to open up Walt Disney World)

LINDBERG, RICHARD
ARNOLD, Richard Arnold Lindberg was born to Eira and Arnold Lindberg on Feb. 15, 1958. Ricky as he was known to all was a wonderful and loving person. Even though he had Down Syndrome, he led a full and giving life. He not only thrived in the Special Olympics, earned the Order of the Arrow in Boy Scouts, he added to his community with a full time job. Ricky also had true belief in the Lord, as he read his Bible every day. He was a member of Delaney Street Baptist Church for many years and his friends will greatly miss him. Ricky brought great gladness to all he encountered with his easy laugh and great affection to all that he met. He never met a stranger and believed that every day was a blessing. Ricky was always included in the mainstream of life thanks to his mother and father and traveled throughout the United States and Sweden. Ricky's love of music was encouraged through his mother and father and we know he will be playing his accordion while his father sings along in heaven. Many family and friends will miss him but we know he is in a better place. A memorial service will be held at Delaney Street Baptist Church the week of Thanksgiving. In lieu of flowers donations may be made to the Delaney Street Baptist Church Musical Organ Fund.

Published in the Orlando Sentinel on September 25, 2009

Glad Midsommar!

2011-06-23T11:53:00.000-04:00

"Midsommar" Smörgåsbord Ikea Orlando · Friday, June 17, 2011, 5-8:00pm

Boda Glass Factory Glasriket Sweden

2011-06-17T15:15:00.004-04:00

Time	Saturday, June 18 · 1:00pm - 5:00pm

Location	THE GLASS FACTORY, STORGATAN 5, 360 65 BODA GLASBRUK

Created By	The Glass Factory

More Info	Kl 13.00 slår vi upp portarna på Storgatan i Boda Glasbruk. Kl 15.00 INVIGNING med invigningstal av Håkan Juholt, kulturivrare och partiledare för Socialdemokraterna. Kl 17.00-23.00 bjuder vi in till FEST i kulturrevolutionens tecken Dessutom: - Fritt inträde till museum och hytta med extra fina erbjudanden, endast invigningsdagen, i saluhallen OPEN. - Barnens hytta med glasmålning, pyssel mm. - Mat och dryck, grillat, öltält, fika mm, hela dagen och kvällen. Medverkande: Roskildeaktuella Fast på Holmen, Barockensemblen Musica Åfors, The Bicycle Repairmen: orkestern med de känsliga tolkningarna av missförstådda och erkända genier, Johansfors musikkår med glastrumpeter, Cirkus i Glasriket, trubaduren Peter Olsson, DJ m.fl. Vi ses på Storgatan - Boda Glasbruk – Välkommen!

Sweden America Day Kalmar Castle, Kalmar Sweden 12 June 2011

2011-06-11T06:27:00.000-04:00

Very nice, free event happening tomorrow at Kalmar Castle.

Sweden-America Day at Kalmar Castle

14.00 Chapel in English or Swedish in the Royal Chapel

15.00 Entertainment in the Green Hall, Kalmar Castle

About 16.30 Ostkakegille with entertainment in Kursenstiernska Farm, very near the castle

Contact Ann-Lena Karlsson 0480-168 60 or 0480 106 70

Lodge Calmare Key No. 628 http://www.voadl20.se/latest.html

IKEA Orlando Paskboard, Easter Dinner Friday, April 15th 2011

2011-03-25T02:13:00.000-04:00

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/store/orlando/restaurant

IKEA Orlando Easter Dinner Menu

Friday, April 15th 2011

5:00 pm – 8:00 pm

$9.99 Adults, $2.49 Children 12 and younger

The Paskbord Buffet Menu Includes:

 Swedish Ham

 Swedish Meatballs

 Prinskorv

 Smoked Salmon with Mustard Sauce

 Poached Salmon

 Assorted Herring

 Shrimp Cocktail

 Deviled Eggs with Shrimp

 Variety of Swedish Cheeses

 Red Beet Salad

 Cucumber Salad

 Potato Salad

 Tossed Green Salad

 Assorted Swedish Desserts and Cookies

 Fountain Drinks and Hot Beverages

IKEA Orlando

4092 Eastgate Dr.

Orlando, Fl 32839

407-355-3155

www.ikea-usa.com/orlando

2011-03-18T18:13:00.005-04:00

THE EMIGRANTS FROM SMÅLAND, SWEDEN. THE AMERICAN DREAM. by Ken Sawyer, Halifax, England

2011-03-18T16:17:00.000-04:00

THE EMIGRANTS FROM SMÅLAND, SWEDEN.
THE AMERICAN DREAM.
by Ken Sawyer, Halifax, England

http://fantasticsweden.co.uk/emigrants/theemigrantsfromsmalandsweden.pdf

A Brief History of New Sweden in America

2011-03-18T16:12:00.000-04:00

The 17th century saw Sweden as an European "Great Power" and one of the major military and political

combatants on the continent during the Thirty Years' War. By mid-century, the kingdom included part of Norway, all of Finland and stretched into Russia. Sweden's control of portions of modern Poland, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania and Germany made the Baltic Sea essentially a Swedish lake.

Perhaps inspired by the riches other Great Powers gathered from their overseas colonies, Sweden too sought to extend its influence to the New World. In 1637, Swedish, Dutch and German stockholders formed the New Sweden Company to trade for furs and tobacco in North America. Under the command of Peter Minuit, the company's first expedition sailed from Sweden late in 1637 in two ships, Kalmar Nyckel and Fogel Grip. Minuit had been the governor of the Dutch colony, New Netherland, centered on Manhattan Island, from 1626 to 1631.

The Swedish Emigration to America

2011-03-14T17:19:00.000-04:00

The Swedish Emigration to America

During the period of 1821 until 1930 about 1,3 million Swedes emigrated; some to Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South America but the overwhelming majority to the States. Nearly a sixth, in total over 200 000, did return to Sweden, but more than 1 million left their country for good. Among the factors that pushed people from Sweden: down-sizing of farm labourers (better tools, redistribution of land) the rapid population growth ("the vaccine, the peace, the potatoes") the years of bad crops during the second half of the 19th century discontent with society (military conscript duty, religious intolerance) Among the factors creating a pull to America: the supply of fertile land and of work opportunities the immigration propaganda the emigrants’ letters home to Sweden The first Swedish immigrants to North America were the colonists of New Sweden (Nya Sverige). The colony was established at the Delaware River in 1638, only 18 years after the first emigrants (“the Pilgrim Fathers”) from England had arrived on the Mayflower to New England. In total there were some 700 - 800 Swedes and Finns in the colony, which however eventually became Dutch and later British. During the next two centuries only the occasional Swede went to America, mostly merchants.
Only during the first half of the 19th century did some emigration start, often through different, not seldom religious groups led by strong personalities. For the period of 1820 – 1850 it has been established that about 5 000 people emigrated from Sweden and the following decade some 15 000 people. The first major wave of emigration started right after the Civil War and ran
until 1873. In the years 1866 – 1869 Sweden had three years of bad crops and it is estimated that some 120 000 left the country during this period. 1879 – 1893 is regarded as the top years of the emigration and during these 15 years a total of 485 000 Swedes emigrated. For five years more than 40 000 people emigrated every year................

Språkresor Orlando

2011-03-14T12:53:00.000-04:00

Sweden Consulate, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

2011-03-14T12:30:00.005-04:00

Consulate of Sweden

Tower 101
101 NE 3rd Avenue, Suite 1700
Fort Lauderdale, FL 33301
Phone: +1 954 467 3507

For a complete directory of Swedish Consulates in the USA please visit: http://www.swedenabroad.com/Consulates____7492.aspx
Thank you and kind regards

Friday April 15th, 2011 Påskbord Celebration IKEA Orlando

2011-03-14T04:38:00.002-04:00

http://www.ikea.com/us/en/store/orlando/restaurant

IKEA Orlando Easter Dinner Menu
Friday, April 15th 2011
5:00 pm – 8:00 pm
$9.99 Adults, $2.49 Children 12 and younger
The Paskbord Buffet Menu Includes:

 Swedish Ham
 Swedish Meatballs
 Prinskorv
 Smoked Salmon with Mustard Sauce
 Poached Salmon
 Assorted Herring
 Shrimp Cocktail
 Deviled Eggs with Shrimp
 Variety of Swedish Cheeses
 Red Beet Salad
 Cucumber Salad
 Potato Salad
 Tossed Green Salad
 Assorted Swedish Desserts and Cookies
 Fountain Drinks and Hot Beverages
IKEA Orlando
4092 Eastgate Dr.
Orlando, Fl 32839
407-355-3155
www.ikea-usa.com/orlando

Swedish Culture Center Link Seattle

2011-03-14T04:32:00.003-04:00

http://www.swedishculturalcenter.org/

Founded in Seattle in 1892 as
the Swedish Club, the Swedish
Cultural Center has grown to become a center of Scandinavian activities in the Pacific Northwest. Our members are not only Swedes and other Scandinavians, but people of many cultural backgrounds.

