Some exciting mail has arrived at the office of the Swedish American Historical Society! Our freshly redesigned newsletter, Glimtar, hit the office desk last week, and is making its way out to our members. A PDF is also available on … Read More
Dinner and Lecture at Chicago’s Swedish American Museum “Jens Jensen: A Scandinavian-American Force of Nature,” Julia Bachrach, urban planner and preservationist. Tickets can be purchased here. The SAHS is excited to partner with the Swedish American Museum in Andersonville, Chicago … Read More
2024 Spring Program Thursday May 9, 2024, 11:00 am – 2:00 pm Lunch & Lecture at Seattle’s Swedish Club Northwest “Stories of the Past: How Swedish Americans Shape Their Heritage” by Jennifer Eastman Attebery, Professor Emerita at Idaho State University … Read More
Carl Sandburg (1878 – 1967) was a Swedish-American poet, biographer, journalist, and editor. He won three Pulitzer Prizes: two for his poetry and another for one of his multi-volume biographies of Abraham Lincoln. He was a towering figure in twentieth-century … Read More
The celebrated Swedish author, Vilhelm Moberg, was known on both sides of the Atlantic for his epic, four-part novel (The Emigrants, Unto a Good Land, The Settlers, and The Last Letter Home) chronicling the lives of Karl Oscar and Kristina … Read More
Collection and preservation of documents was one of the original purposes of the Swedish-American Historical Society (initially Swedish Pioneer Historical Society) set forth in its 1948 constitution, but it was not until fourteen years later, in 1962, that an archives … Read More
Comments by Marcus Cederström Board of Directors Strategic Planning Chair The Swedish-American Historical Society is turning 75 this year. But 134 years ago, a different Swedish-American Historical Society first appeared. Roy Swanson in the first issue of the journal of … Read More
Since the beginning of the Swedish-American Historical Society, publishing books in our field has been a major focus. Since 1950 and the publication of our first book, the Society has published a total of 35 books. Some of the books … Read More
The Swedish-American Historical Society was founded in Chicago in October 1948, originally named the Swedish Pioneer Historical Society. The Society was an out-growth of the nation-wide Swedish Pioneer Centennial held that same year. Swedish Pioneer Centennial The genesis of the … Read More
“Dining with Friends: A History of Swedish-American Commemorations” presentation by Adam Hjorthén SAHS 75th Anniversary Dinner Friday, October 20, 2023 Old Orchard Country Club (Prospect Heights, IL) “Dining with Friends: A History of Swedish-American Commemorations” will be the keynote presentation … Read More
This blog post is part of a series of posts in honor of the Society’s 75th Anniversary. The Swedish Pioneer Historical Society (now Swedish-American Historical Society) created the Carl Sandburg Medal in 1977 to honor service to the Society, service to … Read More
This blog post is part of a series of posts in honor of the Society’s 75th Anniversary. Publication of the Swedish-American Historical Quarterly (previously named the Swedish Pioneer Historical Quarterly until 1982) has been one of the Society’s most consistent … Read More
October 20 & 21, 2023 Chicago, Illinois The 2023 fall meeting of the Society will be a celebration of the rich history since its founding on October 15, 1948, as the Swedish Pioneer Historical Society, an outcome of the successful nationwide … Read More
Saturday, April 29, 2023 Social Hour at 5:30 Dinner at 6:00 (catered by Tre Kronor Restaurant) Show at 7:00 Held at the Swedish American Museum 5211 N. Clark Street, Chicago, Illinois The Society’s spring program was a wonderful event, … Read More
We met on Sunday, November 13, at 1:00pm Central via Zoom for “Swedish American Holiday Traditions” with Patrice Johnson, food historian and Nordic cooking instructor. View the presentation by clicking here! Many of us were raised in America’s heartland with … Read More
As a part of the SAHS Fall Meeting, the Swedish-American Historical Society and the Swedish American Museum will co-host Maja Heurling, Ola Sandström, and their band on their inaugural U.S. tour. Join us for an afternoon of LIVE music on … Read More
Our 2022 spring program, Crossing Borders: Historical Relations Between Sweden and the United States, explored an exciting new avenue in Swedish-American and migration history, namely “borderland studies,” which includes a pathbreaking cross-disciplinary examination of the countless aspects of historical and cultural … Read More
We were glad to host Dr. James Leary, along with Swedish-American Historical Society board member, Dr. Marcus Cederström, as they presented and discussed Swede Home Chicago: Wallin’s Svenska Records, 1923-1927, a multimedia presentation highlighting the music from Gustaf Waldemar Wallin’s … Read More
