Anna Liden

Very little is known about relatives so many generations back.  But I'm trying to imagine, to piece together a timeline on some of them, just because. 

Anna Liden was born in 1877.  She came to America with her mother, and 3 brothers at around age 10. 
I like to think that they came to Pennington County, Minnesota, because they knew someone who could assist them.  Anna is my great grandfather Charles' sister. 

I believe she was baptized as
Anna Cecelia on July 9, 1877,
in Nikolai församling, Sweden
with no Father's name, and her Mother's name as Kajsa Andersdotter.

In 1893 she married Ole Lundberg.  She had her first child, Albin, in 1895.  Clara was born in 1896.  Signe was born in 1898.  Mable Olive in 1900.  Rudolph was born in 1902.  Silwer was born in 1903, and then died.  (Oddly enough, the listing in the Minnesota Deaths shows her name as Anna Danielson).

In 1904, Ole dies, and Rudolph and Albin are sent to live with Charles' family.  I don't know if Clara or Mable went with them; Clara died in 1908.  Mable is found on the 1920 Census as a "boarder" with Anna and her second husband.

In 1906, Anna marries Carl Bergan.  He was married previously, and had seven children with his first wife, Karoline.  His two youngest children, Mabel and Marie, would have been only a few years old when he marries Anna, and yet, the next Census in 1910 doesn't list any of his first wife's children living with him.  Which leaves me to assume divorce, rather than being widowed.

Carl and Anna go on to have more children:  Arthur in 1907, Gladys in 1910, Ruth in 1911, Arnold in 1913, Ettle (or Ettie?) in 1915, Myrtle in 1917, and Frances in 1920.  By this time, Anna is 43 and has given birth to more than twelve children.  Anna dies in 1924, Carl dies in 1927.

In 1940, Rudolph is a resident at Fergus Falls Hospital.  He is buried in the Liden family plot at Greenwood Cemetery in Thief River Falls, MN.  He was 77 years old.  I don't have a clue why he was at Fergus Falls, or where he lived after 1940. 

Piecing together this little bit of history hasn't been easy!

I can't imagine what life was like for Anna when her husband dies.  She can't provide for her children, so they are sent to live with other family members.  She remarries and continues having more children. 

At this point, I haven't located where she is buried, or where her children all ended up. On one of the message boards that I frequent, Dianna Hanson was looking for information, her grandmother is Mable Olive Lindberg.   Maybe some day, we'll be in touch!

Unknown Relatives

Recently, someone noticed a posting I'd done on a website re: genealogy.  After comparing some notes, it turns out we have the same GrandAunt Anna!   Which means we're second cousins of sorts.  More discussion and she grew up in San Francisco, and I grew up in Santa Clara - 40 miles apart and we never knew of each other!    Turns out we're also both avid photographers, love vintage photos and genealogy as well, and are a year apart in age.  Isn't life strange sometimes?

GrandAunt Anna Pape

I found someone had written "Ann was an intelligent, patient lady. Never judgmental. Would drive her sons' race cars around the track for fun. Skied when she was in her 60s."

Sounds like she would have been fun to get to know! 

GrandAunts

Pape Girls:   Marie, Anna, Minnie

These would be my  grandaunts, born in the 1890s.  All three are holding what I assume to be a rolled certificate - confirmation at their church perhaps?  School diplomas?  How curious to know what it might be!  This is the first time I've seen a photo of any of them.  They're my maternal grandaunts, sisters of my grandfather, Robert Pape.   

Minnie born in 1891, died in 1914.

Marie born in 1895. 

Anna born in 1898.

The girls look to be teenagers perhaps, so I'm guessing the date of this photo to be about 1910-1913.

What fun it is to learn about my ancestors!