1920 Norwegian Census - Paul Sevaldsen in Skien, Norway

In 1920 my grandfather Paul is working in Skien Norway as a chauffeur. My grandmother is working in Oslo where she recently went after the breakup with her boyfriend Harald. 

Harald and Paul were friends and Paul now confided to Harald that he was interested in the dark-haired Dagmar. Harald, still mad, said "fine with me, you can have her". Paul then went to Oslo to find Dagmar.

Paul and Dagmar soon returned to Skien together. They married in 1922.

The story of Dagmar and Harald can be found HERE

1937 Visit to Skien, Telemark, Norway

 

On a 1937 visit to my grandmothers family in Norway my grandfather, Paul Sevald, poses with his father-in-law Nils and two of his brothers-in-law, Frithjof and Sigvold.

One hundred years ago - The streets were NOT paved with gold.

This year marks 100 years since my grandmother Dagmar left her home in Norway for a new life in Chicago. It seems a good time to repeat a recollection I had written some years back telling  my grandmothers story as she had told to me. The story of her coming to Chicago.

In 1984 I traveled for the first time to Norway to visit my grandmother Dagmar. At that time I was not all that curious about my ancestry. Grandma, however, sat me down and showed me photos of the family prompting me to write the names on the back of the photos. She told me one story after another and my interest began to grow. The stories were of a large loving family. A family that had lived in the same beautiful area of Norway for as long as anyone could remember.  Looking around me Norway seemed like a lovely place to live. The most obvious question was...why? Why Grandma did you leave Norway? How did you come to that decision and what was it like? As well as I remember some 30 years later, this is the story she told me.

_____________________________________________

"It was not my idea but Paul's. When we were young Norway was not how it is today. People were poor and life was hard. For decades already many Norwegians were leaving for America where they said: "the streets were paved with gold". Letters arrived often, from those who had left, bragging how well they were now doing, sending photo postcards of their smiling well-dressed families posing in front of their home or with their new car.  Paul and I were never foolish enough to believe that the streets were actually gold but we were young, hopeful and it seemed like a good adventure. Paul was totally swept up in the America fever and I was totally swept up by Paul. Our courtship was pretty quick. I had broken up with my boyfriend and stormed off to Oslo. Paul, who was my boyfriends' friend, had always had his eye on me. With his friends' approval, he followed me to Oslo. Not as tall or good looking as my old boyfriend but he was such fun. He danced so well and told jokes and best of all..he thought I was the most beautiful girl in the world. I would have followed him to the ends of the earth." And then she laughed. "I guess that is exactly what I did!"

"We returned to Skien and married when I found myself pregnant with Gerd, my first baby. Paul talked constantly about America and saved money for the ticket. The plan was that he would go first and I would stay here, near my mother, with the baby. He would surely send for us. He had an aunt in Chicago who he would stay with. There were lots of good paying jobs in Chicago, they all said, He left when Gerd was 15 months old.

Paul sent money. It does not seem like much now but at the time it seemed like a fortune. I had some doubts and fears about leaving but Paul wrote letters and sent photos. He and his friends were dressed so fine. They must be rich in Chicago!

1923 Chicago, Illinois: Paul and friends 

At the end of 1923, the tickets for Gerd and myself came. Just a few weeks before our boat sailed Gerd died. She is buried in a paupers grave at Nordre Gravlund, I don't know exactly where. I had just one small suitcase and I took the train to Oslo. The agent helped me get on the boat. Paul had bought us cabin tickets! I did not know at the time but with cabin tickets, I did not have to go through the embarrassment of being looked at by the doctors on Ellis Island. I had some money that I hid under my skirt and although many others got very seasick, I was lucky and did not. I was afraid though. I thought I would never again see my mother and I worried what would happen if Paul was not there to pick me up. Right then I wished I was home and I didn't even care that I was about to be rich.

