Midsummer Family Gatherings - Sepia Saturday 780

My grandfather Gustaf was born on Midsummer Eve, 23 June 1904.

Back in those days, Midsummer Day, also known as St John's Day, was always celebrated on the 24th - and Midsummer Eve thus always on the 23rd. Since 1952, however, St John's Day/Midsummer Day is always celebrated on a Saturday, and Midsummer Eve on a Friday. So during my own whole life, Midsummer Eve has always been a Friday, but the date shifting from one year to another.

But for my dad, back in his childhood, Midsummer always coincided with his dad's birthday - and my grandparents liked to make use of that for annual extended family gatherings. 

I've never had the impression that these parties involved any dancing and singing etc round a traditional Midsummer Pole (maypole), though. (I suspect my grandmother probably found those traditions "pagan", even if I can't actually recall anyone talking about that.) 

I just recently "re-found" a series of six  photos from family midsummer gatherings taking place between 1937-1948. (The years added on the back of them by my dad.) I remember using these for a display at my dad's funeral back in 2011, as his cousins, also included in these photos, were also among the guests attending.

1937

In this photo, my dad, Bertil, born 1931, had not yet turned 6 years old. He's the one furthest to the right of the three standing. The two to the left of him must be his cousins Sten (also born 1931), and Bernt (1932). Their father was my grandmother Sally's brother Nils, who is standing furthest to the left, holding yet another boy, who must be the third one in that family: Olof. The next year, those three brothers would also be getting a little sister, but she's not in the picture yet. Behind my father stands an old woman with head-scarf and glasses - that's my great-grandmother, Selma. I also recognise my grandmother Sally, her sister Hildur, and Hildur's husband. The rest of the people I can't identify, but they're probably "in-laws" from Nils' wife's family. 

1939

In the photo from 1939, my dad (soon to turn 8) is the boy with glasses, to the left. The baby girl, on her mother's arm, must be cousin Marianne - born 1938. A bit unusual is that for once, the "birthday boy" himself, Gustaf, is also included: standing furthest to the right. (Makes me wonder who was behind the camera!)

1940

In the photo from 1940, my dad is hiding behind a taller cousin...

1941

In 1941, my great-grandmother Selma is no longer in the picture. She died in March that year (five months before she would have turned 80). With the photo enlarged now, I notice that Gustaf is actually included in this photo, too - right in the middle in the back row.

1942

A smaller gathering in 1942, it seems - but all the boys present. My dad still the only one with glasses. I'm not sure who is who among the others, or who the fifth one is - but probably "a cousin of the cousins", on their mum's side. 

1948

Skipping forward to 1948, and who knows what the teenage boys were up to... The girl must be cousin Marianne, now 10 years old. My grandmother Sally behind her, holding a cat. The woman to the left of her I think I recognise as a "friend" rather than relation.

Happy Midsummer to all my fellow "Sepians"!

PS. After having finished this post, I find that I've used the same photos before on this blog, in a post from 2023, entitled Nils, the Bus Driver - for Sepia Saturday 681. (99 Sepia Saturdays ago!) 

Linking to Sepia Saturday 780

The Veranda - Sepia Saturday 779

I searched in vain in my old albums for a photo of someone standing next to a chair (as in the Sepia prompt photo.) In my inherited photos, if there is a chair, there is usually someone sitting on it, though! 

However, in one of the envelopes I've been going  through recently, I found a photo of my grandfather Gustaf as a young man, sitting alone on a chair on/in the "glass veranda" at the farm Storegården, which belonged to my grandmother Sally's family. Gustaf was friends with Sally's younger brother Nils; and in the mid 1920s, when Gustaf was trying to change his career from a shoemaker's apprentice to becoming a journalist, Nils' family let him rent a room with them (probably in a small cottage on the grounds rather than in the main house). (Cf. my post for SS 773 - The Desk.) I would date the photo below to around that time (mid 1920s) - after Gustaf had recently moved to the farm to live, but before he and Sally became romantically involved.

It was not an open veranda, but more like an extra room with many windows - and probably  no heating, so primarily used in summer. 

In one of the albums, there is this photo of Sally and Gustaf. They seem to be sitting in the same corner of the veranda as in the first photo, but now with plants behind them. My guess is that this is from their engagement (Sept 7, 1929). 

This photo shows what the veranda looked like from the outside. (The entrance door is to the right, I know from other photos.) Two of the women are unknown to me. Standing at the back are Gustaf, one of the guests, and Sally. Sitting down are another guest, Hildur (Sally's older half-sister), Selma (mother of Hildur, Sally and Nils), and Hildur's fiancé Olle. 

To finish off, a photo of Gustaf some 25-30 years later than in the first photo; sitting and looking contemplative. Possibly on the sofa in his own kitchen (that door behind him could be to the larder). But I'm not sure. It might also be somewhere unknown to me.

