    
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
Hans Johan Fredrik Fahl
A Guide to His Oral History Interview |
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Administrative
Information
Creator:
Fahl, Hans Johan Fredrik
Collection Nr: t253
File Content:
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3 file folders
1 photograph
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.
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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 Hans Fahl on June 17, 1983 at the
Ola Vestad Home in Yakima, Washington. This interview contains
information on personal background, immigration, settling in,
farming, marriage, and trips to Sweden. Also available is a
black and white photograph of Hans Fahl at the time of the interview.
The interview was conducted in English. Also included is Hans
Fahl's obituary from July 16, 1991.
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Hans
Johan Fredrik Fahl was born on November 28, 1901 in Karlskrona,
Sweden. His parents, Fredrik and Axelina Fahl, had three other
children, Arthur, Lilly, and Svea. Hans spent much of his time
on the water while he lived in the island city of Karlskrona,
and he served in the Navy after attending grade school and high
school. Karlskrona had a very close-knit community, so it was
difficult for Hans to leave and move to the United States in
1923. However, he wanted to broaden his horizons and found that
traveling to America would be the best way to do it. After taking
the "Stockholm" and riding aboard a train for four days, Hans
met his aunt and uncle who owned a fruit orchard in Selah, Washington,
just north of Yakima. He liked the climate and the prospect
of farming, so Hans settled there. Anxious to become a citizen,
Hans filled out his citizenship papers only a few days after
his arrival. He also immediately undertook teaching himself
to speak English, despite the fact that there was such a large
Swedish population in Selah that he could get by without English.
Hans worked on his aunt and uncle's apple orchard and eventually
took it over for them. During the 1940s, Hans met his wife Ruth
Erikson, who was a widow with two children. Ruth and Hans have
traveled to Sweden several times, and although they do not normally
speak Swedish to each other, they do speak it when they travel.
Hans has been quite involved with the Lutheran Church, serving
as a delegate several times, and that has provided him with
the opportunity to travel throughout the United States as well.
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Full Name: |
Hans Johan Fredrik Fahl
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Father: |
Fredrik Fahl
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Mother: |
Axelina Karlsson Fahl
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Paternal Grandfather: |
Johan Abrahamsson Fahl
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Paternal Grandmother: |
Sofia Brunberg Fahl
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Maternal Grandfather: |
Johan Peter Karlsson
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Maternal Grandmother: |
Ida Mathilda Karlsson
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Brothers and Sisters: |
Arthur Wilhelm Fahl
Lilly Dorothea Fahl Karlsson
Svea Mathilda Fahl Lech
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Spouse: |
Ruth Erikson Johnson Fahl
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Step-Children: |
Merlan Johnson
Audrey Hester
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This collection is indexed under the following headings
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Personal Names |
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Fahl, Hans Johan Fredrik
Fahl, Fredrik
Fahl, Axelina Karlsson
Fahl, Johan
Fahl, Sofia Brunberg
Karlsson, Johan Peter
Karlsson, Ida Mathilda
Erikson, Ruth
Fahl, Ruth Eriksson Johnson
Johnson, Merlin
Hester, Andre
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Family Names |
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Fahl family
Karlsson family
Eriksson family
Brunberg family
Abrahamsson family
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Geographical Names |
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Karlskrona, Blekinge Län (Sweden)
Selah (Wash.)
Yakima (Wash.)
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Subjects |
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Sweden -- Emigration and immigration
Christmas -- Sweden
Stockholm (Steamship)
Titanic (Steamship)
Family -- Sweden
Sweden -- Social conditions -- 1945-
Central Lutheran Church (Yakima, Wash.)
Selah Masonic Lodge (Selah, Wash.)
Freemasonry
Naturalization
Church attendance -- Sweden
Family farms -- Sweden
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Occupations |
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Farming
Navy - Sweden
Apple orchard
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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.
039 Hans Johan Fredrik Fahl. The name "Fahl" was given to Hans'
grandfather who was a sailor. Grandfather's name was Abrahamsson
originally.
078 BROTHERS AND SISTERS: One brother and two sisters. One of
the sisters has visited Hans in Yakima, Washington several times.
The brother has two sons who are doctors. One of the sons is
married to a dentist. The brother has a daughter also. She is
married to a brain specialist.
117 Hans was born in Karlskrona, which is in the southeastern
Swedish province of Blekinge. Born November 28, 1901.
155 PARENTS: Father worked as a controller in the Navy. The
town of Karlskrona is a naval base. He was an office holder
of some kind. His name was Fredrik Fahl. Mother's name was Axelina
Karlsson Fahl. They were born in the 1870s in Karlskrona.
