McLaughlin Family

The original post was provided in the Carlsson Wedding Tintype. This is where I plan to add all the research notes while preserving the character of the family.

Sven August Carlsson married Bothilda Andersd&#246ttor in 1870 in Sweden. Sven was 26 years old, and Bothilda was 21 years old. Thankfully, somebody made this copy of the tintype taken on their wedding day. Otherwise we wouldn’t know what they looked like as young newlyweds.

They lived in Tutaryd, Kronoberg, Sweden. Tutaryd is a parish about 20 kilometers form the city of V&#228xj&#246, Sweden. They raised a family of eight children. There were five boys and three girls in the family. The two oldest boys immigrated to America. During and after their immigration, they used the surnames assigned to them by the Swedish army. The Swedish army assigned names back then because they had too many Carlssons, Svenssons, et cetera. Through this process Carl Johan became Carl Frank, and Anders Leander became Anders Blomberg.

Carl Johan arrived in the United States on 16 Nov 1908 (taken from his naturalization document). Anders came sometime between 1908 and 1910.

They were followed to the United States by their younger brother, Olaf Fritjof, who often went by Fritz. Fritz was also a violinist. He came under his own name because he didn’t serve in the Swedish military.

Olaf Fritjof is living as a lodger in the 12th Ward of Boston, Massachusetts in the 1910 Federal Census. We also have this picture postcard that he took to welcome in the 1911 new year. He’s the one on the right in the photograph. He marries Esther Mattisson in 1916, and they have my mother the following year and her sister Evelyn in 1920. He dies in 1935 before my mother finishes high school from Tuberculosis.

The rest of the family stayed in Sweden. How either of these pictures made it to America is a great question but I don’t know. The hand colored black and white print was an expensive item back then. It appears to have been taken in 1898 based on the ages of the children. The youngest, Hedvig was born in 1894 and she appears to be four years old in the photo. From left to right, you see Carl Johan, Johannes Hjalmar, Sven August (the father), Sanna Mathilda, Anders Leanders, Hedvig Marie, Olaf Fritjof (my grandfather), Bothilda (the mom), Sven Alfred, and Alma Martina.

The spelling remains Carlsson for those descended from Johannes Hjalmar but it became Carlson for the family of Fritz Carlsson here in the United States.

The family in the United States held fairly close until they ceased having cousin reunions. The last reunion was in May 1990, and my wife Lisa and I were able to attend. Unfortunately, we were unable to secure addresses for all contacts during the event and they weren’t provided after the event.

My aunt Evelyn Carlson (Lindblom) passed away at the age of 80 on 23 Dec 2000. She had three children survive her. They’re Laura Lindblom, Michael Lindblom, and Elaine Faye Lindblom.