Would you like to receive e-mail about upcoming events at the Swedish Cultural Center? Let us know, and we’ll add you to our e-mail list.

Join our community on Facebook!

Distance from Stockholm to Orlando : 4865.1 Miles

2011-01-25T16:10:00.003-05:00

Distance from Stockholm to Orlando : 4865.1 Miles
( 7829.6 Kilometers / 4224.8 Nautical Miles )
Approximate flight duration time from Stockholm to Orlando is 10 hrs, 6 mins

click on Nordstjern for more information

2010-11-15T13:13:00.002-05:00

Nordstjernan

Swedes and Sanford, Florida

2010-11-15T12:57:00.000-05:00

The Valencia Orange is the basis of the Florida orange concentrate business and it was developed by a young Swedish botanist. Carl Leonard Vihln, who was educated in Uppsala, even has a street named after him in what was once called New Upsala, but today is part of the city of Sanford, named after the general, lawyer, diplomat and entrepreneur Henry Shelton Sanford. Credited with developing the citrus industry on the 12 000 acres he bought in 1870 for $2 an acre, Sanford was actually simply following in the footsteps of Johan Anders Boström, who founded the towns of Ormond Beach and Daytona Beach. The young seaman and son of a teacher from the island of Gotland decided to stay in Florida in 1855 after he was shipwrecked for the third time. He was the first one to start cultivating oranges that were growing wild in this area. He brought over his siblings and had hundreds of workers helping him with his growing operation. For ten whole years John Andrew Boström was Florida’s citrus industry. It was after this that Sanford started importing workers from Sweden and getting into the act. With the help of the Uppsala judge Lars Henschen, 400 Swedes were eventually recruited. They founded New Upsala, building a school, post office, railway station and two churches. Nearby there are some beautiful Swedish-built “Victorian” houses, that the Swedes left behind when the 1894-1895 “double freeze” destroyed the citrus crops and many Swedes packed up and left. New Upsala, an agricultural settlement north of Orlando, near Sanford in east-central Florida, was founded in 1870 by the Reverend William Henschen (1842-1925), his brother Esaias, and friends. It was named for Uppsala, Sweden, from where the Henschens came. General Henry Shelton Sanford, a wealthy entrepreneur, purchased 12,000 acres of land here, having been advised by Reverend Henschen that many Swedes would be eager to work the land if they had the means to pay for the transatlantic voyage. Sanford agreed to pay the cost in return for labor in the citrus groves.

Another brother, Josef Henschen, recruited the first laborers and led a group to Florida in 1871. He became a large citrus grower and landowner himself and he is probably responsible for having the former Pinellas Point on the west coast renamed St. Petersburg in honor of a Russian business associate. In 1880 he founded Forest City in Seminole County, now part of the greater Orlando area.

In 1875 Sanford donated one and one-half acres of land for a Swedish church and cemetery. It was served by Swedish Baptist and Presbyterian ministers until 1892, when it became a Lutheran congregation. The church disbanded in 1946 and the sanctuary was torn down. A bronze tablet marks its former location.
Nearby is the Swedish cemetery amid giant live oaks draped with Spanish moss. Also at the site is a Seminole County Historical marker entitled “Upsala Swedish Community.” It notes that “this site was the center of the earliest and largest Swedish community in Florida. Located here were the Scandinavian Society Lutheran Church; its cemetery; and a meeting house, which also served as a school until 1904. In May 1871 thirty-three Swedish immigrants (twenty-six men and seven women) arrived under the sponsorship of Henry S. Sanford for the purpose of developing his citrus groves. … General Sanford’s initial cost was $75 per person ($65 for transportation and $10 to a recruiting agent). He also agreed to give each immigrant free rations and living quarters for one year, after which each would be given a parcel of land. In November 1871, twenty additional Swedes arrived and joined the original immigrants to form the Upsala community. Many descendants of these early immigrants still live in the Sanford area.”

This site is located on Upsala Road not far from the Presbyterian Church of Upsala, a white-clapboard structure (at Twenty-fifth Street). In front of the church is a Seminole County historical marker with the following inscription: “In October 1890, the younger generation of Swedish immigrants, whose parents had been persuaded to settle here by Henry Sanford, organized a Swedish Presbyterian congregation along American lines. … The original structure was erected in 1892, and was used continuously until… the new building was constructed in 1985. The first pastor of the Upsala Church was the Reverend John Fredrick Sundell, who also organized the Lake Mary Church, two miles south of here.”

At the entrance to the Henry Shelton Sanford Memorial Library and Museum. 520 E. First Street, Sanford (407-302-1000), there is a bronze plaque that notes that “much of the labor in the groves was performed by Swedish immigrants who settled in nearby New Upsala.” A street where many early Swedes lived is named Upsala Avenue, and many homes in historic downtown Sanford were built by Swedish carpenters. The museum displays artifacts from the early Swedish community, including photos of Nels Julius Stenstrom, who established the first dairy in central Florida in the 1870s and who married Josephine Jacobs, a teacher of English to the Swedes of New Upsala. The Museum of Seminole County History, 300 Bush Boulevard (407-665-2489; www.co.seminole.fl.us), exhibits a number of early photographs of the county and sells books of historic interest.
In the Windchase subdivision outside Sanford is the Belair historical marker, which identifies a 400-acre portion of the original 12,000-acre grant acquired by General Sanford in 1870. Part of this land became an experimental station for various citrus fruits. Swedes were involved with these experiments.
In nearby Lake Mary in front of the Lake Mary Historical Museum is a plaque showing the community’s historic sites. Many houses and other structures have Swedish connections. The town may have been named for Reverend Sundell’s wife, Mary Amelia. A prominent resident was merchant and entrepreneur Axel Evald Sjoblom, who formally platted the town as a resort. First Presbyterian Church, at 128 W. Wilbur Avenue, was organized in 1894 by Reverend Sundell, minister of Upsala Presbyterian Church.
Copyright © 2009 nordicway.com and Swedish Council of America (http://shop.mnhs.org/moreinfo.cfm?Product_ID=868 for copies of Touring Swedish America). All Rights Reserved
http://www.nordicway.com/tour/?p=tour/view&id=443

Lucia Celebration Sanford, Florida December 20, 2010

2010-11-12T05:36:00.000-05:00

Saturday
December 11, 2010
1 – 4 pm Museum of Seminole County History

300 Bush Boulevard

Sanford, Florida 32773

info@sanfordstlucia.com

http://www.sanfordstlucia.com/

2010-11-12T05:34:00.001-05:00

2010-11-12T05:02:00.000-05:00

American Thanksgiving 2010 Nybro Sweden, Kalmar & Växjö Areas Småland

2010-11-12T05:01:00.001-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving

What: American Thanksgiving
Where: Madesjö Prästgård, Hermanstorpv. 4
When: Saturday, November 27, 2010
Time: 1:00pm

100 SEK per person over 15 years of age

Please RSVP by November 21, 2010
Bring your own drinks and a dish to share
Margareta Uhler 073 88 48 880
bruceuhler@gmail.com

Now Living IN Sweden

2010-07-29T04:53:00.002-04:00

We made the move and now live near Kalmar Sweden. Come visit us.

Lucia - Winter Park Florida December 5

2009-12-09T17:15:00.002-05:00

The evening was huge success. Thanks to Mona, Pia, Catherine, Elizabeth, Lena and Margareta(who could not attend due to her flight schedule).
Over 130 people attended, the food, the music, the dancing and Tomte were great.
Thanks everyone for your participation. Pictures to Follow

