CONRAD EMANUEL EDVALSON
BORN FEBRUARY 28, 1867 IN KNALLASBENNING WARD GRYTNAS DALARNE SWEDEN
I stayed home with my parents until I was 15 years old. Worked as a farmhand for two summers and stayed home over winter. At 18 years old worked out as a farmhand whole year the next two winters went to school to learn the carpenter trade and worked at a sawmill one summer. About May the next summer I started out to go to the sawmill to look for work again while on my way I was inspired to go and see a certain man his name was Danilson if he would loan me enough money to come to America. I promised him I would pay it back as soon as I could earn it he asks me how soon I needed the money and I told him in July, I was 21 years old at that time and had to enlist in military service and could not leave the country without permission from the King. Consequently I had to write a letter to the King to get his approval which he granted me providing if I was in Sweden at the time of drilling I would be obliged to drill as the drilling came off about the 18th of June me not leaving until the 16th of July 1888 for America. Had to do some sidestepping on the 18th of June the boys in the neighborhood took the train for the drilling grounds. And I took the train for Stockholm arriving at Stockholm at night. I went out to Vertan a shipping place where they loaded and unloaded ships from the different countries. I worked there for one month on the 16th of July sailed from Stockholm in good weather on the 17th we sighted Oland Island where we seen the old castle four or five hundred years old. The sea being calm up until that time it began to get rough the following day we landed in Kalmar. The next landing place was Karlskrona. The next landing was Ronnby. The next was Molma where we changed ships to go to Copenhagen Denmark in clear weather we could see across the water from Molma to Copenhagen. We embarked on a ship named Holland. It took a little over half an hour to go from Molma to Copenhagen. We arrived on the 19th noon in Copenhagen we slept in the Svendborg Hotel at night and sailed from there on the 20th and landed in Hull England on 22nd in the afternoon. They would not allow landing on Sunday so we stayed in the boat until the next day. We took the train to Liverpool. We stayed at Svea hotel. We stayed here for four days. On the 28th we sailed on the ship Wyoming at 2:00 in the afternoon. The ship was overcrowded with third class passengers and I got on the second-class. On the 29th we sighted Ireland we stopped the ship at Queenston to take on water and mail. That night I was watchman from two until 4 o'clock on the third of August there was a small child nine months old from Sweden died and had a sea burial.
Before we landed in America the doctor examined all and vaccinated all who had not been. I had already been done on the eighth August. Went through castle garden and got examined again after that we took the same boat to Norfolk and then took the train to Ogden and landed on the 15th of August at noon 1888 was met at the depot by Mr. Eric Anderson's wife and Mrs. Emma Studer my cousin. I went to their home and lived with Anderson's for two years on Grant Avenue between 21st and 22nd Street. The next day I went to work for Nelson and Smuirthwaite on Washington Avenue where the 15 cent store now stands cleaning up the basement. I couldn't speak to anybody. On the 17th started to work with Peter Jepson doing carpenter work. Worked on the old tithing office on Grant Avenue and 21st Street. It was being built at that time. My companion was an American and we could not speak to each other only motion. The second day working together it been hot and warm he sent me for a bucket of water he wanted some ice in it and I not knowing what he meant. We argued together one talking one language and him another. Finally the other fellow put the cup to his mouth and shivered that made me understand it was ice he wanted that was the first word of English I learned I began to learn a little English everyday I worked for Peter Jepson for five years working on a good many dwelling houses in the city.
Inside of the first year I sent back enough money to pay my immigration here the second summer I sent enough money to bring my brother Eric over. Eric Anderson's been so good and kind I was able to save up all my money not having to pay any board to them for one year. In the meantime I wanted to get a home for my father and mother to live in when they came over. I bought a lot on the installment plan on second Street were Eric's wife now lives and started to build a house working at night and on Sundays. Eric and I worked together and saved enough money to help bring my father and mother, Patrick and Joseph out here. Father left home for this country on the 18th of May and landed here on the 24th of June 1890.
