Overview of the Collection
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Repository Name:
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Robert A.L. Mortvedt Library
Scandinavian Immigrant Experience
Collection
Archives and Special
Collections Department
Pacific Lutheran University
Tacoma, WA, 98447
253-535-7586
Email:archives@plu.edu
http://www.plu.edu/archives
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Collection Number:
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t278
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Creator:
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Larsen, Clara
Beck
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Title:
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Clara Beck Larsen Oral
History Interview
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Dates:
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1984 (inclusive)
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Quantity:
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2 file folders
1 sound cassette
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Languages:
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English
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Summary:
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An oral
history interview with Clara Beck Larsen, a Danish immigrant.
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Biographical Note
Clara Larsen was born on February 24, 1892 in
Romdrup, Denmark. She grew up on a small farm and was the fifth of six
children. As a teenager, Clara worked as a domestic, which included cooking,
cleaning, and washing dishes. While she was working as a domestic, she met a
young man who was immigrating to Viborg, South Dakota, and once he was in
America, they corresponded. Clara was eventually invited to immigrate to Viborg
as well and traveled with the man's sister and her husband, Mr. and Mrs.
Sorenson, in March of 1912. They originally tried to leave on the Titanic, but
fortunately, no tickets were available. Viborg was a Danish community, and
Clara stayed there for two years. Following Viborg, she moved to Arcata,
California, where the Sorensons lived and worked as a domestic there. In 1916,
she moved to Spokane and lived with Mr. and Mrs. Jensen, whom she had met on
the boat trip over from Denmark. While in Spokane, she joined the Danish Lodge
and met her husband, Swan Larsen, in the spring of 1917. He was a butcher in
Wallace, Idaho, and they were married July 30, 1917. That November, Swan went
into the military, and they moved to Tacoma, Washington, where he was
stationed. After the war, they returned to Spokane and had their first child,
Donald, on August 26, 1920. Shortly after Donald was born, Swan decided to
return to Wallace to work as a butcher. The family remained there until Donald
was six, and they then returned to Spokane where the school systems were
better. While living in Wallace, their second child, Leona, was born on August
23, 1922. Clara did not go back to work until the children were married. She
was fifty years old by that time and decided to work in the alteration
departments of various clothing stores. Sewing had always been a favorite
pastime of Clara's, and she was still working as a seamstress when she was
eighty-one. Since emigrating, Clara has returned to Denmark six times, but
contends that after living in America for so long, she is thoroughly
American.
Lineage
Full Name: Clara Larsen.
Maiden Name: Clara Beck. Father: Laurits Beck. Mother: Kathrine Petersen.
Paternal Grandmother: Kirsten Beck. Brothers and Sisters: Kirstine Beck, Marie
Beck, Petra Beck, Laurea Beck, Kristian Beck, Lily Beck, Jens Beck, two
children died as infants. Spouse: Swan Larsen. Children: Donald Larsen, Leona
Larsen.
Content Description
This interview was conducted with Clara
Larsen on August 23, 1984 in Spokane, Washington. It contains information about
her childhood, emigration, marriage, work as a seamstress, Danish heritage, and
return trips to Denmark. The interview was conducted in English with some
Danish towards the end of the interview.
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.
Processing Note The interview was conducted by
Janet Rasmussen 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.
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.
Related Information
Bibliography
Rasmussen, Janet Elaine. New Land
New Lives: Scandinavian Immigrants to the Pacific NorthwestTacoma, WashingtonUniversity of Washington
Press1993
Additional Reference Guides
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.