213 DESCRIPTION OF KARLSKRONA: A city built on islands. Many
bridges. A Mr. Andersson owned the original island of Karlskrona.
King Karl XI established the city of Karlskrona. The name translates
to "the crown of Karl." The king took over Andersson's island
and put in a shipyard. He moved people onto the island in order
to make a city. A high stonewall was built around the navy yard
by Russian prisoners of war. As the city grew, they built churches.
Because of an influx of Germans, a German Lutheran Church was
built. The state church has taken over this church but it is
still referred to as the German church.
284 BROTHERS AND SISTERS: Wilhelm is a music director. He is
presently the organist at the Cathedral of Linköping. He has
visited Hans in the U.S. Svea lives in Malmö. The other sister's
name is Lilly. She lives on a farm just north of Karlskrona,
Hans was the oldest child. (see also I-078).
320 IMMIGRATION TO THE U.S.: Came to America sixty years ago.
Arrived in Yakima, Washington in the spring. Thought it was
wonderful. His mother's sister, whose married name was Fahlquist,
lived in Yakima. She and her husband had a fruit orchard, which
Hans eventually took over. Aunt came to U.S. around 1890.
411 LEAVING SWEDEN: The aunt was the only one in her family
to leave Sweden and Hans was the only one in his family to leave.
Parents didn't want him to move so far away. Felt like he was
at his own funeral when he left Karlskrona. They gave him lots
of flowers at the train station to wish him bon voyage. It was
hard to leave. He had a lot of friends in Karlskrona.
448 TRIP TO AMERICA: Difficult to come to a country whose language
you don't know. Knew only a few phrases. Came on the "Stockholm."
They came to the place where the "Titanic" sunk on the 11th
anniversary of its sinking. The "Stockholm" stayed at this place
for twenty minutes and a memorial service was conducted. Hans
remembers seeing an iceberg on the trip. He traveled by himself.
501 REASONS FOR IMMIGRATION: Wanted to see the other side of
the horizon. Came with the intention of settling here. Went
to Yakima, Washington first. Was impressed with the climate
so he stayed there. Filled out his first papers for U.S. citizenship
a few days after he arrived in Yakima.
540 CHILDHOOD: Went to grade school, high school, and then joined
the Navy. Was stationed in Karlskrona. Served as a torpedo man.
Hans' father was in the church choir for fifty years. When Hans
was young he'd go with his father to the concerts. He would
always sell tickets. Hans grew up in the church this way. He
went to church with his father every Sunday. He was involved
in the young people's group at church. They gave him a party
before he left Sweden. Presented him with a Swedish flag on
a silver pole. He still has this flag. The original flag faded
so a cousin who was a flag maker in the Navy gave him a replacement
when he went to Sweden.
628 KEEPSAKES FROM SWEDEN: Didn't bring much with him when he
first came to the U.S. When he went back to Sweden, he got a
full set of carpenter's tools that he had used while in the
Navy. Brought these back to the U.S.
659 ARRIVAL TO U.S.: Landed in Castle Garden, New York. They
were placed in alphabetical order in a large building. Passports
were checked. Checked to see if they had any money. Hans had
$65 left after buying his ticket.
681 LEARNING ENGLISH: Didn't know any English. Copied phrases
from a Swedish-English dictionary at a library. Learned quite
well by writing down these phrases. Pronunciation was difficult.
Kept a list of useful phrases for traveling.
708 TRAIN RIDE ACROSS U.S.: Sat up from New York to Chicago.
Had a sleeper from Chicago to Yakima. Didn't have to say much
when he ordered food. Used his list to say what he wanted.
732 ARRIVAL IN YAKIMA: Aunt and her husband met him at the train
station. Took about four days to get from New York to Yakima.
743 FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF AMERICA: The immenseness of the country
surprised him. Was traveling in the spring. The farther west
they came the warmer it got. Remembers watching a well-dressed
lady get off the train in a dusty little town in Montana. The
place looked like cowboy country. This was in 1923.
790 CLIMATE IN YAKIMA: Suffered from the heat at times. Had
dark eyebrows when he came to this country. For some reason
he lost his eyebrows and hair. It grew back. In 1926 the summer
was very hot. He was out haying then. There wasn't any shade.
His eyebrows fell out. Doctor couldn't figure out why.
824 THE DIFFERENT VEGETATION: Things grew so fast. The vegetation
is so good because of the volcanic ash.
844 AUNT AND UNCLE'S ORCHARD: Had 23 acres. Grew mostly apples.
Hans planted pear trees while aunt and uncle were still living.
When the apple trees got to a certain age, Hans took them out
and replanted. He hasn't increased his acreage at all but the
plating they do now is tighter so that more fruit can be grown
per acre.
