We are nearing the end of this part of the story of Anders Molin and Sara Brita Krok. Not only do I now have a sourced marriage date, I discovered another child, their firstborn, who was born in Öved four months after they were married. I have names, dates, places, and images of records for some of Sara Brita’s family, although I don’t have her siblings yet.

The real question is how do records as far apart geographically as Ystad, Marstrand and Önnestad fit into the picture of this family? My first reaction was that something was wrong here, but I wasn’t sure exactly what it was.

The records don’t answer “Why,” but they do explain how all these different and distant towns came to be part of their life story.

Anders and Sara Brita only lived in Öved at most for about two years. The family moved frequently, most likely because Anders went were the work was.

Their second child, Hans Niclas (Nicholas), my ancestor was born in Finja, Kristianstad on 31 August 1778.

The family stilled lived in Finja when son Johan Peter was born on 20 August 1780.

In early 1781, Sara Brita Krok was named as a sponsor for a child. I don’t have a full translation for this image, but she is listed as living in Finja. It seems reasonable to conclude that the Molin family moved to Vankiva in the spring or summer.

Little Johan Peter Molin’s’s life was short, as his burial record is recorded in the next village to the east, Vankiva. he died on 15 September 1781 and was buried on the 23rd.

The Molin family has one more child’s birth recorded in Vankiva, that of another son also named Johan Petter (Peter). This child was born on 20 July 1782.

As I was collecting these images, I was also checking online for more clues. I had seen a family tree that gave the name of Jöns Abraham Molin/Krok, born in 1786 in Everlöv as a child of Anders and Sara Brita. I searched the parish records and found that this birth/baptism told more than probably any other record I had already come across.

AD: Everlöv Births and Baptisms, Image #63

Here we have the baptism of the son of master mason Anders Molin of Marstrand and Sara Brita Krok called Jons Abraham, born 30 July 1786 and baptized on 28 August. However, the part of the sentence mentioning Anders Molin is crossed out and at the very top of the entry is written “illegitimate.” After the priest entered this baptism, he came to the conclusion that this child was not a son of Anders Molin.

Remember my statement several days ago about leaving no stone unturned? Well, first I had to find out where Marstrand was. It is a town located on an island off the coast near Gothenburg. I checked to see what records were available for that parish, but found only one – the population register, which was actually a tax roll.

I immediately went searching for Marstrand in 1786 and found this entry:

PR: Marstrand, Image #386

There he was in dwelling #28 and Sara Brita was not with him. He was the sole member of his family there. I then searched the same record for 1785 and, again, he was in Marstrand, again the sole member of his family.

I then checked 1784, but Anders Molin was not to be found. He was also not there in 1787 and that is the latest in time record I have so far located for him. However, since I had discovered the population registers, I checked for Finja and Vankiva and found several listings. The Molin family was listed in Vankiva for 1781, 1782 and 1783.

1781 brought my next surprises. First, “Molin” was repeated twice in the listing. First was Anders Molin, wife.

I needed a translation for the second line. It says “old father Molin” was also living there! No first name, but at least he was called Molin and not a patronymic which I wouldn’t recognize!!!

Second was a remark found at the end of the line with Anders Molin – master mason Ystad. This same remark was in several of the other population registers and I was advised in Salt Lake City that this notation didn’t say he was from there or currently living there; it most likely meant that he was a member of the mason’s guild located in Ystad. That would make sense since many of the records for this family were recorded within a few miles of Ystad.

The 1782 listing for Vankiva contained the same information, but in 1783, “old father Molin” was gone. I searched high and low in Finja and Vankiva, but found no burial record for him. There were two more surprises waiting in Finja, though. The 1780 Finja population register included “old father Molin,” but, this time, he had a name!

Anders Molin’s father was Nils Molin! Yes!!! I also found Anders Molin and wife in the 1778 and 1779 population registers. Nils Molin was not living with them and I haven’t had a chance to look for him in other parishes.

However, I found one more item relating to the family – “the wife of Molin” was buried in Finja on 11 December 1778, aged 73 years so born about 1705. Again, I realize that the priest knew who she was, but I wish he had shared her name with the rest of us!

A quick review is needed here about names used in the Molin records. First, Anders’ father was named Nils. Remember Hans Molin, church sexton of Bosarp, whose son Nils Peter, had Inspector Krok/Krook as a godparent? I thought that perhaps this Hans was an uncle to Anders Molin. Well, if he is, then Hans named his son in honor of his brother. “Peter” was the middle name.

Now, remember that Master “Mohlin” buried his son, Peter Johan, aged 11 years old, in Öved in 1749. I am now quite certain that Master Mohlin is most likely Nils Molin. Peter Johan would then be a brother to Anders Molin, I suspect that Anders was probably born in the early 1740s and would have been in his mid 30’s when he became a master mason. He named three sons either Hans or Johan Peter so the name was obviously important to him. Assuming Master Mohlin was his father, then Peter Johan was his older brother. He wanted to name a son for that brother.

I am also realizing that I have actually collected a lot more data on this family than I thought so there will be one more post covering new details about Sara Brita Krok. Come back tomorrow, please!