What an interesting read. I also was told I was Swedish and that my grandparents who I never met were born there- supposedly, they were embarrassed to be Swede and my grandmother who never learned English rarely left the house! My 23 and Me confirms lots of Scandinavian but now I am curious about this whole Swede Finn thing. People are so funny when you think about how invested they become in these “small” distinctions- thanks so much for sharing, Carole! 😊🫶🏼
I never bothered with the 23 and me thing, as I have a pretty good idea who the relatives are. Where my grandparents settled in upper Michigan, Swedes were called “greenhorns” and “dumb Swedes” and were generally not treated with a whole lot of respect when they emigrated here, just like a lot of our current immigrants. They often had the jobs that no one else wanted, along with the Poles and Italians. My grandpa worked in a sawmil, the CCC camps during the Depreasion and later as an underground iron miner—until the mine shaft he was in had a sulfur explosion, killing 6 of his coworkers and burning my grandpa over most of his body. He must’ve been a strong guy, because this was before we had burn units, and although scarred, he lived to 85. The grandparents spoke in a combo of Swedish and English, as no one ever really taught them formally.
This is great stuff for memoir, Carole! My family on grandpa’s side also lived in Michigan- circus people, German. On my grandma’s side they were coal miners. As a child I thought all males were for some reason missing fingers (mine accidents). Many immigrants were treated horribly back in the day IMO it is not an exclusive right for any group to claim some kind of unique victimhood about- no non WASP group had it easy! I think I remember grandpa talking about Grand Rapids area, but he moved to Chicago and got a job as a driver for one of the union bosses- he looked like a little gangsta! 🤣
My stepmother's parents both came from Åland and had Finnish passports until they became US citizens years later. Mormor and Morfar always thought of themselves as Swedish, and that was the language they spoke at home. I recall an incident long ago when someone asked her if she was Finnish, since Åland belong to Finland. She angrily replied she was Swedish.
Thanks, Manuel! Just about every day something my grandparents did or said influences my life now. I may not be from royalty, but they were certainly the king and queen in my mind!
Haha, that was my grandparents, too! I still have a few relatives in both countries. The Finnish side is multilingual, fortunately.
Beautiful expression of the real.
What an interesting read. I also was told I was Swedish and that my grandparents who I never met were born there- supposedly, they were embarrassed to be Swede and my grandmother who never learned English rarely left the house! My 23 and Me confirms lots of Scandinavian but now I am curious about this whole Swede Finn thing. People are so funny when you think about how invested they become in these “small” distinctions- thanks so much for sharing, Carole! 😊🫶🏼
I never bothered with the 23 and me thing, as I have a pretty good idea who the relatives are. Where my grandparents settled in upper Michigan, Swedes were called “greenhorns” and “dumb Swedes” and were generally not treated with a whole lot of respect when they emigrated here, just like a lot of our current immigrants. They often had the jobs that no one else wanted, along with the Poles and Italians. My grandpa worked in a sawmil, the CCC camps during the Depreasion and later as an underground iron miner—until the mine shaft he was in had a sulfur explosion, killing 6 of his coworkers and burning my grandpa over most of his body. He must’ve been a strong guy, because this was before we had burn units, and although scarred, he lived to 85. The grandparents spoke in a combo of Swedish and English, as no one ever really taught them formally.
This is great stuff for memoir, Carole! My family on grandpa’s side also lived in Michigan- circus people, German. On my grandma’s side they were coal miners. As a child I thought all males were for some reason missing fingers (mine accidents). Many immigrants were treated horribly back in the day IMO it is not an exclusive right for any group to claim some kind of unique victimhood about- no non WASP group had it easy! I think I remember grandpa talking about Grand Rapids area, but he moved to Chicago and got a job as a driver for one of the union bosses- he looked like a little gangsta! 🤣
My stepmother's parents both came from Åland and had Finnish passports until they became US citizens years later. Mormor and Morfar always thought of themselves as Swedish, and that was the language they spoke at home. I recall an incident long ago when someone asked her if she was Finnish, since Åland belong to Finland. She angrily replied she was Swedish.
Thanks, Manuel! Just about every day something my grandparents did or said influences my life now. I may not be from royalty, but they were certainly the king and queen in my mind!
Yes! That’s my great grandma on my grandma’s side.
Your profile picture! A Finn Swede ancestor perchance?