Researching an Orphan in Sweden Case Study: Difference between revisions

Carolina Aspling was 1st seen as the wife of Johan Mattsson at the time of the birth of their son Johan on 24 Dec. 1830 in Viksjö parish, Västernorrland County, Sweden. The birth entry says the parents lived on Westanå in Stordalen. With this place information the next step was to look at the household examination of Viksjö that includes the same year of the birth. Search the moving records in between as needed (when they moved from one parish to another.)

Every household examination that Carolina Aspling is listed on was looked at. She was followed in household examinations (going forward in time) from Viksjö parish until they moved to Stigsjö parish in 1831. There was no moving-in record for Stigsjö to say where to look in the Stigsjö household examination, so the entire household examination was searched page by page. Then they moved to Ljustorp parish in 1845. The moving-in record in Ljustorp says they moved to a village called Wester Frötuna. She was found in the Ljustorp household examinations in Wester Frötuna. They stayed there on each household examination until she died in 1849. The entry for Carolina in the Ljustorp death records was looked at. This completes searching each household examination from the time of their second child until Carolina passed away. Now each household examination needs to be searched from 1830 going back in time towards her birth. The household examination of Viksjö that includes 1830 did not say where the family moved in from. The household examination just prior to the 1830 examination did not show them in Westanå, and there is no moving-in record for Viksjö at that time. Further there is no moving certificate for the family, showing where they came from prior to 1830. Since the couple is married, and of childbearing years, a search was done in the birth and christening records of the parishes that are immediately next to the parish of Viksjö. During that search, a birth entry was found in the parish of Ljustorp for a boy Mathias who was born to Johan Matsson and Carolina Aspling in 1827. This showed the parents were living in the village of Gällwik at the time of the birth. The next step was to look up the family in the household examination records of Ljustorp that included the birth year of 1827. This was found in the section for Gällwik, and it showed the family (including a reference of moving to Viksjö in 1829.) This household examination also showed a marriage year of 1827, which was verified in the Ljustorp marriage records. At the time of the marriage both the groom and the bride were from the village of Tuna in Ljustorp parish. A search continued from one household examination to another going back in time. Before the marriage Carolina was listed as a Piga (female servant) until she was about 16 years old. The household examinations prior to that show her as a Barnhus Flicka (orphan girl.) One of the household exams showed she arrived in Ljustorp parish in 1807.