    
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Administrative
Information
Scope and Content Note
Biographical Information
Lineage
Selected Search Terms
Partial Interview Transcript
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Information
Resources
Robert A. L. Mortvedt Library
Pacific
Lutheran University
Tacoma, WASHINGTON 98447
Phone: (253) 535-7586 E-mail: archives@plu.edu
New Land
New Lives Oral History Collection
Anna Fisk Beckman Loman
A Guide to Her Oral History Interview |
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Administrative
Information
Creator:
Loman, Anna Fisk Beckman
Collection Nr: t105
File Content:
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3 file folders
9 photographs
1 sound cassette
0 compact discs
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Processing Information:
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The
interview was conducted using a cassette recorder. A research
copy was also prepared from the original. To further preserve
the content of the interview, it is now being transferred
to compact disc. We deliberately did not transcribe the
entire interview because we want the researchers to listen
to the interviewee's own voice. The transcription index
highlights important aspects of the interview and the
tape counter numbers noted on the Partial Interview
Transcription are meant as approximate finding guides
and refer to the location of a subject on the cassette/CD.
Interviewed
by Inger Nygaard Carr
Transcribed by Mary Sue Gee, Julie Peterson and Becky
Husby
Encoded by Kerstin Ringdahl & Amity Smetzler
Recording Quality: Good
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Restrictions:
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The
collection is available for research.
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Preferred Citation:
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[Collection
Number, Collection Title]
New Land New Lives Oral History Collection
Scandinavian Immigrant Experience Collection
Robert A.L. Mortvedt Library
Pacific Lutheran University
Tacoma, WA 98447
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The
interview was conducted with Anna Loman on October 23, 1981
in Tacoma, Washington. This interview contains information on
personal background, employment, family, emigration, heritage,
church and community life, and return trips to Sweden. It also
contains a letter from Anna to Janet Rasmussen and photographs
of Anna's homeplace, Anna's daughter Margit (March 16, 1925),
Anna's last Christmas in Sweden (1926), Anna in Gig Harbor (1931),
Anna weaving, at an auction (1942), Anna at Olympic Laundry
in Tacoma, and Anna at the time of the interview. The interview
was conducted in English with some Swedish towards the end of
the interview.
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Anna
(Fisk) Loman was born in Leksand, Sweden on September 6, 1894
to Erik and Karin Hanses Fisk. The family lived on a small farm
in the country in a log house. Anna started school at the age
of seven and attended for six years. She also took Bible classes
and was confirmed when she was fourteen years old. Anna enjoyed
celebrating a traditional Christmas holiday with customary Swedish
decorations and food. Anna worked at a hotel until she met her
first husband; they married on Christmas Eve in 1918. Anna worked
for a while as a groundskeeper at a graveyard when she first
married. She and her husband had one daughter, Margit, in 1919.
Anna's father moved to America and lived in Tacoma; he encouraged
her to move there as well when her husband mysteriously disappeared
around 1927. Her mother and brother joined them a year later.
First Anna found work in a laundry and as a housekeeper. She
attended night school to learn English. In 1931, Anna married
John Loman, a Swedish man whom she met in the berry fields in
Puyallup; the two of them and their daughter Margit received
their citizenship together. They visited the Loman family in
Sweden in 1947. John Loman worked as a logger and started a
plywood business, but he passed away in 1949. Anna took care
of her mother for 25 years when her father died of cancer, and
her brother Axel took over their father's farm in Gig Harbor.
Anna has been an active member of the Ladies Vasa Auxiliary
for 51 years. She has taken seven trips back to Sweden, one
of them in 1959 for her 50-year reunion of her confirmation
class. Anna recognizes that Sweden has been quite modernized,
but she still enjoys making traditional Swedish food.
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Full Name: |
Anna Fisk Beckman Loman
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Maiden Name: |
Anna Fisk
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Father: |
Erik Fisk
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Mother: |
Karin Hanses Fisk
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Paternal Grandfather: |
Karl Kvist
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Paternal Grandmother: |
Brita Nygard Kvist
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Maternal Grandfather: |
Hanses Lars Larson
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Maternal Grandmother: |
Aron Anna Aronson Larson (both name are given due to inconsistency
differing versions of her family tree)
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Brothers and Sisters: |
Maria Fisk
Karl Fisk
Karl Fisk
Erik Fisk
Axel Fisk
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Spouse: |
Nils Beckman
John Loman
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Children: |
Margit Young
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This collection is indexed under the following headings
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Personal Names |
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Loman, Anna Fisk
Fisk, Erik
Fisk, Karin Hanses
Kvist, Karl
Kvist, Brita Nygaard
Larson, Hanses Lars
Larson, Aron Anna
Aronson, Aron Anna
Young, Margit
Loman, John
Beckman, Nils
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Family Names |
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Loman family
Beckman family
Fisk family
Kvist family
Larson family
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Geographical Names |
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Leksand (Sweden)
Rättvik (Sweden)
Tacoma (Wash.)
Gig Harbor (Wash)
Puyallup (Wash)
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Subjects |
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Family -- Sweden
Emigration and immigration -- Sweden
Education -- Sweden
Christmas -- Sweden
Railroad travel
Sweden -- Social conditions - 1945-
Vasa Lodge (Tacoma, Wash.)