When they arrived we had the house already for them to live in. We lived together in that place for one year. Father wanted to get a small farm through John Larson. We bought a piece of land from Isaac Isaacson and build one room house. We lived in that the first year the ceiling was of canvas and the walls was lined with brick and no plaster. And as yet I had not joined the church but attended the Sunday school and meetings. While at Sunday school I met Christina Couts Hunter. She was the organist in the Sunday School. Her sweet looks and kind heart drawed my attention. So one Sunday after Sunday School we was invited over to David Mattson's home where we was introduced to each other. She looking on me as the most charming young man she accordingly invited me to her home. From that time on we continued our courtship. I was baptized into the LDS church Nov. 5th 1891 by George F. Hunter and confirmed Nov. 6th 1891 by George F. Hunter. After three years of courtship we decided to get married which took place on the ninth day of May 1894 in the Salt Lake Temple. On the eighth of May we left home for Salt Lake City with a one horse buggy. We stopped and had our dinner at North Farmington and gave the horse some water and something to eat then we continued our trip to Salt Lake City. Arrived there at 5 o'clock in the afternoon. We slept the first night at a lady friend's place Mrs. Dandanell, and the second night we stayed at Grandma McGill's place. We started back home on the morning of the 10th of May arrived home at 4 o'clock in the afternoon we had to start and cleanup for the big wedding supper at Grandma Hunter's. We had all our friends and relatives and had a fine time. We stayed at Grandma Hunter's place that night the next morning we started to pack our presents to move to our home in five points arriving there at 4 o'clock in the afternoon 11th of May that was our first experience at housekeeping which consisted with preparing our first meal. Unable to buy any breaded at the store we had to make some baking powder biscuits but in the excitement the baking powder was left out they were as firm and hard as a baseball. You must remember there is a passage in the Bible where the Israelites ate unlevened bread. We proceeded to ask the blessing and with that blessing and good teeth we ate the biscuits.
Our furniture consisted of the bed with wooden slats instead of springs and a straw tick and two quilts one blanket two pillows two tables three chairs and small cooking stove. I was building a house in West Weber for Will McFarland. I traveled with horse and buggy night and morning. As soon as the strawberries came on my wife went to pick strawberries for a woman her name was Mrs. Lundstrom. We took our pay in strawberries. In the fall of the year I started to build a house for Martin McFarland being a long ways to travel there being a two room shanty we decided to move into it while the work was going on after we got settled there during the Christmas we wanted to give a dinner. Not having much to do with we invited both the Hunter and Edvalson families.
We was so anxious to treat them with a good dinner the Lord blessed us with a good dinner and we had to enough left to last us a week.
In due time our first boy was born in that shanty we named him Merlin Conrad. He was born February 7th 1895 in Taylor Utah. Blessed by George F. Hunter May 2nd 1895 we lived in that place over winter finishing Martin McFarland's house in the spring. I got a job to build a house in Hooper for John Olson which took most of the summer it was too far to go everyday so I pitched a tent in Olson's orchard and stayed there all week and mother stayed between Olson's and Grandma Hunter's place. About that time August Pedderson decided to sell his place his place joining Grandpa Edvalson's home. We decided to buy his place their being twenty acres of land and a house. We sold our place in five points to Uncle Eric. Florence being born there in that place we lived there about nine years. George Welch having to sell his place being better land we decided to buy his place. We sold two acres and the house to Jake Nielsen and the rest of it Grandpa Edvalson got, us moving up to Welch's place where George was born the year 1904 the 14th of May at West Weber and Leonard been born 27th of February 1906 and Mabel been born 12 of April 1908 at West Weber all three being born at Welsh's place.
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Dad stopped here on his life story so I will try to remember some of the things to add to it. Dad also worked on the old Ogden Tabernacle doing all of the forms for the carved work he kept the form for many years in his workshop. Taylor church Taylor school raised beats and hay also had a nice orchard used to dry the apples on the roof of the house. We lived across the street from James B. Hunter, mothers Uncle. Vera and I used to climb the Maulberry trees all the time and Walter would take us riding up and down the road in a cart he made.