Swedes and Citrus in the Sunshine State

2009-12-09T17:14:00.001-05:00

Swedes and Citrus in the Sunshine State
Forgotten History: They’re a symbol of the Sunshine State: When you think oranges in the United States, you think Florida. You certainly don’t think Sweden.
Florida’s citrus industry is one of its economic mainstays, generating more than $8 billion a year. The state’s 12,000 citrus growers cultivate some 107 million citrus trees on more than 858,000 acres of land. The state produces more oranges than any other region of the world, except Brazil. But at the risk of sounding like a Swedish version of “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”—we have a Swede to thank for it all. The fact that Swedes founded Florida’s modern citrus industry is a forgotten chapter of Swedish-American history. Boström’s orange boom Johan Anders Boström, a sailor and a teacher’s son from the Swedish island of Gotland, is the undisputed father of the Swedish/U.S. citrus industry. He set out to cultivate them, realizing their commercial potential early on. In the process, he founded a boom industry, as well as the cities of Ormond Beach, (Florida’s first millionaire playground), and Daytona Beach. Fate obviously wanted Boström in Florida—he survived three shipwrecks off its coast before taking the hint and leaving the sailor’s life behind to settle there for good in 1865. At that time, Florida was still mainly wilderness, with only about 100,000 people, and still recovering from the Seminole and Civil Wars. Boström took advantage of Florida’s Armed Occupation Act, which accorded each settler five acres to cultivate and, after five years, 160 additional acres and one year’s rations. He settled at Hog Pen on the Halifax River and sent for his brother Charles from Sweden to help him in his orange groves. He didn't know much about agriculture, but he learned a lot during the five to seven years it takes for orange trees to produce their first fruit. Boström acquired additional acreage for $1 an acre and built the first house on the banks of Halifax River, on what is now Riverside Drive in Ormond Beach. A couple of years later, the brothers also developed large groves further north. They founded Daytona Beach as a grove center and built the first house there. Once Boström's orange groves were in full production, people began shipping crates of oranges to friends and relatives up north. Most likely that's how the Corbin Lock Company of New Britain, Conn., first discovered the fruit and realized the crop’s potential. In 1871, they dispatched horticulturists to Florida to look at Boström's groves and scout for suitable land for colonies for their employees. They purchased an area of land bordering Boström's along Halifax River. The arrival of Corbin Lock was the start of what might be called a citrus gold rush—one that, from the growers’ perspective, came to be dominated one way or another by Swedes for the next 15 to 20 years. Oranges made Boström a wealthy man. He built a new 14-bedroom house he called “Bosarvet” (“Bo’s inheritance”) in 1903, along with much of the city of Ormond Beach. He shared the estate with his brother and two sisters, and hosted the likes of the Rockefellers and Vanderbilts. Bosarvet is still a landmark in Ormond Beach. Boström lived there until his death at 91 in 1927, the town’s oldest inhabitant (and former mayor). His grandson still lives there today. The story of New Upsala Another chapter in the story of Swedish citrus focuses on the pioneering efforts of the sons of noted judge Lars Henschen, of Uppsala. One of his sons, William, emigrated with a group of friends to Seminole County, Florida, where they established an agricultural settlement there called New Upsala. The settlers cleared the land and planted orange trees. While waiting for their first yield, they earned livings as carpenters, blacksmiths and tailors. That was until the former general and ambassador Henry S. Sanford saw what among others, the Corbin Lock Company was doing and got bitten by the orange bug. He bought 12,500 acres along St. Johns River and Lake Monroe, north of the small village of Orlando. Sanford had been advised to use immigrant labor due to the hostile view in Florida towards using black labor. So he hired all of the Swedes in New Upsala and asked the Henschen brothers to bring over some more. The first group of 32 immigrants sailed from Gothenburg on board the “SS Scandinavia” on April 23, 1871; another group on October 10, 1871, also from Gothenburg; and a third group from Liverpool, England, in July 1872. As more Swedes arrived, New Upsala grew to support two churches, a school and a railroad station. For the colony to be as self-sustaining as possible, New Upsala attracted workers including masons, carpenters, tailors, cabinetmakers, tanners, etc., as well as farm workers. As the colony grew, it was renamed Sanford. However, there are still many reminders of its Swedish heritage. Upland Road still exists, leading to New Upsala Swedish Baptist Church. And the Sanford Museum contains numerous Swedish memorabilia and artifacts, including a list of every Swede who arrived to work at the Sanford groves. Sanford not only developed citrus groves, but took pride in cultivating practically every fruit-bearing tree of the tropics. For that, he relied on his Swedish head gardener, I.E. Wenström, and botanist Alfred Löfgren. For his head horticulturist, he turned again to Sweden, hiring Dr. Carl Leonard Vihlén of the University of Uppsala, whom the Florida Citrus Manual credits with developing the Valencia orange, the basis for today's juice industry. The New Upsala colony thrived in Sanford until the terrible “double freeze” of the winter of 1894-1895, which destroyed the citrus crops. Many of the Swedish families there were forced to leave the area to find work, and scattered across the state. William Henschen didn’t stay long either. He pulled up stakes after only a couple of years and moved to Brooklyn in New York, where he served as editor of the newly founded Swedish-American weekly newspaper Nordstjernan (owned today by Swedish News, the publisher of Nordic Reach) from 1873 to 1874. The birth of St. Petersburg Henschen’s brother Joseph, who was more of a businessman than his brothers, also dabbled in the railroad. He and three partners, Demens, Sweetapple and Taylor. Together they founded the Orange Belt Railway, which is remembered chiefly for its role in founding one of Florida’s major cities. Early in 1887, when construction work on the Orange Belt Railway was starting and post offices were being established along the road west, Mrs. Ella E. Ward was appointed postmistress for the town at the far west end of the road. She immediately faced a dilemma: The town had no name. How would mail be addressed? She was told that the town should be named after one of the four original backers of the Orange Belt--Demens, Sweetapple, Taylor or Henschen. So Mrs. Ward went to the railway headquarters of the, where only Henschen was present at the time. Several stories have been told about how the town finally did get its name, but according to Henschen himself: “They wanted me to name the town, and I didn’t know what to call it. We’d already named a town along the way after Taylor [Taylorville], to call it Sweetapple would have doomed the town from the start, and my name is too difficult to spell. However, I knew that Demens wanted a town named after his Russian place of birth. So I thought to myself, why not call this town down there on the Gulf of Mexico St. Petersburg–it will never amount to anything anyhow, so its name won’t make any difference. That is the way St. Petersburg got its name.” ‘A Swede in every grove’ By the mid-1870s, Swedish growers and workers were a major presence in the citrus groves of Florida. The industry was a magnet for Swedes seeking fortunes in the New World. Olof Larsson, for example, a native of Värmland, acquired several thousand acres in Piedmont, which is now part of the town of Apopka, near Orlando, and covered in large part by Disney World. Further to the east, between Orlando and Boström's groves in Volusia County, lies the town of Pierson. It is named for Per Persson (known locally as Peter Pierson) and his family, who founded and ran the town for years. From St. Petersburg to Daytona Beach there was, as someone said, “a Swede in every grove.” So many that there was even a Swedish-language newspaper for a time, Florida Posten. The Hallströms of Vero Beach The last of the Swedish citrus pioneers to make a major impact on the industry was Axel Hallström, a farmer’s son from Skåne. He arrived in Florida towards the end of the century, looking for suitable land to grow pineapples. He discovered that pineapples weren’t a profitable proposition and switched to citrus on a grand scale. He had loading docks for the Florida East Coast Railroad built right on his property, just south of what today is Vero Beach. He named the area Viking County and owned the land between Oslo and Stockholm Roads. Oslo Road is today one of the main roads through the former Viking County, now called Indian River County. Hallström became the first president of the Orange Growers Association and the Florida Citrus Growers Exchange. He also founded the only area bank to weather the Great Depression. Driving along the Old Dixie Highway south of Vero Beach, I have often admired a large, beautiful red brick Victorian building set back anonymously from the road. About a year ago, it was named the new headquarters of the Indian River County Historical Society. It had been donated by Axel Hallström's daughter. She was born in the house, which took her father, an early widower, ten years to build. She never married and willed the house to the Society upon her death, at 100, a couple of years ago. On the other side of the Indian River Lagoon, in the city of Vero Beach, there is another Swedish memento: the Wahlstrom Sculpture Garden, which includes Carl Milles’ “Boy and the Dolphin,” and is part of the large, Swedish-run Vero Beach Museum. But that's another story… -- Lars H. Ottoson Fun Facts about Swedes, Oranges and Florida Citrus trees aren’t native to Florida. China is credited as the birthplace of citrus—dating back to 2200 B.C. (hence the Swedish word for orange, apelsin–”äppelsin,” or “Chinese apple”). The first citrus fruit was brought to the New World by Christopher Columbus on his second voyage, and early Spanish explorers planted the first orange trees around St. Augustine sometime between 1513 and 1565. Pierson and St. Petersburg aren’t the only Florida towns named by or after Swedes. In 1897, Bengt Magnus Johansson, a crofter’s son originally from the Swedish province of Halland, moved his family to Florida from Illinois to improve his ailing health. Johansson, formerly the pastor of the Lutheran Augustana Synod’s seminary in Paxton, Ill., had by then changed his last name to Halland to honor the province of his provenance. During his first winter in Florida, he founded a new congregation that eventually grew into a village and is now a city of close to 100,000 people. That city is Hallandale, just a few miles north of Ft. Lauderdale. Orange juice is a staple in today's refrigerators. But the orange juice industry (as opposed to whole fruit) didn’t develop until after World War II. The post-war era ushered in the baby boom and the growth of America's suburbs. Frozen concentrated orange juice, along with other frozen food items, started to appear in freezers throughout the country. Frozen concentrate remained the most popular form of orange juice until the early 1990s, when ready-to-serve chilled orange juice surpassed frozen juice in sales.

Svenska Kyrkan i Florida

2009-11-30T15:55:00.005-05:00

2009 är det år då Svenska kyrkan i Florida grundas. Det är historiskt! Den 6 december installeras församlingens kyrkoherde och inför invigningen hålls festliga aktiviteter.
Nedan hittar du intressanta fakta om församlingen i Florida och kalendarium för invigningen. Välkommen!

Vem är präst i Florida?
Kyrkoherde i Svenska kyrkan i Florida är Olof Olsson. Han har tidigare tjänstgjort i Svenska kyrkan i utlandet i Brasilien, Thailand och på Kanarieöarna. Olof kommer att arbeta tillsammans med sin fru Marie Olsson som är anställld som assistent i församlingen.

