The Old Country Newsletter - Välkommen till 2025!

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Statistics you didn’t ask for

Sweden's snowy days vary significantly across its regions due to its extensive latitudinal range. In the northern areas, such as Kiruna, snow can blanket the ground for over 175 days annually, with snow cover typically lasting from October to May. In contrast, southern cities like Malmö experience far fewer snowy days, often fewer than 40 per year, with snow cover being intermittent and usually melting quickly. Central regions, including Stockholm, fall between these extremes, averaging around 75 snowy days per year. This regional diversity in snowfall patterns reflects Sweden's varied climate, influencing everything from daily life to infrastructure planning across the country.

In other news

🚂 Train traffic between Hallsberg and Skövde has resumed after nearly a day of disruption – the day before New Year’s Eve – caused by ice crystals on power lines in Laxå. One track is now operational, but delays and cancellations persist as efforts to restore full capacity continue, attributed to sudden weather changes.

🕺 Linus Nordmark, who struggled with loneliness for ten years, broke his isolation by visiting a nightclub in Strängnäs, supported by advice from a local Facebook group. His positive experience led to regular visits, and he encourages others to be open about their loneliness, believing it will lead to acceptance and connection.

🗑 Around 90 young members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association gathered on New Year's Day to clean up post-celebration litter in several Swedish cities, including Kalmar, Småland, where the initiative has been ongoing for four years. Participants view the cleanup as a positive contribution to society and a symbolic act for embracing change and new beginnings.

Key Events in Sweden: A Recap of 2024

Legacy Lanterns – shedding light on the stories of the past

Swedes in the American Civil War, Part 1

Several thousand Swedes and descendants of Swedes fought in the American Civil War. The Swedish-language newspapers in the United States contributed to many enlisting in the Union army. However, about a hundred Swedes donned the gray uniform of the Southern states.

When the American Civil War broke out in the spring of 1861, few were surprised. Ever since the anti-slavery Abraham Lincoln had been elected president the previous year, the United States had been in a state of disintegration. In the southern slave states, Lincoln's election was seen as unacceptable, and one by one, the southern states sought to secede from the Union, with South Carolina leading the way.

The Confederate States of America

The states that had seceded declared a new and independent political entity: the Confederate States of America. This was met with strong resistance by the Lincoln-led government in Washington, and the conflict between the North and the South quickly escalated into a full-blown civil war. After four long years of fighting, the Confederacy surrendered in 1865, and the United States was reunited. The war was devastating, with over half a million soldiers losing their lives on the battlefield. Among them were even a few Swedes.

Swedish Emigration to America

The years around 1840 mark the beginning of significant Swedish emigration to North America. Most emigrants headed toward the American Midwest, particularly Illinois.

The flat, fertile lands and the well-developed railroad network facilitated large-scale farming and the sale of crops, attracting many.

By 1860, approximately 18,500 Swedes were living in the United States, with 6,500 residing in Illinois. The remainder were spread mainly across the Midwest, including states like Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota. Some Swedes also settled in New York.

Few Swedes moved to the southern states, though there are examples of individuals who became ranchers in Texas or merchants in southern port cities. In addition to settlers, some Swedes crossed the Atlantic for political reasons. In liberal circles, the United States was often depicted as a democratic ideal compared to Sweden, which still maintained a strong monarchy. Religious reasons also drove emigration. Free Church movements were on the rise in Sweden, and many chose to leave to freely practice their faith. Entire Free Church congregations sometimes pooled resources to emigrate together to America.

Preserving Customs and Traditions

Like many immigrant groups of the time, Swedish emigrants rarely integrated with other nationalities. Instead, they often settled near fellow Swedes or other Scandinavians, forming tight-knit communities. As a result, Swedish customs and traditions remained relatively intact within these communities for several decades. Swedish settlers continued to sing hymns in Swedish and stayed informed through Swedish-language newspapers.

The largest Swedish-language newspaper in the United States during the 1860s was Hemlandet: det gamla och det nya, published in Chicago since 1855. In 1870, it was renamed Gamla och Nya Hemlandet and was widely read by Swedes across the country.

The newspaper's founder, Småland priest Tufve Nilsson Hasselquist (1816–91), launched it out of concern that Swedes in America might abandon their "true" Lutheran faith amidst the many religious orientations in the new country.

Hasselquist was also politically active and strongly opposed slavery. Early on, Hemlandet offered its full support to the anti-slavery Republican Party, led by Abraham Lincoln.

Support for Lincoln

Hasselquist was pleased when Swedish-American communities explicitly supported Lincoln in the 1860 presidential election. During the campaign, the issue of slavery became paramount. Many Swedes, like Hasselquist, opposed slavery for religious or humanistic reasons. Others feared that its expansion would enable large Southern plantations to dominate, marginalizing small-scale farmers. With his opposition to slavery, his reputation for honesty, and his humble origins, Lincoln became the natural choice for most Swedish voters.

"Slavery Is a Terrible Crime"

When the southern states began demanding secession from the Union a few months later, and civil war seemed imminent, many Swedes once again stood behind Lincoln and the Washington government. In Hemlandet, one could read:

"Slavery is a terrible crime, whatever the South may think. Fire cannot burn this view out of the people of the North. To make ourselves complicit in its spread and perpetuation is to commit a triple crime: against humanity, our own consciences, and against God. Let us be patient and not hasten an unjust peace."

The war was soon to erupt, and many Swedes would enlist in the conflict that ultimately claimed over half a million lives. Discover more about the Swedes' role in the Civil War in Part 2 of next week’s newsletter.

Do you have a story from the past that could be worth sharing? I bet you do! Or would you like to see something else in the newsletter and have suggestions for topics? If so, lease reach out!