The theatre was a magical place. It was a world like no other. Letty loved the times she was allowed to come with her father to the theatre. Later in life, when she reflected on her happy childhood, there was one memory that stood out. It would have been in 1839 because she remembered that she was almost 12 years old. Her father, the director […]
Was Virginia nervous on that Sunday when Pastor Petterson opened the doors to the new class of 92 girls who would be studying with him? Did she arrive alone, or did she walk in with some friends? Was her secret known by the other girls who were gathering? She must have assumed that Pastor Petterson knew. But were there rumors? And if they knew, would […]
Pastor Josef Nordlund looked across his desk at Emma Wiiger, the young mother who had come to see him. Emma was visibly upset and his role was to dissuade her from taking action against her husband. Why would a young woman like her, with three young children, even think about leaving her husband? Divorce! He had to convince her to, instead, be a better wife […]
It was early fall when Christina Mathilda Georgina af Trolle suspected that she was pregnant. She was 19 years old and unmarried. What would she do? To have a child out of wedlock was in 1848 actually a crime, although few mothers were prosecuted. But worse was the shame. She had three choices. She could tell the baby’s father, bookkeeper Lars Johan Lindqvist, and if […]
It is a beautiful fall day and I am walking along Skeppsbron, a street with stately old houses that line the waterfront of the Old Town in Stockholm. For hundreds of years, these houses have belonged to rich merchants and traders. Skeppsbron should really be seen from the waters, but this day, I was wondering what the view would have been from one of these […]
It was a beautiful day, finally. The last week of June had been unusually cold and windy and the relentless rain had flooded some streets. The women in the household, Sophia Augusta and her sister Mathilda, their mother, and their two old maids – Margaretha and Marie – had been forced to stay indoors for several days because of all this rain. Sophia Augusta had […]
In May of 1844, Pastor Petterson listed Augusta Sjöstedt as number 13 of the girls who got confirmed in St Jacob’s church. The ranking was based on his perception of the girl’s social status, based on her last name and her father’s profession. Augusta Sjöstedt did not belong to the nobility but her father, Jacob Sjöstedt, was a wealthy brewer. The first time I heard […]
Oscara was sitting at her dressing table. She appreciated the large windows in her bedroom. It was so much easier to powder one’s face in a bright, sunny room. She applied the pearl powder to her cheeks and forehead and then dabbed a little pink rouge on her cheeks – just a little. Carolina, her maid, would help her with the hair. Her long, thick, […]
St Jacob’s Church in the center of Stockholm is a landmark. Built in the 1600s, it has a beautiful red color and a green roof. Today it is famous for its music. I have walked by the church many times, too busy to take the time to sit down and listen to one of its free organ or choir concerts. But on a sunny day […]
Last summer, I wrote about Augusta’s first love. In the summer of 1845, Augusta turned 18. She had just finished her schooling in Stockholm and maybe her mother Anna thought it was time for her to meet a suitable young man. Why not at the most fashionable seaside resort on the Swedish west coast, Gustafsberg? Well, did Augusta meet someone at Gustafsberg? Yes, she did […]