At the time of John Bodeen's immigration, there was no direct passenger service from Sweden to America. It is likely that John began his journey in Gothenburg by boarding a steamship which took him to Hull, England. The ship's manifest for that voyage has not yet been located, but this record of John's emigration, from Swedish documents, has been found:

Swedish - BODIN, J O Ålder: 38 år Kön: M Församling: MURUM Län: P Utresehamn: GÖTEBORG Titel/Anm: Utvdrdatum: 1881 05 06 Destination: MOLINE Medåkande: NEJ Källkod: 17:554:205

English - First Name: J O Last Name: BODIN Age: 38 Gender: M Parish: MURUM County: Älvsborgs Port: GÖTEBORG Title/Note: Date: 1881 05 06 Destination: MOLINE Fellows: NEJ Source: 17:554:205

"NEJ" indicates that John was traveling alone.

John Bodeen arrived in the Port of New York on Monday, May 23, 1881. He was on board the steamship SS City of Paris. John was number 607 on a passenger list that included 1562 people. His entry reads like this: "J.A. Bodin, 38, male, laboror, from Sweden, to America, occupying the steerage section". Immigrants on board included 245 Norwegians, 140 Germans, 26 Danes, 7 Poles, 3 Russians, 2 Dutch, and 1 Hungarian. The rest were Swedes. The immigrants and a few returning Americans were completing a journey that began 10 to 14 days earlier in Liverpool, England.

Caroline Bodeen and her six children left Sweden on August 26, 1881. They departed from the port city of Gothenburg aboard the steamship Orlando. Their final destination was New Windsor, Illinois. Their occupations, names, and ages were listed on the ship's manifest as follows:

As indicated on the manifest, the Orlando took them across the North Sea to Hull, England. From there, the family traveled by rail to Liverpool, where they boarded another steamship to cross the Atlantic.

The main heading on the manifest translates something like this; "Listing of each emigrant, as signed aboard with the steamship Orlando , on the 26th of August, embarking to Hull, England." The column headings are:

The copy of the manifest was obtained by Harold Q. Bodeen, youngest son of Frank Bodeen, during a visit to Sweden in the late nineties.

Caroline and her children arrived in the Port of New York on Friday, September 9, 1881. They were on board the steamship SS City of Brussels. The ship's manifest lists the Bodeens as follows:

They were all listed as occupying the steerage section and going to America. Their names were mistakenly included with a group from Norway. (It is likely that they were in the company of some Norwegians when the list was made.)

The City of Brussels belonged to the Inman Steamship Company, Limited. The captain was Henry Condron. The ship displaced 3747 tons.

The ship's passenger list is included on Roll M237-441 of The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) microfilm publications. The entry for the Bodeen family is near the bottom of the ninth page.

Immigration Stories

This account of the Bodeen Immigration came from Helen Peterson, Augusta's granddaughter.  It is noteworthy for including the dates on which John and his family actually reached their destination.  Those dates are very consistent with the documented New York arrival dates when the train ride to their final destination is considered.

John August Bodeen was born in Halsta, Sweden on May 9, 1843.  He left Murun, Westergottland, Sweden in May, the day he was 38 years old.  He landed in England, and on May 27, 1881, landed in New Windsor, where he was met by his nephew, Pete Isaacson, who lived north of New Windsor.

Later, he left for Cable where he stayed with his brother-in-law, Andrew P. Oakberg.  He worked at carpentry and also worked in the coal mines as a carpenter in Cable and Sherrard.  There is one home in Cable left which he built and that is the Doxee home.

Mrs. Caroline Larson Bodeen was born in Elsborg Lan, Sweden on June 16, 1842.  She married John Bodeen Dec. 21, 1865.  She, with her six children left Muron Westergottland, Sweden in August arriving in New Windsor Sept. 14, 1881 where they were met by her nephew, Pete Isaacson;  also the father and husband met them there, later going to Cable to Mrs. Bodeen's sister, Mrs. Andrew Oakberg, where they resided a few days until they moved to their home where they lived 11 years.  Then in Feb. 1892, they moved to the home where they both lived until they passed away.

Mrs. Bodeen died June 26, 1928 and was placed in her final resting place in Cable Cemetery.  Mr. Bodeen died March 28, 1938 and was also buried in Cable Cemetery.

The following account of the Bodeen Immigration was compiled from a combination of sources. Dates of departure come from Swedish emigration records. General background information comes from the book Swedish Exodus, by Lars Ljungmark (ISBN 0-8093-2047-9). Personal elements in the account are adapted from verbal narratives by Ruth and Carol Langseth, and from The Autobiography of Archie Rosenquist, Sr.

From 1872 until 1907, Sweden was under the rule of King Oscar II. He also ruled Norway at the time. He was so unpopular there that the Norwegians kicked him off the throne in 1905. It was a common practice at the time for ruling classes to force the citizens of the country to serve in the military. The treatment of military conscripts was often demeaning and cruel. Emma Bodeen's father, John, was one of those conscripts. John Bodeen was an unusually tall man. Because of that and other personal qualities, he had been chosen to serve in the king's personal guard. His was a lifetime commitment, even though the normal military duty required less than two years. Of course, John had a home and family, but was frequently called upon to serve. In 1881, when John was 38 years old, he and a companion decided to desert the army and emigrate to America. On May 6, John boarded an emigrant ship and began his journey to America. He reported his final destination as Moline, Illinois.

