Tag Archives: Öved Sweden

Anders and Sara Brita – End of the Story?

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.

JonsAbrahamMolinBirth1786Everlov
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:

AndersMolin1786MarstrandPopRegister
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!

The Facts – Just the Facts – About Anders Molin and Sara Brita Krok

Where are the facts to support the sparse information about Anders Molin and Sara Brita Krok? As I mentioned yesterday, there were a few clipped images, some sourced and some not.

To return to my research plan steps, #1 on the list was to leave no stone unturned. For the limited choices I had for Swedish records in that time frame, I used ArkivDigital, Genline, which is now on the world Ancestry.com site and the FamilySearch library catalog. The sole item in the library catalog that wasn’t found on either ArkivDigital or Genline was a longshot – mason guild records for Malmö. Sweden (FHL Film #146,465). I did not uncover any mention of the Molin surname.

While my search plan was organized in my head, trying to describe all my steps in order would be quite tedious and boring to read. Instead, I am going to list each document I was able to find AND what it says. A fairly complete picture will appear at least regarding the family life of Anders and Sara Brita, although even with that, there are still many unanswered questions. The data will be listed in order from earliest in time to most recent in time, although dates span a century from the late 1600s to the late 1700s.

First, to give an overall perspective of where the family was living, here is yet another updated map of villages and towns that I uncovered along the way.

Helsingborg, seen along the route between Bonderup and Marstrand, and Veberöd, between Bonderup and Öved, are also in the mix, as is Gullarp, near Bonderup.

If you are not familiar with Swedish records, they are NOT indexed and must be searched page by page. Another handicap for my particular research problem is that for most of what used to be Malmöhus and Kristianstad Counties, household examination records and moving in/moving out records don’t begin until at least the very late 1790’s. I’ve also been told that people in this area of Sweden moved around a lot compared to other regions of Sweden in the 1700’s. Looking at this map, I certainly believe that!

One source that proved to be invaluable was what is described by ArkivDigital as the population registers, which are actually tax lists. Only the men are listed in it, but for the Kristianstad County area and Marstrand, up north, registers (labeled as Gotebörgs och Bohus läns landskontor) exist for the 1700’s. The downside is that for the very southern portion of Malmöhus County, the only register available is for 1941.

Here we go and the list is quite extensive:

1. Sara Brita’s grandmother, Anna Brita von Wowern, was born in Helsingborg on 9 December 1697, daughter of Johan von Wowern and Anna Margreta.

The von Wowern family apparently had some social standing in their community, but I have done no other research other than looking to see if this record actually existed.

2. I found an image on line for Inspector Krok, who was Sara Brita’s grandfather, Jacob, indicating that he was a godparent for Nils Peter Molin, a child of one Hans Molin in the village of Bosarp in 1744. Nils Peter was born 31 December 1743:

There were so few mentions of any Molins in these records that I took note of this birth. The father, Hans Molin, was the church sexton. He had a number of other children born in Bosarp, but the last mention of this family is in 1748. Because Sara Brita married a Molin and her grandfather was godparent to a Molin baby, I think it is possible that this Hans is an uncle of my Anders Molin.

Remember the name: Nils Peter!

3. “Master Mohlin’s” son, Peter Johan, was buried in Öved on 26 February 1749, having died on the 18th or 19th, in his 12th year. No birth/baptismal record was found in Öved for him.

I realize that the priest knew exactly who Master Molin was, but I do wish that he had named him. I believe that this is Anders’ father and that Peter Johan was Anders’ brother. It is also likely that because Anders was a master mason that this master, if his father, was also a master mason by trade.

Remember the name Peter Johan!

4. Sara Brita Krok/Krook was born 7 March 1752 in Bonderup, the daughter of Hans Krook, but her mother isn’t named in this record.

5. Andreas (Anders) Molin married Sara Brita Krok on 2 February 1776 in Veberöd. He is identified as a journeyman mason.

6. Hans Peter, son of Anders Molin, was born and baptized on 3 June 1776 in Öved. This baby died soon, but I haven’t yet found his burial record.

Remember the name Hans Peter!

7. Anders Molin and Sara Brita Krok are found in the moving in records of Öved in 1777. This is interesting because their son was baptized there in spring 1776. Perhaps the priest forgot to write them on the 1776 list so entered them in 1777. They had moved to Finja by 1778 so it is also possible that they were leaving Öved at the time they were entered in 1777. They are #10 on the list and Anders is now listed as a master mason:

AndersMolinMovingIn1777Oved
AD: Öved Moving In Records, 1777, Image #6

To summarize the family history posted so far, with a couple of extra vital records included that I haven’t posted above with images (but I have.):

Anna Brita von Wowern was born 9 December 1697 in Helsingborg, the daughter of Johan and Anna Margreta (no maiden name given) von Wowern. The von Wowerns had some social standing in the community. She married Inspector Jacob Krook in 1714 in Helsingborg. Their son, Hans, born in 1722 in Gullarp, died in Veberöd in 1754.

