Ramberg

When looking into Emma Nordquist in US I did not pay much attention to her husband before they met according to US sources. But, since WW1 draft document states Hälsingland as his origin which is a priority area in my research, I felt I should look into his ancestry too. This is what I found after overriding some research obstacles.

Erik Emil Ramberg was born April 19, 1890 in Mörtsjö, Hassela. This means he is also a close neighbour to Sjöndin families. His father was Anders Gustaf Ramberg who originally came from Harmånger (not far away) and married Brita Kajsa Norberg in Hassela. Her Norberg roots can be followed several generations back in the parish.

Emma was born in Söderåsen Bergsjö (next to Hassela) 1894. This means her mother was 44 and her father 58 years which to some degree can explain why censuses 1900 (with 3 children) and 1910 (with 1 child) lists family as “fattighjon i fattiggården” meaning they were pour and needed support from others.

The father of EE above also had a twin brother Clas Erik who lived in Hassela where his two sons, Erik Petrus and Gustav Albert, were born 1885 and 1892. Like EE this two cousins also emigrated, GA 1912 and EP before 1917 when he marries Amanda Norling in Isanti Co.

EE disappears from Hassela 1912 without being registered the normal way and becomes declared as nonexisting 1914. This means he was transported to a special part of th parish register with a note that he probably went to North America. This can also be confirmed in information when arriving to Boston. This states he left Liverpool April 16, 1912 on board the ship Laconia and is heading for Isanti Co.

EE also had a sister Hedda Elisabet born 1895 who also travels the same way the year after. I have not been able to find out what happened to her after reaching Isanti. If we take a step one generation back we find that the father of EE had a sister Anna Margreta born 1849, who marries Lars Fredrik Palm 1880. They emigrate together 1892 and settles in Isanti Co. As far as I can see they got no children.

Regarding GA above one thing is a little puzzling. On his grave stands a shared stone which also contains Mary L (Ramberg) born April 24, 1905 and dead October 14, 1960 (here). Most likely they were married but I've not found any solid proof for this.

The sources used in US are only free ones available through www. This means there can be something wrong with the connections made.But surprisingly often you can find exact dates, several family members, births, places, obituaries and graves which gives you a fairly solid foundation to build connections, especially with not too common surnames. Sometimes you also need some fantasy to find out how names adapts to the new language spoken.

More Sjöndin emigrants

Another emigrating woman from the Sjöndin tree was the daughter of a first cousin to Bertha Raymetz. Her name was Emma Nordkvist .becoming Nordquist in the new country. A few years after her arrival she marries (1 January, 1917 according to Minnesota Marriages) Emil Erick Ramberg in Hennepin. Census information tells us they move to Walhalla, Lake of the Woods before 1930. They got at least two children who grew up and had children of their own.

Two other Sjöndin cousins had daughters emigrating under married surnames Dahlin and Hultgren. The original surname Martinsson was changed to Dahlin around 1880 when they left Sweden. Most of their children were born in Minnesota.

The Hultgrens went another way. In the ship passenger list of Itaparica, dated 28:th of May 1891, you can find the Hultgren couple and the first son Linus heading for Rio de Janeiro. Despite the following 10 very hard years in Rio Grande de Sul area the family grew with 2 children. In the beginning of the 20:th century they migrated over the Argentine border to improve the living conditions. They finally ended up in Oberá Misiones before 1920 with a fourth child born in Argentine. The Hultgrens found in this area today all seem to be descendants from them. The clip below is from a paper called Sändaren and shows a couple contacted some time ago. Article here.

The Ostrom line connected to Raymetz is also interesting from my perspective because it also has connections on my maternal side. My mother and Per Olof Ostrom had many roots in Haverö parish and at some points they are interconnected.

Per Olof Åström is listed as timber rafting supervisor in Nybo, Haverö parish (1890 census, available free here). He seems to leave Sweden together with his family 1893 judging from 1895 census info which also tells us they reached Grass Lake 9 months before this census. Almost 30 years later the son Olaf Bernard “Ben” marries Carrie Raymetz and this two lines meet.