Linking to Sepia Saturday 779  

Sepia Saturday 773 - The Desk

If this post seems familiar to some readers, that will be because it's basically the same as my post for Sepia Saturday 713 ("Going to Work"), about a year ago...   

My grandfather Gustaf (born 1904) started out as a shoemaker's apprentice in his early teens, but what he really wanted to do was write. He gradually managed to shift to a career as journalist, by taking a few correspondence courses (cf. SS 675 - "Book-keeping, Stenography and Typewriting") + freelancing for a local newspaper, until eventually he got employed there full time as journalist in 1926. He also usually took his own photos when he was out and about on various jobs. 

Young Gustaf at his desk in his room at the farm

While being a shoemaker's apprentice, Gustaf lived with the shoemaker and his family; but later on, he  was offered a room at the farm where his childhood friend Nils lived (with his mother, two sisters and one or two older half-brothers). One of Nils' sisters, Sally, was to be his future wife - but from what I've gathered from letters, when Gustaf first moved to the farm to live, there was not yet any romantic relationship between them. My impression is also that Gustaf's room must have been in a separate small cottage rather than in the main farm house with the family.

This photo shows one of Gustaf's colleagues at the newspaper where he worked between 1926-1938. (In 1938 he was recruited to another newspaper in the same town.)

In this photo Gustaf is obviously older, and I think it's probably from his office at the other newspaper, where later on in his career he also advanced to be editor. But I think his main passion was always to write his own articles about local history and people. 

Linking to Sepia Saturday 773 - The Desk

Sally and her House - Sepia Saturday 765

Last week I posted three photos of my grandmother Sally celebrating her 50th, 60th and 70th birthday. Below are some photos of her in more of an "everyday" context, and I think all from the 1960s. 

This photo is of my grandparents Sally and Gustaf sitting in their garden - the photo probably taken by my dad. Gustaf, born 1904, died in 1969 of Parkinsons' disease, which he had by then suffered from for a number of years. My guess is that this photo is from the early/mid 1960s. There is a very similar photo in an album, obviously taken at the same time - but there is no note of the year there either.

Here we have Sally sitting at her kitchen table, drinking coffee. Probably early/mid 1960s, and I'm guessing it was Gustaf who took the photo. It's typical of how I remember the kitchen from my childhood. The sofa was painted red. To the left of where Sally is sitting is a tiny sink. Dishes  were always washed and dried directly after a meal, as there was no place for a dish rack. (And no other "work surfaces" either - the kitchen table was also used for preparing meals and baking etc.) 

 

On a sunny day in the summer, they loved to have coffee outdoors in the garden. From my early childhood I remember the garden table being placed in an arbour of lilac bushes, but I don't think I have any photo of that. The house back then was painted dark brown. In the early 1970s, after the death of my grandfather, my dad had the facade clad with some maintenance-free yellow material, though (but still looking much like wood). 

In this photo I think Sally looks much like in the one from her 70th birthday, and I'm guessing this was taken after Gustaf died. Here too, she is sitting next to the kitchen sink. 

On the wall behind her, in both kitchen photos, you can see a small mirror. Before my dad had some updates made to the house in the 1970s, the only WC (+ a bath tub, but no sink for just washing your hands) was down in the cellar. (They also had an outhouse, which was still used in the summers.) There was also a small sink in one of the two bedrooms upstairs - which back in the 1930s had been another kitchen. The house, built in 1930, originally had two flats, each consisting of one room + one kitchen. The first few years, Sally and Gustaf - and my dad, born 1931 - lived downstairs; and Sally's sister Hildur + her husband Olle + Sally's and Hildur's mother Selma lived upstairs. Later, Hildur and Olle built their own house nearby, and their room became Sally's and Gustaf's bedroom. And after Selma died, the upstairs kitchen became my dad's bedroom. Anyway... Still in my childhood, the kitchen sink and mirror were also used for washing your hands and face, shaving, fixing your hair, or whatever.

After the death of my grandfather, my dad had a WC + sink installed in the wardrobe of the living room downstairs for my grandmother (who then also preferred to sleep in the kitchen); and another WC in a wardrobe upstairs, between the two rooms there which we used when visiting her. 

The last years of her life, Sally moved to an old people's home in the village, but sometimes visited the house with us when we were there. We kept the house as a holiday house; and in the early 1990s, my parents added a substantial extension - including new kitchen and proper bathroom and large new living room downstairs + upstairs a large home office for my dad - and moved there for their own retirement years. Below is a collage showing what the house looked like when my brother and I finally sold it in 2014. The old kitchen was to the left of the new entrance seen in the top photo. (The two very small windows belonged to the original pantry.)

