Emma Johanson
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Name: JOHANSON, Emma
Born: 22 October 1858, Tronninge, Halland, Sweden
Died: 2 February 1956, Poulsbo, Kitsap, WA, USA
Father: JOHANSON, Johan Christ (1828-1911)
Mother: NILSON, Johanna JOHANSON (1828-1889)
Marriage: ca 1890, Clear Creek Valley, Silverdale, Kitsap, WA, USA to SCHOLD, Jonas Vilhelm (1847-1921)
Emma Johanson was born 22 October 1858 in Halmstad, Sweden. She was the second daughter of Johan Christian Johanson (b. 25 Feb 1828, Enslow, Halmstad, Sweden) and Johanna Nilsdotter (b. 26 July 1828, Tronninge, Halmstad, Sweden). Emma's grandfather, Nils Nilsson (1796-1880) had been well-to-do but co-signed a note with a brother or friend whose bankruptcy forced foreclosure sale of all Nils' property, even household furniture which had been hidden in an underground cave, but whose location was given away to the law by unfriendly neighbors, so the family was left destitute. Nils and his wife Ingrid Larsson Nilsson (1796-1865) had three children: Hannah (my great, great grandmother), Netta (b. 26 May 1835) who married Sven Palsson (Rosvall) and emigrated in 1868 and a brother Nils who died at an early age.
Emma was the first of her family to emigrate. She left Tronninge, in 1875 and travelled first to Plattsburg Mo to stay with her aunt Netta Palsson (Rosvall) (b. 26 May 1835 in Tronninge, Halland, Sweden) and husband Sven Peter Palsson Rosvall (b. 21 November 1835, Ranneslov, Halmstad, Sweden). Sven worked for the railroad and the family lived in a hut built half of sod and half of wood, with dirt floor, a box for a table and boxes for chairs, probably boards nailed up for a bed and a monkey stove. Emma helped with the care of baby Oscar Rosvall (b. 13 Oct 1876) who was born two months prematurely and weighed only two pounds at birth. After two years, the family bought a frame house. Sven continued to work on the railroad. In 1882 the family (and Emma Johanson) moved to Vliets Kansas.
It is said that Aunt Netta made newcomers from Sweden welcome and took them into their home. Netta was called "moster" (aunt -mothers's sister) by many of the visitors, including her sister Johanna's children. The Johanson family all emigrated to the USA between 1874 and In 1878 Hanna joined her sister Emma at the Rosvall home in Vliets, Kansas. Charlie (Carl Birger) Johnson emigrated to Kansas City USA in 1879 and moved later to Jackson Missouri. John August Johnson emigrated to Missouri in1885. Ida Johanson emigrated to Vliets Kansas in 1886 and married Carl William Johnson. Their mother, Johnanna died in Sweden in 1889 and her daughter Bendicta took care of her father. Bendicta, married Per Westberg in Tronninge Sweden and in 1903 they emigrated to Centralia Kansas, USA along with her father Johan Christian Johanson. Johan Christian Johanson died in Frankfort, Marshall Kansas on 29 July 1911. The youngest son, Nils Johanson Lindfeldt married and settled in Seattle.
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The two sisters, Hanna and Emma Johanson left their Aunt Netta's home in Kansas and decided to strike out on their own and moved to Central City and Denver Colorado. In Denver, Hanna met and married AJ Schold in 1881. They had one daughter, Esther and then moved to Modesto (near San Francisco,California).
Emma stayed in Central City, Colorado. She worked for a wealthy family there but little is known of those days. Central City was a wild west town. The centre of the mining district, it was once known as, "The richest square mile on earth"
According to legend, not everyone in Colorado struck it rich, but those who settled in Central City were never hard up for wild times. In 1861 alone, Central City recorded 217 fist fights, 97 revolver fights, 11 Bowie knife fights and one dog fight. Amazingly, no one was killed. In 1874 most of the buildings in Central City were destroyed by fire. The town was rebuilt, this time of brick and stone; most of those buildings are still standing today. The grand opening of the Central City Opera House in 1878 started a tradition of community theater, from opera to vaudeville. Buffalo Bill performed there as well as P.T. Barnum's circus performers.
Emma left Central City to join her sister in Silverdale, Washington Territory around 1887. She must have been ready to settle down, because she soon met and married her brother in law, Willie Schold. they married in February 1890.
Growing older
Emma lived most of her life alone. She was 63 years old when Willie died in 1921. Emma continued to live in the homestead in Clear Creek Valley with her son, Lawrence. She watched her grandchildren, Nettie's family, grow up. But she didn't understand them. She never learned to speak English and they only knew a smattering of Swedish words. The grandchildren lived with Emma when Nettie's husband, Tom was in hospital in the thirties. They don't have fond memories of their time.
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Many years later, in 1954, Emma was visited by her grandchildren (children of Lawrence). She was 96 years old. She died two years later in 1956 (35 years after her husband).
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This page was created by Cheryl Morgan, Last updated, 19 December 2008