Researching my Swedish Molin family has been quite a roller coaster ride. Yesterday’s post about “criminal” Hans Samuel Molin was actually more a commentary on a difficult life that led to the “crime” of being unemployed and unable to support himself and his family.

Today’s post is about Johan Alfred Molin, son of Anna Christina Molin. His life circumstances were similar to Hans Samuel, who was his uncle of sorts, as Hans Samuel was the half brother of his grandfather, Hans Niclas Molin.

Johan Alfred’s mother, Anna Christina, never married, but was the mother of six children. She was born 9 November 1805 in Öved, Skane, Sweden and died 12 April 1880 in Lund, Skane, Sweden. Her first child was born in 1826, also in Öved, and her last child was born in 1849 in Lund.

Johan Alfred was the fourth of her children, born 16 September 1843, in Lund.

Like Hans Samuel, he not only had the stigma of no father on hand to help raise him, he wasn’t even living with his mother and siblings in the household examinations. Instead, he is found as a “foster son” living with a woman who lived in the church parish. It is hard to imagine how he must have felt growing up, not living with his mother and half brothers and sisters, who were close by. Was it an economic necessity for Anna Christina to give him up to a foster mother? If so, how was it that child #4 was the one given up?

I have been fortunate to make contact with several descendants of the Molin family who are all distant cousins of mine. Some live in the U.S. while others live in Sweden. Recently, I have spent a lot of time working long distance with Krister Thorell, who is a Swedish cousin. Between us, we have uncovered many records about the numerous Molins in the 1800’s.

Krister found this prison record for Johan Alfred Molin and provided the translation of the text. In spite of the sad reason for the record, the discovery of his photo was exciting!

Malmo Prison Record of Johan Alfred Molin

Krister’s Translation: Johan Alfred was left off and lived with the unmarried Johanna Christina Hyberg in Lund. In his teens, he was sentenced to “husaga”(domestic chastisement?) for snooping.

(Does that mean he was a peeping tom, I wonder?)

At the age of 23 (about 1866), he was sentenced to four months in prison for violence against police. The year after (about 1867), he was sentenced for assault. In 1872,  he was sentenced again, this time to five years’ hard labor for robbery.

Here is his church record, covering 1872-1875 in the prison archives:

#680, Johan Molin

Unfortunately, he is not listed in the 1875-1879 church record. Perhaps he was paroled early.

Johan Alfred hasn’t yet been found after this time, so he is still a work in progress. However, unlike Hans Samuel Molin’s jail time, it appears that Johan Alfred’s “time” fit his crime.