PS. Considering this weeks photo prompt for Sepia Saturday, maybe I should add a comment that Sally kept her hair naturally dark, and also long, well into her 70s. Only in her last few years did it turn grey, and then, while living in the old people's home, she also had it cut short and permed!

Linking to Sepia Saturday 765

Going to Work - Sepia Saturday 713

I have written about my grandfather Gustaf's career before, for example last summer in a post for Sepia Saturday 675. He started out as a shoemaker's apprentice in his early teens, but what he really wanted to do was write. He gradually managed to shift to a career as journalist, by taking a few correspondence courses, and starting out by freelancing until eventually he got a full time employment as journalist at a local newspaper in the nearest town (1926). He also usually took his own photos when he was out and about on various jobs. 

He was more often behind the camera rather than in front of it, and I haven't got a lot of photos of himself related to his job. But there are these:

After he left the shoemaker's business, he had a room at the farm where his childhood friend Nils and his family (mother, two sisters and two uncles) lived - at first probably in exchange for also helping out a bit at the farm. This photo shows him at his desk in that room (which was probably in a small separate cottage rather than in the main farm house). 

(He was later to marry Nils' sister Sally, my grandmother; but I think when he first moved in at the farm they were still just friends.) 

This is a photo of him at work from later years
(not sure when or where)

This is not my grandfather, but one of his colleagues at the newspaper where he worked between 1926-1938. (In 1938 he was recruited to another, bigger newspaper in the same town.)

Linking to Sepia Saturday 713

Portraits of Young Gustaf - Sepia Saturday 696

Among various photos in an envelope marked "Before 1930" I recently found this childhood portrait of my grandfather Gustaf T. It's one I can't recall ever having seen before - it's not included in his photo albums.

I doubt I would even have recognised this boy as my grandfather if the photo had not been found together with other later photos of him (probably sorted at some point by my father).

Gustaf was born in 1904, and I'm not sure which year this was taken, but this is probably  the earliest photo of him that exists. I don't know the year but I'm guessing ~ 1909. The outfit he's wearing does not look like anything I've ever seen! - but it vaguely reminds me of illustrations of Little Lord Fountleroy (book by Frances Hodgson Burnett from1886...) 

This is where Gustaf grew up though - more like "the little house on the prairie"!

Until I found the portrait at the top, this one was the earliest I had - found in one of my grandmother Sally's albums. A childhood portrait of Gustaf (born 1904) together with my grandmother's brother Nils (born 1902). I'm guessing it may be from Gustaf starting school (1911). - At first, I only recognised Nils in this photo, and had no idea who the other boy was. It was only later that it dawned on me that it must be Gustaf, and that he and Nils had been friends since early childhood.

 

They're also both in this Sunday School photo from 1912. Gustaf (8 years old) is 4th from the left. Nils (10 years old) is 5th from the right (front row).

And this is from the village football (soccer) team, a few years later. Nils is (unmistakably) the tall one in the background (captain/coach?), and Gustaf the one with the "attitude" standing in front of him... 

I remember that it was comparing it to another photo of the two of them as grown up young men that convinced me who was Gustaf in the football photo!

This is another photo from the envelope, which I can't recall having seen in any album. 

I also found two portraits from his military service in 1925:

This I suppose may be the one that he sent to my grandmother Sally in a letter that year. (Referred to in one of her letters to him.)

And this one is glued onto a hard cardboard frame with the embossed text "Memory from my military service".

Linking to Sepia Saturday 696 - Portraits

Man on Motorcycle - Sepia Saturday 676

 

Man on motorcycle, 1930s. Photographer unknown.
 digitaltmuseum.se

In last week's post (for Sepia Saturday 675), I started going through a kind of CV of my grandfather Gustaf's life and career put together by my dad with help of Gustaf's old cash-books. 

The last entry mentioned last week was that in September 1930 - besides getting married - Gustaf also then had expenses for getting a driving license. 

I stopped there, because I knew what this week's theme was going to be... 

1932, 23 July: First instalment on a motorcycle, 150 kr. After that he continued to pay 50 kr/month for it, with the last payment in February 1933. So in total it seems he paid 500 kr for it. I tried an online converter to estimate how much that would be today and got the answer around 18000 kr (SEK), which in turn would be around $1665 or £1325. My guess is that he probably bought the mc second hand. 

I can't recall ever having seen a photo of Gustaf on or with a motorcycle (or even just a photo of the motorcycle itself) and until fairly recently I did not know that he ever had one. I think I first saw it mentioned in a memorial article, written by a former colleague of his, 100 years after his birth (and 35 years after his death)  - that in the early years, before he had a car, he used a motorcycle in his job as journalist, to get around and interview people in the countryside etc. (I think it wasn't until 1947 that he bought a car.)

