"The Other Swedes"
~ Honoring Them and Remembering Them ~ The Smoky Valley Writers ~
Mr. Chris Abercrombie
~ Remembering him as historian, writer, researcher, interviewer and collector of local artifacts
- Remembering his legacy
~ Honoring Them and Remembering Them ~ The Smoky Valley Writers ~
Mr. Chris Abercrombie
~ Remembering him as historian, writer, researcher, interviewer and collector of local artifacts
- Remembering his legacy
Mr. Chris Abercrombie
(1949-2017)
(1949-2017)
Courtesy of Smoky Valley Historical Association
Chris Abercrombie was a Scotsman whose antecedents first arrived in the Smoky Valley in 1877, eight years after the founding of Lindsborg. They and he made lasting contributions to the community as you will see in an online article titled, "Abercrombies -- 131 Years Of Lindsborg Growth." He was an Augustana Lutheran Christian.
Chris was an Eagle Scout and a member of Messiah Lutheran Church that belonged to the Augustana Lutheran Synod. A former radio personality and advertising executive, since moving back to Lindsborg he was a member of the Hyllningsfest Committee and served as President of the Smoky Valley Historical Association Board of Directors, leading the effort to secure funds for the renovation of Coronado Heights
Chris died before my desired appointment to interview him. His brother said that on top of all of his papers was my most recent email concerning a “virtual museum” that I wanted to discuss with him along with the interview which would have involved his work, projects and dreams concerning local history and of his collection of labeled artifacts important to Lindsborg, Bethany College and the Smoky Valley area, which some say is extensive.
His very large home collection would have presented a smorgasbord of subjects to write about. I wished only that someone could have really interviewed this modern historian on the Swedish Smoky Valley's past.
Chris was a very interesting person who contributed several wonderful articles usually with illustrations to the Lindsborg News-Record as former owner and editor John Marshall recalls, stating that his articles were "engaging, important, and well written." Even before Mr. Marshall's tenure, Chris had been submitting his wonderful articles.
Mr. Marshall mentioned that he recalled one among many of his stories that of his grandmother Ebba Fornberg, a strong-willed banker in the 1930s who saved the Lindsborg Farmers State Bank during the depression. "How she did it was one of many classic pegs of history, on which Chris hung more than a few great stories," so he remarked.
When Chris died on August 25, 2017, at 68, he was the sitting president for the nearly 100-year-old historical association which was first founded in 1919 with its first name, Lindsborg Historical Society, that changed two more times to the current Smoky Valley Historical Association.
He was born in Lindsborg on January 25, 1949. Graduating from Lindsborg schools, he was a 1971 Bethany College graduate.
A major contribution that Chris made available to the world was his production of YouTube videos about Lindsborg, Bethany College and the Smoky Valley people highlighting notable persons -- interviewing them, and showing events and traditions of their times. There was a time from approximately 2006 to 2016 when I counted around 65 videos that he produced accessible through YouTube. That number has been reduced to around 38.
To view the videos which remain click on his name: Chris Abercrombie, and then press Uploads on the upper left corner.
A sample of Chris' professional and very important historical interviewing is available HERE in the next section titled: ~The 2006 Abercrombie interview with Ken Sjogren on Bethany's challenging times, 1960s to early 70s.
Another reproduction of a very important Bethany College interview with Dr. Emil O. Deere by Mr. Carl Wm. Peterson of Bethany Church can be found HERE. Chris titled it, "Dr. Deere on C. A. Swensson" [Swensson was the founder of Bethany College.] When you go there, scroll down to you see the video.
Another more personal and more valued contribution was his membership in the Smoky Valley Historical Association for decades and his services to that, one major one was the creation of its website design with his written content and the collection of photographs for it from those gathered from individuals and the Old Mill Museum to tell the stories of the Smoky Valley. The SVHA website was first published in 2013.
Yet there was always the ongoing maintenance of Coronado Heights that each president of the SVHA was responsible for. Chris' tireless work concerning his leadership with his members to fulfilling the ongoing needs of Coronado Heights was overwhelming.
Chris left to the Smoky Valley people an incredible legacy through his gifts of writing, research, interviewing and collecting.
Chris was an Eagle Scout and a member of Messiah Lutheran Church that belonged to the Augustana Lutheran Synod. A former radio personality and advertising executive, since moving back to Lindsborg he was a member of the Hyllningsfest Committee and served as President of the Smoky Valley Historical Association Board of Directors, leading the effort to secure funds for the renovation of Coronado Heights
Chris died before my desired appointment to interview him. His brother said that on top of all of his papers was my most recent email concerning a “virtual museum” that I wanted to discuss with him along with the interview which would have involved his work, projects and dreams concerning local history and of his collection of labeled artifacts important to Lindsborg, Bethany College and the Smoky Valley area, which some say is extensive.
His very large home collection would have presented a smorgasbord of subjects to write about. I wished only that someone could have really interviewed this modern historian on the Swedish Smoky Valley's past.