Chicago was not what I expected. Our apartment was in his aunts' basement. We had just a bed, a chair and a rug that the Salvation Army had given Paul. The pictures he had sent were taken in a studio. At the studio they rented the clothes, hats, and shoes just for the picture! Paul worked long hours in a Chicago brewery, fishing rats out of the vats of beer! I had to work too. I was so ashamed because married women never had work back home in Norway. I worked as a maid for a rich Danish family on the Gold Coast. I could not tell her I was married or that I had had a child or I would be fired. Chicago was loud, dangerous, mean and dirty. We lived in a neighborhood that was a mix of poor immigrants. At night the men would go to the Norwegian clubs where they would smoke, drink and do who knows what. Paul loved it in Chicago. I did not.

1928 Chicago, Illinois
Arnold and Grace Sevald

Time passed and I had your uncle and your mother.  In 1929 I took the children back with me to Norway. But it wasn't the same. It wasn't my home anymore. We went back to Paul and Chicago. Paul had grown tired of drinking and dancing and dedicated his life to God and our family. We had a nice apartment in a Norwegian neighborhood and Paul had a good job now.  We had made many friends. Chicago was our home now. And it was a good one."

_____________________________________________

I remember my grandmother as a bold tough and determined woman, a real force to be reckoned with. But once upon a time, a hundred years ago, I envision a poor scared young woman who had just buried her baby, standing alone on the deck of the Bergensfjord.  For two weeks she must have looked out across the vast ocean ahead of her clutching her small suitcase and praying her husband would be on the New York dock to meet her.

Thank you, Grandma,
I love you.

**click on photos to enlarge for easier viewing**

One hundred years ago - immigration of grandfather Paul Skoglund Sevaldsen

1923, one hundred years ago, my grandfather came to the U.S. His choice changed the course of our lives. In fact I would not exist if he had not had "Amerika Fever". His young wife, my grandmother, was not really as convinced so he went ahead alone with the promise to send for her and their young baby when he was established and made some money in the place whose "streets were paved with gold".

He traveled on the Bergensfjord, steerage class, headed for Ellis Island. He had 30 dollars and the address of an aunt in Chicago, What could go wrong?

He lived in the basement of the aunt. The Salvation Army had given him a table, rug and bed. He found a job in a Chicago brewery. There was a large Norwegian presence in the Humboldt Park area he lived in. Lots of Norwegian pubs and friends. Life looked great to him. He sent tickets home to his wife and baby. "Join me in Chicago".

Thank you Grandpa,

1950 U.S. Census - Paul Sevald Family in Chicago, Illinois

 In the U.S., to protect the privacy of individual citizens, by law census records are not released until 72 years have passed. This year, 2022, the 1050 census was released to the public.

April 4, 1950 my grandparents, Paul and Dagmar Sevald are living in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois. Their address is 2420 N. California. My uncle Arnold is still at home while my mother Grace has married just six months earlier.

• line 8 Sevald, Paul, head, white, male, 55, married, born in Norway, naturalized citizen, worked 40 hours in the last week, machinist in a tool and die shop

• line 9 Sevald, Dagmar, wife, white, female, 49, married, born in Norway, naturalized citizen, worked 40 hours in the last week, assembler in a radio factory

• line 10 Sevald, Arnold, son, white, male, 24, never married, born in Illinois, worked 40 hours last week, assistant supervisor, paper mill

It is good to note how many people are now working as opposed to the 1940 census which was done during the "Great Depression" and pre U.S. entry in WWII. 

**click on photos to enlarge for easier viewing**

My Grandparents - Paul and Dagmar Sevald

 This is the earliest photo of my grandparents together, taken in Norway, around the time of their marriage in 1922. At the time they carried the surname Sevaldsen. After they came to Chicago, grandpa shortened their surname to Sevald, perhaps he felt it sounded more "American"?