The cash-book shows that Gustaf continued to work for the newpaper BN (Borås Nyheter) until spring 1938. In May 1938, he started a new job at the bigger newspaper BT (Borås Tidning). There is also a document from 1940 indicating that he was "headhunted" for that job. 

During the winter 1938-39 there are expenses recorded for "modernisation of the house". This is again something that I cannot recall ever having seen documented in photos. Checking the cash-book itself (I still have that), it seems to have included the change of heating system by installing a coke-heated furnace in the cellar. I know that originally, they had an iron range in the kitchen and a tiled stove in the living room (and I assume the same in the separate flat upstairs, where Sally's mother, sister and brother-in-law lived during the early years). I'm also not sure they even had running water installed from start. (If they did, it would have been cold water only.)  

In my own childhood there was also a WC and a bathtub in the cellar. I don't when that was installed. Even in the 1960s it was still no fancy bathroom with tiles or anything, it was just a rather big room with grey concrete walls and floor, and the WC against one wall and the bathtub against the other. In the summers my grandparents still used the "outhouse". (I didn't like either of these alternatives, because the outhouse smelled, and the stairs down to the cellar were steep and scary, and it was cold down there...) 

Returning to the cash-book, that also shows a regular income of 'rent' from January 1931 through June 1939 - which indicates that it was not until then that Sally's sister Hildur and her husband Olle moved to a house of their own (only a few minutes walk away). So I guess the modernisation of my grandparents' house probably also included getting rid of the upstairs kitchen and turning the house in to a home for one family only.

The photo below is probably the earliest one I have of Hildur's and Olle's house. It strikes me now that it may even be from a "housewarming" party of sorts? In the summer of 1939, my dad was 8 years old.

My dad to the left, and next to him  Olle. The next three are friends of the family;  then Hildur (with a scarf on her head and wearing an apron). Another friend, and then Sally and Gustaf.

Linking to Sepia Saturday 676

New House, New Life - Sepia Saturday 670

In last week's post, I showed a photo of my grandparents (Sally & Gustaf) at the well on the property where they were going to build their house. My grandfather purchased the plot in March, and the well was finished towards the end of April. A few months later (late summer or early autumn) the house was "taking shape". I'm guessing that this photo was taken as part of celebrating having got the roof in place. It was probably my grandfather who took the photo, as he's not in the picture himself.

Family gathered at the New House (in progress), late summer 1930. Standing: Olle (engaged to Sally's sister Hildur), Sally, Mother Selma, Carin & Nils (Sally's brother and his fiancée). Sitting: Gustav (older half-brother to Sally and Nils), Hildur - and I think probably a brother of Carin's to the right (he looks vaguely familiar to me).

(Unless, possibly the unknown man is the builder? I know they had one, by name of Richard Andersson, as I have his bill, or receipt, for the finished work...)

The finished house (year unknown) 

Olle, Hildur's fiancé, may have helped with details on the house too, I suppose, as he was a carpenter by trade - and for the first few years, he and Hildur would be living there too. From what my father told me in the past, I know that originally, the house had two flats: One room + kitchen downstairs and the same (somewhat smaller) upstairs. Sally and Gustaf (who got married towards the end of September 1930) moved into the downstairs flat. (From about a year after their wedding also shared by baby Bertil, my father.) And a few months later, newly wed Hildur and Olle moved into the upstairs flat, together with Mother Selma (who slept in the upstairs kitchen). 

I'm not sure exactly how long they all continued to live together in the same house - maybe a few years. Olle and Hildur then built their own house only a few minutes walk away; so the two families always remained very close. (Hildur and Olle never had children of their own.) Selma I think alternated between living with her daughters in winter, and spending the summers in the small cottage on the farm (which I think was hers for the duration of her life). She lived until 1941 so was very much part of the household during my dad's early childhood. After Hildur and Olle moved to their own house, Sally and Gustaf made the upstairs room their bedroom; and later, the upstairs kitchen was converted to a bedroom for my dad.

Below is the last letter in my collection of letters written from Sally to Gustaf in 1929/30, between their engagement and wedding. It has no date, so I've been hesitating about exactly where it belongs in the chronology. But most likely it was written while it was still wintry; as gloves, socks and firewood are mentioned. The most interesting part is that it shows some of Sally's "mixed feelings" about the upcoming changes in her life after their marriage. She realises that in his career as a journalist, Gustaf has to meet and mix with "all sorts" of people - and is sometimes also expected to socialise in contexts in which she herself will feel timid and not quite comfortable...

Storegården, Thursday night

Darling!

Now you'll be getting a letter anyway, but it won't be a long one this time either. And please excuse me for writing in pencil. As you know, I have no ink here in our room, and I don't want to go into the men's room tonight, so I use what I have. It's past 9:30 pm and I'm rather tired. I've had a busy day, sewing gloves and also on that dress I was working on last night.