Var hålls gudstjänsterna?
Svenska kyrkan i Florida samarbetar med de lokala kyrkorna i området och kommer att fira gudstjänst i St Martin’s Episcopal Church i Pompano Beach och i St Immanuel Lutheran Church i Miami. Gudstjänst kommer att hållas en gång i månaden på vardera plats. Svenska kyrkan i Florida har egen kör med solister och pianist/organist.

Finns aktiviteter utanför Florida?
Avstånden i Florida och sydöstra USA är stora och för att ge så många som möjligt tillgång till kyrkans aktiviteter kommer verksamheten att spridas till andra delar av Florida och till grannstater som Georgia och South Carolina.

Hur kontaktar jag församlingen?
Församlingen leds av ett kyrkoråd bestående av 11 medlemmar. Ordförande är Per-Olof Lööf, honorär konsul i Florida. Till höger på sidan hittar du kontaktinformation till församlingen.

Samarbetar kyrkan med Scandinaivan Center?
Scandinavian Center ägs och drivs av Norska Sjömanskyrkan. Vi hoppas och tror att vi kommer att etablera ett mycket gott samarbete med den Norska Sjömanskyrkan framöver. Vi har idag inget formellt kontrakt med Scandinavian Center.

Hur startade kyrkan i Florida?
Vi ser nu resultatet av 2 års fokuserade aktiviteter och stort intresse från svenskar i Florida. Detta har lett till att vi nu har kunnat bilda en Svensk församling i Florida. Det började med enstaka vårgudstjänster, högmässor och konserter som senare växte fram till en fungerande organisation runt kyrkoverksamheten. Många i kyrkorådet har aktivt deltagit i arbetet för att starta församlingen.

Inauguration at the Swedish Church in Florida
Date / time
12.06.2009 05:00 PM
Location FL, US
Inauguration of the Swedish Church in Florida’s first reverend, Olof Olsson by the Head of the Swedish Church abroad Lennart Koskinen PhD. Church sermon. (no need to sign up) For information please contact the assistant of the church, Marie Olsson Florida@svenskakyrkan.se telephone 954-604-4214 or Pia Azzara, email: P_azzara@bellsouth.net Phone: 954-427-6522; Filippa Reading email: filippa2@att.net Phone: 954-478-1877 We are looking for donors and sponsors. Please note that all donations to this event will benefit the Swedish Church in Florida. All donations are tax deductible. W E L C O M E!!! The board of Directors of SCIF.
Organisation
Swedish Church in Florida.
Email
Florida@svenskakyrkan.se
Phone
954-604-4214
URL
http://www.swedishchurchinflorida.org/

Upsala Cemetery Sanford Florida (Near Seminole Towne Center)

2009-11-29T22:02:00.005-05:00

THE HISTORY OF UPPSALA SWEDISH COMMUNITY

(Off Upsala Road in West Sanford near I-4)

This was the center of the earliest and largest Swedish community in Florida. Located here were the Scandinavian Society Lutheran Church, it's Cemetery, and a meeting house, which also served as a school until 1904.

In May of 1871 thirty-three Swedish immigrants (twenty-six men and seven women) arrived under the sponsorship of Henry S. Sanford for the purpose of developing his citrus groves (St. Gertrude, which extended from what is now Central Florida Regional Hospital south to Third Street: and Belair, west of the railroad tracks on Old Lake Mary Road).

General Sanford's initial cost was $75.00 per person ($65.00 for transportation and 10.00 to a recruiting agent). He also agreed to give each immigrant free rations and living quarters for one year, after which each would be given a parcel of land. In November 1871 twenty additional Swedes arrived and joined the original immigrants to form the Uppsala community. Many descendants of these early immigrants still live in the Sanford area.

**From the historical marker placed at the Cemetery by the Seminole County Historical Commission.**

A marker placed by St. Paul's EV. Lutheran Church of Orlando, Florida May 1951

Augustana Lutheran Synod 1892-1946

ALMAZU, Martin H. 1-15-198 - 3-30-1983

ANDERSON, John 1866 - ?

ANDERSON, Sofia M. 1858 - 1939

ANGEL of JOY (beloved daughter of Joyce marker made of wood & over grown with weeds)

ANSORGE (double head stone on bottom of head stone - In Loving Memory)

Pearl M. (Wife)12-18-1913 - 9-28-1994

Werner (Husband)12-12-1914 -1-10-1999

BENGTSON, Christina 1839 - 1929

BENGTSON, Edward 1881 - 1887 (Edward's grave was not next to the other Bengson's)

BENGTSON, Elias 1844 - 1883 (along the back row with Chirstina & Eric)

BENGTSON, Eric 1836 - 1934

BORELL, Chirstine 3-10-? - 3-? 1961 (90 years ?mo. 89days grave is sunkin)

BORELL, John E. 10-3-1857 - 8-27-1943(together in woods with Chirstine but 2 stones)

DAYALE, MARTI?? 3-30-? (2 years ?mo. ?days)

ERICKSON, Frank 1848 - 1928

ENROTH (double head stone)

Carl G. 1839 - 1913

Charlotte C. 1842 - 1903 (love never fails - on bottom of stone)

FRY, Albert A. 1894 - 1954 (son of Noah & Augusta)

FRY (double head stone)

Noah A. (Father) 1870-1936

Augusta B. (Mother) 1871 - 1972

GREEN, Marr 4-6-1960 (no other information)

HALLOWAY, Jossie L. 1887 - 1980 (wife of Walter)

HALLOWAY, Walter Brown 10-19-1889 - 7-3-1954 (Tennesse GM2 US Navy Chaplin - Gone but not forgotten on bottom of stone)

HALLOWAY, Patsy Ann 10-5-1935 - 6-11-1937 (Close to Jossie and Walter)

LUNDQUIST, Mr. Alex T. 7-3-? - 1953 (72 years 5 mo. 12days)

LUNDQUIST, JoAnne 1933 - 1942 (buried next to Mr. Alex)

LUNDQUIST, John Harold 7-16-1931 - 12-2-1957 (PVT US Air Force)

LUNDQUIST, John Gardar 1885 - 1943

LUNDQUIST, John 1885 - 1934 (three headstones together as one Lundquist & Starnes)

LUNDQUIST TWINS (Double flat marker)

Joane 1933 - 1942

Gerald D. 1933 - 1933

MARRS (double headstone)

Clover ?-?-? - 12-20-?28

Paul ?-?-1895 - 6-27-1953

STARNES Anne M. (Lundquist) 1905 - 1986

STARNES, Harley E. 1915 - 1982 (buried under the Lundquist head stone with John & Anne)

STEDT (next to each other)

Carl J. 1842 - 1929

Emma C. 1871 - 1932

SODERBLOM, Fred Gustaf 5-10-1930 (no other information)

TYNER, Gussiee 1909 - 1910

TYNER, Leonard B. 1905 1906

TYNER, James D. 1897 - 1957 (James, Leonard & Gussiee are together along the back row)

TYNER, Thomas Olin 7-10-1917 - 11-27-1943 (Florida SGT. Army AirForce WW2 PH. In memory of - is at the top of the stone)

**The next two double stones are side by side**

TYNER (double head stone)

Thomas D. 1877 - 1961 (Father)

Mitilda B. 1875 - 1969 (Mother)

TYNER (double head stone)

Elmer J. 1903 - 1982 (Father)

Louetta W. 1922 - 1975 (Mother)

? Robert R. 1963 (No other information, grave is under bushes with a funeral marker)

**Note, although every effort was made during the recording of this information, no guarantee is made of 100% accuracy.

Upsala Cemetery Pictures

Extra Information on the families buried in the cemetery

Elias Bengtson is listed in the 1880 Orange County, Florida Federal Census as an orange farmer, 37, wife Christina 39, daughters Augusta 9, Charlotte 7, Matilda 5, Hilda 3, sons Elaf 5 and Rueben 1.

In the 1920 Orange County, Florida Federal Census, Christina Bengston listed as a widow is living with her daughter Gussie and son in law Noah A. Fry along with nine boarders

John Borell is listed in the 1900 Orange County, Florida Federal Census born Oct 1857 in Swedenm married in 1893 to Christine born in Norway on April 1870. For John his year of immigration was 1883, Christines was 1871.

John and Christine are listed in the Seminole County, Florida Census. John is listed as a farm laborer for a orange grove. Living with John and Christine is Woodard Bertson age 11, nephew to John.

In the 1930 census Woodard is listed as Woodard Borell, nephew to John.

Both John and Christine are listed in the Florida Death Index

Werner and Pearl (Tyner) Ansorge are listed in the Duval County, Florida Marriage Collection. Married 1936, Volume 320 Certificate 447. Both are listed in the Florida Death Index.

In 1920 Frank Erickson was living in Lake Mary, Seminole County, Florida as a boarder in the home of Albert and Edith Rantoul. Frank is from Sweden.

In 1910 Noah Alexander, Gussie (Augusta) and son Albert Fry are living in Sanford, Orange County (now Seminole County) Florida. Also living in the household are Christopher Beudon and Jackarish Fry.