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| Beck, Kirsten |
| Beck, Laurits |
| Busgard, Anke |
| Jensen, Nils |
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Larsen, Clara Beck--Interviews (creator) |
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Larsen, Donald |
| Larsen, Leona |
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Larsen, Swan |
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Petersen, Katherine |
| Beck
family |
| Larsen
family |
| Petersen family |
| Odin
Hall (Spokane, Wash.) |
| Oscar II (Steamship) |
| Arcata (Calif.) |
| Romdrup (Denmark) |
| Spokane
(Wash.) |
| Tacoma
(Wash.) |
| Viborg
(S.D.) |
| Wallace (Idaho) |
| Danish-Americans--Interviews |
| Danish-Americans--Northwest, Pacific--Social life and
customs |
| Denmark --
Social condtions -- 1945- |
| Emigration and
immigration |
| Oral
histories |
| Butchers |
| Domestics |
| Seamstresses |
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.
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Cassette Counter
013:
BACKGROUND AND
CHILDHOOD
Born Clara Beck on February 24,
1892 in Romdrup, Denmark. Her parents were Laurits Beck and Kathrine Petersen
Beck. They lived on a "not very big" farm and raised wheat and some animals.
She was the fifth or sixth child in a family of eight. Only her brother
Kristian and she immigrated to America.
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Cassette Counter
072:
CHILDHOOD
Her first job at 16 was caring for two little boys.
This lasted about a year. Then she got another domestic job that included
cooking, cleaning, and washing clothes. She does not remember what she was
paid.
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Cassette Counter
113:
SCHOOL
She liked sewing really well and went to school for two
months in Aalborg to learn dressmaking. Then she got the idea of immigrating to
America.
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Cassette Counter
122:
HOW SHE CAME TO
EMIGRATE
While working as a domestic, she
desired to attend a dance one evening. The family gave her permission and
loaned her a horse and buggy, which she didn't know how to drive. But, she made
it to the dance and met a young man who was emigrating to Viborg, South Dakota,
the following week. After he was in America, they corresponded. Clara was
invited to emigrate to Viborg, and she did - traveling with this man's sister
and her husband, Mr. and Mrs. Sorensen. The Sorensens traveled first class;
Clara's father had to sell a cow to afford Clara's first class ticket.
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Cassette Counter
166:
She traveled to Viborg, South Dakota, where the young man,
Anke Busgard (?), lived, only to find she wasn't expected. But she - "the
Danish girl" - was quickly offered a job. She stayed in South Dakota two
years.
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Cassette Counter
184:
EMIGRATION
They arrived in New York on March 28, 1912, having
sailed directly from Copenhagen. Tried to leave on the "Titanic", but it was
all booked. So, took a Danish boat, Oscar II. (This was the fateful trip when
the Titanic was lost.)
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Cassette Counter
209:
FEELINGS ABOUT
EMIGRATION
Her parents said neither yes
nor no; felt the decision was Clara's. Her expectations of America were
positive: big, wonderful land full of opportunities. Preparations for the trip
were quick and minimal. She doesn't remember how much money she took only that
she had $3 when she reached New York. She expected to stay in America.
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Cassette Counter
239:
ELLIS ISLAND
The Sorensens took care of that.
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Cassette Counter
250:
SETTLING IN
Viborg, South Dakota was a Danish community. She
worked as a domestic for the Larsen family with six children; three were in
school and helped Clara with her English. Her duties included housework and
childcare.
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Cassette Counter
280:
ARCATA,
CALIFORNIA
After two years, in 1914, Clara
went to Arcata where the Sorensen's lived. She traveled by train accompanied by
Mrs. Sorensen's brother. She received employment as a nanny, attended the
Danish Lodge in Arcata, and saved her money. From Arcata she moved to
Spokane.
SPOKANE, WASHINGTON: On the boat over from Denmark, she had met
Mr. and Mrs. Jensen from Copenhagen with whom she corresponded. Mrs. Jensen
invited her to Spokane. Clara took a train from Arcata to Eureka, a boat from
Eureka to Portland, and a train from there to Spokane in January 1916.
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Cassette Counter
348:
SCANDINAVIAN COMMUNITY IN
SPOKANE
She joined the Danish Lodge,
Princess Louise, in 1916 to become acquainted. Meetings were held in Odin Hall
once a month: card parties, dinners, and socials. She met her husband in the
lodge.
