Swedish Emigrant Institute facts for kids
The Swedish Emigrant Institute (called Svenska Emigrantinstitutet in Swedish) is a special place in Sweden. It's a research center and a museum. Its main job is to keep old records and cool items safe. These things tell the story of Swedes who moved to America.
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About the Emigrant Institute
The Swedish Emigrant Institute opened its doors on September 11, 1965. You can find it in a building called the House of Emigrants. This house is in a city named Växjö in Småland, Sweden.
What the Institute Does
The main goal of the Institute is to gather and organize information. This information is all about Swedes who left their home country. The building has a Research Center, Archives, a Library, and Museums. They all focus on the time when many Swedes moved to North America.
Stories of Swedish Migration
The Institute has a huge collection of history about people moving. It includes old documents and books. It also helps people research their family history. The Institute supports studies and holds events. It also creates exhibits about people moving to and from Sweden.
Vilhelm Moberg's Contribution
A famous Swedish writer, Vilhelm Moberg, strongly supported the Institute. He gave them all the notes and materials from his well-known Emigrant Series of books. These books tell the amazing story of Karl Oskar and Kristina. They moved from Småland to Chisago County, Minnesota. This special collection also has a sculpture called The Emigrants. It shows the main characters from Moberg's novels.
Exploring the Museum Exhibits
The Institute has several interesting museum exhibits for visitors. Each one tells a different part of the emigration story.
The Dream of America Exhibit
This exhibit shares the journey of Swedes who moved to America. It explains why so many people left Sweden between 1843 and 1930. You can learn about their reasons and what happened next.
The Moberg Room Exhibit
The Moberg Room shows how much work Vilhelm Moberg put into his famous books. He spent 12 years writing them! Here, you can see his original writings, notes, and old photos.
Research Center and Archives
This part of the Institute holds many important documents. It has original papers, microfilms, sound recordings, and pictures. There are thousands of documents, including the special Vilhelm Moberg collection.
The Emigration Library
The library at the Institute is very special. It has the largest collection of books in Sweden about emigration. If you want to learn about people moving, this is the place to go!
Important Collections for Research
The Swedish Emigrant Institute has many valuable collections. These are great for learning about Swedish emigration.
- Swedish Parish Records: These are old church records from different towns in Sweden.
- Swedish Passenger Lists: These lists show who traveled on ships leaving Sweden.
- Swedish American Church Archives: Records from Swedish churches in America.
- America Letters and Diaries: Personal letters and journals from emigrants.
- Passport Journals: Records of people getting passports to leave Sweden.
- Emigrant Group Archives: Records from groups that helped Swedes in America.
- Printed Materials: Books and stories about Swedish pioneers in new lands.
