"The Other Swedes"
~ Honoring Them and Remembering Them ~ The Smoky Valley Writers ~
Mr. Thomas N. Holmquist
~ Chronicling Lindsborg's neighbors,
the Galesburg Augustana Lutheran Swedes of Salemsborg and Freemount,
with a personal connection, since 1868
~ Honoring Them and Remembering Them ~ The Smoky Valley Writers ~
Mr. Thomas N. Holmquist
~ Chronicling Lindsborg's neighbors,
the Galesburg Augustana Lutheran Swedes of Salemsborg and Freemount,
with a personal connection, since 1868
For nearly (3) decades now, Mr. Thomas N. Holmquist has been on a mission to research, document, and write about the Smoky Valley Augustana Lutheran Swedes' foundational history of the communities which are located west and north of Lindsborg, respectively Freemount and Salemsborg. They were founded in 1869 and so were their namesake churches, Freemount Lutheran Church and Salemsborg Lutheran Church. These small communities were Swedish enclaves instead of established towns with their cherished churches as centers of worship and related activities, a way of life that continues with their Swedish American descendants, many still farming the land of their ancestors.
Why has Mr. Holmquist been on such a mission? Because there had yet to be a book of history written on these two Swedish Augustana Lutheran communities and their pastor leaders, such as Rev. A. W. Dahlsten (1836-1918) and Rev. C. J. Brodine (1821-1825), the pioneer missionary of the Smoky Valley. They had certainly been neglected in light of all that had been written about their larger Swedish neighbor Lindsborg and its Värmland Swedish leader Rev. Olof Olsson (1941-1900).
These Swedes, like those in Lindsborg, left Sweden primarily to worship God freely, as well as for economic needs. This had become a national crisis for Sweden that contributed to a great migration to many countries including America which found the Galesburg and the Värmland Colonies eventually arriving in the Kansas Smoky Valley in 1869. There successful arrival in America was partially the result of assistance from members and friends of the newly formed Swedish Augustana Lutheran Synod of 1860.
Mr. Holmquist, for sure, is a last-living-link to this history with his growing up in the shadow of the Smoky Valley Smoky Hill Bluffs, worshipping as a child at the Swedish Augustana Lutheran Salemsborg Church, while listening to the stories from his father and uncle about his antecedents arrival in this valley, months earlier than the Colonies, in 1868, when they purchased the land that he and his sons farm to this day! Most importantly, he and his family have continued worshipping at the Salemsborg Lutheran Church, and, not surprisingly, Mr. Holmquist became the historian of this key Kansas Smoky Valley church, which had been under the guidance of the Augustana Lutheran Synod from 1869 to 1962.
It is very clear that Mr. Holmquist accepted "the call" decades ago to write this history of these Lutheran Swedes who arrived in the Smoky Valley from Galesburg, Illinois, on February 23, 1869! His desire to honor these Swedish pioneers who dared to venture onto the plains of Kansas to worship their God freely while creating a new life for themselves in this new land ring out, for him to "memorialize" these Swedes through his gifts of researching, interviewing, writing and lecturing.
Thus far, Mr. Holmquist's Smoky Valley anthology, numbers three books. The first one, which I have read, is his "classic" Pioneer Cross, Swedish Settlements Along the Smoky Hill Bluffs, published in 1994. The other two which I have not read, and certainly would like to, are his 2000 Bluestem, a nonfiction work, and his 2019, another classic, Salemsborg: A History of the Salemsborg Lutheran Church, Volume I: 1869-1939. It is a complete history of the Smoky Valley communities of Salemsborg and Smolan and missionary leader Rev. C. J. Brodine, who was the first pastor of both the Freemount and Salemsborg congregations, members of the Swedish Augustana Lutheran Synod. The Kansas Author's Club reported on February 5, 2022, that this 2019 book was awarded the 2020 Award of Commendation from the Concordia Historical Institute, St Louis, Missouri, “in recognition of your [Mr. Holmquist's] significant contribution to literature and research in the field of Lutheran archives and history in North America.”
