Ellen Swenson, Olivia, Texas, circa 1900

Ellen Swenson with her horse.

Here Ellen Swenson, the oldest daughter of Pehr and Hanna Swenson, stands with her horse. The house behind Ellen is likely to be her family’s house.  It bears a close resemblance (minus porch and trim) to a later picture of the house  published in the 1918 Swedes in Texas book.

Ellen was the oldest daughter of Pehr and Hanna Swenson. She was born in 1882 in Sweden and came to America with her family in 1887.  She would have been 11 years old when her family came live in Olivia Colony in 1893,  and is probably in her late teens in this picture.  She never married. 

In 1918, the Swedes in Texas book notes that “among the youths of Olivia who have grown up and already become known, are.... two nurses, Ellen and Ella Swenson...”  (page 1146)  By 1930, Ellen had moved to  Minneapolis Minnesota.   On December  20, 1940, she died in Minnesota and was brought back to be buried in the little cemetery in Olivia Texas.

Identifiers:

Negative: Paulson293

Ellen J. Swenson (08 Feb 1882 – 22 Dec 1940)

Olivia Colony (Calhoun County) Texas

Sources:

“Ellen J. Swenson” record. Swedish American Heritage Online

“Ellen J. Swenson” Minnesota Death Index, 1908 -2002 accessed through Ancestry.com

1930 Census: Minneapolis, Hennepin, Minnesota; Roll: 1091; Page: 5B; Enumeration District: 101; Image: 719.0; FHL microfilm: 2340826. (accessed through Ancestry.com)

The Swedes in Texas book and family records found at the Swedish American Heritage site.