This post is going to be short, because I really have very little information on him.
Carl Gustaf Adolph Klarstrom was the third child of Carl Magnus Klarstrom and Christina Elisabeth Bennberg.
He was born on 6 Nov 1870 in Alvkarleby, Sweden – near Gavle. I found his birth in the Swedish parish records on Ancestry.
His family moved to Lenhovda, Sweden in 1885 and then on to Alem in 1889 where they only stayed for one year before moving again to Gavle, where they had lived before Carl’s birth.
His sisters were on a passenger list bound for America in 1910. They listed him as their closest living relative – and stated that he lived in Gavle.
I found a Karl Klarstrom in 1893 on the SS Gallia arriving in New York.
I also found a Carl Klarstrom heading to Minnesota in 1901 who fits his age range.
I have no idea if either of these guys is him.
On one of the household examinations, it also mentioned that he immigrated.
He may have come to America for a time and then returned to Sweden though.
I did find a clue in Sweden, Births from the Swedish Death Index, 1947-2006 on Ancestry. There was a Gustaf Adolph Klarstrom listed as being born 1 Nov 1871 in Alvkarleby. Unfortunately, it doesn’t give a death date, but it does mean that he died in Sweden -if this his him. I searched the parish records for that date and didn’t find anyone with a similar name born at that time, so I’m assuming that this is my guy and his birth date is simply incorrect in the Death Index (it’s a year and five days off).
Unfortunately, that’s all I have. I know that there is more research I can do in the Swedish parish records, but it’s so difficult since…
- They are in Swedish, which I don’t speak
- The handwriting and abbreviations are sometimes hard to understand
- It isn’t indexed, which means I”m searching page by page
I might do a quick perusal, but this is definitely something I”m going to need to delve into when I have a bit more time on my hands. So, in 15 years when all of my kids are grown up, maybe I”ll have the time to devote to it. 🙂