Olle is here working tonight and Hildur has gone down to him, so Mum and I are alone at the moment, and I'm grabbing the opportunity to write to you.

Have you heard anything more about Mr & Mrs K's party? I've been contemplating today whether I should come with you or not. I guess we'll talk more about it on Sunday. Of course I'd like to accompany you for your sake, and perhaps in a way it would be good for me as well. I suppose I must try to overcome my shyness at least to some degree. I guess sooner or later I'll have to get used to meeting ”society” ladies and gentlemen, even if the thought of it intimidates me a little.

I too am looking forward to the day we'll be united; but my joy is also mixed with some apprehension at the thought of my responsibility to be a good wife to you. With the help of God I still want to get started, and if I can only trust in that, I know I shall succeed. I'll leave both of us in his hands.

I would have written more, but I can't tonight, I'm so tired.

Lots of love from your Sally 

PS. Gustav won't be going into town until Tuesday or Wednesday next week, Miss L does not want any potatoes until then. I hope you'll be all right for firewood until then.

Mum sends her love. It's now past 11 but she is still knitting away at her socks. The sound of the spinning wheel has stopped for tonight.

Linking to Sepia Saturday 670 

(because sometimes you feel like crawling into a corner and hide - but you know you can't...!)

Storegården torsdag kväll

Älskade!

Nu får Du allt brev ändå. Men det blir inte långt denna gången heller. Och så får Du vara snäll och förlåta att jag skriver med blyerts. Jag har, som du vet, inget bläck här inne i vårt rum, och jag vill inte gå in åt herrummet i kväll, utan då tog jag vad jag hade. --- Kl är ju också redan över ½ 10 och jag börjar vara en smula trött. Jag har haft så bråttom i dag. Har sytt dels på vantarna och dels på den där klädningen jag höll på med i går kväll.

I kväll är Olle här och arbetar. Hildur har gått ner till honom nu så mamma och jag äro ensamma för tillfället, och därför skulle jag passa på och skriva till Dig.

Har Du hört något närmare sedan om Herrskapet K---'s förestående bjudning? Vet du, jag har tänkt mycket på det i dag om jag skall följa med Dig dit eller ej. Vi få väl tala mera om det på söndag. --- Nog skulle jag gärna vilja gå med för Din skull, och kanske vore det bra för mig också på sätt och vis. Jag måste väl försöka att övervinna blygheten åtminstone i någon mån. Och jag måste väl också en gång för eller senare sammanträffa med respektive societetsdamer och dito herrar, kan jag tro, fastän jag bävar en smula vid blotta tanken därpå.

--- Jag emotser, även jag, med glädje den dag då vi skola förenas. Dock är ju glädjen blandad med en viss bävan vid tanke på det ansvar som vilar på mig som en god maka åt Dig. Med Guds hjälp vill jag likväl börja och kan jag blott fullt och fast lita därpå, vet jag också att jag skall lyckas. I hans händer vill jag lämna oss båda.

Jag skulle skrivit mera men det går inte i kväll, jag är så trött nu.

Hjärtevarma hälsningar, Din Sally

Gustav reser inte till stan förrän på tisdag eller onsdag i nästa vecka. Fröken Larsson vill ingen potatis ha förr. Hoppas att Du klarar Dig med ved till dess.

Mamma hälsar. Kl är över 11 nu men mamma stickar lika flitigt på sina strumpor. Spolrocken har tystnat för i kväll. 

A Car Adventure, a Wedding, and a Well - Sepia Saturday 669

 

A letter from Sally to Gustaf, written on Monday before Easter, 1930. Sally, Hildur, Nils and Carin (Nils' fiancée) have been on long car trip. Sally does not mention the purpose of the trip (Gustaf no doubt knew that already) - the letter focuses on the troubles they ran into on their way home. But she does mention the name Hjelmsered - modern spelling Hjälmseryd - which is in the province of Småland, 140 km or so (~87 miles) from their home village, Fristad. This tells me that they had probably been to the wedding between Carin's brother Verner and his fiancé, for which an invitation was mentioned in an earlier letter - cf. my post for Sepia Saturday 665.  Ulricehamn, also mentioned here, is a town around 35 km (22 miles) away from Fristad. (Distances approximate and may have been even longer back then, depending on the roads). The wedding is likely to have been on Saturday, with an overnight stay for them there, and then driving back on Sunday. 

Storegården, 14 April 1930 [Monday before Easter]

My Darling,

Well, thankfully we're now back home again, after a long and difficult journey. Nils didn't get back home until this afternoon. He stayed the night on the other side of Ulricehamn, after the rest of us had gone home, and fixed one of the tires. You see, one tire got a puncture even before we reached Hjelmsered yesterday afternoon. And unfortunately we didn't have a spare one. Nils tried pumping it up several times, and that got us close to Ulricehamn, but that was it.