In the 1920 Gotha, Orange County, Florida census Noah is listed as .as a farm overseer and Gussie is the manager of the boarding house they are living in. Gussies mother is living with Noah and Gussie.

In 1930 Noah and Gussie are living in Sanford, Seminole County, Florida.

Noah is listed in the Florida death index

Joanne Lundquist is listed in the Seminole County, Florida death index

Paul Wampler Marrs is listed in the Seminole County, Florida death index

Anne Mae Starnes is listed in the Seminole County, Florida death index. Birth date is listed as 31 March 1905 death is 21 May 1986.

Harley E Starnes is listed in the Seminole County death index. Birth 11 March 1915 death 20 Mar 1982. Harley and Anne are both listed in the Social Security Death Index.

Carl and Emma and daughter Ebba Stedt are listed in the 1910 Orange County, Florida Federal Census. Carl is a fruit grower from Sweden he and Emma were married in 1894. Ebba was born in 1901

In 1920 Paola, Seminole County, Florida Carl is listed as a farm laborer for the local orange grove. Ebba is not listed as living with her parents in 1920.

The Thomas Tyner family is listed in the 1920 West Sanford, Seminole Clounty, Florida census. Wife Matilda 44, son's James D 22, Elmer 16, Thomas 2, daughters Florence 12, Eleanor 8, and Pearl 6. Thomas is from Georgia and a pipe fitter for a car shop. Matilda is from Florida as is all her children. Matildas parents are from Sweden.

The family is listed in the 1930 census as living in the same area as in 1920. Thomas is a pipe fitter for a gas company. Son James is listed as 32 still living at home with no job. Son Elmer is not listed with the family.

Elmer Tyner and Louetta W. Collins were married in Seminole County, Florida in Feb. of 1967. Elmer is listed in the Social Security Death Index, birth date is 13 April 1903 death date is November 1982. Louetta is also listed in the death index. Birth is 7 Oct 1920 and death is 26 Nov. 1975.

Remembering Swedish Boxing Legend Ingemar Johansson

2009-11-29T21:49:00.001-05:00

Remembering Swedish Boxing Legend Ingemar Johansson

Ingemar Johannson died in a Swedish nursing home in January 2009 at the age of 76. He’d lived in the nursing home in the Swedish coastal city of Kungsbacka since the mid 1990’s when he was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and dementia, and had suffered from a tough case of pneumonia immediately prior to his death.

Johannson rocketed to international fame and rock star like superstardom in Sweden by virtue of his 3rd round knockout victory over Floyd Patterson on June 26, 1959 to become only the 5th heavyweight champion born outside of the US. Johannson was considered the underdog going into the matchup, and due to the perception that he wasn’t training particularly hard entered the bout a 5/1 underdog. Johansson was frequently seen in Catskill nightspots during his training camp with his attractive young secretary in stark contrast to Patterson’s disciplined regimen in preparation for his title defense.

His performance against the champ that night in Yankee Stadium shocked the boxing world”after a tentative first two rounds, Johannson floored Patterson with a short right early in the third. The champ never recovered and with no three knockdown rule in effect was knocked down a total of seven times before referee Ruby Goldstein called a halt to the proceedings and awarded the Swede the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world.

Patterson would regain the title just under a year later, becoming the first man to ever regain the heavyweight championship. Patterson was on top of Johannson from the opening bell, and eventually knocked his opponent out cold in the fifth round with a devastating left hook. After the fight was stopped Patterson was more concerned with Johannson’s well being and cradled his vanquished foe’s head while medical staff attended to him.

Johannson would again face Patterson less than a year later, with the champ retaining his title via 6th round knockout after an exciting slugfest that saw both competitors taste the canvas. Eventually, however, Patterson’s superior conditioning prevailed and he earned the victory. Johannson would fight only four more times after that, all in his home country of Sweden, before retiring for good in 1963.

Not surprising given the mutual respect shown during their heavyweight championship trilogy, Patterson and Johannson remained close lifelong friends and would travel to visit each other every year until the American champion died in 2006. While it is commonplace today for former in-ring adversaries to become close personal friends, it was something of an anomaly in the 1960s. Johannson made a number of film appearances in Sweden, and spent time in South Florida every year. He remained in good health well into his sixties, running in marathons yearly until his physical ailments took their toll.

Ingemar Johansson is considered one of Sweden’s greatest sports heroes, and was a crucial element in fueling the popularity of boxing in Europe and Scandinavia. He was married and divorced twice, and is survived by five children.

Ross Everett is a widely published freelance writer and respected authority on sports betting odds comparison. He writing has appeared on a variety of sports sites including sportsbooks and betting odds portal sites. He lives in Northern Nevada with three Jack Russell Terriers and an emu. He is currently working on an autobiography of former energy secretary Donald Hodell.

Nordic Way

2009-11-29T21:45:00.000-05:00

Florida

Swampland Lots
are all that many Swedes got when they bought real estate in Florida. Many bought site unseen with $10 down and payments of $10 a month from Carl Magnuson Jr. whose father from ml in Sweden pioneered real estate in Miami. Junior bought thousands of acres, incorporating them and making himself the mayor and controlling his own town council. He became the subject of many a lawsuit by disgruntled buyers, but always managed to come away clean. And now with rapidly rising land values, some of his quarter or half acre lots, water-logged as they may be, could actually be worth something.

South Beach
in Miami was for many years a run-down slum until developers realized the beauty of the Art Deco buildings. Today it is the place to stay, shop and be entertained in. Ulf Johansson, who came to Florida to sell Swedish log houses and ended up making money renovating houses, was one of the first to see the potential of South Beach. He bought and renovated the beautiful Waldorf Tower’s Hotel (860 Ocean Drive, 1-800-933-Beach) that became “South Beach’s most photographed hotel” and for a long time the most “in” nightclub.

Lars de Jounge
is your quintessential Swedish Floridian. A tall and distinguished retiree with a permanent tan, he lives in Vero Beach where Swedes settled as early as in 1904 and where they organized the Evangelical Mission Covenant Church in 1942. For your Swedish content today you can visit the Wahlstrom Sculpture Garden at the Vero Beach Museum of Art and admire the sculpture “Sunglitter” by Carl Milles.

But Lars de Jounge moved to Vero Beach because he found a property here that came with a landing strip for his Klemm and Tiger Moth planes. Close by, at the Vero Beach airport, another flying enthusiast is helping the Swede to restore a Saab Safir 91D. Lars took his flying certificate in a Klemm 35 - the open type of plane where the passenger sits in front of the pilot - in 1949 while he was studying in Stockholm to become a mining engineer. Later Lars found one of only five remaining Klemms in Sweden as well as a Tiger Moth and shipped them to California where he restored them and painted them with their original Swedish colours. Now he flies with his two planes to events all over North America and Europe still performing loopings and stunt events. When it gets too hot in Florida, Lars moves over to his house at Le Nid de Merle in France.

Hallandale
is a busy city that is growing by leaps and bounds, thanks to an explosion of new condominium developments. It is hard to imagine that this modern retirement haven was founded by the Swedish pastor Bengt Magnus Halland in 1897. He arrived in the United States in 1855 as a lone 17-year old. His widowed mother had died on the sea trip over. Without money or any education, he became a farm worker and a teacher to immigrant children and eventually he saved up enough money to enroll at the Augustana Synod and be ordained as a pastor. He changed his name from Johansson to Halland in honour of his province of birth. Seeing the endless influx of Swedes, he made a deal with a railroad company and founded the Iowa towns and churches of Stanton, Bethesda, Nyman, Creston and Red Oak. When he was taking in the sun and wintering in Florida north of Miami, he could not help but found a new church and that was the foundation of Hallandale.

SHOPPERS
tourists and sunbathers were some of the subjects of hyper-realistic pop sculptor Duane Hanson (1925-1996). Born in Minnesota, he was an art teacher at the U.S. Army Dependent School System in Germany when he started experimenting with synthetic moulds from bodies to make three-dimensional life-size sculptures that he painted and accessorized to make them realistic. After working in Atlanta and in New York, Hanson moved to Broward County in Florida where he also started working in bronze and making sculptures of clusters of people. The artist who always tried to “ennoble the commonplace, the ephemeral” was named “Florida Ambassador of the Arts” in 1983.

The Valencia Orange
is the basis of the Florida orange concentrate business and it was developed by a young Swedish botanist. Carl Leonard Vihln, who was educated in Uppsala, even has a street named after him in what was once called New Upsala but today is part of the city of Sanford, named after the general, lawyer, diplomat and entrepreneur Henry Shelton Sanford. Credited with developing the citrus industry on the 12 000 acres he bought in 1870 for $2 an acre, Sanford was actually simply following in the footsteps of Johan Anders Bostrm, who founded the towns of Ormond Beach and Daytona Beach. The young seaman and son of a teacher from the island of Gotland decided to stay in Florida in 1855 after he was shipwrecked for the third time. He was the first one to start cultivating oranges that were growing wild in this area. He brought over his siblings and had hundreds of workers helping him with his growing operation. For ten years whole John Andrew Bostrm was Florida’s citrus industry. It was after this that Sanford started importing workers from Sweden and getting into the act. With the help of the Uppsala judge Lars Henschen, 400 Swedes were eventually recruited. They founded New Upsala, building a school, post office, railway station and two churches. Nearby there are some beautiful Swedish-built “Victorian” houses, that the Swedes left behind when the 1894-1895 “double freeze” destroyed the citrus crops and many Swedes packed up and left.