Sara Brita Krok married Anders Molin in Veberöd on 2 February 1776. She was apparently already pregnant at that time as their son, Hans Peter, was born and baptized in Öved on 3 June 1776. Anders and Sara Brita are found on the 1777 moving in list for Öved, but didn’t remain there very long. Also, unless the priest erred in Anders’ occupation, he was still a journeyman mason when he married, but had become a master mason by 1777.

Bosarp records show that church sexton Hans Molin lived there at least through the 1740’s. His son, Nils Peter, was born there on 31 December 1743. Hans could possibly be Ander Molin’s uncle since there is a Krok family connection.

In Öved, “Master Mohlin” buried his son, Peter Johan, on 26 February 1749. Peter was in his 12th year, so born about 1738-1739. This may be the father and brother of Anders Molin.

I have not found a birth/baptismal record for Anders Molin and I suspect I have a lot of searching to do for that. He was not born in Öved, as I searched those early records and no other Molin entries were found.

Are you following this saga so far? I will tell the rest of the story in my next post.

Anders Molin & Sara Brita Krok – Brick Wall Mystery

I returned from four days in the Salt Lake City Family History Library late on Friday night. Although I had my “to do” list, and did actually get several other items on my list completed, the research problem that hijacked almost all of my time was that of my 4x great grandparents, Anders Molin and Sara Brita Krok.

Anders and Sara Brita are a branch off of my Danish ancestors from Copenhagen. My previous hair-pulling brick wall had been Johannes Jensen, career soldier from Copenhagen. Unraveling his life story took me almost three years. Considering that, I guess the progress I made this week on Anders and Sara Brita was quite good.

Johannes Jensen married Johanne Elisabeth Molin, who migrated from Öved, Sweden to Copenhagen in 1838. I found her family in the household records and also in the moving in and moving out records of Öved. Her parents were Hans Nicholas Molin and Anna Kjersti Sandberg.

I decided I needed to focus on Hans Nicholas’s parents, Anders and Sara Brita. I’d like to outline the methods I used to collect the facts about this couple while in Salt Lake. There are still unanswered questions, but perhaps by sharing my story, others will be able to follow the same steps to chip away at one of their own brick walls.

I have several rules that I always follow when faced with a genealogical challenge:

1. Leave no stone unturned. Check all available records.
2. Look for clues online to suggest avenues for further research.
3. Prove every piece of information to my own satisfaction. I never, ever import anyone’s tree and never, ever blindly accept unproven facts. To me, genealogical research is like a scientific experiment. If one person conducts research and presents information that can’t be duplicated by others, then the “research” is not sound.

Here is how my research plan unfolded:

First, I checked a map of Sweden to remind myself of the proven places associated with Hans Molin:

In earlier times, most of the area of southern Sweden where the Molins lived was part of Malmöhus County, with Kristianstad County bordering it to the north and east.

As this story unfolds, images of Swedish records that begin with “AD” refer to ArkivDigital, a Swedish subscription site that houses Swedish records. Those that begin with “GL” refer to Genline, another Swedish subscription site that was bought up by Ancestry.com.

Before I left for Salt Lake City, I had parish registers and household examination records that proved the following:

Hans Molin was born on 4 September 1778 , according to the Öved, Malmöhus County household examination in Finja, Kristianstad County. Hans and family are the last family listed on the left page. Note that a date that looks like 31 August is crossed out:

Oved1812Molin1443.35.25600 Öved Household Examination 1812
GL: GID1443.35.25600

His birth/baptismal record was located in Finja:

HanNiclasMolinBirth1778FinjaGenlineImage17
Finja Baptismal Record, 1778
GL GID:1643.13.16300

I don’t read Swedish, but help in Salt Lake confirmed that the record says after the first word “Master Mason Anders Molin and his wife Sara Brita Krook’s child was born 31 August: Finja: and baptized Hans Niclas.. . .godparent was Corporal Hans Friberg”and I believe the woman who carried the child to church was Appolonia Kiman. The baptismal date entered in the left column above “Hans Niclas” is September 4.

I don’t know why, but Hans NEVER appears in Oved records as “Hans Niclas,” only as “Hans.”

I also realize that Sara Brita’s surname looks like “Krosis,” but this priest wrote lower case “k” in such a way as to make it look like “s i.” Other records confirm “Krok” or “Krook” as her surname.

I was a bit taken aback that Hans was born in a village 69.5 km away from Öved. I realize that isn’t a huge distance by today’s standards, but I guess I am used to my colonial American ancestors who stayed in one town for generations. However, 69.5 km turned out to be no distance at all once I was able to retrace their movements.

I checked for baptismal records for other children born to Anders Molin and found two sons named “Johan Peter.” One was born 20 August 1780, also in Finja and was baptized 23 August 1780.

This child apparently died soon as a second boy named “Johan Petter” was born in Vankiva, a village one mile to the east of Finja, on 20 July 1782:

On previous trips to Salt Lake City, I had done very little research on this family and these records were all that I had. Household examinations and moving in/moving out records begin in Finja and Vankiva after the time period when the Molin family lived there.

Next, I checked online to see what others might already have found. That story is for tomorrow!