I started this blog in 2014, not knowing exactly what it was to become. Today, over ten years later, it has turned out to be quite an extensive blog about my family history connected to Swedish missionary history in China.
I am researching letters, books, papers, family storytelling and all kind of sources to put together the reasons for and the consequences of my ancestors’ decision to become missionaries in China between the 1890’s and the 1950’s.
It began as I decided to look into my family history. I had vivid memories of the stories my grandmother used to tell me during bed-time when I was a child. I was immensely fascinated by the adventures of her and her family as well as those of my grandfather’s side of the family. The fact that both my paternal grandparents were born in China and spent the first part of their lives there, was a source of great inspiration. They saw their homeland Sweden for the first time when they were 14 years old and left China for good.
As I dove into the archives, my grandmother’s writings and the books by my great-grandparents, I discovered a fascinating world of people, places, photographs, letters and stories – and even began to meet relatives I had not known before, as well as making new aquaintances who could tell me of their own connections to missionary history and even to my ancestors in China.
Here you will find these stories and a lot of the research I have carried out so far. You will get to know these persons, who dared travel to China in the late 18th century and you will see photographs of them, the places they lived and the people they met. I write about the mission stations, schools and healthcare adventures, journeys through China, political unrest and everyday experiences, death of loved ones and how they had to say good-bye to their own children in order to carry out their mission. I also explore the lives of some of the Chinese people who were part of this history and the connections that continued across generations and are now also part of my life.
My research is mostly based on original material, old photographs, letters, diaries, books, missionary publications and family archives. I have noticed that sometimes a detail in a photograph, a handwritten name or a sentence in a letter can open the door to new and interesting stories.
I have also hade the luck to encounter other knowledgeable researchers through this blog – people who have helped me put a name to a photograph, complete a story or give me an idea of what the places my ancestors knew, look like today. These encounters have become an important part of the research, showing how history can connect people across countries and generations.
Will you enjoy this blog?
You do not have to have a connection to missionary history or the Swedish mission, or even be of the same belief as the missionaries I write about here, to enjoy the stories. The stories tell us so much more about this period of time, what people were like, how women could change the course of their lives and what bravery and persistence looks like.
Most of the stories are completely possible to identify with, even as modern person living in this connected world today.
I think that you could be interested if you:
- enjoy family history and geneaology, and especially stories built from original sources
- are interested in Swedish history and the lives of previous generations, perhaps with a special interest in womens’ history
- want to know more about China in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
- are curios about missionary history, Christianity and areas like education or healthcare in China
- enjoy stories about women, families and children who live adventurous lives
- are interested in old photographs, letters, books and other historical treasures
- are a researcher yourself, interested in this thematic
- enjoy discovering historical human interest stories connected to today
If you are searching for a particular person or place, you could be helped by the search engine on the blog, but you can also simply start reading, as one story often leads to another.
Who am I writing about?
I am writing about Robert and Dagny Bergling and their children – amongst them my grandfather Rudolf. I am also writing about Olga and Nils Styrelius and their family – my grandmother Edna and her sister Linnéa.
Apart from them, I write about other missionaries that they encountered during their time in China, the Chinese they got to know and the context and history around the Swedish Mission in China. I am also writing about different discoveries I make through my research and the general process of finding out about my ancestry and their endeavours during this historical time.
Where to begin?
If you are new here, I recommend starting with the stories below. They will introduce you to some of the people, places and themes that appear throughout the blog.
The People
The heart of this blog are the people. Discover the missionaries and their families, their choices, challenges and the lives they built in China. Some stories are about faith and vocation, others are about nursing, eduation, family life, making a home, encountering danger, going through separation or forming friendships.
Start with:
Get to know my great-grandfather Robert Bergling
* The Doctor Is In – Thérèse Amnéus – about Robert’s work with the opium asylum in Hancheng, and this article about the photo of Robert that I found in an old book:
* Revisiting History – Thérèse Amnéus
* Great Old Clippings – Thérèse Amnéus – here you get to know Robert as he was heading out to China in 1902 – after having been on home vacation for a couple of years.