Nils then had to go somewhere to borrow a bike, and then down to Ulricehamn to get a cab to come and get the rest of us and drive us all the way home – i.e. Hildur, Carin and me. Nils stayed behind, spent the night alone in the car, and has today got the tire mended, and now he too is safely back home. Otherwise we're all all right - just very tired after all the hardships. Because of all the stops along the way we didn't get home until around 2 o'clock in the morning. It was the most difficult and despairing trip I've ever been on. Sitting on the road in the countryside in the middle of the night, far from home, and seeing no way to get back home really is despairing. When you get here, I'll tell you all the details if you want to hear them. Just now I'm just happy that we're all back home again.

I do hope you'll be coming on Thursday. I can't wait. Today Olle is going to get started on the well, he said last night when we got back. He was here with Mum when we got home, which was a blessing, as she was of course devastated that we were so delayed. And it would have been even worse if she'd been alone.

Signing off with lots of love to you, my Darling. Looking forward to seeing you on Thursday!

Yours, Sally

"Olle is going to get started on the well". This refers to the well on the property where Sally and Gustaf were building their house. Access to water was of course at the top of their priority list, before they got started on the house itself. Olle, Hildur's fiancé, was a carpenter, and built the well for them. I knew that already, because I also have the bill he sent to my grandfather for the finished job - dated 26 April. 1930. 

I've probably shown this photo mor than once before, but it's one of my favourites: My grandparents, Sally and Gustaf, behind the well at the property where they're going to build their house!

Linking to Sepia Saturday 669

Storegården d. 14-4-30

Min Älskling!

Ja nu äro vi, som väl är, hemma igen efter en lång och besvärlig resa. Nils kom hem först i dag på e.m. Han har liggat ett stycke på den andra sidan Ulricehamn, sedan vi reste hem i natt, och lagat den ena av bilringarna. Du förstår att den ena ringen gick sönder redan innan vi voro framme i Hjelmsered i går e.m. Och så till all olycka hade vi ingen reservring med oss. Nils låg väl och försökte att laga den så att vi med tillhjälp av åtskilliga pumpningar kunde taga oss en bra bit ner mot Ulricehamn, men sedan var det också stopp.

Nils måste då gå till ett ställe och få tag i en cykel, och så ner till Ulricehamn efter en droskbil som hämtade oss och skjutsade oss ända hem. Det var bara Hildur, Carin o jag som voro med. Själv stannade Nils kvar, övernattade i bilen ensam och har i dag lagat ringen, så nu är även han lyckligt hemma. För övrigt äro vi ju oskadda, men så trötta efter alla strapatserna. Resan blev ju också, på grund av att vi fingo sitta så länge på vägen gång på gång, fördröjd, så vi voro ej hemma förrän vid 2-tiden i natt. Det var den besvärligaste och mest förtvivlade resa jag varit med om förut. Att sitta ute på landsvägen nattetid så långt från hemmet, och inte se någon utväg att komma hem är förtvivlat. När Du kommer hit skall jag i detalj återgiva händelseförloppet om Du vill höra på mig. Jag känner mig så lycklig över att vi alla äro hemma igen.

Nu kommer Du väl riktigt säkert hit på torsdag. Jag väntar redan på Dig. I dag skulle visst Olle börja med brunnskaret, sade han i natt. Han var hos mamma när vi kommo hem, och det var ju för väl, för hon var ju förtvivlad över att vi dröjde så. Och ändå värre hade det varit om hon varit ensam.

Slutar nu med hjärtevarma hälsningar till Dig min Älskling. Varmt välkommen på torsdag!

Din Sally

Anledningen till resan till Hjelmsered (i Småland) var antagligen den inbjudan som omnämndes i ett tidigare brev (7.2.1930), till bröllopet mellan Carins bror Verner Abrahamsson och Anna-Lisa Elgström. Jmf mitt inlägg för Sepia Saturday 665.

I Did Not Know You Were Coming - Sepia Saturday 667

This letter from Sally to Gustaf has no date, but from its content, I conclude it must have written only two days after the previous one (cf. last weeks post for Sepia Saturday 666). 

On the day in between (5 March), Gustaf signed a contract to buy the plot of land where he and Sally were going to build their own house. Comparing the two letters, it seems that the plan was that Gustaf would inform Sally by letter about the outcome of that meeting. However, it seems that after the meeting, Gustaf had instead decided to go to the farm and tell Sally the good news in person. But when he got there - she wasn't at home... (Must have been a disappointment for him!) 

Storegården, Thursday morning [6 March 1930]

Darling!

