I ended this post saying, “To learn more about Anders Gustaf, his wife Elise, and their children, I’ll follow them through the Swedish records at Riksarkivet.”

Those online records were great resources for facts about the children of my 4th great-grandparents, but I learned much more about my family history over a cup of Swedish coffee.

Anders Gustaf had taken the military surname Linnell when he was a soldier per line 10 of this record in the Tånnö church archives. The spelling changed over time from Linnell to Linell.

I followed Anders’ life through the record books looking for any descendants who emigrated to the United States. Instead I learned all eight of the children born to Anders Gustaf and his wife Elise lived out their lives in Sweden.

Several descendants of the Linell family still live near Tånnö. Meeting them and hearing their stories was one of many highlights during last year’s visit to Sweden.

You may have heard of Lake Vidostern. It was all over the news in 2018 when an eight-year-old girl found a Viking sword there. The lake and surrounding area is very peaceful, a perfect spot for a summer cottage. My cousin Anna prepared a fika at one such cottage on a beautiful sunny day. We spent several hours with our Linell cousins who told us the role Lake Vidostern played in our family history.

After our fika it was hard to see the lake in the same way. Of course it was still breathtaking and the sunsets were absolutely amazing.

But it took on new meaning after hearing the story of a little girl who crawled from the island in the middle of the frozen lake to a small shop where she purchased food on account. And then returned home the same way.

Why was the little girl chosen to make this journey? She weighed the least of all the family members and therefore had less chance of cracking the ice and falling into the water. Why did she make her purchases on account? If she had fallen in the lake, the family would have lost a precious child and a hard-earned coin as well. It’s difficult to imagine this, isn’t it?

Not to worry, the little girl made it safely across the lake and returned home with the much needed food for her family. She grew up, got married, and with her husband Anders Gustav, had a large family. Years later Elise Linell told her grandchildren the story of her treacherous lake crossing. And generations later the story would be told again to family from across the ocean.

Stories and photos are my favorite parts of family history.