Chris was a very interesting person who contributed several wonderful articles usually with illustrations to the Lindsborg News-Record as former owner and editor John Marshall recalls, stating that his articles were "engaging, important, and well written." Even before Mr. Marshall's tenure, Chris had been submitting his wonderful articles.
Mr. Marshall mentioned that he recalled one among many of his stories that of his grandmother Ebba Fornberg, a strong-willed banker in the 1930s who saved the Lindsborg Farmers State Bank during the depression. "How she did it was one of many classic pegs of history, on which Chris hung more than a few great stories," so he remarked.
When Chris died on August 25, 2017, at 68, he was the sitting president for the nearly 100-year-old historical association which was first founded in 1919 with its first name, Lindsborg Historical Society, that changed two more times to the current Smoky Valley Historical Association.
He was born in Lindsborg on January 25, 1949. Graduating from Lindsborg schools, he was a 1971 Bethany College graduate.
A major contribution that Chris made available to the world was his production of YouTube videos about Lindsborg, Bethany College and the Smoky Valley people highlighting notable persons -- interviewing them, and showing events and traditions of their times. There was a time from approximately 2006 to 2016 when I counted around 65 videos that he produced accessible through YouTube. That number has been reduced to around 38.
To view the videos which remain click on his name: Chris Abercrombie, and then press Uploads on the upper left corner.
A sample of Chris' professional and very important historical interviewing is available HERE in the next section titled: ~The 2006 Abercrombie interview with Ken Sjogren on Bethany's challenging times, 1960s to early 70s.
Another reproduction of a very important Bethany College interview with Dr. Emil O. Deere by Mr. Carl Wm. Peterson of Bethany Church can be found HERE. Chris titled it, "Dr. Deere on C. A. Swensson" [Swensson was the founder of Bethany College.] When you go there, scroll down to you see the video.
Another more personal and more valued contribution was his membership in the Smoky Valley Historical Association for decades and his services to that, one major one was the creation of its website design with his written content and the collection of photographs for it from those gathered from individuals and the Old Mill Museum to tell the stories of the Smoky Valley. The SVHA website was first published in 2013.
Yet there was always the ongoing maintenance of Coronado Heights that each president of the SVHA was responsible for. Chris' tireless work concerning his leadership with his members to fulfilling the ongoing needs of Coronado Heights was overwhelming.
Chris left to the Smoky Valley people an incredible legacy through his gifts of writing, research, interviewing and collecting.
-The Coronado Heights' project was Chris' most passionate project! -
As a tribute to Chris after his passing, the Smoky Valley Historical Association shared with its members through the Vår Historia (the bi-monthly Newsletter, which Chris had founded) issue of October 3, 2017, titled,
"Abercrombies -- 131 Years Of Lindsborg Growth."
To read it, go HERE.
Mr. Tim Steward, now president of the SVHA, continues producing and writing local histories of Smoky Valley people as Mr. Abercrombie did, for the SVHA Newsletter, Vår Historia.
Access to Mr. Abercrombie obituary can be found HERE. In it, there are traces of his Lindsborg contributions, commented kindly by others found on the "Tribute Wall."
This SWEDES' panorama photograph of the Smoky Valley's Lindsborg that I took in 2006 as shown below, Chris confirmed it to be, in an email, "an historical photograph" because now there are new grain elevators near the old white ones.
"Abercrombies -- 131 Years Of Lindsborg Growth."
To read it, go HERE.
Mr. Tim Steward, now president of the SVHA, continues producing and writing local histories of Smoky Valley people as Mr. Abercrombie did, for the SVHA Newsletter, Vår Historia.
Access to Mr. Abercrombie obituary can be found HERE. In it, there are traces of his Lindsborg contributions, commented kindly by others found on the "Tribute Wall."
This SWEDES' panorama photograph of the Smoky Valley's Lindsborg that I took in 2006 as shown below, Chris confirmed it to be, in an email, "an historical photograph" because now there are new grain elevators near the old white ones.
This Swedes: TheWayTheyWere photograph
Chris proclaimed as historical in an email to me.
It is dedicated to him.
* * *
"Let Us Remember Them"
* * *
Swedes: TheWayTheyWere
~ restoring lost local histories ~
reconnecting past to present
* * *
All color photography throughout Swedes: The Way They Were is by Fran Cochran unless otherwise indicated.
Copyright © since October 8, 2015 to Current Year
as indicated on main menu sections of
www.swedesthewaytheywere.org. All rights reserved.
"Let Us Remember Them"
* * *
Swedes: TheWayTheyWere
~ restoring lost local histories ~
reconnecting past to present
* * *
All color photography throughout Swedes: The Way They Were is by Fran Cochran unless otherwise indicated.
Copyright © since October 8, 2015 to Current Year
as indicated on main menu sections of
www.swedesthewaytheywere.org. All rights reserved.