Organizations
bring together the thousands of Swedes and Swedish-Americans in Florida. In the south there is SWEA - Swedish Women’s Educational Associ-ation (phone 561-395-0959) that organizes networking evenings, Valborg, midsummer, crayfish, and Lucia celebrations for Swedish-speaking women and their families. Swedish-speaking women in Sarasota have an informal group under the auspices of the Swedish Club (941-925-0454) that was founded in 1988. Four Vasa lodges - Royal Palm Lodge in Deerfield Beach (954-427-9987), Jubilee Lodge in DeLand (386-736-7443), Holiday Lodge in Gulfport and Miami Lodge in North Miami (305-891-2606) serve the social needs of Swedish-Americans. SACC - the Swedish American Chamber of Commerce (305-371-2029) takes care of the business people. In Miami there is a Swedish school (305-278-8565) and in St. Petersburg men can rip their hearts out with the Suncoast Swedish Veterans men’s chorus. In Winter Garden there is the Swedish American Society of Central Florida (407-656-8178) that aims to provide an educational link between Swedish-Americans and Sweden and in Jacksonville you have the active Scandinavian American Society of the South (725-1665).

St. Petersburg, FL
is today a city with a quarter of a million inhabitants but it started out as just the end station of Florida’s first railway. The Orange Belt Railway named the places where it opened stations after its investors. When the railway reached the end station the only investors whose names had not been used for a station were the Swedish-born Joseph Henschen (the son of the Uppsala judge who recruited the workers for Sanford) and the Russian-born Demeens. According to the city archives, Henschen felt that both names were too difficult to spell so he suggested that the station be called after Demeens’ place of birth, St. Petersburg. “It will never amount to much of anything anyhow, so its name won’t make any difference,” predicted the Swede!

Ingemar Johansson
was for long the most famous Swede living in Florida. The bricklayer from Gteborg who made Sweden proud when he knocked Floyd Paterson out and became the World Heavyweight Champion in 1959, now lives in a nursing home in Sweden. For years “Ingo” ran the Sea Cay Motel in Pompano Beach, with 14 rooms, almost single-handedly. He was also often seen playing golf with the mayor and the chief of police. After he sold the motel he divided his time between houses in Florida, Dalar in the Stockholm archipelago and Mallorca. Always friendly and approachable, Ingo was always ready to dish out autographs whether he was running the New York marathon or coming off the golf course. Today you may run into Sven Tumba on a golf course or catch a glimpse of journalist Ulf Nilsson, singer Ove Trnquist or entertainer Robert Welles who all have apartments here.

Saga Skafte-Lindblom
is Jacksonville’s honorary Swedish Consul Emeritus and will be honoured by the community when she celebrates her 100th birthday this fall. “She is the Queen Mother of Jacksonville’s international society,” says Darlene Hutto of the Scandinavian-American Club that was, together with the Italian-American Club as well as the German-American Club, founded by Skafte-Lindblom who speaks five languages and still potters in her garden, attends consular meetings and chairs a Dag Hammarskjld Memorial Committee, dedicated to establishing an international research institute at the university.

Cocoa Beach
has a Swedish fashion boutique that looks like it belongs on Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills. The Season Tickets Boutique (204 West 520 Cocoa Beach Causeway, phone 407-784-8005) and Bianca (on A1A) are run by fashion-savvy se Berggren from the small village of Rangrd near Boliden. She bought a one-way ticket to Miami determined to succeed. Her large boutique is now a landmark for “the cosmopolitan woman of discriminatory taste.” Sofia Sohl in Key Biscayne is another entrepreneur with her Fia Stockholm one-person fashion company bringing over and showing Swedish fashion lines by Agneta Eckemyr and others in her beautiful home. Sohl works both as a representative and orders her own lines that sell as far away as in hotel boutiques in the Bahamas.

A motel in the sun
is a pipe dream for many Swedes. When Gunnar Hedqvist left a pulp and paper career at Sunds Defibrator, he and his wife Monica bought the Sunrise Resort Motel (727-446-9911 www.sunriseresortfla.com) in Clearwater Beach on the Mexican Gulf. The 22 room and apartment-motel is within walking distance of the beach, restaurants, nightclubs and shopping. Monica and Gunnar, who have a nice apartment on the premises, love their new lifestyle. In Sarasota, Mikael Mosti bought the motel and apartments at Southland Inn (941-954-5775 www.southlandinn.com) also because of the climate and lifestyle. Roger Stjernvall felt he was working too hard at his job for Silja Line so he bought the New Sun Gate Motel in Lake Worth (561-588-8110 www.new-sungate.com) that is dedicated to and decorated in honour of “the stars”, from James Dean to Marilyn Monroe. Not far from here you will find Palm Beach Bakery & Caf with the smiling and friendly Ingrid Olsen at the counter. She and her husband have sold their Polar Bakery in Lantana whose limpa and other goodies Swedes are still talking about.

Anders Althin
can thank Florida for a fortune and a remarkable success story. After years as president of the giant dialysis company Gambro, he quit and bought a small fledgling medical corporation in Miami Lakes, carving out a niche, manufacturing dialysis equipment. After taking Althin Medical to a world leading position, he sold the company to Baxter and returned to his native Skne where he is now a major real estate player with properties in Lund and Blekinge worth about SEK 150 million.

From the June 2005 issue and Swedish Press

Swedish emigrant to Florida

2009-11-29T21:40:00.001-05:00

Swedish Immigrant to Florida

Josef Henschen, early Swedish immigrant in the south

Little has been known about Swedish immigration to Florida in the 1800s.

http://www.nordstjernan.com/news/south/782/

Swedish emigrant to Florida

Josef Henschen, early Swedish immigrant in the south

Little has been known about Swedish immigration to Florida in the 1800s.

In early 2005, I came across a large number of letters written by my great-grandfather’s brother, Josef Henschen. He immigrated from Uppsala, Sweden, to the Sanford area in Florida, in 1871.

The letters were addressed to his dear friend Knut Ångström in Sweden, and spanned several decades. Knut was a well known scientist, son of the famous physicist Anders Jonas Ångström, after whom the unit “angstrom” is named. About a hundred years after the letters were written, Knut’s grandson found them in his father’s attic.

My mother’s maiden name was Henschen, and we belong to the Swedish part of the family. I was born and raised in Stockholm, but moved to America in the 1990s. Through some twist of fate, I ended up in Florida, not far from where Josef Henschen lived most of his life.

Josef’s letters were personal and intimate, but also contained practical, financial and political information that you don’t find in the usual Florida history books. They moved me deeply and I started to do some research about him. In the archives at Uppsala University I found more of his letters, equally fascinating. These were addressed to his father and brother, and were somewhat different in style.

Then I was lucky to meet Christine Best, a historical researcher at the Sanford Museum. She had written a small book about the Swedes in Seminole/Orange Counties, and had partial information about Josef and his brothers. Chris and I started a regular and fruitful correspondence.

My maternal great-grandfather was Salomon Henschen, professor of medicine at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, and a member of the Nobel Committee of Medicine. His three brothers, Wilhelm, Josef and Esaias, all moved to the United States. Only Salomon remained in Sweden.

Wilhelm (William) Henschen was the first to go, in 1870. He free-lanced as an agent for Anchor lines, a shipping company whose transatlantic steamships brought large amounts of Swedish immigrants to America. Wilhelm lived mostly in New York, but spent time in Florida, and bought some land by Lake Jessup. In 1874 he wrote an instruction book for prospective Swedish immigrants. Chris Best happened to locate the only existing copy of this book at the Augustana College, and managed to get photo copies of all its pages. It was in Swedish of course. I translated it to English, and it became another valuable source of information.

In 1871, General Henry Shelton Sanford owned 12,000 acres of orange orchards in Seminole County in Florida. The town Sanford is named after this man. Sanford was not happy with his local employees and was looking for a better work force. Wilhelm heard about this, and made a proposal to import Swedish workers for Sanford. Swedes were known to be hard working, honest and able, and Sanford became interested.

Wilhelm would go to Sweden, recruit a large number of workers and bring them over to the Sanford plantations. They would work there one year, without salary. In exchange, Sanford would pay their trips to America. Wilhelm also bargained to get some of his own family members over for free. He returned in April 1871 with his brother Esaias, his aunt Sofia, and about twenty-five Swedish workers, most of them from Uppsala.