Skien, Telemark, Norway @1922

My Grandparents

Paul Skoglund Sevald(sen)

1894-1968

Dagmar (Gundersen) Sevald(sen)

1900-1991

married in Skien, Telemark, Norway

February 4, 1922

Pa and a Grizzly Bear

 My father, Melvin, loved to tease my grandmother. She didn't always appreciate his brand of humor which unfortunately seemed to give him all the more pleasure. Around 1960 Grandma proudly bought herself a fake fur coat. Grandma was sort of a hefty gal and although she thought it looked like a rich mink coat......well it sort of ..........didn't.  That winter each and every time my grandparents came over my father would run to the door and loudly exclaim. "Look, it's Pa and a grizzly bear!" Grandma would stomp in and through  clenched teeth hiss "Oh you lousy guy". That only made my Dad laugh all the harder.

Pa and a grizzly bear

my grandparents

Paul and Dagmar Sevald

It seems Grandpa always thought she looked good,

Today in 1954 Ellis Island closed

On this day in 1894, November 12,  Ellis Island closed.

January 2, 1892, a fifteen year old Irish girl, Annie Moore was the first immigrant to pass through Ellis Island. More than two million immigrants passed through Ellis Island in the years it was open. 

When the immigrants ship sailed into New York harbor first and second class passengers were given a brief, cursory shipboard inspection and then disembarked on the piers in New York or New Jersey where they quickly passed through customs. Third class or steerage passengers (the vast majority of poor European immigrants) traveled by ferry to Ellis Island where they were given medical and legal inspections to make sure they were not bringing a contagious disease into the United States or a condition that would make them a burden to the government.

My Norwegian grandfather Paul Sevald(sen) passed through Ellis Island in 1923. Working in a brewery in Chicago he saved enough money so his wife, my grandmother Dagmar Sevald(sen), arrived in 1924 as a second class passenger and disembarked directly to New York Harbor. She was very proud of that!

November 12, 1954, a Norwegian merchant was the last to pass through Ellis Island. 
Ellis Island officially closed.

Remembering my grandfather Paul today,

Colorizing Paul, Dagmar and Gerd Sevaldsen

My Heritage had just offered free "colorizing" for black and white or sepia old photographs. I haven't really made up my mind yet if I like it or not. It works well for some, not for others. I am impressed that it saw Grandpa Paul's hair as a strawberry blond, which it was but Grandma Dagmar's was darker or black and her complexion was not as rosy as his. The people do seem more "real"? (I am not sure if that is the right word). I just don't know.
Here is the Sevaldsens in their first family photograph taken in Gjerpen, Telemark, Norway late in 1922, just before my Grandfather Paul left for America.

Dagmar's Stories - Grandma and Grandpa's engagement portraits

remembering one of the many stories my grandmother Dagmar shared with me

In the previous post I  celebrated the marriage of my grandparents Paul and Dagmar Sevald. Their marriage was small, most likely just the young couple and maybe a friend or two. They never had an official wedding portrait. They did have individual engagement photos taken.


On one of my last visits to Norway Grandma made a point of telling me the story of her family and passing on to me family photos. Among them this engagement photo of my grandfather. The original photograph is about 18" high and was originally displayed in an oval polished wood frame. It was no longer framed and a section of Paul's hair was missing. Where was the photograph of Grandma? Grandma immigrated to America alone. Grandpa had come the previous year and sent her the ticket to follow. She had only a small trunk with her but the precious photographs were packed safely inside among her clothes.


America was Paul's dream but for Dagmar living in Roaring Twenties Chicago? not so much. She said the happy go lucky Paul and she spent too many nights smoking, drinking and dancing the night away in local Norwegian dance clubs and bars. Once Dagmar had the two babies, my uncle Arnold and my mom Grace, she preferred quiet family nights at home and money in the bank. Paul danced on. Her pleading did not matter, so she assumed their family must not matter to him either. She threw his photo to the floor, her photo she "ripped up to tiny pieces and flushed down the toilet". It was 1929 and she packed up her babies and returned to Norway without him.

