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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t139
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Creator:
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Lundbeck, Anna Linnea Beck
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Title:
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Anna Linnea Beck Lundbeck
Oral History Interview
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Dates:
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1982 (inclusive)
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Quantity:
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3 file folders
4 photographs
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 Anna Linnea
Beck Lundbeck, a Swedish immigrant.
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Biographical Note
Anna Linnea Beck Lundbeck, known as Linnea,
was born on May 27, 1899 in Siknäs, Kalix, Sweden. The Beck family, which
included eight children, lived on a small farm provided for them since Linnea's
father, Johan Beck, was a soldier. Sadly, Johan died at an early age after
falling off a barge. The children worked a great deal to support the family.
Linnea attended school for six years and then was confirmed. Her family
celebrated Christmas in a traditional way, but they did not attend church as is
customary because their farm was too far away. Linnea worked as a housekeeper
for a while before she moved to America. Her brothers encouraged her to come,
so she moved when she was 28 years old. Linnea took a ship called the Gripsholm
and then took a train to Tacoma to meet one of her brothers. Soon Linnea found
several jobs as a housekeeper. In Tacoma she met her future husband, Emil
Lundbeck. They lived in Seattle for a brief period of time and then returned to
Tacoma; Linnea and Emil had one son named Floyd. Shortly thereafter, Linnea
attained her United States citizenship. She has returned to Sweden once, and
while Linnea enjoys living in America, she maintains several Swedish customs.
For instance, she still speaks the language and prepares traditional Swedish
food, especially during the Christmas season. Linnea also treasures some of the
Swedish keepsakes that she has brought over from Sweden.
Lineage
Maiden Name: Anna Linnea Beck. Father:
Johan Peter Johanson Beck. Mother: Maria Emelia Rönnkvist. Paternal
Grandfather: Johan Peter Johanson. Paternal Grandmother: Margareta
Josefsdotter. Maternal Grandfather: Gustav Erik Anderson Rönnkvist. Maternal
Grandmother: Anna Erika Rokström. Brothers and Sisters: Elin Josefina Åström,
Jenny Margreta Eriksson, Johan Edgard Beck, Petrus Beck, Arvid Heikel, Ester
Maria Jacobsson, Astrid Johansson, Petrus Beck, Johan Beck. Spouse: Emil
Lundbeck. Children: Floyd Lundbeck.
Content Description
The interview was conducted with Anna Linnea Lundbeck on February 5, 1982
in Tacoma, Washington. This interview contains information on personal
background, employment, emigration, church and community life, family, travel,
and Swedish heritage. It also provides photographs of Linnea's home in Sweden,
Linnea as a young woman, and Linnea and her husband Emil at the time of the
interview. The interview was conducted in English. Also see Emil Lundbeck (SPEC
T138).
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
Inger Nygaard Carr 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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Andersson, Gustav Erik |
| Beck, Anna Linnea |
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Beck, Johan Peter Johanson |
| Johansson, Johan Peter |
| Josefsdotter, Margreta |
| Lundbeck, Anna Linnea |
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Lundbeck, Anna Linnea Beck--Interviews (creator) |
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Lundbeck, Emil |
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Lundbeck, Floyd |
| Rokström, Anna Erika |
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Rönnkvist, Maria Emelia |
| Beck
family |
| Johansson Family |
| Lundbeck family |
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Rokström Family |
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Rönnkvist family |
| Andreas (Steamship) |
| Gripsholm (Steamship) |
| North Pacific Plywood Company (Tacoma, Wash.) |
| Stockholm (Steamship) |
| Liknäs (Sweden) |
| Seattle (Wash.) |
| Siknäs, (Sweden) |
| Tacoma
(Wash.) |
| Christmas |
| Emigration and immigration
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| Ocean travel |
| Swedish-Americans--Northwest, Pacific--Interviews |
| Swedish-Americans---Social life and customs |
| Oral
histories |
| Domestics |
| Farmers |
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
004:
Anna Linnea
Lundbeck
Maiden name was Beck. Father's
name Johanson but he took Beck when he was a soldier because it was shorter.
Born in Siknäs, Kalix, Sweden. This is in the northern part of Sweden.
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Cassette Counter
024:
PARENTS
Johan Peter Johanson Beck & Maria Emelia Rönnkvist.
Father was a soldier so had to serve time in the army. He also worked in a
sawmill. Father drowned when he fell off a barge while working. He was young
when he died, little over 40.