* Saved by the Braid… – Thérèse Amnéus – this is a story about an attack on Robert and his family when travelling through China, and how he survived. And Robert’s passing here:
* Finale – Thérèse Amnéus
Get to know my great-grandmother Dagny and her love for children:
* Hat’s Off For Little Blessings – Thérèse Amnéus.
And discover how Dagny (who was not in the best health) decided to leave Norway to go out as a missionary in 1892:
* Turning Weakness Into Strength – Thérèse Amnéus
Read about my great-grandmother Olga Ahlman as she, 14 years old, decided to row from the small archipelago island outside Stockholm, to embark on her great adventure:
* Courage and new beginnings – Thérèse Amnéus
Read more about Olga and how she set up home in China in 1905:
* Moving on, moving in – Thérèse Amnéus.
Read about Olga’s husband Nils Svenson/Styrelius and his journey from Sweden to America – as an immigrant – and then on to China as a missionary here:
* May We All Be Ready – Thérèse Amnéus
Read about my brave one-armed aunt Dagny-Edla (daughter of Robert and Dagny) and her persistence to become a missionary here:
* A New Beginning And A Happy New Year – Thérèse Amnéus and here:
* Courage And Cunning In China – Thérèse Amnéus
Who worked at the mission station, and what did they mean to my ancestors – here is a story about the Chinese hero Li-Niang:
* The Hero Behind the Scenes – Thérèse Amnéus
The Places
Follow their journeys and explore the mission stations, towns and regions that became part of the missionaires’ lives. These are the places where they worked, fell in love, grew a family, faced and escaped dangers as well as made friends with the Chinese.
* What’s In A Place? – Thérèse Amnéus – an overview of the mission field and its mission stations.
* Threads of Faith – Thérèse Amnéus – a story about how Robert started an industrial school in Hoyang.
* Breaking Ground And Finding A Place To Stay – Thérèse Amnéus – how Robert and Erik Folke established a mission station in Hancheng.
And of course you need to read the follow-up to that article, relaying photos from today from this very station:
* Response to Breaking Ground – Thérèse Amnéus
Here is an article about how Robert finally got to build a chapel in Hancheng:
* A Chapel In Time For Christmas – Thérèse Amnéus
* Shui-yu In Focus – Thérèse Amnéus
I have written several articles connected to the Swedish School in China, where my grandmother Edna and grandfather Rudolf lived and studied from 1913 onwards, for instance:
* Scouting – a Family Affair – Thérèse Amnéus
* Stranded In School Over Summer – Thérèse Amnéus
Read about the missionaries’ summer home in Sweden and how this particular place was connected to my great-aunt Dagny-Edla, but also to my grandmother Edna:
* Revealing Past Summers – Thérèse Amnéus and follow along when I discover this place and its hidden treasures here:
* Revisiting Strömsborg – Thérèse Amnéus and learn about what the missionaries Robert and Dagny undertook while in Sweden here:
* Home Away From Home – Thérèse Amnéus
And what about learning the language – this was an important part of at all being able to work as a missionary in China. Read more about that here:
* Learning Language For The Love of God – Thérèse Amnéus
The Sources
Many of the articles on this blog begin with something tangible – like an old photograph, a letter, diary or a missionary journal. The sources are rarely the whole story on their own, but they reveal detail, offer a context and show us a glimpse of how the missionaries saw themselves, and how they were seen by their peers.
Discover how photographs, letters, books, missionary journals and family documents connect the dots and bring the stories to life.
Start with:
* The Library – Thérèse Amnéus
* Sinims Land – the Voice of the Mission – Thérèse Amnéus
* Discoveries From The Book Gift – Part II; Recording Missionary Life – Thérèse Amnéus
* Discoveries From The Book Gift – Part I; A Bible In Chinese – Thérèse Amnéus
* A Christmas Treasure – Thérèse Amnéus – about a generous gift, full of research material, and a very special find.