Three months later, after receiving enough money from John, Caroline Bodeen was able to purchase the least expensive passage on an emigrant ship. On August 26, 1881, she left home, taking her six children and as many possessions as she could carry. Her oldest child was 13 and her youngest was less than a year old. They listed their destination as New Windsor, Illinois.  John was working as a carpenter for the coal mine in nearby Cable.

According to Swedish emigration figures, over 40,000 people left Sweden that year. The typical route began with a two-day journey across the North Sea from the western port city of Gothenberg to Hull, England. From there they traveled by rail to Liverpool in the west. The steamship ride from there to New York took two to three weeks. Veterans of such trips advised the immigrants about what they should expect: seasickness, bad food, and suffocating conditions in the hold while the hatches are closed during storms. After passing through Castle Garden, the immigrant clearing station, the new arrivals took the immigrant train to Chicago. That trip took 4 to 5 days, with three stops a day for meals.

When Caroline and the children got off the train at New Windsor, they were still about five miles from their new home in Cable.  After such a long and difficult journey, they were anxious to be reunited with their husband and father as soon as possible. They set off on foot carrying at least two large trunks, called "kofferts", filled with cherished possessions. Two of the children (the baby and the two-year-old) had to be carried. Another child was only four. The determination it took to make a five-mile trip on foot under those conditions was remarkable to say the least, but by staying together and helping each other, they did it.  When they reached Cable, Caroline asked someone if they knew where John Bodeen was working.  They were given directions to a house where he was working on a porch.  When John saw Caroline and the children, he jumped from the porch and ran down the road to greet them.  When the family was finally reunited, Caroline began crying with joy.  Emma was puzzled by her mother's tears, so she said  "You didn't cry the whole time Daddy was gone.  Why are you crying now?"  Her mother answered "because I was afraid I would never see him again."

Frank Bodeen and his wife Lydia were the parents of nine children. Harold Quentin Bodeen, the youngest, wrote a history of the Bodeens, devoted primarily to Frank and Lydia's family. The Bodeen Saga was completed in 1998. It includes the following account of the Bodeens' life in Sweden, and their emigration to America.

This Bodeen Saga begins in Sweden in the 1870's. Johan and Carolina Bodin lived in the Murum Parish on a three and one-half acre plot of land about 100 kilometers east, northeast of Gothenburg with their six children. The land was provided by the Swedish government in payment for Johan's service in the military. Grandpa was a member of the King's army. In Sweden, at that time, compulsory military service was a life-time obligation. So he spent part of his time in the military whenever the King called for maneuvers or for whatever it was that the King wanted his soldiers to do. When Grandpa was on leave at home from military duty, he lived with his wife and their children on this small "farm." Grandpa had considerable skills as a carpenter and shoe cobbler. Grandma had a cow, some pigs and chickens and a garden and was an excellent manager so they had enough to eat.

On Dec. 28, 1876 , Frank, their fourth child, was born. He had three older siblings, Augusta, Albert and Emma. Later, three more children, Charles, Alfred and Ellen were born. Ellen was born in America.

The Bodin family had experienced many hardships in recent years. Famine was not uncommon. Religious high-handedness was always a burden. In Sweden the state church was Lutheran. The pastor's salary was paid by the government so he was not accountable to any member of the parish. Consequently, he made some rather stern and strict rules that not all of the Swedes appreciated. These, along with military service, made life in Sweden very difficult and burdensome.

They had heard from their cousins, who had emigrated to the United States, that there was a good life in America. So, in the Spring of 1881, Grandpa made the decision to emigrate to the New World. Grandpa left his homeland, his wife and six children on May 6, 1881, three days before his 38th birthday. He went secretly, under the cover of darkness (he was deserting the army), to Gothenburg where he got passage on a cargo ship. Recently found records at the University of Illinois Scandinavian Film Area, show a J. O. Bodin, age 38, from Murum Parish with a sailing date of 5-6-81 and a destination of Moline, This was undoubtedly Grandpa Bodeen. He spent about three weeks on the water, finally landing in the New York harbor. This was before Ellis Island was the port of entry. Each immigrant was only required to give name and expected destination. He signed in as John A. Bodeen. He had a brother in Sweden whom he feared would be given a hard time by the authorities. So far as we know, there was no further contact between Grandpa and his brother.

Grandpa went to Western Illinois, to New Windsor where he had relatives including a nephew, Pete Isaacson. He then went on to Cable where he found suitable work as a carpenter in the local coal mines, and purchased a house. Then he sent word for his wife and children to come join him.

On August 15, 1881 , they left Murum, Vasterjutland, Sweden and they boarded the ship Orlando at Gothenburg and set sail for America. The ship's manifest shows this information: Carolina Bodin age 39 from Murum, Ellsborg Sweden, to New Windsor, USA. Below her name six children were listed:

They arrived in New York Harbor several weeks later and signed in just as her husband had earlier that year. They traveled overland to New Windsor and stayed with Grandma's sister, Mrs. Andrew Oakberg for a few days before going on to their house in Cable. This house was their home for the next 11 years. During this time their youngest daughter, Ellen was born.