A few months later Sanford realized that he needed more workers, both men and women, and he again turned to Wilhelm. This time Wilhelm was unable to go to Sweden, so he cabled his brother Josef who was still there. Josef was a medical student at the Uppsala University, but agreed to take a break in his studies. He recruited thirty-six workers, also from Uppsala, and brought them over toAmerica. In November 1871 Josef and his group arrived in Sanford.

The Swedes founded the New Upsala settlement, which is the first and largest Swedish colony in the history of Florida. (At that time it was still spelled with one “p”) Many Swedish descendants inFlorida and other states have their roots in this group. Today this settlement has become part of Sanford, but there is still an Upsala Road, a Swedish Presbyterian church built 1892, and a Swedish cemetery. Every year in December there is a big Lucia celebration in Sanford, organized by the two historical museums in the area. It always gets hundreds of visitors.

In early 1872, when Josef had delivered the Swedish workers to Sanford, he made a journey by foot down the Atlantic coast, to the area which is now Miami. During this dangerous trip he nearly died of thirst and exposure. He had to run from bears, panthers, alligators and large, poisonous snakes. In the Everglades he visited Seminole Indians and befriended their chief who was a hundred years old.

Josef had planned to return to his medical studies in Sweden, but he fell in love with Florida and stayed there for the rest of his life. He started his own orange orchards, and made a fair amount of money. Some years later he married a Swedish immigrant girl, Carolina Svensson, and they had five children.

In the mid-1880s, Josef was approached by four men - Demens, Sweetapple and Taylor. They wanted to build a railroad from Sanford across Florida to Pinellas County on the west coast. Josef became partners with these men and invested all his savings, as well as years of work, into the project. It was named the Orange Belt Railroad.

There were many problems and miscalculations with the railroad, and Josef lost all his money. This was a terrible blow for him, and it took him at least a decade to become financially stable again. But because of the railroad, a city grew up at the southern point of Pinellas County. Josef was asked to give it a name, and he named it Saint Petersburg, to honor his Russian partner Demens.

In the first years of the Orange Belt, when it was still doing well, its headquarters had been established in Oakland, by Lake Apopka. The town boomed because of the railroad. Josef moved toOakland in 1886 and resided there with his family for the rest of his life. There is still a Henschen Avenue there, named after Josef.

Josef lived in Florida for six decades. He was a leader of the Swedish colony in Orange and Seminole counties. Nobody made any major decisions without first getting his advice – whether it was legal, financial or medical. Josef always helped anybody who came to him, and he was known as a wise, kind and generous man. For many years he served as the Oakland Postmaster, and as Justice of the Peace.

Two of Josef’s grandchildren still live in Florida. One of them is Doctor Joseph Raymond Henschen, now in his 80s, who like his grandfather is a kind and generous person. He and his wife Lois were very helpful when I did my research.

Wilhelm Henschen became a Methodist preacher and moved to Chicago in the mid-1870s. He was the editor of Sändebudet, the organ for the Swedish Methodist churches in America. He may also have been involved with Nordstjernan. Wilhelm and his wife Hanna Lilljebjörn had seven children and many grandchildren.

Esaias Henschen also married a Swedish girl, Emelia Magnusson. They lived a few years in St. Augustine, Florida, where Esaias was Justice of the Peace. Then they returned to Sweden where they had children and grandchildren. Their great-granddaughter, the author Kristina Lugn, was recently elected to the Nobel Committee of Literature in Stockholm.

Written by Rebecca Weiss
Copyright 2006 by Rebecca Weiss

(Rebecca Weiss is a Swedish artist and writer who lives in Florida. She has published two books, the autobiographical “Journeys in Darkness and Light” and “A Florida Pioneer” about the life of Josef Henschen. See http://www.weiss-gallery.com/ and http://www.helgahenschen.com/)

Swedes in Sanford Florida 1871

2009-11-29T21:35:00.000-05:00

History

Josephine Jacobs & New Upsala School Children courtesy of the Sanford Museum

In February 1871, Dr. Wilhelm Henschen approached Sanford with the prospect of recruiting Swedish laborers. The first sponsored group of Sanford Swedes arrived on May 30, 1871. This first group was promised paid passage to Florida, along with one year’s maintenance for themselves and family members in return for one year of labor in Sanford’s citrus groves. Later in an attempt to keep the immigrants satisfied they were promised five-acre lots to be given to the loyal and faithful ones after a year’s work. This inspired a few to write home to friends and relatives, encouraging them to make a contract and come over.

By 1873, Sanford’s emphasis was on Belair grove located on the northwest shore of Crystal Lake. With the skill and labor of primarily Swedish workers, the area’s pinelands were transformed into one of the most extraordinary groves in the country. Of the many citrus varieties Sanford is credited with introducing, the most important came in 1870, from the Thomas River’s Nursery in London, England. This was an orange called the Tardif-Brown’s Late, which was later cultivated and the name changed to Valencia. This was the basis from which evolved Florida’s citrus juice industry. Belair soon became known as “The Experimental Station” or “Tropical Garden,” and served as a source of nursery stock. Strains produced at Belair were rapidly distributed to growers throughout Central Florida.

New Upsala Presbyterian Church, Circa 1902 Courtesy of the Sanford Museum

New Upsala, named for Uppsala Sweden, was the first and largest of Florida’s early Swedish communities. Physically, the colony was separated by a swamp, dividing it in two parts; the upper and lower settlement. The upper settlement was built along both sides of the Upsala Road, and the lower part followed the winding curves of Vihlen Road. Most of the Swedish homesteads measured five chains by ten chains, or roughly five acres. For the land to be more useful, it had to be cleared of the native trees and thick palmetto underbrush. This labor-intensive task, along with building their homes, was often accomplished by a community effort of neighbor helping neighbor.

Within New Upsala these Swedish newcomers could adjust to the cultural differences at their own pace. The general store stocked some imported foods among which one would have found lutfist and salt herring. Swedish continued to be the predominant language for generations. Within the population were a wide variety of occupations, including carpenters, masons, painters, cabinetmakers, blacksmiths, and horticulturist. Each of these skills contributed to the prosperity of the settlement. The settlement grew to include the Scandinavian Hall and School, its own depot, Upsala Lutheran Church and Upsala Presbyterian Church. The two congregations were entwined and often combined their efforts for social affairs. As time went on, the Swedish immigrants spread across Central Florida into communities such as the Lake Jesup Community (now Oviedo), Forest City, Maitland, Lake Mary, Apopka and Piedmont.

Change came during the winter of 1894-95, in a double catastrophe called “the big freeze.” The first drop in temperature came on December 29th and severely damaged the citrus trees. But then January was warm and rainy. The groves were fertilized and already had signs of new growth. Then on the night of February 7, 1895, the area was hit with a second deep freeze. This caused total and pure devastation. The Swedes were almost entirely dependent on their citrus groves for income. Family after family became discouraged and left in search for other opportunities.

The freeze was a major turning point in New Upsala’s history, although many left, the community did not completely vanish. Swedish immigrants had continued filtering into the community well after 1900. Most of these were attracted by the area’s fertile farmlands. Many such as, Carl Carlson brought his family and became a successful celery grower. These farmers contributed to Seminole County becoming America’s Celery Capital. Some families that had moved away later returned. After returning to New Upsala in 1906, Emma Vihlen wrote, “Yesterday evening came all the settlement people to welcome us back. There were twenty-five people and they had seven cakes with them, so I had to make coffee.” Her daughter Olga wrote, “It seemed natural to be among the good old Swedes, as our family had always conversed in Swedish. My sister Signe and I conversed in Swedish until we started school in Sanford. It was then we found out that we were just dumb Swedes. We took such a kidding that we at once remedied the situation by becoming Florida Crackers… and we refused to listen to or speak the Swedish language from then on.”

Swedish pioneers at the picnic gathering Courtesy of the Sanford Museum

In Sanford, new residential areas now sit where Swedes once tended vast orange groves. Evidence of our Swedish past can still be found in the names of Vihlen and Upsala roads and the old Upsala Swedish cemetery. The old Upsala Presbyterian Church still stands near its original site at the south end of Upsala Road. In December of each year, local historical societies host the Swedish Christmas tradition of St. Lucia.

To learn more, these publications are available through the Sanford Historical Society, Inc.:

New Upsala a swedish settlement & its people

The Swedish History of Seminole County, Florida

Lucia December 5th Winter Park, FL 2010

2009-11-29T06:58:00.000-05:00

H&M announces opening date for Florida Mall, Seminole Towne Center

2009-10-08T16:30:00.000-04:00

H&M announces opening date for Florida Mall, Seminole Towne Center
Sandra Pedicini
Sentinel Staff Writer
12:49 PM EDT, September 28, 2009

European fashion retailer H&M has announced it will open its first two stores in the state at noon Oct. 15 at the Florida Mall in Orlando and Seminole Towne Center in Sanford.In Orlando, H&M will be the first store open at Florida Mall's new outdoor-air center. That center will have other fashion retailers including Zara.H&M has an intensely loyal following among fashionable 20-somethings. Florida Mall manager Brian Peters said shoppers from around the state have contacted the center. "They'll make quite a splash," he said.
Copyright © 2009, Orlando Sentinel

Annika Sorenstam Marries Mike McGee

2009-08-14T11:45:00.001-04:00

January 10, 2009
Annika Sorenstam marries Mike McGee

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -- Annika Sorenstam and Mike McGee were married Saturday, four weeks after the Swedish golf star ended her Hall of Fame career.
About 125 guests attended the afternoon ceremony and evening reception at Lake Nona Golf and Country Club. McGee, the son of former PGA Tour player Jerry McGee, has served as managing director for her business brand since December 2006.
Travis Wilhelm, the minister at Christian Campus House at Trine University in Angola, Ind., officiated the ceremony. Swedish friend Maria Bertilskold was the maid of honor, and Stan McCamon of East Palestine, Ohio, was McGee's best man.Sorenstam retired last month after winning 72 times on the LPGA Tour

H&M Coming to Orlando Late 2009

2009-08-14T11:37:00.000-04:00

The rumors were right: H&M is coming to Orlando -- and soon!