My heartfelt thanks for your letter. I'm so sorry I wasn't home last night, but that's because I didn't know that you were coming! I didn't stay long at Komlösa, and if I had gone straight home, I'd had been back before you arrived. But they wanted me to come in at Källeberg on the way home too, and as I did not know you were coming, I did. They invited me for coffee before we went to Komlösa, and then supper and coffee afterwards as well. Annie then accompanied me part of the way back home, and I did not get home until after the last train had left. But had I known you were here, I'd have hurried straight home! [1]

Well, my friend – this Saturday we're all invited to Stommen, including you. I hope you'll be coming then, and will come with us. Couldn't you arrange to switch your work shift this Sunday with one of the others, and then work the two next Sundays in a row instead? Then I could go into town and visit you there. And you would not have to leave so early this Sunday. [2] [3]

Darling, I'm sorry for my sloppy writing, I'm in such a hurry because I'm about to start washing soon. I'm happy that it's all settled now about the plot. 

Thankfully my throat is well again, but I still have a runny nose. I hope you are well.

Lots of love from your Sally

Do please come on Saturday at 6. If I can find the time, I'll meet you at the station.

[1] Komlösa is a hamlet in the neighbourhood mentioned quite frequently in Sally's letters, and I think there must have been a chapel of some kind there back in those days. For all I know, the family may also have had friends living there, but I can't recall any personal names connected with the place. Källeberg on the other hand is the name of a farm where they had friends, situated somewhere in between where Sally lived, and Komlösa. 

[2] Stommen I think refers to a neighbouring farm, fairly close. 

[3] Gustaf was a journalist at a small newspaper in town, and from the letters I get the impression he probably had to work every other Sunday. 

Sally & Gustaf

Hildur, Selma, and Sally

Linking to Sepia Saturday 667

From what I know of my grandmother Sally, I think she preferred church gatherings to dancing, tough. (Or just chatting with friends over a nice cup of coffee in the kitchen, or on an outdoors picnic.)

Storegården torsdag f.m. (6? mars 1930)

Min Älskling!

Hjärtligaste tack för brevet. Vad det var tråkigt att jag ej var hemma i går kväll, men jag visste ju ej att Du skulle komma. Jag var inte länge i Komlösa, hade jag fått direkt hem så hade jag gott hunnit hem tills Du kom, men så ville de att jag skulle gå med in på Källeberg i hemväg också, och då, när jag inte visste om att Du skulle komma, gjorde jag det. De bjöd på kaffe innan vi gingo till Komlösa och sedan bjöd de på kvällsmat och kaffe återigen. Annie följde mig en bra bit på hemvägen, jag kom inte hem förrän sista tåget gått. Men tänk om jag vetat att Du var här, vad jag då skulle skyndat mig hem.

Nu är det så, min lille vän, att vi är bjudna till Stommen allesammans på lördag kväll, och Du är också bjuden. Hoppas att Du då kommer och går med. Kunde det inte gå för dig att få byta bort arbetet på söndag till någon av de andra, så kunde Du ju vara inne 2 söndagar i stället, då kan jag hälsa på Dig. Det skulle vara så roligt om Du kunde fått det ordnat så, så sluppe Du att resa på dagen på söndag. Det är så tråkigt tycker jag.

Älskade, du får ursäkta att jag skriver så illa, men jag har så rysligt bråttom. Skall börja tvätta sedan. Det var ju roligt att det nu är ordnat med tomten.

Nu är jag bra i halsen, som väl är, men jag har lite snuva kvar. Hoppas du är riktigt kry.

Slutar med hälsningar i mängd.

Din Sally

Kom säkert på lördag kl 6. Hinner jag, möter jag dig vid tåget.

"Thinking of Our Cottage" - Sepia Saturday 666

Continuing the series of letters written by my grandmother Sally to my grandfather Gustaf in the year before they got married. (Sally still living at the family farm in the countryside; Gustaf in town because of his job as a journalist.)

Storegården, 4 March 1930 [Tuesday]

Darling!

This time you're getting a letter from me earlier than we decided, but I hope you won't mind. Towards the end of the week I'll be rather busy. We're going to organize washing again on Thursday or so. Tonight I'm having an evening off. I.e. I have allowed myself time off to write to you. Otherwise there's work enough to be done. Mum, Gustav and I are home alone tonight. Hildur has gone to Mölarp, and Nils is away on other business. It's almost six o'clock, and in an hour or so I'll be going out to milk the cows.

"It's almost six o'clock, and in an hour or so 
I'll be going out to milk the cows."

My cold has not quite given way yet. In the daytime I don't feel it much, but in the evenings my throat has been sore. Not sure yet how it will be tonight, not feeling anything much just yet. Yesterday we were at Länghem and while I was sitting there my throat was hurting, and also during the night.

