The following is information about my great-grandfather and great-grandmother from Hammara, Värmland, Sweden
submitted by Carl C. Bloomquist -- 3/11/2001

Husband's (Nils) father: Nils Persson Blomquist. Husband's mother: Greta Jansdotter.

Nils often found it difficult to provide for his large family. His grandson, Carl Behring (Carlsson), is said to have told that his grandfather was a top notch house painter in a day when it required knowledge and skill to mix paint, and he knew how to fish. Both brought in money. For integrity, honesty, and industry, he was A-1.

They emigrated to America from Karsvalla, Väse on the ship, Angelo, on October 23, 1880 with daughter, Augusta and two granddaughters, Ava Josephina and Anna Malvena. The latter two were daughters of Nils's daughter, Sophia.

Nils and Kajsa had seven children born in Sweden before they emigrated. All these children died and are buried in Hammara. Records of the church in Hammara confirm this. Eight children survived and eventually came to America. One known to have come with her parents was Augusta Blomquist.

Nils and Katarina lived in a small house on the property of their son, Gustaf and his wife, Charlotte (Stark). this house was just a few acres west of Gustaf's' which was west of Harris, MN.

Nils died in Harris, Minnesota and was buried in the Old Lutheran Cemetery, Harris, Minnesota.  Kajsa moved into the home of her daughter, Anna Marie Carlson, just north of the Chain Lake which is south of Harris, Minnesota.

In 1903, Kajsa moved with her daughter, Anna Marie and granddaughters, Hilma and Eva, to Minneapolis, MN. (?)

Kajsa died September 17, 1907 and is buried next to Nils in the Old Lutheran Cemetery, Harris.

The following was entered 8/7/1997 by Carl C. Bloomquist:

On July 19, 1997, after Lucille Froberg's Bloomquist / Stark family reunion in Lindstrom, MN, I visited the little graveyard in Harris, Minnesota where Nils & Kajsa are buried. I found their grave and photographed it.  The translation reads:

"Here rests Nils Nilson Blomquist
Born in Hamar, Värmland, Sweden
24th of April 1823
Died 6th of Sept. 1901
and wife
Katarina
Born in Ölmë, Värmland, Sweden
27th of April 1821
Died 17th of Sept. 1907"

The following was taken from a letter of Edith Van Den Burgh to Roger Johnson, 8/23/1977 (entered 12/11/1997):

I do know that all my aunts and uncles and my father had the greatest respect for their dad [Nils]. Aunt Christine told me that when he made children's coffins, he would carve out forms of flowers from potatoes and glue them to the sides and tops of coffins, and shellac them. They would look like they were carved out of the wood. I was always under the impression that he was a cabinet maker, but I see by Eva's story that he was a first class painter and fisherman. The coffins evidently must have been made for the 7 children (of Nils & Kajsa/Cajsa) who died.

The following was entered 2/20/2000 by Carl C. Bloomquist, great-grandson of Nils Nilsson: I recently located a record in the Mormon site that gave the Christening date of Nils. In this record he was named Nils Nilsson (no Blomquist surname yet). He apparently obtained the Blomquist surname sometime on or before the time he emigrated from Sweden to the U.S.A.