Good for you Grandma! She wanted better for herself and her children. And she got it. But I did wonder why she ripped up her photograph instead of his? So I asked her and her reply? She clicked her teeth in that Norwegian way and said "Oh yah, I should'a done that instead", and she laughed.

Grandpa surely got the message because he gave up the party life and Grandma returned to Chicago.  I remember him only as a devout Christian who did not smoke or drink, loving, generous, joyful and kind. But more importantly I remember that he adored my grandma, but he still loved to dance.

Grandfather's picture photoshopped, 

looks a little better don't you think?

Paul Skoglund Sevald

b. 25 Aug 1894 Kragerø, Telemark, Norway

d. 5 Sept 1971 Chicago, Cook, Illinois USA

A strong independant woman, my Grandma Dagmar, 
Grandpa knew she was a keeper.

**click on photos to enlarge for easier viewing**

Anniversary of Paul and Dagmar Sevald

February marks the anniversary of my grandparents.
February 22, 1922  Paul Skoglund Sevaldsen married Dagmar Gundersen in Skien, Telemark, Norway in a small civil ceremony. They wore their street clothing and no lovely wedding photo was taken. I present instead a photo taken perhaps forty years later, smiling just as I remember they did.

Happy Anniversary Grandma and Grandpa!

They did have individual portraits taken upon their engagement. The story Grandma told me about those photos is one I love because it says it all about my loving, feisty, independent, no nonsense grandmother. However, that's a story for another day. Maybe tomorrow.

Happy Birthday Grandpa Sevald!

Today I remember my maternal grandfather, Paul Skoglund Sevald. He was born 125 years ago today. He died when I was 19 but I remember him well and fondly.  When I remember him, I remember him as he was when I was a small child. He was always cheerful, happy and laughing. A fun person to be around, joking with my grandmother, dancing up our stairs and singing. Hugging and loving us. His last years were difficult as he suffered, truly suffered from Parkinson's disease. Unfortunately, due to his illness I don't think my younger siblings would remember how grandpa was in his healthy happy days. But I do, and let me tell you. Those days were great.

Happy Birthday Grandpa!

Grandpa and his first grandchild........Me!

**click on photos to enlarge for easier viewing**

STUSKIN - The ancestral home of Grandpa Paul's family

The ancestral home of Paul Sevaldsen's family is Stuskin in Verdal, Nord -Trøndelag, Norway.

Most small farms in Norway, before the twentieth century, were actually owned by the state run church and cotters rented out the property for a yearly fee and a portion of the yearly proceeds and/or a few days of labor for the church. The contract was generally for the life of the cotter and the first-born son had the right to rent that farm when their father died or retired due to poor health (retirement as we know it now was unknown to the working peoples of Europe at that time).

The farm Stuskin was known to exist by similar names since 1520. Through the years it was divided and the portion named Stuskin østre was owned outright by Paul's family. Anders Olsen 1722-1799 (Paul's third great grandfather) had bought the farm September 1756. All things point to the farm being fairly successful. Anders passed the farm to his eldest son Jacob Andersen 1753-1813. Jacob passed the farm to his eldest son Anders Jakobsen 1787-1875. Anders passed the farm to his eldest son Sevald Andersen 1818-1900. Paul's father Anders Sevaldsen 1863-1939, being the oldest son of Sevald, would have owned the property upon his father's death. It was not to be. Anders denied his baptism in the state church of Norway and became a Seventh Day Adventist. He trained to be a missionary along with his wife Anne Marie. He left the family farm and his birthright, never to return to Stuskin.

Sevald used an exception in the law to bypass Anders and "sell" the property to his second son Ole Sevaldsen for "kr. 6000 and a portion of the annual value of kr. 300." Perhaps Sevald, in advanced age and possibly ill health, wanted to assure the continuance of the family farm. Norwegian law gave Anders a 5 year window "right of refusal" from April 29, 1892, to buy the farm from Ole for kr. 7000 but Anders did not claim that right. Ole retained the farm. I often wonder if there were bad feelings between father Sevald and son Anders. Did he voluntarily walk away from his inheritance or did Sevald find fault in his choice of wife or new religion or both? Either option must have been difficult for the family as a whole. Anders and his wife traveled all about Norway as missionaries. His children were born in all different cities. Paul was born in Kragerø, Telemark on the opposite side of Norway.

