Tysvær Bygdeblad article
"På
jakt etter fortida"
"SEARCHING FOR THE PAST"
by
Martin Eike
Thursday, July 13, 2000, page 4
175
years ago Jakob Slogvik left on the sloop Restaurationen, the first emigration
to America that was arranged by Cleng Peerson. Now Jakob Slogvig’s American
descendants have returned to Norway to learn about the past.
Keith and
Peggy Wheeler live in the outskirts of San Francisco. The reporter from
“Bygdebladet” met them after the Emigrant Concert at Tysværtunet on July 2nd.
Jakob Slogvik was Keith’s great-grandfather. Jakob was a Quaker and traveled to “the country of opportunities” to achieve religious freedom. The voyage
across the Atlantic was both hard and dangerous. When the 53 persons on the
tiny vessel at last reached New York, they were first arrested because the boat
was too small to carry so many people. The Norwegian immigrants lived for a
time just outside New York before they moved to Fox River in Illinois. But Jakob
did not feel comfortable about living in Illinois.
"I
believe he longed for the coast and the ocean," says Keith.
Jakob traveled
on, and after having spent a few years staying in several places on
the vast continent he found the place of his dreams in Northern California. He
settled on the coast where the scenery resembled most the Vestlandet area. His
family still lives there.
Genealogy
Keith
Wheeler’s great hobby is family history. He has traced his ancestors back to
the first ship that came to the USA with immigrants, the Mayflower.
He is more interested in his Norwegian
roots, though.
- "When
I was young I did not really care so much about where I came from, but the
interest has grown since then. I also think that in America in general there is
much more interest for genealogy now than there used to be. Americans want to
know about their roots," he says.
To keep
contact with the old country and its culture is not easy. San Francisco has
plenty of tramcars, steep hills, and a closed-down prison island, but not many
Norwegians. In other American areas you may find celebrations of May 17th,
the Norwegian Constitution Day, and other Norwegian and Scandinavian festivals,
but in California there is very little of this.
- "All
we knew about our roots came from a book we got in the early 1960s. The book is
almost like a Bible to me and other immigrants," says Keith.
Now he has
much more material than just one book. Keith has made his own website on the
Internet about his family. He also keeps contact with other genealogists around
the world.
On a
tour of Norway
Now Keith
and Peggy are in Norway to meet relatives and experience Norwegian culture.
When “Bygdebladet” talked to the couple, they both agreed what the best
experience of the trip had been:
- "To
visit the Slogvik farm where Jakob grew up was a reason for making this
journey, and we have achieved this goal," they say.
They have
now stayed at Slogvik for a few days. The present owner of the farm is Einar
Slogvik. He is not related to the Wheelers, but he still thinks it is great to
have visitors from the USA.
Keith and
Peggy also confide to us that they enjoy themselves very much in our small
country. Here they have also had the opportunity to meet their two only
remaining relatives.
Peggy is a
teacher at an American high school and she tells us that the interest among
pupils for Norwegian culture is increasing, particularly the interest for the
Vikings.
- "We teach our pupils these days that
Leiv Eirikson was the first (European) who came to America. Since the proof of
the Norse discovery of America was found, the Americans are more interested in
Norway. This year a big Viking Exhibition is arranged," says Peggy.
Now she and Keith are on their way back to America with their suitcases full of memories.
Return
to the "Newspaper Articles" main page