Dad wanting to move to town so he could do carpenter work. He bought a home at 3130 Washington Avenue about 1910 we sold the farm to Mr. Lundberg. Aunt Bell was in Ogden then so before we moved Dad let them move in. When we decided to move up to Ogden they lived in the south side of the house and we lived in the north it being a large house. Aunt Bell lived there for a while then moved up on the bench. When we moved they had the street cars along Washington. The streets were not paved, real muddy in the winter, snowdrifts pushed back from the road so high we couldn't see over the drifts. Dad did a lot of carpenter work he contracted his work. Working on a good many churches, Taylor, Ninth, Twelfth, First, Fourteenth Wards and many homes.
There wasn't many homes past 34th Street at that time and many vacant lots where us kids used to play, climbing old apple trees and eating green apples, playing hide and seek, high step etc. at night. Mary was born here April 14th 1913.
When World War I was on Merlin was drafted to go. He went to Fort Lewis in Washington. The war ended just when he was ready to go overseas. On August 9th 1919, Merlin married Josephine Perry Thomas. Thomas’ lived in back of our place on Ogden Avenue. They started building a house facing Ogden Avenue in back of our house facing Washington. Our property going from Washington to Ogden. I was working at Scowcroft’s at that time starting there in 1918.
Dad had itchy seat for a farm again and George after him all the time to buy one on Harrison and 38th. McArthur’s who lived there had a son die in the winter months and then taking over Merlin's home in part payment. So Merlin moved to the farm and they moved down to Merlin's house. Merlin lived on the farm till dad decided to move up there and Merlin moved down to 3031 Washington. We raised tomatoes and strawberries and hay, also a fine garden. McArthur's didn't use the front room only to store meat in the winter hanging from the ceiling. It brought rats in so when we got up there we had a time to get rid of them. They liked to run up and down on the piano keys. We remodeled some in the house, also fixing up a small apartment on the east of the house where Eric Emmitol rented. He worked for Mr. Mills when he came over from Germany and he sent for his wife and Anna Marie. They lived there for a while.
The winters were cold and snowdrifts were hard to get through. Thirty-sixth Street was just a big mud hole when the snow melted. I would have to take some old shoes to walk down to Jefferson with them, then change shoes there. Mabel and I had to carry all the groceries home from town, don't know how we managed. The strain on Dad trying to pay for the farm and trying to run it with broken down machinery was too much for him. He started to shake in his hands. Dr. Craig and told him not to walk so much. That was the worst thing he could've told him, because he got so he couldn't walk very much. Merlin decided to go back on the farm so we traded places again.
Mary went to San Francisco with Ruby Doxey on a vacation June or July in 1941. She met Thomas Slusher at a dance. His folks lived at The Dallas, OR, and he went home to his father's funeral then came here. He talked Mary into marrying him on September 20th 1941 at Preston, Idaho. He went back to San Francisco and left his car for Mary to drive back there.
Dad's health was poor and on September 17th 1942, he died. I had just got home from the Utah Tailoring Mills for lunch just before he died. Buried him on September 19th 1942. Mary came for the funeral and when she went home mother and I went back to San Francisco with her for a week. We should have done like Dad wanted us to do, hang onto the property on Washington, but we didn't. Now it is worth a whole lot more money.
In the fall of 1945 we sold to Mr. Parker the awning man. We bought Ethel Salmon’s house at 3130 Ogden Avenue. Aunt Lizzie moved in with us, Uncle Jeff having passed away a year or two before. Mary, Tom and Bill moved to in with us. Tom getting work around Ogden selling. Aunt Lizzie got dissatisfied here so she moved in an apartment on Jefferson between 26th and 27th streets. We had an apartment in the basement and when the people moved out Mary and Tom moved in. They lived there until they moved to Spokane, Washington around 1950. On September 8th 1948 I married Omni A Porter. Carol, Dee, and Lee, his children came to live with us. All three of them got married the same year 1952. Carol in March, Lee in June, and Dee in December. Mother had a stroke in 1948, just before we got married and had poor health after that. She died on March 27th 1953, at 8:40 PM.
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