Carl August Carlson Larson By Mona Larson Ensign

Born: 20 January 1865 Died: 5 November 1937 Baptized: 9 June 1879 Endowed: 24 Feb. 1886 Married: March, 1889 Married: July, 1903

Place: Julita, Sodermanland, Sweden Place: Richmond, Cache, Utah Place: Julita, Sodermanland, Sweden Place: Logan, Cache, Utah 1st Wife: Anna Maria Otte Johnson 2nd Wife: Helena Wilhelmina Ljungman
Carl August Carlson Larson

It is with a deeply tender feeling that we approach the writing of the biography of a parent whose life we review and consider. Long years of accepting and loving one who was a close associate of the many youthful years and of whom we are a part can influence our opinions and perhaps magnify or diminish our understanding. And, since we all see with different eyes and feel with different emotions, I can only give mine which is filled with love and appreciation. To me, my father was a patient, kind, self sacrificing, hard working and loving man. He was understanding, sympathetic, and generous. He was very tenderhearted to the sufferings of others and toward all living things. In turn, everyone loved my father; he had no unfriendly acquaintances. It pleases me yet to know how much my friends loved my dad and liked to talk and joke with him. They were at his funeral when I could not be there, and their letters were full of their kind feelings and happy memories of being with him, when I lived at home. I have always noted a sadness in his nature and felt sympathetic for some reason, of which I did not know. Yet he was cheerful, full of fun and loved people. As the years have gone by since he left this world, I have come to understand more about him and feel I know him better now. Having gone to the place where he was born, hearing the incidents of his early youth from the lips of the Priest of the Parish, with his interpretations and understanding, I caught the meaning of that expression I sometimes saw on my fathers face. And the passing years brought further tragedy to his life. He was born to a widowed mother, still grieving the death of her husband, who was her first choice of a life companion. Their time together was limited to 7 months and 15 days. Sterling, Wanda, Milt and I visited the old mill, in Julita, where the accident occurred on that 25 day of November, 1864, which was Carl Erik Fredricksons 31st birthday. He was wearing his birthday gift, a great fur coat, when he accidently moved too close to the fast revolving belts of the grist mill. The friction pulled him into them, and he was mashed by the big wheel. As we stood and contemplated the horror and the shock of it, we felt closer to this grandfather than we ever had before. I remarked that no doubt some of his blood still stains on the huge timber underneath the place he was killed. My father, then, was born to a world where tragedy had so recently deprived him of a father, We visited the lovely church where they were married and where the funeral was held

the 4th of December, 1864. nine days after his death. This church is full of scenes from family history and a joy to enter. Dad was christened and baptized a Lutheran, here. He was given the name of Carl August Carlson. It is interesting to note that one of the witnesses signed her name: Christina Von Post. This would be the mistress of the manor from which our mother came. This tells me of the sympathy and love that these great people had for Dads mother, Beata Sophia, and her baby. Which one of the little red and white homes she lived in on the Julita estate, we do not know, but we could picture her in any one of themcozy, neat, homey and inviting. That she had to work to support herself was determined by the records saying she moved to Torpa with her little son. Later she came back again. It was a pleasant evening we spent going to Torpa, and we wondered how she and her little son managed the journey then--it is just a one way dirt road now. The Priest said tear, 1880, had been a very bad year in Sweden. Many people died of hunger. The crops had failed due to poor weather conditions. Too, little of the forest land was cleared for farming. Methods were too primitive, and the population had increased. This had happened before in 1860 and later in1900. So when Brother Elman, Brother Charles Monson and others first brought the gospel, the people found wisdom and faith in their words. On April 16, 1871, Beata Sophia promised her future to Lars Erick Larson. Dad was then six years old, and he was very happy for his new father. Dad related to me how he danced around them and hugged them. I have a new papa! I have a new papa!He said over and over. Lars Erick Larson was a small farmer who borrowed land from the Julita estate and paid back in return for the use of the land some of the produce he raised. But this was still a meager livelihood. Soon another son was born to Beata Sophia and Lars Erick Larson. Carl August had a baby brother, Erick Robert, who was born 3 January, 1871. Dad would soon be seven years old and ready for school. All Scandinavian countries start their children to school when sevennot before. The fall before he died in November, I had many talks with my father and was surprised often that he opened up his heart to me. He spoke of the hard work he did when he was young and the bitter cold weather in Sweden, and that he had to walk so far home from work. He said he felt he would have been a larger man if his circumstances had been easier or better when he was growing up. He spoke of the thin coat he wore in the cold. I do not believe it was the work that prevented the growth of which he spoke. I firmly do believe that the scarcity of food and the right kinds of vitamins and minerals necessary to a growing boy were lacking. Having seen and known of the poor variety in those Scandinavian countries, which are just now getting American standard diet, I believe this to be true. On a lovely day, June14,1970 as we explored the small lake near the homes of my parents, I wrote: as we sit here at a lake near his home and near the place where he was baptized at the age of 15, our thoughts (Sterling, Wanda, Milt and myself) search the past for a knowledge of him in his youth and his parents, We have gone into the mill where his father met his death, and we have walked the paths through birch and pine forests. We have noted with interest the giant Chestnut trees, and we let our minds reminisce in past history and stories. As we do so, we wish our knowledge was more complete, and we so often want to talk with them and ask the many questions that flood our minds. We try in our feeble way to reconstruct events of their lives, and we dwell on their many problems and decisions.