Between Mr. Holmquist's 28-year-old Pioneer Cross and Dr. Emory K. Lindquist's 69-year-old Smoky Valley People, the community of the Kansas Smoky Valley has a well-rounded narrative of its most cherished foundational and developmental history. Therefore, if not already, these volumes should be regarded as classics, and they should be recognized as still valuable and useable instruments for the preservation, restoration and promotion of the Swedish cultural histories, heritage, traditions and values found in the Smoky Valley. No one will duplicate these books. Fortunately, Pioneer Cross has been preserved for posterity and perpetuity through digitalization. It can be accessed HERE for online reading. May Smoky Valley People also be digitalized one day.
A stockman since 1976, Mr. Holmquist is a Kansas Swedish American Smoky Valley legacy farmer of the 4th generation who continues farming with 5th generation sons, Bethany College graduates Ryan and John Holmquist. By profession, he is an educator, retiring from teaching for 42 years in Smoky Valley schools, including elementary and high school. He graduated Magnu Cum Laude from Bethany College and holds a 1976 Bachelor of Science Degree in Music Education. In 1992, he and his family were selected by the Smithsonian Institution's Festival of American Folklife in Washington D.C. to represent "Kansas Agriculture and Swedish Culture" at the Smithsonian Institution's Family Farm section. In 1999, he received a Master of Arts Degree in American History from Emporia State University. In 2000, he was awarded a Fulbright Memorial Fund Scholarship for educational work in Japan.
Mr. Holmquist is the father of Majkin Holmquist, a writer and Bethany College graduate also, with a Master of Fine Arts in Playwriting from the Yale School of Drama. His wife, Dr. Marlysue Holmquist, is a Swedish Smoky Valley "Esping" descendant from the earliest times. As well, she graduated from Bethany College and was an educator also, retiring from Bethany College as the Education Department Chair Professor. In addition, she has been very much involved in cultural preservation and promotion of the Swedish traditions, the folk arts, and handcrafts along with her sister Marla Ann, and founders of the 1986 Lindsborg "Swedish American Folk Life Institute of Central Kansas," her brother Mark and his wife Mardel. Like her husband, sister and brother, Dr. Holmquist is a researcher, writer and lecturer on various aspects of Smoky Valley Swedish Culture from the Swedish settlements. She is the author of A History of Swedish Craft Work at Bethany College. Her Swedish handcrafts include needlework, wedding crowns and ljuskröna making.
Why has Mr. Holmquist been on such a mission? Because there had yet to be a book of history written on these two Swedish Augustana Lutheran communities and their pastor leaders, such as Rev. A. W. Dahlsten (1836-1918) and Rev. C. J. Brodine (1821-1825), the pioneer missionary of the Smoky Valley. They had certainly been neglected in light of all that had been written about their larger Swedish neighbor Lindsborg and its Värmland Swedish leader Rev. Olof Olsson (1941-1900).
These Swedes, like those in Lindsborg, left Sweden primarily to worship God freely, as well as for economic needs. This had become a national crisis for Sweden that contributed to a great migration to many countries including America which found the Galesburg and the Värmland Colonies eventually arriving in the Kansas Smoky Valley in 1869. There successful arrival in America was partially the result of assistance from members and friends of the newly formed Swedish Augustana Lutheran Synod of 1860.
Mr. Holmquist, for sure, is a last-living-link to this history with his growing up in the shadow of the Smoky Valley Smoky Hill Bluffs, worshipping as a child at the Swedish Augustana Lutheran Salemsborg Church, while listening to the stories from his father and uncle about his antecedents arrival in this valley, months earlier than the Colonies, in 1868, when they purchased the land that he and his sons farm to this day! Most importantly, he and his family have continued worshipping at the Salemsborg Lutheran Church, and, not surprisingly, Mr. Holmquist became the historian of this key Kansas Smoky Valley church, which had been under the guidance of the Augustana Lutheran Synod from 1869 to 1962.
It is very clear that Mr. Holmquist accepted "the call" decades ago to write this history of these Lutheran Swedes who arrived in the Smoky Valley from Galesburg, Illinois, on February 23, 1869! His desire to honor these Swedish pioneers who dared to venture onto the plains of Kansas to worship their God freely while creating a new life for themselves in this new land ring out, for him to "memorialize" these Swedes through his gifts of researching, interviewing, writing and lecturing.
