COLSON FAMILY GENEALOGY AND HISTORY

INTRODUCTION – COLSON FAMILY HISTORY IN SWEDEN

July 23, 2024

http://swedishrootsamericanbranches.com

About the Author

My name is LaVerna Colson Smith, mostly known by my nickname, Lolly. My interest in genealogy began after my 2010 trip Sweden where I visited the home parishes of my ancestors. In turn, I spent a good amount of time in several Genealogical Archives diving into Colson family history and individual stories.

It’s been a 14-year journey, and I am still not finished. I found the Colson family forbears to be much more interesting than I had anticipated. I also decided not only to research their genealogy but study the social and economic history of the times in which they lived. That has been the most interesting part!

Colson Family Records – Published in 1950

My great aunt, Ida Victoria Colson, had made a similar trip in 1911, 100 years earlier and I followed in her footsteps. After returning to her home in Oakland, Nebraska, she began putting together the genealogy and history of her father’s family and published the results in “Colson Family Records” in 1950. She traced the family back to Lars Carlsson of Ödeshög Parish, Östergötland, Sweden and detailed all six generations of his descendants. It was a masterful piece of work considering what she accomplished without our modern age tools and sources…especially the internet!

Ida’s father, and my great-grandfather, was Victor Colson (1834-1930), an early Nebraska pioneer and among the first families to settle in Burt County, Nebraska in 1867. Victor’s father was Carl Samuel Larsson (1782-1859) of Skrädeberg Farm in Ödeshög Parish, Östergötland, who fathered 12 children, 10 of them coming to America in the mid to late 1800’s. Carl’s father was Lars Carlson, of Kushult Farm in Ödeshög Parish and the starting generation in “Colson Family Records.”

According to Ida’s book, Lars was born in 1755 and died in 1851 aged 96 years. This was the written information she received at the time from Åby Church, Ödeshög Parish, and assumed to be correct. It was not and upon my visit, I discovered his true age and parentage at the Östergötland regional archives in Vadstena, Sweden. In Part I of my blog, we will discover these ancestors and the times in which they lived.

Below is the title page of Ida Colson’s amazing family archive as well as her photo. She was an exceptional woman- a successful teacher and a community leader! She never married and took care of her parents through their old age until death.

Above is a photo of Vadstena Castle, built between 1545 and 1621 by King Gustav Vasa. The castle overlooks Lake Vättern and is partially surrounded by a mote. The regional genealogical archives are located on the second floor of the castle, and I spent several days there researching the historical Colson family. The town of Vadstena is located a few miles north of the town of Ödeshög and is known for St. Bridget’s (Birgitta in Swedish) Abbey and Cloisters as well as the magnificent castle.

Next Post: Finding the real Lars Carlsson and beginning a journey deep into the Swedish history of the Colson family.

Future Posts

Please Note: The following guide to Swedish Pronunciation will be included in each post.

Swedish Pronunciation Guide for English Speakers

The Swedish Language has 3 extra vowels and some challenging consonant combinations.   Here is a quick guide to pronouncing these vowels and tricky consonants

Åå           Sounds like the “o” in for

Ää          Sounds like the “ai” in fair

Öö          Sounds like the “ea” in earn

Y             Sounds  like the Y at the end of Terry

SJ,sj       Pronounced like “wh” – a voiceless fricative. 

K, k       Pronounced like “sh” before the soft vowels of:    e, i y, ä or ö

LaVerna Colson Smith (Lolly) Avatar

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LaVerna Colson Smith (Lolly)
I was born in Oakland, Nebraska (the Swedish American Capitol of Nebraska) and graduated from the University of Texas with B.S. and M. S. degrees. My professional work took me to many different states and cities and after my retirement from the corporate world, I traveled extensively in Europe, Scandinavia and Africa. I currently reside in Lakewood Ranch, Florida near Sarasota and the Gulf Coast beaches. My interest in genealogy began on my 2010 trip to Sweden where I began researching both my paternal and maternal family lines. While living in Denver,Colorado, I became a member of the Colorado Swedish Genealogical Society, studied with Kjell Andersson, a professional Swedish genealogist/author and attended the Swedish School of Denver to further my knowledge of the Swedish Language. I currently belong to the Sarasota Genealogical Society in Sarasota, Florida. My primary research tool is Arkiv Digital, a Swedish focused site which provides clear digital images of church, tax, military, court and estate records going back to the mid 1600’s. Although, the Swedes are excellent records keepers, many valuable old records did not survive fires, floods nor poor storage. My goal is to present genealogy from a socioeconomic and historical point of view paralleling the lives of my ancestors with the times in which they and the character with which they met their challenges. I
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