Thursday, June 10, 2010

Generation 3 of the Wessman Family


Last week I did a survey of the information on this blog about Henry and Jean Hayward Wessman. Here is a summary of posts so far on their parents, Johan and Amanda Wessman and Henry and Elizabeth Hayward.


John or Johan Bengtsson Wessman

Johan Bengtsson was born in 1840 at Braseröd, Romelanda, Göteborgs-och-Bohus, Sweden. He later changed his surname to Wessman. His family called him "John" in the family records, so I use this name in Rootsweb and even here so that descendants can find this information by doing a google search. But his name was Johan and he used that name on a letter in 1895 and in his 1896 immigration, so that is what I call him and how I have him listed in my records.

Here is a series of five posts with all the information I know about the Wessman family in Sweden. (Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4 - Part 5) Part 4 includes a link to the current Wessman family genealogy on Rootsweb.

After his wife left for Utah, but before he was able to leave Sweden, Johan wrote a beautiful letter to Amanda. Someone transcribed the Swedish and then translated it into English for the Wessman family. (Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3 - Part 4)
Göteborg den 25 Jannuari 1895

Kära Älskade make samt mina små gossar ja äfven mina flickor
...
Johan left Sweden in November 1896 and arrived in New York in December 1896. The records about that trip are documented in the post Johan Bengtsson Wessman's Trip to America.


Amanda Matilda Hall Wessman

The posts about the Wessman family in Sweden also mention Johan's wife Amanda. Amanda Hall was born in 1848 in Tanum, Bohus, Sweden. Here is a collection of documents about her life.

Here is a short Andrew Jenson biography of Amanda Wessman.

Here is a lovely little article from the Relief Society Magazine about Amanda's temple work, "An Unknown Heroine."

Here are a few documents  about her death in 1931.


Henry John Hayward

Henry Hayward was born in London in 1852, right before his parents left England for Utah.

Here is a biography. Here are some photographs of Henry and his wife Elizabeth and three of their children.

Henry is mentioned several times in the collection of postcards from his daughter Jean's studies in Berlin and his subsequent trip to Europe with his sister and youngest daughter.

One of the best sources on the Hayward family is a book by Ida Wagstaff. It does not have much about Henry though.


Elizabeth Ann Pugsley Hayward

The least-covered so far of this generation is the one about which I have the most to say.

Elizabeth Ann Pugsley was born in 1854, not long after her parents immigrated to Utah from England. She married Henry Hayward in 1875. They had nine children. Six of their children died as infants or children. Elizabeth had a long career in public service.

I will start posting a history about her that I wrote in college and supplement it with various materials collected by my grandparents or sent to me by Wessman cousins.

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