Thus far, Mr. Holmquist's Smoky Valley anthology, numbers three books. The first one, which I have read, is his "classic" Pioneer Cross, Swedish Settlements Along the Smoky Hill Bluffs, published in 1994. The other two which I have not read, and certainly would like to, are his 2000 Bluestem, a nonfiction work, and his 2019, another classic, Salemsborg: A History of the Salemsborg Lutheran Church, Volume I: 1869-1939. It is a complete history of the Smoky Valley communities of Salemsborg and Smolan and missionary leader Rev. C. J. Brodine, who was the first pastor of both the Freemount and Salemsborg congregations, members of the Swedish Augustana Lutheran Synod. The Kansas Author's Club reported on February 5, 2022, that this 2019 book was awarded the 2020 Award of Commendation from the Concordia Historical Institute, St Louis, Missouri, “in recognition of your [Mr. Holmquist's] significant contribution to literature and research in the field of Lutheran archives and history in North America.”
Between Mr. Holmquist's 28-year-old Pioneer Cross and Dr. Emory K. Lindquist's 69-year-old Smoky Valley People, the community of the Kansas Smoky Valley has a well-rounded narrative of its most cherished foundational and developmental history. Therefore, if not already, these volumes should be regarded as classics, and they should be recognized as still valuable and useable instruments for the preservation, restoration and promotion of the Swedish cultural histories, heritage, traditions and values found in the Smoky Valley. No one will duplicate these books. Fortunately, Pioneer Cross has been preserved for posterity and perpetuity through digitalization. It can be accessed HERE for online reading. May Smoky Valley People also be digitalized one day.
A stockman since 1976, Mr. Holmquist is a Kansas Swedish American Smoky Valley legacy farmer of the 4th generation who continues farming with 5th generation sons, Bethany College graduates Ryan and John Holmquist. By profession, he is an educator, retiring from teaching for 42 years in Smoky Valley schools, including elementary and high school. He graduated Magnu Cum Laude from Bethany College and holds a 1976 Bachelor of Science Degree in Music Education. In 1992, he and his family were selected by the Smithsonian Institution's Festival of American Folklife in Washington D.C. to represent "Kansas Agriculture and Swedish Culture" at the Smithsonian Institution's Family Farm section. In 1999, he received a Master of Arts Degree in American History from Emporia State University. In 2000, he was awarded a Fulbright Memorial Fund Scholarship for educational work in Japan.
Mr. Holmquist is the father of Majkin Holmquist, a writer and Bethany College graduate also, with a Master of Fine Arts in Playwriting from the Yale School of Drama. His wife, Dr. Marlysue Holmquist, is a Swedish Smoky Valley "Esping" descendant from the earliest times. As well, she graduated from Bethany College and was an educator also, retiring from Bethany College as the Education Department Chair Professor. In addition, she has been very much involved in cultural preservation and promotion of the Swedish traditions, the folk arts, and handcrafts along with her sister Marla Ann, and founders of the 1986 Lindsborg "Swedish American Folk Life Institute of Central Kansas," her brother Mark and his wife Mardel. Like her husband, sister and brother, Dr. Holmquist is a researcher, writer and lecturer on various aspects of Smoky Valley Swedish Culture from the Swedish settlements. She is the author of A History of Swedish Craft Work at Bethany College. Her Swedish handcrafts include needlework, wedding crowns and ljuskröna making.
For 1994 "Pioneer Cross: Swedish Settlements Along the Smoky Hill Bluffs" ~ The Words of Mr. Thomas N. Holmquist, go HERE.
The Churches
- click on photographs to enlarge -
- click on photographs to enlarge -
Salemsborg Church, 1909 Freemount Church, 1870 Freemount Church, 1909
Source: Pioneer Swedish-American Culture in Central Kansas by Alfred Bergin in Swedish 1909 / by Ruth Billdt in English 1965
1994 Published, 128 Pages
1994 Published, 128 Pages
Cover photo by Linda K. Hubalek
This section has been shown to author Mr. Thomas N. Holmquist for approval as of 9-12-22.
* * *
"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.
