Funding for encoding this finding aid was
provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the
Humanities.
Biographical Note
Hilma Miller was born on January 25, 1893 in
Joutsa, Finland, which is located in the central part of the country. Her
parents were Gusta and Rikkina Laitinen, and Hilma had one sister, Anna. Gusta
also had five other children and Rikkina had another daughter from their
previous marriages. Hilma's family did not have a lot of money, and Hilma went
to work when she was eleven years old. For seven years, she worked at various
farms with her sister. When Hilma was nineteen, she met her husband and was
married. They immigrated to America one week after their wedding, settling
first in Virginia, Minnesota. Hilma's husband found work at a sawmill, and they
remained there for eight years. During that time, their first daughter, Lila,
was born. The family then moved to Lost Lake, North Dakota, where Hilma's
husband took care of a farm for three years and their second daughter was born.
In 1922, they moved to Astoria, Oregon, where Hilma's husband had hoped to go
fishing but became a longshoreman instead. Hilma, on the other hand, worked as
a short order cook, making Finnish food. She also became involved in Peace
Lutheran Church and the Finnish Brotherhood. She returned to Finland once in
1960.
Lineage
Full Name: Hilma Miller. Maiden
Name: Hilma Laitinen. Father: Gusta Laitinen. Mother: Rikkina Laitinen.
Maternal Grandmother: Liisa. Brothers and Sisters: There were nine children.
Children: Lila Miller.
Content Description
This interview was conducted with Hilma Miller on August 25, 1981 in
Astoria, Oregon. It provides information on family background, marriage and
family, emigration, employment, and Finnish heritage. The interview also
includes a photograph of Hilma. The interview was conducted in English.
Use of the Collection
Restrictions on Access :
The oral
history collection is open to all users.
Restrictions on Use :
There are no restrictions on use.
Administrative Information
Custodial History :
The Oral History collection
project was started during an experimental course on Scandinavian Women in the
Pacific Northwest. Students in the course were encouraged to interview women
and learn about their experiences as immigrants to the United States. The
project was continued and expanded with support from the president's office and
by grants from the L.J. Skaggs and Mary C. Skaggs Foundation, from the Joel E.
Ferris Foundation and the Norwegian Emigration Fund of the Royal Norwegian
Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The project was directed by Dr. Janet E.
Rasmussen. The collection was transferred to the Archives and Special
Collections Department.
Acquisition Information :
Related Materials :
To search and view Pacific
Lutheran University's digitized images, visit our
Digital Assets
Website
Processing Note :
The interview was conducted by
Donna Mallonee using a cassette recorder. A research copy was also prepared
from the original. To further preserve the content of the interview, it is now
being transferred to compact disc. We deliberately did not transcribe the
entire interview because we want the researchers to listen to the interviewee's
own voice. The transcription index highlights important aspects of the
interview and the tape counter numbers noted on the Partial Interview
Transcription are meant as approximate finding guides and refer to the location
of a subject on the cassette/CD. The recording quality is good
The
collection was transcribed by Mary Sue Gee, Julie Peterson and Becky Husby.
Bibliography :
Rasmussen, Janet Elaine. New Land
New Lives: Scandinavian Immigrants to the Pacific NorthwestTacoma, WashingtonUniversity of Washington
Press1993
Additional Reference Guides :
Detailed Description of the Collection
The partial interview transcription
highlights important aspects of the interview. Numbers may be used as guides to
important subjects. Two numbers separated by a slash indicate that the first
number is for cassette and the second for CD.
Cassette
80, side 1
023: PERSONAL
BACKGROUND
Born in Joutsa (Youtsa),
Mikkelin Lääni, Finland. Joutsa is in central Finland. Birthdate - January 25,
1893.
80, side 1
105: PARENTS
Rikkina & Gusta Laitinen. Raised food on own farm.
Father fished & sold fish.
80, side 1
173:
Left home at 11 to work. Took care of cows &
children.
80, side 1
201: BROTHERS AND
SISTERS
Parents each married twice.
Mother had 1 girl from 1st husband. Father had 2 girls and 3 boys from 1st
wife. They had 2 girls together - Anna & Hilma.
80, side 1
236: CHILDHOOD
HOUSE:
Very little - one room. Little
light - one window. Piece of steel in the fireplace to hang pots on. Described
how they baked.