A special book was this code book that I got to hear about from my father’s cousin Kurt – this is how the missionaries telegraphed each other from Sweden to China and within the country:
* “Spies” On A Mission – Thérèse Amnéus and more about telegraphing here:
* Slow Travelling News – Thérèse Amnéus
And an article about how Olga’s photography is imperative to preserving this important part of history:
* Preserved for Generations – Thérèse Amnéus
The Stories
I often find that history can best be understood by a human interest story. In these articles you will find stories about journeys, separations, unexpected discoveries, mysteries and encounters between people researching the same history from different parts of the world.
Start with:
* Missing And Being Missed – Thérèse Amnéus – about the struggle of being apart from your family, with the children in Sweden and the parents in China.
In this article you can read about separation from the point of view of Robert’s and Dagny’s eldest son, Morris:
*Opening Doors Through China: A Conversation with Selma Lagerlöf – Thérèse Amnéus.
Here, you can dive into Dagny’s take on having to leave her children behind in Sweden:
* September Farewells – Thérèse Amnéus
Read about healthcare in China and Dagny’s visit to the hospital, when her daughter Dagny-Edla joined her:
* Days of Worry – Thérèse Amnéus
What was travelling like in China in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s? Here are some articles connected to that subject: * What We Take For Granted – Thérèse Amnéus,
* It’s coming on Christmas – Thérèse Amnéus,
* Travelling Home Through Warlord China – Thérèse Amnéus.
And of course, stories from my relatives have a special place in my heart, such as this one from my father’s cousin Kurt:
* Scorpions, Art and Anecdotes – Thérèse Amnéus
The Connections
This blog has become a great node for connecting with others, who are also interested in, or connected to missionary history in China. Through it, I have made new friends, found relatives and discovered great fellow researchers.
Start with:
* Author Interview with Karin Stålhammar Hansson – Thérèse Amnéus
* Two Sides Of The Same Coin – Thérèse Amnéus – how Haifeng Zhang’s research in China and mine connect through my great-aunt Dagny-Edla.
Read about the mystery man I tried to find out more about here:
* The Mystery Man Amongst Us – Thérèse Amnéus …
… and how Haifeng Zhang helped me discover his history and provide me with current day photographs:
* Mystery Man Revealed – Thérèse Amnéus
Other important connections are of course the missionary society and the still active members, that I got to meet when presenting my research here:
* Talking About Research – Thérèse Amnéus
And how Liu Hong visited Sweden and helped me with my great-grandmother’s name in Chinese:
* What’s In A Name? – Thérèse Amnéus and how he has tried to honor the missionaries in China, who were important to his community:
* Life Turns – Thérèse Amnéus
The Geneaology
I have made a point of trying to go back to places where my family has lived or passed time – both in Sweden and in other countries. Here are some examples of that.
Start with:
* Not everyone can still be found – Thérèse Amnéus – discovering Robert’s ancestors in Sweden.
An incredible encounter with the owners of Robert’s father’s old mission house in Sweden:
* Remembering those we have lost – Thérèse Amnéus
* Exploring the past in the present – Thérèse Amnéus
* Unexpected Discoveries – Thérèse Amnéus – read about Nils Svenson/Styrelius and Olga and Nils family in Sweden
* Finding Family And Family Finding You – Thérèse Amnéus – about my first encounter with newly found relatives in the Netherlands and Sweden.
Do you want to connect and share?
As this is an ongoing research journey, there are still many questions to explore. If you have information, photographs, documents or connections to these stories in any way, I would be delighted to hear from you!
You can reach me here: thereseamneus@yahoo.com
And if you just happened to land on this site, I wish you a very warm welcome! I hope you enjoy reading the material!
