We are currently in between trips and other hobbies are developing. In the family life, I have returned to my old heritage research. The starting point is our Little A and the tree has during the last weeks grown to include over 500 people. Unfolding my heritage will probably be my big hobby in between trips and I will be sharing parts of it here on the blog.
Unfolding My Heritage: My Main Sources
As I have so far not found any relative who has left Sweden, my sources are of course Swedish. Heritage research in Sweden is made easier with the access to church books dating back to the 17th century. The church in Sweden has been responsible for registering the population from the 17th century up until 1990. This includes written records of who lived where, of everyone who was born or who died, of every marriage and a lot more.
Luckily few wars have been fought within the Swedish borders during this period and most of these records are still in good condition. Fire and moisture are the greatest enemies when looking for specific books. Other than that there is just one thing causing great concern at the moment. While unfolding my heritage, it is sometimes a challenge to be able to read the handwritten records. Letters did just not look the same two centuries ago and the writer did not make it easy for others to read the text. It is as messy to read as medical journals can be today.
Sveriges Dödbok 1901-2013
This is a digital registry of everyone who has died in Sweden between the years 1901 and 2013. It is produced by Sveriges Släktforskarförbund, In English that is the Federation of Swedish Genealogical Societies. This database contains more than 9 290 000 posts and it is very useful when looking for information in the more recent past. This is, however, not a first-hand source and all information is not 100% correct.
Arkiv Digital
This is for sure most expensive source I use at the moment. There are subscriptions available that give you access to color photos from a big part of the church books. According to Arkiv Digital, there should be 75 000 000 photos available. There are also registres available for some periods, making it possible to search for people in the database without the need to first find out which book to start in.
The registers make it easier for the time periods that they cover, but then it is all photocopies of the church books. At that time, it is all about your ability to read the old texts. If you are able to and are lucky that the text is of a good quality, then there is a lot of information to gather here.
Current Insights
- Number of individuals: 638
- Number of generations: 12
- Furthest date back: 1691
Going forward I will try to write about a few interesting persons that I find. Most people I have found are laborers or crofters, but there are some more interesting events found. For instance, I have found a soldier that died as a prisoner of war in St. Petersburg in 1808 and a big part of a family who perished in a boat accident in Trosa. Tragic events that I hope to find out more about. I will continue unfolding my heritage.
*All photos are from Arkiv Digital.