Stuskin østre

Sad to note: Searching for my grandfather Paul in the 1910 Norwegian census I finally found him on this same farm, Stuskin. He was now 16 years old and the 1910 census says nothing of him being a relative. It states he is a worker on the farm, no more than any other farm helper. He is not even listed with his surname Sevaldsen, but merely as Paul Skoglund (his first and middle name).

After his mother had died (at the birth of her seventh child) his father Anders married quickly. That was not very unusual in Norway at the time but what saddens me is that he seems to have dumped the responsibility of his three oldest children. My grandmother told me that the baby Live was treated poorly by her stepmother. My grandfather? He was just 14 at the time of his mother's death and although at this time and place he most likely would be finished with his school and working, how degrading to be a farmhand now on the farm that by rights and Norwegian law should have some day belonged to him as the oldest son of the oldest son? His grandfather had died in 1900 and I wonder if he had lived to see this would he have made some provision for his grandson? The grandson who lost his inheritance because of the religious fervor of his father?

The story of the family farm Stuskin can be found in the bygdebok: Verdalsboka: en bygdebok om Verdal 3-54: Gårds og slektshistorie Chapter: Stuskin pgs. 576-597 by Einar Musum




I never knew great grandfather Anders. My great aunt Stina, a child of his second marriage, spoke proudly of him as a religious reformer. My grandmother Dagmar however spoke of his cruelty to his children. She told me that he had physically beat the children and she felt the beatings Paul got about the head contributed to his Parkinsons in later life. The bits I have heard do not endear me to this religious zealot. How blessed was I to have had such a kind, generous and loving man as Paul for my grandfather? Grandma Dagmar had a saying for the Anders type of religious person. "So heavenly minded they're no earthly good". Yet he did right by me. After all, if Paul had inherited the farm he most assuredly would not have met my grandmother Dagmar, nor left for America, nor become my Grandpa.

**clicking on photos will enlarge them for easier viewing**

**to view each generation before Grandpa Paul see the page "Paul's Ancestry"**

Paul Sevald - Happy Birthday Grandpa!

My grandfather was born on this date: August 25th

The first child of seven, Paul Skoglund Sevaldsen was born in Kragerø, Telemark, Norway to Anders and Anne Marie Sevaldsen on August 25, 1894. His father was a missionary for the Seventh-Day Adventist Church. His mother died giving birth to his youngest sibling. Paul was fifteen. He worked on his uncle's farm in his teens and as a chauffeur in his early twenties. At twenty-eight he married my grandmother Dagmar. One year later he emigrated to Chicago where his wife soon joined him. He worked for many years as a machinest. He had three children, one of them was my mother Grace, and seven grandchildren. He died in Chicago September 5, 1971. He would have eleven great grandchildren and twenty one great great grandchildren (so far to this date). These are "facts" any one of his ancestors can discover.

I knew him well so let me tell you additional "facts" about Paul.
He was kind and generous. He was witty and funny. He loved to fish. He could tap dance. He was truthful and reliable.  He loved his wife, children and grandchildren, He was a Godly man. He loved Chicago AND Norway. He was a snappy dresser, He was friendly. He gave good hugs. He was forgiving. He was loyal. I could go on and on. Let's just say he was the best grandpa a little girl could have and I knew it.

Happy Birthday Grandpa Sevald!

Paul and Dagmar Sevald -Norway1937

My grandparents, Paul and Dagmar Sevald. On a visit to Norway they sit relaxing outside a family members home? This photo is very typical of them.

