Is Eld a Swedish military name?   Jonas Eld, present at my great-grandfather's baptism in Håll (?), Vena parish, Kalmar, Småland, was born in Måtilla (?) in 1787 according to the 1839-47 census.  My great-grandfather, born 3/22/1831 (173.30--60400 census citation) and named Nils Gustaf, son of Lars Svensson, became a soldier as an adult, Nils Gustaf Krig.

I've been told my great-grandparents first lived in a torvhydda on their Kansas homestead in 1870.  Is this something like a sod-house/dug-out combination?  Is it related in any way to the backstuga in Sweden, a small cottage which had one or two sides built into a hillside?

Thanks again, Bertil!  The photo of Vena church is beautiful and most welcome. More questions to come in 2008.  Happy Holidays!  --Larry

My great-grandmother, Lena Sofia Svensdotter, was from Fruvik, near Hultsfred, Vena socken, and she married a soldier, Nils Gustaf Krig, to live in Tuna socken, in the village (?) of Stockhult (?).  I'm interested in any kind of information about daily life, topography, life on a soldier's torp, etc. in this area.  My great-grandmother's father was a brukare and she worked as a pigge before marriage.

Bo--  The distinction between user and owner is significant, so this is very helpful information.
 
Bertil--  This Moberg website looks great.  I've read the emigrant/immigrant novels and will explore the others. Maybe it's time to get to work and try reading RASKENS in Swedish.  Thanks.--Larry

My great-grandfather was given the last name of Krig when he entered the Swedish military service in the 1840s, eventually living on a soldier's torp in Tuna, close to Vimmerby.  Any suggestions for finding out what his surname was before Krig?  He seemed to have connections with the Hultsfred area, Vena socken, where his wife came from.

Thanks, Ann-Mari, for your comment.  Your explanation is sensible, though the crude homestead on the Kansas prairie had no close neighbors and very likely no road close by.  Nevertheless, she may have been hopeful that someone out there would see the candles (and maybe stop in?).  --Larry

Are on-line sources available to locate bouppteckning information for my great-great grandparents who remained in Kalmar län after a son and daughter emigrated to the U.S. in 1869?  I have names, death dates, and location information for starters.  Thanks!

I'm having difficulty locating emigrant/passenger information for my great-grandparents and their children from Tuna socken, Kalmar: Nils Gustaf Krig, born 1831 (spelled Kric on the one list I've located) and his wife Lena Sofia Svensdotter, born 1836, with their two children, Sven Edvard, born 1861, and Johan Viktor, born 1866.  The one source I located indicated the port of departure was Göteborg and the date August 27, 1869.  What I'm very curious about is Johan Viktor, who disappears from the records after emigration.  Three males in the family and one woman in the household, according to the Swedish census, emigrated, but there's no record of Johan Viktor in the U.S. census.  I'm wondering if he died during the passage or was lost or died on the land trip to Kansas.  Do I have to purchase the EmiHamn data CD, even though EmiHamn is one of the data bases in Ancestry.com, which I'm using?  Thanks!