80, side 1
278: FOOD
Ate fish and potatoes, Kalamojaka (soup made of fresh fish),
and oatmeal.
80, side 1
303: GRANDPARENTS:
Mother's mom called Liisa. Father's parents died
before she was born - can't remember them.
80, side 1
327: SCHOOL
Not much. Had school 3 weeks a year at different farms.
80, side 1
350: CHRISTMAS
Had butter and meat.
80, side 1
366: WORK
Age 11, went to work in Heinola. Watched cows and children.
Sister worked with her. Worked 7 years at various farms.
80, side 1
434:
Talks about a place called Makkaramäki (Sausage Hill) and
how she like sausage.
80, side 1
451: CAME TO US
When about 20 with husband.
80, side 1
463: HUSBAND
Met when 19. Lived with mother and brothers on farm.
80, side 1
492: WORK
Hilma worked at a paper mill for a while.
80, side 1
498:
Hilma asked husband to go to America.
80, side 1
498: WEDDING
Married before they left for America. Big wedding -
party for 3 days. Her husband's family had money.
80, side 1
518:
Talks about being poor in Finland and how people would talk
about this. She didn't like this (Discussion in Finnish - translated by Donna
Mallonee).
80, side 1
545: STORY
Tells about her and her husband being locked in a building
on the farm. Mother-in-law let them out in the morning.
80, side 1
605: TRIP OVER
Husband, his cousin, and Hilma came together. Stayed
in England 1week and waited for the boat. Cousin named Robert Uotila.
80, side 1
631:
Came to New York. Went to Ellis Island. Took train to
Virginia, Minnesota. Lived there 8 years.
80, side 1
660: WORK
Husband worked in saw mills.
80, side 1
665: LANGUAGE
DIFFICULTIES
Couldn't speak any English
so there were some problems at first.
80, side 1
673: FIRST
IMPRESSIONS
Heavy rain. Big buildings.
Didn't like it.
80, side 1
693:
After the war moved to Lost Lake, North Dakota. Husband took
care of a farm. They lived there for 3 years.
80, side 1
716: CHILDREN
Oldest daughter born in Minnesota. 2nd daughter born
in North Dakota.
80, side 1
727:
Moved to Astoria, Oregon so husband could do some fishing,
but law wouldn't allow foreigners to fish in 1922.
80, side 1
753:
Rented a house in Astoria, Oregon. Husband worked as a
longshoreman.
80, side 1
775: ASTORIA 1922
Didn't like it. Everything burned. They think someone
started it.
80, side 1
815:
Men or women - who works the hardest? She say in Finnish,
"There are lazy men and lazy women."
80, side 1
830: BOARDING
HOUSES
Many men lived there working in
Astoria during the winter and went to Alaska during the summer.
80, side 1
841: CHURCH LIFE
Belonged to Peace Lutheran. Mostly Finnish
people.
80, side
1
847: FINNISH
BROTHERHOOD
Used to be a member and go to
meetings.
80, side 1
875: TRIPS TO
FINLAND
1960 - stayed for 3 mos.
"Everything changed." Still has family in Finland.
80, side 1
895:
Has family who comes to visit her in Astoria, Oregon now.
Oldest daughter married a Finnish man. Youngest daughter married an
Englishman.
80, side 1
911: FINNISH FOOD
Worked as a short order cook - made Finnish food.
Cooked Finnish food at home some (Speaks in Finnish). Story: (Donna Mallonee
translates) Finnish fisherman came to the restaurant wanting salt fish and
buttermilk, a Finnish favorite.
80, side 1
939: CHILDREN
Can speak Finnish. Lila (oldest) speaks it.
80, side 1
950: RAISING
CHILDREN
Lila going to school. She didn't
want to go.
80, side 1
970: HUSBAND DIED
January 25, 1967.
80, side 1
996: REFLECTIONS ON LIFE IN
FINLAND
Hilma liked working in the paper
mill in Finland. She married her husband and left 1 week after they were
wed.
80, side 1
1012: WEDDING
Describes her Finnish wedding. A big platform built
for dancing. Many flowers. Well decorated.
80, side 1
1032: STORY
(Donna Translates) As a child Hilma made marks on a stick
which got her father in trouble because he'd kept track of his work days on it.
Hilma made too many marks, father's boss became upset and had to leave the
job.
Subjects
This collection is indexed under
the following headings in the online catalog. Researchers desiring materials
about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these
headings.
