Deaths in the Family

Two cousins passed away this week.  I guess that shows how old we are getting. 

Arne Karlsson, a 3rd cousin of my Dad lived in Skee Sweden, very close to the Sweden - Norway border not so far from Oslo Norway. 

We got to know Arne from our genealogical research started in the late 1990s.  At the 1999 Millennial Hanson family reunion, cousin Albert brought the naturalization paper of one of the Swedish brothers who came to Wisconsin.  It gave the name of Hjalmstad Sweden as the "from" location and Red Wing MN as the "too."

After a several kindnesses of volunteers we managed to find Arne still living on the farm and in the house my GG grandfather Olaus Hansson built.  Arne was my father's generation, great grandson of Olaus. His grandmother and Dad's grandfather were sister and brother, the sister staying in Sweden. 

A neighbor, Stefan, sent us some photos of Arne by email.  It was the first connection anyone in our family knew about in 100+ years. 

Arne, his wife Lillian, his sister Mary and son Raymon, and Stefan all visited us in 2002 in MN.  We drove out to western MN where our common ancestor, Olaus is buried.  In 2003, Margo and I returned and visited them in Sweden.  In the 4 weeks of visiting over two years, we became friends as well as reestablishing cousinship.  

Arne was, as far as I can tell, the very last of the family who actually milked cows, and kept cattle and ran his own farm.  He was 82 years old.  He was a modern farmer with tractors and combines, but loved horses.  He had a wonderful collection of old buggies, wagons, carriages, and carts.  He had been a farrier in his early days before taking over the farm his great grandfather Olaus had started.  

 The family home in Sweden with around the table entertaining the American branch. 

Arne with the cane walking one of the farm paths that have been walked by our family since at least 1850 or more.  

The Skee, Sweden, church where generations of our family lie. 

Bronze age burial mounds along the Church Walk -- the path that generations of our family walked to church.  I asked Arne, "Do you think they might contain our relatives?"  "There is no reason to think are relatives are not buried here."  

Arne and his grandson Anton filling a bag with soil from the Olaus Hansson farm for his cousin to bring back to America and sprinkle on the graves of the three Swedish brothers and their father who came to America, leaving the daugher to continue the family farm here.  Anton and my son Scott are both 6th generation descendants of Olaus Hansson. 

Dad and Mom at the end of the table with our Swedish visitors at the Wisconsin Hanson farm 2002.  Everyone in the photo for Stephan on the left has passed away.  Dad and Arne were 3rd cousins -- American and Swedish branches. Each of their farms were about the same size and the two likely could have traded farms and felt at home farming in each other's country.  

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  Cousin Marlys Haselhuhn Bergeron

Dad was one of 8 children of Pearl and Hannah Hanson.  He was number 7 and Esther was number 8.  Both are gone and their children are moving into the mature years too.  

Esther married Ralph Haselhuhn and they lived in the Centuria/Milltown area.  They had two children, Mike and Marlys, twins.  Mike called me this afternoon to let me know Marlys Haselhuhn Bergeron had passed away and the funeral was Tuesday.  
I had many first cousins through my Dad's side.  Sadly, many of them have passed away leaving a small and scattered group left.  We see each other mostly at funerals.  Tuesday will be the next gathering at the Redeemer Lutheran Church in St Croix Falls, visitation at 10am, services at 11.  

The front right girl smiling broadly is Marlys at the Wolf Creek School sitting by her friend Sharon Harris.  Next row back is brother Marv and our cousin Mike -- Marlys' twin brother.  Behind them is Jerry Jansen.  Alphabetical with the H's and a J.  

I will add the obituary when I get it.  

In reviewing my 1st cousin generation from Dad's side,  still left are:  Glenn, Ardyce, Brad, Harvey, Mike, Pat, Norman, and brothers Ev, Marv and me.  Gone are Allen, Deloris, Betty, Vernon, Marley, and brother Byron. Several others died at birth or as babies, as we are still of that generation where birth too often took away babies and sometimes mothers.  

  Tuesday will be another gathering of the cousins to say goodbye to the group of kids I remember so well. 

Visitation 10:00 AM  Funeral 11:00 AM Jan 27th
Redeemer Lutheran Church
200 North Adams, St. Croix Falls, WI 54024, United States

Obituary for Marlys P Bergeron
Marlys P. Bergeron, age 73 of Centuria died on Wednesday, January 21, 2015 at the St. Croix Falls Regional Medical Center in St. Croix Falls.

Marlys was born on November 25, 1941 in Rice Lake to parents, Ralph and Esther (Hanson) Haselhuhn. She attended Wolf Creek School through the 7th grade and then attended Centuria High School graduating in 1960. She married Carlos Bergeron on May 4, 1961and they soon started their family with the birth of their first child, Carmen. Marlys worked doing child care and elderly care before taking a job at the St. Croix Falls Hospital in the housekeeping department where she worked for 25 years retiring in 2003. Marlys loved doing crossword puzzles, reading, playing cribbage, gardening and canning. She especially loved her Turtle Sundae’s at Dairy Queen! She will be remembered as a happy and joyful person who always had a smile.

Marlys is survived by her husband, Carlos; children, Charles (Angie) Bergeron of Fall Creek; Carmen (Steve) Holten of Centuria and Julie (David) Thaemert of Centuria; grandchildren, Michael, Josh, Ashley, Nathan, Jamie, Josh, Brooke, Luke, CJ, Alex, Evelyn and Katie as well as her 11 great grandchildren. She is also survived by her brother, Michael (LouAnn) Haselhuhn of Turtle Lake. She is preceded in death by her parents, son, James in 2002 and an infant daughter in 1964.