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Cassette Counter
054:
Lived on a little farm, had 2 cows. This land was given to
him because he was a soldier. There were other soldiers living close to them:
Vaas, Beck, Stor, and Sik, who were all farmers. Farmers provided land for
soldiers. Linnea's father eventually bought his land from the farmer.
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Cassette Counter
078:
BROTHERS &
SISTERS
8 children, 2 died when they were
small. 2 oldest sisters were working when their dad died, oldest brother was
getting confirmed.
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Cassette Counter
084:
Mother raised the children alone after he husbands death.
Having the farm helped. Had milk, picked berries in the fall. Mother worked
loading boats and baked bread for people. The children helped out.
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Cassette Counter
100:
Linnea's brother worked at a sawmill a long ways away. In
winter he skied to work. In summer he walked and rowed to work.
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Cassette Counter
105:
Linnea and her mother worked on the boat. Loaded lumber. Cut
grass in the summer time on the farm. Carried wood home for a fire.
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Cassette Counter
126:
BROTHERS &
SISTERS
Elin and Jenny, 2 oldest sisters,
worked and supported themselves, did housework. They both stayed in Sweden.
Arvid worked in the sawmill. He lived in Tacoma. All the children learned to
work hard. It was a struggle but they got by. Did not learn a trade. Ester did
housework. She had problems with her lungs and lived in a sanatorium for
awhile. Astrid lives in Sweden. Did housework.
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Cassette Counter
168:
GRANDPARENTS
Remembers paternal grandmother, Margareta
Josefsdotter. She lived in a little shack in Siknäs. She had some tough
times.
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Cassette Counter
192:
Linnea's grandmother was from Töre, which is close to Siknäs.
Her parents died when she was young. Her father worked in a sawmill.
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Cassette Counter
205:
CHILDHOOD HOME
Remembers a big kitchen. Had a baking oven. Mother put
in an ordinary stove when her husband died. She then went to the neighbors to
bake bread. Took out the baking stove because the new stove was more modern.
Old ovens were dirty and left dust all over.
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Cassette Counter
228:
Had a bedroom where the children slept in bunkbeds. Everyone
had a bed because someone was always away working.
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Cassette Counter
244:
Describes when her mother rowed with a casket to Kalix where
her children were buried because Töre did not have a graveyard or church.
Father was in the service and did not come home when his children died.
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Cassette Counter
250:
CHURCH
Did not get to church much. There were homes that a pastor
came to preach to once and awhile. Went to church in Töre when it was built. It
was one Swedish mile away. Father read from the Bible at home, had to sit
still. Went to Sunday school.
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Cassette Counter
271:
SCHOOL
Many families had 10-13 kids. Lots of kids in school. Had
three schools with about 40 kids in each school. Went to school for six years
and then had confirmation.
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Cassette Counter
296:
CHRISTMAS
Cooked and baked extra food. Bought little presents
for each other. Sent home presents when they began working.
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Cassette Counter
310:
Always had a tree. Did lots of cleaning. "Everything was spic
and span." Made decorations for the tree. Had candles on the tree.
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Cassette Counter
332:
SPECIAL
CHRISTMAS
Had rice mush and lutfisk for
Christmas Eve. Baked rye bread. Made sausage from the inside of the butchered
cows.
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Cassette Counter
365:
Did not go to church Christmas Day because it was too far to
travel in the winter. Sometimes went to meetings in homes or in the
schoolhouse.
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Cassette Counter
386:
Were told stories of trolls. Mentions the bäckebrus (?). Did
not really believe these stories but did read troll stories.
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Cassette Counter
400:
Linnea did housework in Sweden after school in the area
around Liknäs. Lived with the people she worked for. Worked a few years before
coming to America.
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Cassette Counter
429:
Linnea's brothers John and Arvid were in the U.S., John told
her "you can come and work whatever you are, you can dress better here than in
Sweden." Her younger brother sent her money for the fare. Linnea's mother died
right before she came to the U.S.
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Cassette Counter
445:
Linnea decided to come to the U.S. when she was 28. "Wanted
to get out and see the world."
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Cassette Counter
453:
TRIP OVER
March 1928. Sailed from Göteborg. Boat was called
Gripsholm. A nice boat with lots of people. Many were sick. Linnea was sick one
day. Dancing, games for entertainment. She knew one fellow on the boat from a
place where she had worked.
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Cassette Counter
492:
Landed in New York. Had a physical in Stockholm before she
left. Her sister Jenny saw her off in Sweden. Did not bother her leaving
Sweden.