Is it time for spring cleaning? Join us to hear leading archivists of Swedish-American collections share insights into preserving historical records and dispel some myths about what their work entails and how you can preserve your personal and family collections. … Read More
Due to the ongoing covid-19 pandemic, the 2020 Fall Meeting of the Swedish-American Historical Society was a virtual affair. On Sunday, October 25th, over 100 people from around the United States and internationally tuned in on Zoom to enjoy a … Read More
The Fall Meeting of the Swedish-American Historical Society will take place on Saturday, October 26, 2019, on Chicago’s South Side in Hyde Park, the site of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. At the turn of the last century, through the … Read More
The Spring Meeting of the Society took place on Saturday evening, April 27, at the Swedish American Museum. The 2019 Spring Meeting of the Society was an enjoyable and memorable gathering, including dinner catered by Tre Kronor Restaurant, Swedish spring … Read More
In celebration of the Society’s seventieth anniversary, a festive dinner and program for members and friends will be held at the Swedish American Museum (5211 N. Clark Street, Chicago). A special Swedish smörgåsbord dinner, catered by Tre Kronor Restaurant, will … Read More
Join us at the Swedish American Museum on April 14th for a festive dinner catered by Tre Kronor and a fascinating program on “Nordic Noir”, Swedish Crime Fiction, by Mary Seeger, SAHS board member. As a genre, Scandinavian crime fiction … Read More
Join SAHS on October 21st for a festive dinner catered by Tre Kronor and a fascinating program on “Nordic Noir”, Swedish Crime Fiction, by Mary Seeger, SAHS board member. The rise in Swedish crime writing has taken the literary world … Read More
Minnesota was settled by thousands of Swedish immigrants beginning in the 1850s and extending into the early twentieth century. In addition to the well-settled Minneapolis and St. Paul urban neighborhoods, the beautiful area of the St. Croix River Valley, which … Read More
On Friday, Nov. 4, 2016, the Swedish-American Historical Society co-sponsored an awards ceremony in Chicago with Swedish Council of America (SCA). The event occurred in downtown Chicago at the historic Saint James Episcopal Cathedral just after five million Chicago Cubs … Read More
The Swedish-American Historical Society will hold its fall meeting in conjunction with the Swedish Council of America meeting in Chicago on November 4-5. The Society was one of four founding organizations of SCA in 1972. Together they will share an … Read More
A Celebration of Scandinavian Episcopal Life in Early Chicago. SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 2016 St. James Cathedral 65 E. Huron Street, Chicago 9:30 a.m. – Welcome and Introduction 11:00 a.m. Choral Eucharist with bishop Lee and Dean Barrington 12:15 p.m. Lunch … Read More
A Swedish Impressionist of the Gilded AgeBetween the years 1893 and 1911, the influential Swedish artist Anders Zorn made seven trips to the United States, traveling widely and crafting portraits of some of America’s most prominent figures, including Grover Cleveland, … Read More
by Eloise V. NelsonLovely fall weather and the lush green hills of southern Pennsylvania greeted members of the Swedish–American Historical Society who attended an enlightening weekend in Gettysburg September 20-22, 2013. Significantly, this year marks the 150th anniversary of the … Read More
The Swedish–American Historical Society marked the 100th anniversary of the death of renowned Swedish author and playwright August Strindberg with two one-act plays at the society’s fall 2012 meeting on November 10th at Hamming Hall on the North Park University … Read More
by Eric LundThirty-one Society members enjoyed an interesting, educational, and stimulating weekend in the Detroit area April 23-25. Participants came from Illinois, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Massachusetts, as well as Michigan..Following check-in and registration Friday afternoon at the Country Inn … Read More
by Eric Lund, November 2008The Swedish–American Historical Society celebrated its 60th anniversary Saturday, Nov. 8 2008, at a symposium and festive dinner at the Westmoreland Country Club in suburban Chicago.The club, in candlelit ambience, lived up to its slogan of … Read More
by Eloise NelsonThirty-six enthusiastic participants enjoyed a spring weekend tour in Minnesota—a major destination of Swedish immigrants in the 1800s and early 1900s.Our activities began at the American–Swedish Institute on Friday evening, May 2, 2008, where we viewed exhibits on … Read More