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Cassette Counter
369:
MEETING
SPOUSE
He was the brother of a friend of
the Jensen's and worked as a butcher in Wallace, Idaho. They met in March or
April 1917, and he called her on the telephone and sent flowers and candy. When
America entered the war, he returned to Spokane June 1 to register. They were
married July 30,1917 - after a four month courtship. His name was originally
Sven Larsen, but it was changed to Swan when he received his citizenship paper.
He was from Copenhagen and 30 years old in 1917. In later years in Spokane, he
became a painting contractor.
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Cassette Counter
415:
MARRIED LIFE
Swan went into the service in November. Clara moved
to Tacoma to be with her husband who was stationed there. During this time she
worked at the Olympic Hotel. After the war, they returned to Spokane where Swan
was a butcher.
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Cassette Counter
420:
CHILDREN
Donald was born August 26, 1920, while they lived in
Spokane.
WORK: While living with the Jensen family prior to marriage,
Clara worked as a domestic for a family- cooking, cleaning, and washing. She
cooked Danish food because the people thought it was wonderful.
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Cassette Counter
460:
EMIGRATION OF
BROTHER
She was still in South Dakota.
Clara and her employer, Mr. Goodrup (?), bought and sent Kristian a $75 ticket.
He worked for a while before being drafted into the Army; he was wounded during
the war. He made the army his career, dying in an Army Hospital in South Dakota
in 1974.
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Cassette Counter
489:
FAMILY LIFE
When Donald was a few weeks old, Swan returned to
Wallace to work as a butcher. Clara and Donald joined him soon after. But when
Donald became six, they returned to Spokane for a better school system.
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Cassette Counter
510:
DANISH
LANGUAGE
Not spoken very much and
children weren't taught it. Leona was born in Wallace, Idaho, in 1922.
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Cassette Counter
517:
WORK
Clara stayed at home until the children were married. When
she was 50, she started sewing again - this time in the alteration departments
at various stores. She worked 20 years and really enjoyed it. In about 1940,
she was paid $20 a week at "Charles". The second store, Zokurs ?, paid $35 a
week. Her third job began at the Bon Marche in 1950, the same year she went to
Los Angeles for the birth of her first grandchild (Leona's child).
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Cassette Counter
571:
She was in a train wreck on her way back and had amnesia for
a while. She returned to work quickly though. The alterations department had
5-6 people, but she was laid off when the Palace store took over the Bon. She
went back to Charles to work. She never had trouble finding jobs and was still
working as a seamstress at 81
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Cassette Counter
619:
She had a busy life - liked sewing. Kept on at home until
her eyesight was too bad.
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Cassette Counter
628:
CITIZENSHIP
Shortly after marriage, she and Swan went to night
school, studied, and received their citizenship papers in 1917.
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Cassette Counter
647:
DANISH LODGE
She's been a member for 68 years, having joined
before her marriage. Tells about activities in Danish lodge. Membership now is
mostly second generation Danes born in America.
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Cassette Counter
665:
CHILDREN
Both graduated from high school. Don worked after
school, then married and joined the navy. Leona worked at a telephone company
before marriage.
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Cassette Counter
680:
RETURN TRIPS TO
DENMARK
Clara has made six trips: 1937,
1948, 1962, 1969, 1971, and 1973. She went alone in 1937 to see her
parents.
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Cassette Counter
697:
ON BEING
DANISH
She's thoroughly American after so
many years; Denmark reminds her only of family members still there. She and her
husband returned in 1948 and 1962.
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Cassette Counter
710:
WORKING OUTSIDE THE
HOME
Neither her husband nor her daughter
liked it.
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Cassette Counter
724:
DANISH LODGE
This has meant a lot to her.
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Cassette Counter
736:
SPEAKING
DANISH
Om jul: et stort juletr' - recites
verse about Christmas.
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Cassette Counter
760:
RECOLLECTION ABOUT
WORK
When she first came to Dakota, she
was paid $3 a week, and when she was 81, she received $2 an hour. "How times
change."
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