How courageous they were to accept the teachings of strange men from another continent. But that spark of gospel held against all elsefamily, home, beautiful land of lakes and forests; and they were putting all aside for their faith in a new life and belier in a new found truth. We feel we have found the very spot where they entered the waters of baptism on a dark night long ago. It is a natural spot, and possibly these are the rocks they sat upon and were confirmed members of the church. We have also found the apple trees Mother remembered and the oven Grandmother Ljungman baked Yule bread and Kaka in at the Von Post Manor: soon all will change and be lost. We have been so privileged! It is as though it was saved for us to see, and that the Lord knew much we would appreciate this rich experience. While we recalled our parents lives, I was pleased to hear Sterling relate something I did not know about Dad. Mother, in speaking of Dads habit of attending almost every funeral in our town, said, He does this to renew himself. More than we realized, he needed this time of devotional service for his own strengthening of the spirit. I feel Dad was deeply religious, and the books confirm the fact. He had his endowments two years before he married. He told me that the story of Joseph Smith was true; that he had always believed it. I appreciated hearing his testimony. That his life was a testimony of love for his fellow men, no one can deny. I think I know my father better now than when he was alive. He felt so badly when I decided to leave home and go to California to live. His face was ashes grey, and he tried to make me change my mind and have my husband-to-be come back to Utah. I told him he had been a good dad to me and that nothing I ever needed or asked for was denied me. His answer was through tears, You never asked for much. How I wish I could have done more for him! He was so happy when he vacationed with us and Mother in California when Patty was born. Memories very precious to me; each child of his, will have his own precious memoriesthese are mine. Carl August Carlson had taken the name of his stepfather, Larson. He had been sealed to him in the Temple; in fact, he was the only father Carl August was to know. However, he was christened Carl August Carlson, in the manner of Swedish custom (he being the son of Carl, whose full name was Carl Erick Fredrikson, whose father, Fredrick, was Erikson) Very confusing to anyone but a Swede. Another name difficulty to anyone not familiar with the method used by the church in recording the names of females upon the temple records is to change the surname from the female to the male ending; thus, the name of Gustafs dotter becomes Gustafson (as Beata Sophia Gustafson), but the child was christened Gustafsdotter. For that reason, we left it. Carl August Carlson Larson must have been touched by the truth of the gospel as were his mother and stepfather. He was 15 and old enough to think for himself. It took courage for a boy that age to break with his friends and accept baptism by immersion in a small icy lake, but what adventure lay ahead in crossing the ocean and traveling to a new country. He was the first of many generations to leave the homeland with its lakes and forests, so familiar to his ancestors. This area of Sweden is known as one of the most beautiful places in all Sweden. It attracts many tourists from all over the world every year. By 1889, through hard work, the family was pretty well established in Zion. On March 27, he married Anna Maria Otte Johansonor Johnsonthe adopted daughter of Jorgan Johnson. On April 11, his stepfather left for a missionan eventful year. His friendly nature made it easy for him to adapt himself to a new country, though he worked very hard and found life very difficult at times. His friendship

with Miller Johnson and his good wife, Gertrude, helped him over many stubborn problems. Their belief in him and love for him enabled him to do what none of his forefathers had done to own land. He owned 160 acres of choice rich valley farmland north of Richmond, dry farmland in Blue Creek in Box Elder County, sandy potato and sugar beet land in Lewiston. Hard work was never spared, but water, always the life of the soil, was not abundant. Good harvest brought low prices; poor harvest brought better prices. The rewards of labor were far too meager. Never-the-less, we had one of the finest home homes in the community to grow up in. We were one of the first families in the Valley to have a telephone installed and electric lights, about 1907 or 1908. In 1910, a new modern six room home was built in town. It was equipped with inside plumbinga rarity to be sure, in those days. He sent a son on a mission and kept the family well fed and clothed. Helping others was his greatest virtue. He provided for an unfortunate sister-in-law without ever a hint of complaint, for an immigrant boy, for many fatherless boys and for the widows. His kind nature was reflected in his in his gentleness to the sick and afflicted. He had that quality of giving sympathy and cheer together. He was dearly loved for that quality of mercy that is not strained but falleth as the gentle dew of heaven alike on the just and the unjust. He loved people; he appreciated and loved children and animals. He new many sorrows, although he never spoke of them. His wife, Anna, died after 13 years of marriage, leaving three young children. This was July 24, 1902. A month later, he lost his mother. Such grief must have been almost more than he good bear. In July, 1903, he remarried. His young school teacher wife, Helen Ljungman, had been a friend since childhood. She had pined at home, unhappy because she was not invited to his wedding with Anna. She cared for his children and brought him into closer association with the people of the community. Together, they were active in public and social life. He was a genial host and enjoyed social gatherings and company. He was jolly, witty and friendly. He kept his testimony to the end, believing the truthfulness of the gospel and living it by being a friend to man. He died of a heart ailment on November 5, 1937, at the age of 72 years, 10 months and 16 days. God bless his memory.

1Carl A. & Helen Larson