Greetings from the Past: G.056.01 - G.057.01 God Jul 1912

2021-11-01

G.056.01 - G.057.01 God Jul 1912

Merry Christmas 1912

At Christmas 1912, Gustaf has been back home from America about 1½ years, and is still living at Storegården, Fristad - the family farm (in the province of Västergötland, Sweden), run by his older brother Carl.

All is well that ends well
said he who ate
... Christmas Ham ...

From: Oscar & family (Norrköping, dec 1912)

God Jul tillönskas & hjärtl. hälsn. samt d:o tack för allt "klappande". Samtl. instämmer häri. /Oscar - Skall snart skrifa bref.

Merry Christmas and best wishes from all of us, and thanks for all the presents!. /Oscar - I will write a letter soon.

(Oscar is another brother, and he and his family seem to be living in Norrköping now - in the province of Östergötland - since all their cards are sent from there.)

(embossed card)

En Glad och fridfull jul tillönskas av (Anna? Emma?)

Wishing you a happy and peaceful Christmas

The card was sent from Chicago, obviously by a Swedish friend there, but the name is hard to read.

God jul och gott nytt år tillönskas av Ruth. Välkommen hit till oss, beder Ruth.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Ruth. I bid you welcome to us. /Ruth

I don't know who Ruth is, and alas there is no postmark to reveal where she wrote from. What I do know (from postcards coming up in the next few pages in the postcard album) is that in the spring of 1913, Gustaf would move to Värmlands Nysäter (in the province of Värmland). He seems to have remained there until December 1913, and then moved on to Brålanda (in the province of Dalsland), where seems to have stayed until 1918. (I.e. more or less through the whole period of WWI in Europe.) I think he worked as a farmhand. I'm not sure whether this implies that there wasn't enough work for him at his brother's farm - or if perhaps, after a couple of years back home (after his years in America), he again found himself longing for a more independent life.