868 THE APPLE HARVEST: Apples were harvested in just about the
same way as they are now. They are picked and put in boxes.
When he first came, 40-pound boxes had to be lifted by hand.
Machines do this now.
891 KARLSKRONA: (See also I-213) The farm work Hans did in Yakima
was much different than what he'd done in Sweden. Karlskrona
is a city comparable to Bremerton. Hans grew up on the sea and
served in the Navy. Karlskrona's population was about 25,000
when Hans lived there. It has grown to about to about 40,000
people.
909 LIFE ON THE WATER: Missed life on the water but liked the
warm comfortable climate of Yakima. Sometimes he'd take a trip
to Seattle. Made him feel like he was coming home. Places like
Ballard (in Seattle) made him feel at home.
926 SELAH, WASHINGTON: Aunt and uncle settled there. (See also
I-320, I-732, I-844) Anton was born in Hammerdal in northern
Sweden (north of Östersund). Kristine was born in Karlskrona.
They settled in Selah, Washington just north of Yakima, Washington.
Many Swedes lived in Selah at one time. A minister in St. Paul,
Minnesota heard about land for sale in Selah. Hans' aunt and
uncle were part of this group, which belonged to the Covenant
Church in Selah. Hans was about the only Lutheran. When Hans
came to Selah in 1923, he could easily get by speaking Swedish.
Church services were in Swedish. One could use Swedish when
shopping. More than 100 Swedes came from Minnesota to settle
in Selah.
1034 SWEDISH NEWSPAPERS: Hans subscribed to the Swedish newspaper
from Chicago. It came out once a week and told about what was
happening in Sweden and the U.S.
1051 TRAVEL IN AMERICA: His involvement in the Lutheran Church
has given him many opportunities to travel. He has served as
a delegate many times. Has traveled as far as North Carolina.
1072 AUNT AND UNCLE: (See also I-320, I-732, I-844, I-926) They
didn't have any children. That was why they wanted Hans to come.
He became a part of their family.
1079 MEETING SPOUSE: Met her about forty years ago. She was
married when he met her. After her husband passed away, he married
her. Her maiden name was Ruth Erickson. Her first husband's
name was Johnson. She was born in Wisconsin. Her parents were
from Sweden. Hans took his wife to Sweden a few years ago. They
met some of Ruth's relatives from her father's side. They didn't
think Ruth would be able to speak Swedish, but she got along
just fine. They met some of her mother's family in Östersund.
Some of the cousins remembered her mother.
SIDE II
069 Tells about a church in Östersund that as built before the
Reformation. The church is called Hackås Church.
128 SWEDISH IN THE HOME: They don't speak Swedish with each
other.
137 STEP-CHILDREN: Ruth has two children by her first marriage.
Her son, Merlan Johnson, is vice-president of a Seattle First
National Bank. Her daughter's name is Audrey Hester. She is
married to a retired Navy officer and they live in Seattle.
They were married and had children when Hans and Ruth got married.
They've been married for 23 years.
197 CITIZENSHIP: (See also I-501) Became a citizen as quickly
as he could. Coolidge was President then.
213 FARMING DURING THE DEPRESSION: Food prices low, wages low.
Didn't earn much. Remembers in March 1933 when Roosevelt froze
everything. There was one day when the bank in Selah closed
during the morning. It opened that same afternoon and business
was as usual.
309 COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS: Active in the Masonic Lodge.
338 TRIPS TO SWEDEN: (See also I-1079, II-069) Went to Sweden
for Christmas in 1936. Traveled on a Polish ship. Gone for three
months. Took his wife to Sweden in 1965. They flew. It took
eleven hours to fly from Seattle. It took eleven days to travel
by boat. Celebrated Christmas in Sweden. They like to go to
Sweden in the winter because people are at home then. Everybody's
on vacation in the summer. They like the Christmas celebration
in Sweden. They like the Christmas decorations you can get in
Swedish stores during the Christmas season. Tree decorations,
little flags, Advent stars with a light inside to hang in front
of a window. They also had a man make them an "old time Christmas
tree" that was used in Sweden in the Middle Ages before the
tradition of a green Christmas tree was introduced. Hans puts
it together each Christmas.
460 SWEDISH: (See also II-128) They speak English with each
other, but they use Swedish when they travel.
474 IMPORTANCE OF SWEDISH HERITAGE: "I'm just an immigrant,
that's all."
483 SPEAKS SWEDISH:
519 Tells about the first time he went to an American bank.
He took off his hat when he went in because that was the custom
in Sweden. He was going to cash a check. He put his hat on the
counter and the teller said to him. "It's high to the ceiling
in here. Keep your hat on." Hans has never figured out what
he meant.
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