My grandfather, always dressed in the finest. Unless he was fishing or building/working on something he always wore a suit. Single or double breasted with a vest, tie and long sleeved white shirt. The tie always neatly done, never haphazard. I know he also wore those old timey green elastic shirt armbands. I think I can almost see them in this photo. What I can't see, but I guarantee you are there, are sock suspenders. God forbid his socks should fall down! The only hint in his dress, that shows he is relaxing, is that he took off his jacket and hat!

Grandma, of course, has her knitting with her. She always was busy doing something. Older ladies back in the day always wore a dress. I never saw her in anything but a dress but she was never a fancy gal, generally a flowery cotton dress of the variety she wears in this photo. Every day? Throw an apron on. Going out to shop or to church? Add a hat and of course a pair of white gloves.

They sit right next to each other because Grandma and Grandpa always did. He would reach across and give her a little pat on the leg. She would shake her head, smile and say "Oh Pa", pretending to be irritated by his little public show of affection. But she wasn't.

My Maternal Grandparents

Paul Skoglund Sevald

b. 25 Aug 1894 Kragerø, Telemark, Norway

  d. 5 Sep 1971 Chicago, Cook, Illinois USA   

Dagmar Gundersen Sevald

b. 10 Jun 1900 Eidanger, Telemark, Norway

d. 12 Jun 1991 Skien, Telemark, Norway

Great Grand Aunt Mathilda Gundersen 1873-1931 - I had the information all the time!

After finding my great grand aunt "Bina" last week I followed up with a search for her sister Mathilde Amalie. I also had no more than a birth record on her. Once again, why not Chicago? If her brother Laurits, sister Jacobine, niece Dagmar and niece Jenny had all left Telemark for Chicago then why not  Mathilde? I had such good luck with the Lutheran church records, I started there.  I figured if she left Norway unmarried she most likely would find a boyfriend within a few years and then would most likely marry in the church. Bingo! How easy was that? Mathilde Amalie married Jon Wennberg, also a Norwegian immigrant, in the Bethania Lutheran church of Chicago December 19, 1896. The name Wennberg  did not ring any bells for me but...in the US census records Mathilda and Jon lived and raised their family at 5028 Sawyer Avenue. Didn't my grandparents live there at some time? I checked and no they did not. Who lived there or why did that address seem familiar?

One of the first family history records I found, before I started a family tree or caught the genealogy "bug" was a manifest of the ship Bergensfjord. On the Ellis Island website I saw for the first time the documentation of my grandfather Paul coming to America. I remember how excited I was as I saw his name among the many poor third class passengers hoping for a better life in the U.S. My grandmother had told me that my grandfather and she, on first arrival in the U.S., had stayed briefly with an aunt in America. "She was not nice, mean and stingy that woman was and we got out as quickly as we could". I assumed it was his aunt? Wrong!

from the manifest of the NAL "Bergensfjord" , leaving from Kristiania, Norway and arriving at the port of New York August 1, 1923, page 35, line #7, steerage passenger Paul Sevaldsen:

colume #19 - whether going to join a relative or friend, and if so, what relative or friend, his complete name and address

That's no "friend" Grandpa, that is your wife's  "mean and stingy" Aunt Mathilde! I had her name and address for over twenty years and never put it all together. Uff Da!

my great grand Aunt

Mathilde  Amalie Gundersen Wennberg

b. 22 Feb 1873 Eidanger, Telemark, Norway

d. 22 Jan 1931 Chicago, Cook, Illinois, USA

A Happy Family - Paul and Dagmar Sevald

I read somewhere that only those from happy families want to look into their family history/genealogy. I don't know if that is true or not but in the twenty years I have been involved in investigating my own family history I am proud of what I have found. 