I also did not get a lot of sleep. Mum was so worried about Nils. He went away on business in the morning and was supposed to get back home in the evening. But evening came, and night, and he still hadn't turned up. I thought he might be visiting Caj, but towards 2 a.m. I started to realise that he would not be staying there that long on a Monday night, so then I got worried too. The roads are so slippery now, making driving difficult. But when the clock had struck 2 he arrived. He had been to Gullered and that neighbourhood.

Photo from Gullered
(different year, different season)

I suppose you still haven't got your tax form. I forgot to talk to you about that. Where could it have got to? It must have got lost somehow. And dear, I forgot to send your shirts and collars [with Gustav]. I hope you won't have to go without until your next visit here.

Tomorrow night I suppose you will be visiting Bylander. How wonderful if things could be arranged soon. I'm looking forward to your letter tomorrow. [*]

Darling, on Sunday there is a [church] celebration at Komlösa and I'd be happy if you'd like to come accompany me there. Now I can see you looking glum, but I hope that will pass, as it usually does. Reverend Hasselrot will be preaching, which is why I'm keen to go.

Looks like it will be raining soon. I'm wondering if you're out walking tonight.

Well, time is ticking on and soon I'll have to go down to the cowshed.

Welcome on Sunday, my darling!

Heartfelt greetings from your Sally

Mum sends her regards. She's sitting here on the sofa, knitting socks, and thinking of our cottage, she says. She's rejoicing with us about it. [*]

[*] 

Purchasing contract for the piece of land where Gustaf and Sally were to build their "cottage" - signed 5 March 1930, by my grandfather and the seller Otto Bylander, in the presence of two witnesses. 

If not for Sally's sore throat, she might have burst into song at the news! ;-) 

Linking to Sepia Saturday 666

Storegården d. 4-3-30

Älskade!

Nu får Du brev från mig tidigare än vi bestämt, men hoppas Du inte ser illa på det. I slutet på veckan får jag rätt mycket att göra. Vi skall ställa till med tvätt igen fram på torsdag eller så. Nu i kväll har jag lite ledigt. Dvs jag har tagit mig ledigt medan jag skriver till Dig. Annars har jag ju arbete för all del. Vi äro ensamma hemma i kväll, Mamma, Gustav och jag. Hildur har gått till Mölarp och Nils är ute i andra angelägenheter. Kl är snart sex, så om en timma eller så skall jag gå ut och mjölka.

Min förkylning har inte ”gett” sig ännu. På dagen känner jag ingenting särskilt, men på kvällarna brukar jag få så ont i halsen. Vet ej hur det kommer att bli i kväll, ännu känner jag ingenting vidare till. I går kväll voro vi på Länghem och medan jag satt där fick jag så ont i halsen och sedan i natt var det rätt så ont. Jag sov heller inte många timmar i natt. Mamma var så orolig för Nils. Han reste bort i affärer på f.m. I går och skulle komma på kvällen. Kvällen kom och natten bröt in, men han kom ej. I början trodde jag att han var hos Caj, men när kl belv 2 började jag förstå att han inte var där så länge en måndagsnatt, varför även jag börjde bli orolig. Vägarna äro ju så sliriga och usla att köra nu. Men så när kl slagit 2 kom han. Han hade varit i Gullered och där bort igenom.

Du har väl inte fått Din skattsedel. Jag glömde att tala vid Dig om det. Var kan den ha blivit av? De ha väl slarvat bort den på något sätt. Min lille vän, jag glömde ju att skicka med Dina skjortor o kragar. Hoppas Du inte är utan tills Du kommer härnäst.

Ja nu kanske Du är hos Bylander* i morgon kväll. Det vore väl roligt om det bleve ordnat snart. Väntar nu brev från Dig i morgon. Älsklingen min, på söndag är det visst fest i Komlösa och då skulle jag bli bra glad om Du ville följa med mig dit. Nu ser jag hur trumpen Du blev men jag hoppas det går snart över, det brukar ju göra så. Det är kyrkoh. Hasselrot som predikar där och därför vill jag så gärna gå. 

Det ser ut som det skulle bli regn snart. Undrar om Du är ute och ”går” i kväll.

Kl går och snart måste jag gå till ladugården.

Välkommen på söndag middag, min älskling!

Hjärtevarma hälsn från Din Sally

Mamma hälsar Dig. Hon sitter här i soffan och stickar strumpor och tänker på vår stuga, säger hon. Hon gläder sig med oss åt den.

*5 Mars 1930 tecknades ett köpekontrakt mellan min farfar Gustaf och Otto Bylander, för köpet av den mark där mina farföräldrars hus sedan uppfördes under året. Köpeskillingen var 1000 kr.