RELEASE DATE: SEPTEMBER 27, 2020
KINSEARCHING
by
Marleta Childs
P. O. Box 6825
LUBBOCK, TX 79493-6825
[email protected]
According to the U. S. federal census for the year 2000, approximately four million Americans claimed Swedish roots. Despite this large number of people, many of whom are interested in tracing their progenitors, only two English-language “how-to” manuals have been published in the past. To help remedy this scarcity of guides, the ever- popular “Genealogy at a Glance” series has added Swedish Genealogy Research by Robert Johnson to its list of titles.
Following the standard format of the series, Johnson condenses into four laminated pages an overview of basics that researchers need to know in order to conduct research successfully in all the major types of genealogical resources available in Sweden and some in the U. S. and Canada. To give individuals a timeline to help them pinpoint when their ancestors arrived in North America, Johnson discusses the two notable “waves” of Swedish immigration. The first occurred between 1638 and 1655, when approximately 600 Swedish and Finnish settlers established the colony of New Sweden along part of the Delaware River. The vast majority of Swedes, however, came in the second wave, which took place between 1850 and 1930. He also points out that many migrants went from Sweden to England and then from England to North America.
To help unlock Swedish family history, Johnson furnishes information about two more key factors: the language and names. He explains about the Swedish language having three more letters than the English language and these vowels appear at the end of the Swedish alphabet in a dictionary. In addition, spelling was not standardized until the late 1800s and early 1900s.
The other complexity is Swedish names. For example, common first names for both males and females usually came from a very small selection of names, making it difficult to distinguish between individuals with the same given name. A further complication is the lack of the use of surnames in Sweden until the end of the nineteenth century.
The main portion of Johnson’s guide concerns nine major genealogical resource groups. They are household examination records (data about everyone living in a particular parish), vital statistics, moving records (permits to move from parish to parish or to another country), tax documents, censuses, court records, estate inventories, and records pertaining to land and the military (including allotment, enlistment, and conscription service).
Johnson completes his guide by providing the names, street and postal addresses, and websites for the nation’s principal repositories and gives the URLs of other useful websites. At the end of several segments are informative tips and names of references to aid in further research.
Because there are so few “how-to” books focused on tracing Swedish forebears, Johnson’s publication will be especially welcomed by individuals interested in the subject. Streamlined in content and convenient to use, Swedish Genealogy Research offers important insights necessary for discovering elusive ancestors in Sweden.
To the guide's price of $9.95, buyers should add the cost for postage and handling charges. For U. S. postal mail, the cost is $5.50 for one item and $2.50 for each additional copy; for FedEx ground service, the cost is $7.00 for one copy and $2.50 for each additional item. The guide (item order 3041) may be purchased by check, money order, MasterCard, or Visa from Genealogical Publishing Company, 3600 Clipper Mill Rd., Suite 260, Baltimore, MD 21211-1953. For phone orders, call toll free 1-800-296-6687; fax 1-410-752-8492; website www.genealogical.com.