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Occupations |
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Domestics
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Genre/Form |
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Oral history
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Institution |
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Pacific Lutheran University. Scandinavian Immigrant Experience
Collection
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The
partial interview transcription highlights important aspects
of the interview. Numbers on the left may be used as guides
to important subjects. Two numbers separated by a slash indicate
that the first number is for cassette and the second for CD.
004 PERSONAL BACKGROUND: Maiden name Fisk and background behind
family name. Born Leksand, Sweden, September 6, 1894.
024 PARENTS: Mother - Clara Larson. Father - in the Army. He
was a handyman, could do many things. Got name Fisk when he
joined the army.
035/074 FARM LIFE: Grew crops for food, didn't sell anything.
039 BROTHERS & SISTERS (see previous): 6 children/4 died
when they were young.
048 Description of Spanish Flu
051 Brother Axel employed as a carpenter
057/135 GRANDPARENTS: Maternal grandfather - Hans Larson. Maternal
grandmother - Anna. Paternal grandfather - Karl Fisk
071/161 FAMILY HOME: small farm in the country. Lived in log
house that father had built. Mother was hard worker -worked
as hard or harder than any man/Children helped with chores.
111/236 Employed at tourist hotel at age 16
121 Grew a lot of potatoes
123/256 SCHOOL DAYS: Started age 7, went to school for 6 years
in a 1-room school house.
135 RELIGIOUS TRAINING: Bible class during school years. Confirmed
at ate 14. Preacher taught classes.
150 CHRISTMAS: Presents not like here, lucky to get anything.
Putting up the tree. Goes into detail on preparation of Lutefisk.
166 CHRISTMAS MORNING: Up early to church. Walked on streets
and looked in windows at trees. Talks of the turn of the century
celebration in 1900.
185 BAKING: Hard tack, describes this rye & white bread
& cookies. Making trimmings for the tree & dancing around
the tree.
236 MARRIED: Christmas Eve 1918 in Sweden.
243 EMPLOYMENT: Worked in hotel until she met first husband.
Later at Graveyard-trimming grass & planting flowers later
at a big store.
271 MEETING HUSBAND: Met at a dance. Husband Nils Beckman- employed
by the Army. Simple wedding held at home.
292 ANNA'S FATHER LIVED IN TACOMA: Employed in smelter. Later
bought place in Gig Harbor and farmed during the Depression.
Parents apart for many years.
334 SETTLED IN LEKSAND: Husband disappeared. She, encouraged
by father, came to the U.S. Mother and brother came one year
later.
360 TRIP OVER: left March 3, 1927. Arrived in Tacoma March 22,
1927. Trip by boat wasn't great - 4 to a cabin.
388 ELLIS ISLAND: Lost track of friends. Stayed overnight. Many
people there for weeks sitting, knitting and other handiwork.
409 ENGLISH DIFFICULTIES: Didn't speak any English.
412 TRAIN TRIP: Changed in Chicago and Minneapolis. Suitcase
was stolen. Found a station man who could understand Swedish
and he helped them. Father met them at the station.
457 IMPRESSIONS OF NEW YORK: Didn't have a chance to see much.
464 FEELINGS LEAVING SWEDEN: Needed to make a living, so it
was necessary to go.
475 Father rented them a house. Later she bought a house.
486 EMPLOYMENT: First job in laundry. Did housework in home
for father and boarder.
496 Daughter came down with measles before entering school.
Met many friends in school - no trouble adjusting.
515 Attended night school. Happy to be in U.S. Still has many
friends in Sweden.
537 CITIZENSHIP: Self, husband & daughter received it at
the same time.
546 MARRIED: In 1931 to Loman - from same area in Sweden as
Anna. Met in berry fields in Puyallup. Loman employed as a logger
in Mineral, later started Plywood business in 1942, deceased
in 1949.
573 TRIPS TO SWEDEN: In 1947 to see Loman's family (see counter
076-II)
580 WEDDING: Brother married at same time. Stood up for each.
Married at First Lutheran Church
609 Employed at Laundry for 9 years until 1939.
631 Speaks of daughter and her husband and their 3 children.
Husband Jack builds boats.
SIDE II
001 HOBBIES: Wove rag rugs, did many things in Sweden.
009 SWEDISH FOOD: Family likes it. Makes potato sausage, lefse,
lutfisk, and cookies.
020 CHRISTMAS: Family gets together. No turkey but Lutfisk.
044 CHURCH LIFE: Not really active. Daughter was active at First
Lutheran.
048 Talks about folkdräkt.
054 ACTIVE IN VARIOUS ORGANIZATIONS: Ladies Vasa Auxiliary.
Member for 51 years. Treasurer for group.
076 TRIPS TO SWEDEN: 7 trips back (see counter 573-I)
076 Father died of cancer/took care of mother for 25 years.
Anna got home in Tacoma. Brother Axel got the farm in Gig Harbor
after parents' death.
111 Brother's son taught at McNeil Island.
115 CHANGES IN SWEDEN: home had changed, people had changed.
Attended 50 year reunion of confirmation class in 1959. (see
counter 164-II)
164 CHANGES IN SWEDEN: Very modern, modern appliances and all
get a big pension. Stockholm torn down old buildings and replaced
them with new. (see counter 115-II)
210 Taught herself to play the guitar.
225 Closes with Swedish remark.
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