 

A family member in Norway recently made this photo available to me. My grandparents Paul and Dagmar Sevald. They are the first generation of my family in the U.S.  My family history journey began with them. Hard working, salt of the earth, joy filled people who loved God and their family.  As my research branched out I found more and more of the same. Many people go into family history convinced of and to prove that they are descended from or related to someone famous or infamous, exciting, daring, brilliant, accomplished etc. etc. etc. I found no such surprises.  I have traced my family in all lines back many generations and have found no one considered extraordinary. No one  "rich"; my ancestors were generally poor tenant farmers, sailors and tradesmen. No one smart; only some in my own generation ever finished college, my ancestors mainly were literate but had a very basic education. No one famous or infamous; I have not yet found any criminals. Am I disappointed? Heck, no. I discovered my family lived through poverty, illness, war, tragedy and still they went on. Ever loyal to their faith and family. Yes, I come from a happy family. And THAT IS extraordinary.

Next Monday is Christmas Day and I will be busy making new happy family memories. 

until next year!

The Aunt I didn't have, Gerd Sevaldsen

Gerd Sevaldsen was my mother's older sister and my grandparents' first child.

On a visit to Norway, my Grandmother confided to me that she was pregnant with Gerd when she and Grandfather Paul married. Knowing how strictly religious she was I dared to question her on her, shall we say, timing? "But I was engaged!" she vehemently protested. Apparently in rural Norway in earlier times marriage was the religious event. The engagement or trolovelse was recorded by the parish priest with generally two witnesses present. It was the binding agreement between man and woman and the woman often joined the man's family at this time. They would later post banns at the church and the religious event would take place a few weeks after at the discretion of the local priest. If the young couple was expecting, as they often were, the marriage ceremony was expected to be performed before the baby's birth. No one thought poorly of this as it was the intention that mattered. Dagmar and Paul were married in Skien February 22, 1922. Gerd was born May 14 of the same year.

"My most beautiful baby" is how Dagmar referred to Gerd, her firstborn. She had dark hair and brown eyes like Dagmar and a sweet disposition. Paul left for America when Gerd was just 15 months old. He sent money and prepaid tickets for Dagmar and Gerd to join him. Gerd never made it to America. They were scheduled to leave for Kristiana just a few weeks after the Christmas of 1923. Dagmar hesitated to celebrate Christmas with her family as her youngest brothers, had just had the measles. Her mother, who feared she would never again see her daughter after she left for America, begged her to come, believing the boys would not be contagious. She was wrong. Little Gerd got the measles which swiftly turned into pneumonia. Dagmar had to bury her baby in an unmarked paupers grave and board the train for the three-hour ride to Kristiania alone. Pauls sister wrote her brother in America telling him of his daughters' death. When Dagmar arrived in America Paul never questioned her. In fact, they never even discussed the child or spoke the name "Gerd" again. Dagmar felt he blamed her for the little girls' death. Dagmar kept this picture of her "most beautiful baby" on her dresser always.

my Aunt

Gerd Sevaldsen 

born:14 May 1922 Gjerpen, Telemark, Norway

         died:14 Jan 1924 Gjerpen, Telemark, Norway   

      

Grace was "Pa's Girl"

This photo was given to me by a second cousin in Norway. A photo of my mother Grace and my grandfather Paul in Chicago. I am guessing my mom to be about 10 or 12 which would date this photo to the late 1930's, during the "Great Depression".  I know my grandparents struggled economically during those years as did most Americans. This photo shows my grandfather as who he was and his relationship with his only daughter, my mother Grace. Often he was without work during those years and he was a machinist by trade yet he dressed impeccably. That trademark hat was always on his head. A full suit with tie and vest and although it wouldn't show in this pic I can bet the farm that he had sock suspenders and cufflinks on! A classy guy. And he loved, adored and was closest to his daughter, my mom Grace. My grandfather always had my mom by his side. He made sure she had all that she needed. I think my grandmother was a bit jealous of their closeness. 

my grandfather

Paul Skoglund Sevald

b. 24 Aug 1894 Kragerø, Telemark, Norway

d. 5 Sep 1971 Chicago, Cook, Illinois

my mother

Grace Gunhild Sevald

b. 4 Mar 1927 Chicago, Cook, Illinois

d. 21 Apr 1975 Park Ridge, Cook, Illinois