Now that's great timing. Trendy-but-cheap fashion is exactly what we need, during these dark days of recession. And trendy-but-cheap is the specialty of Hennes & Mauritz -- affectionately known to budget-conscious fashionistas everywhere simply as H&M. A boldly printed skirt is typical of the store's fashion-forward, good quality but affordable styles

It has been been rumored for quite some time that H&M was heading for Orlando. Now it's official. H&M will open its first Florida location at The Florida Mall this fall. the new store will measure approx. 24,000 square feet. Founded in Sweden, H&M debuted in New York 9 years ago. There are now 169 stores in the U.S. and a total of 1,700 in 33 countries around the world. I'd say it's about time we got ours!

2009-08-14T11:20:00.000-04:00

Thursday August 20, 2009 – IKEA Crayfish Party

All you can eat for $9.99, $2.49 for kids

Time: 5:30 pm – 8:30 pm

Location: Restaurant - Orlando Location

4092 Eastgate Drive Orlando, FL 32839 (407) 355-3155

What's New At IKEA - Orlando

2008-05-13T08:45:00.001-04:00

April 30 - Walpurgis Night - 6:30 - 8 p.m. Enjoy traditional Swedish spring songs courtesy of the Swedish Club of Orlando. This Swedish tradition incorporates songs dating back to the 19th century that were passed down through students' spring festivities.

Swedes - world's oldest living tree

2008-04-18T07:37:00.000-04:00

Swedes- find world's oldest living tree

World's oldest tree found

Friday, April 18, 2008

It may look unassuming, but this tree is said to be the oldest in the world

This scrawny shrub is what Swedish scientists believe to be the world's oldest tree on record, dating back nearly 10,000 years.

The Spruce tree and was discovered in the Dalarna province of Sweden, where the age was estimated from the trunk upon which the tree grows.

"Spruce trees can multiply with root penetrating branches, meaning they can produce exact copies or clones," says Leif Kullman, Professor of Physical Geography at Umee University.

"Our results have shown that under the crown of this spruce tree on the Fulu Mountain is one of the oldest known trees."

Scientists found four "generations" of spruce remains in the form of cones and wood produced from the highest grounds of the Fulu Mountain.

Previously, pine trees in North America have been cited as the oldest at 4,000 to 5,000-years-old, however the Swedish mountains contain a cluster of around 20 spruces that are over 8,000-years-old.

The age has been tested by carbon dating in a laboratory in Miami, Florida.

Jazz & Art Night - 30 March 2008

2008-03-26T09:19:00.000-04:00

Per Danielsson, SCO member and well known jazz pianist is inviting SCO members to an evening of jazz and art. Jazz pianist, composer, arranger, writer and educator Per is a native of Stockholm, Sweden and now resides in the Orlando area. Growing up with a jazz guitar playing father, Per was exposed to the sounds of Oscar Peterson and Bill Evans at an early age. He began his formal musical education with piano lessons at age nine. Later studies included lessons with Robert Malmberg and world renowned jazz pianist Bengt Hallberg. Per has performed with a variety of jazz and show artists including Rich Matteson, Louis Bellson, Clark Terry, Rosemary Clooney, Bobby Shew, Nick Brignola, John Green, Maureen McGovern, Rich Little, Mike Post and Mark Murphy. He has also performed with Swedish jazz legends Arne Domnerus and Jan Allan. http://www.perdanielsson.com/live/
We will listen to great performances during the evening by Per and the famous Swedish jazz trumpeter Jan Allan, originally from Falun. Jan is one of Sweden's finest trumpet players, collaborating in live performance and recordings with such musicians as Gil Evans, George Russell, Bob Brookmeyer, Lee Konitz, Warne Marsh, and fellow Swedes Lars Gullin and Rolf Billberg. Jan Alain 1970 won the Golden Record as the Best Swedish Jazz Recording of the Year by the magazine Orkester Journalen.
Cirque du Soleil La Nouba music director, Benoit Glazer, is opening his home at 2000 S. Summerlin, Orlando, FL for this event. Benoit is also in charge of the non-profit organization, Timucua. The organization arranges frequent concerts and art exhibits. This is a fantastic addition to the cultural scene in Orlando. More information about Timucua can be found at www.timucua.com/index.

Artist Weronica Ankarörn, another SCO member, will exhibit her art and photographs during the evening. Weronica is an established photographer/painter who has exhibited extensively both in Sweden and the US will show works on paper and canvas, ranging from abstract to realism. Most recently she has been using water media, including inks and watercolors, making images which have their origins in memories of growing up along the Western coast of Sweden. She is represented by COMMA Gallery in Orlando, Florida where here newest series of paintings are on exhibit. Please visit http://www.commagallery.com/

The event starts at 8pm however you are invited beginning at 7pm to the art exhibit and to socialize with SCO members and other invited guests. Please bring wine and an appetizer (something Swedish?).

Map to Benoit Glazer’s home
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=2000+S+Summerlin+Ave,+Orlando,+F.L.+32806,+USA&sa=X&oi=map&ct=title

PS. Don’t miss their performance on March 28; these talented Swedish musicians will be playing at the Grand Bohemian Hotel in downtown Orlando from 20:30 to 23:30.

IKEA Orlando

2007-11-18T11:10:00.001-05:00

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Orlando got its own Ikea store today.Some fans of the Swedish home-furnishing retailer were lined up outside the store since Monday. By sunrise this morning, hundreds were waiting to get in. Devotees of the retailer praise its modern furniture and low prices, kept low by having buyers assemble much of the furniture. Ikea was founded in 1943 by Ingvar Kamprad. The name IKEA was formed from the founder's initials (I.K.) plus the first letters of Elmtaryd and Agunnaryd, the farm and village where he grew up. Ikea opened its first Florida store in Sunrise last month. A Tampa store is scheduled to open in 2009 near Ybor City. The closest location to the state had previously been in Georgia.

IKEA Orlando 14 Nov 2007 Opening

2007-11-18T11:05:00.000-05:00

November 14, 2007
IKEA opening is a C. Florida eventBY CHRIS KRIDLER FLORIDA TODAY
ORLANDO -- A giant pep rally met shopping spree when IKEA opened its Orlando home furnishings store today, the second in Florida, with a circus of entertainment and media.Amid a forest of TV satellite trucks and under several hovering helicopters, hundreds of people waited in line to enter the doors at 9 a.m. They were entertained by jugglers, trampoline artists, giveaways, a children’s choir and a chef handing out Swedish meatballs. Some had been waiting since Monday; the first 100 adults in line got a free chair.“I’ve been in line since 1 o’clock p.m. yesterday,” said Jen Mak of Orlando, who had the weary look shared by many of the first in line.Many said it was a loud night among the camping customers.“It depends on where in line you are and how your neighbors are,” Mak said, “because we had neighbors who were up and talking all night long, and people playing board games and just screaming their heads off.”There was a lot of screaming this morning, too, as pumped-up employees in yellow shirts banged together their inflatable IKEA sticks to pounding music and cheers.Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and other officials welcomed IKEA before the doors opened and the cheering workers (or as IKEA calls them, co-workers) entered, followed by a stream of customers. An hour later, they were still flowing in, and employees were still cheering.The store, next to the Mall at Millenia, sports a 309,000-square-foot space, filled with furnishings for every room and, indeed, model rooms and apartments. Known for its contemporary design, much IKEA furniture is assemble-it-yourself, which keeps the price down.Sarina Cabrera of Orlando, who’d been in line for two days, wasn’t sure what she’d do once she entered. “Find a couch somewhere and like pass out,” she mused.The store was packed, and even at mid-morning, cars still poured into the overflow parking area, a field adjacent to the pavement.Through Sunday, customers can enter a drawing for a $1000 gift card. The company presented a matching amount of merchandise to A Gift For Teaching, which donates school supplies to teachers and students in need.There’s a new IKEA store in Sunrise in South Florida, and another is planned for Tampa.

2007-08-15T23:40:00.000-04:00

Lucia

St. Lucia December 16th, Westmonte Civic Center, Altamonte Springs, Florida Need Volunteers

email:
margaretauhler@hotmail.com