If you want to exchange info please use contact info or comment field.

Raymetz, Part III

By 1905 the Raymetz family has moved from Texas to Cambridge in Isanti County, Minnesota. Looking into original Minnesota state census document for 1905 can be a little confusing. Firstly the original can be hard to find as they have been indexed as Reymety (by FamilySearch). Secondly due to loss of Elmer name in the original document the following will be wrong. Information about the persons after Walter can be found on the row below. This means that infomation regarding Elmer is present but given to Karen and so on.

The place they choose for the new home is in many ways representative for the way we in Sweden look upon emigration to United States nowadays. Vilhem Moberg with his emigrant novels took his main characters from this area and planted his pictures in the brains of more than one generation. The group leader Per Andersson “Joris-Pelle” from Hassela and some of the group members became models for his books.

Lots of people from Hassela and the surrounding parishes followed this example. The father of Bertha had two married sisters who left Sweden 1869 as a dual family group under their new surnames Ljung (becoming Young) and Brolin (sometimes Broleen). By the time Raymetz arrived only the Young family and the Brolin daughter (married Olson) can be found there. The emigrating Brolincouple themselves are dead and the two sons are “out of sight” meaning they could not be recognized in any register.

At an early stage during the research when the family line was established I got the message below from a contact called JoLeen which by then gave solid proof I was on the right track

I received a call from Elaine (Raymetz) Peterson. She said she found out that her grandmother's maiden name was Brita Stina Sjöndine. Brita Stina (Bertha in America) was married to John Raymetz. She also said that in a family bible the word Franhammer was after Brita Stina's name. They think it might be her birth place in Sweden.

The minor corrections to this are that Franshammar is the birthplace of her father Mats. He moved to Mörtsjön by the time he got married and that's where Brita Stina was born (map here). At least that's what the church record says.

All descendants from John and Bertha seem to remain in the twin cities area for about 50 years. If you are one of them I'll be happy to answer any question I can. Use contact info or comment field.

Raymetz, Part II

Almost on the day three years after the first time, Jonas is leaving Göteborg, Sweden again. This time he is travelling to Rosenberg, Texas and on the same boat ,with the same goal, is Brita Sköndin. This is the emigrant notation from Göteborg. The parish Hopela is with 100 % certainty Hassela.

Jonas Olofsson, 21 år, Hassela förs. X-län. fr Göteborg, 1894 2/10 till Rosenberg, Texas

Källkod 54:339:61572

Brita Sköndin, 21 år, Hopela förs. X-län, fr Göteborg, 1894 2/10 till Rosenberg, Texas.

Källkod 54:339:61573

The ship Campania reached New York October 12 and the couple, John and Bertha as they normally are called from this moment, are registered there the day after.

Rosenberg is just outside Houston and their final goal are El Campo, Wharton Co about 30 miles further southwest of Houston. The marriage date October 19, 1894 implies wedding as soon as they reach El Campo. This is also the first time they were noted as Raymetz.

As most of the swedes in Wharton Co seem to migrate from other parts of US the decision to go south probably was taken before leaving to fetch his bride in Sweden. Regarding swedes in El Campo, as well as in the rest of Texas, lots of info can be found here. As the contents were collected from 1915 to 1918 when the book was released it does not mention the Raymetz people.

A few years before they arrive the town was what the name says, a camp. It grew rapidly as did the Raymetz family. Four children were born within 7 years: Walter M, Elmer M, Karen V and Bertha M. Census 1900, performed June 23, states the following about John and the farm (Farm schedule number 292, belonging to ED 59 5:th Precinct): Farmer, Own, Mortgaged, Alien.

A few months later, September 8, 1900, they were hit by the “Galveston Hurricane” known as the most severe hurricane ever in terms of number of US victims. The aftermath of this was probably one of the reasons why many families left this area during the following year. Judging from Berthas birthplace the Raymetz family choose to stay at least until 1902. (to be continued)