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Cassette Counter
515:
FIRST
IMPRESSIONS OF NEW YORK
"It was big,
people were made up and we had fun at how they put lipstick on." Had one day to
watch people before they left New York on the train. Saw black people. Had seen
a few in Sweden. "Didn't make much difference to me."
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Cassette Counter
540:
Did not speak English. Got by on the train. People helped
her. Ordered steak but it was so rare that they could not eat it. One fellow on
the train was studying some English so that he could order some food.
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Cassette Counter
585:
Had a good time on the train. Cooks had a good time too. A
whole bunch came out to the west coast. She was the only one coming to Tacoma.
Met by her brother and sister-in-law. Also friends from the old country Sven
Swanson (?) met her. She stayed with them for awhile.
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Cassette Counter
627:
Went to National with her brother and sister-in-law for 2-3
weeks. Got a job in an old boarding house in Tacoma. Was not good pay, but it
helped her learn the language. Mrs. Green got her this job. Paid $35 a month.
She did not always get her money because Mrs. Green did not have it.
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Cassette Counter
673:
Went to LaGasa. He was a doctor in Tacoma. Did housework and
cooking for them. Learned some new ways to cook, no trouble learning this.
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Cassette Counter
009:
Never had to wear any special uniform when working. Working
conditions were good. Did not like the doctor's. She describes this.
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Cassette Counter
040:
Went to two other places and worked here.
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Cassette Counter
045:
SCANDINAVIAN
LODGES
Played cards, had dances and
parties. Had a good time. Met friends at places like Valhalla. Lots of Swedes
in the area.
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Cassette Counter
062:
MOST EXCITING THING ABOUT
COMING TO AMERICA
"nothing special, nice
to work, buy your own clothes, things like that."
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Cassette Counter
064:
Never belonged to many lodges or anything because she did not
want to have to work extra. Linnea belonged to a Scandinavian fraternity in
Tacoma. She thought the Swedes were cranky at parties and such. When she moved
she never joined another lodge.
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Cassette Counter
078:
Has never belonged to a particular church.
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Cassette Counter
081:
Met her husband in Tacoma after she came to Tacoma. He was
staying at her friends, the Swanson's, house.
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Cassette Counter
092:
Moved to Seattle. She wanted something different. Was angry
about a black woman coming to work where she was.
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Cassette Counter
104:
Times were bad so it was hard to make much money. Did
housework in Seattle. Went to San Francisco for a year and worked with a
friend. Came back to Tacoma because her fiancee was there.
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Cassette Counter
127:
Lived in Seattle after they were married. Emil was in
longshoring. Lived there until they bought into the Plywood Co. in Tacoma and
then they moved to Tacoma. Son born in Seattle at Swedish Hospital.
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Cassette Counter
143:
TRIPS BACK TO
SWEDEN
Took boat to Sweden the first time.
Had to fly home because of a boating accident on the Atlantic.
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Cassette Counter
152:
BOATING
ACCIDENT
The "Andreas," an Italian boat,
sank after it collided with the "Stockholm." The "Stockholm" was being repaired
so they flew home through Iceland and Canada. This was in 1956.
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Cassette Counter
166:
CHANGES IN
SWEDEN
Lots of change in living. Have
fancy beds and bedrooms. More modern. People more pleasant. Have changed for
the better.
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Cassette Counter
177:
People used to think they were so big if they were a farmer's
daughter, etc. People are more equal now.
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Cassette Counter
183:
Landscape has changed a great deal. Farms are overgrown with
vegetation. In 1972, took a car from Stockholm and drove up north. Stayed at
Emil's home place for awhile. Linnea's sister came to the U.S. and visited for
8 months.
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Cassette Counter
209:
CITIZENSHIP
Received this after Floyd was born. Did not have any
difficulty, went to school a few times.
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Cassette Counter
218:
SWEDISH CUSTOMS
MAINTAINED
Language, some cooking. Make
special food for Christmas Eve, korsilta (?), pressylta, potato sausage. Still
have lutefisk for Christmas Eve. Make rye bread, pickled fish, hardtack, and
bake cookies.
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Cassette Counter
265:
Used to do lots of handiwork. Does not do much now. Mother
processed wool and weaved in Sweden.
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Cassette Counter
280:
Had brought some keepsakes over from Sweden. Pillows, towels,
linen. Mentions some of the things she has.
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Cassette Counter
332:
Floyd spoke only Swedish when he entered school. Learned
English quickly when he went to school.
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