Introduction to Forty Gavels

The Promise of Prosperity. The prospect of "freedom" of "opportunity" and of "prosperity" in the United States drew a million Swedish immigrants to the New World between 1830 - 1900.

Two critical events drove the mass migration. First, the Swedish rural population had tripled from 1750 - 1850 due to conditions described by famed Swedish Bishop and poet from the Cathedral Chapter of Växjö, Esaias Tegneir, as, "peace, vaccinations and potatoes." Second, in the United States President Lincoln had signed the "Homestead Act" of 1862, which granted 160 acres outside the original 13 colonies to anyone who lived on and farmed the land for five years.

Settlements of Swedish farmers, merchants, ministers and all manner of service trades (blacksmith, logging, lumber mills, construction, etc.) soon sprouted in the rich farmlands of the upper Midwest, many in Minnesota.

People, whether adopted or native born, and not policy, provide the leadership and direction for their country.

Countless immigrants and their offspring have added to the lasting legacy of America. These men and women share the pleasure of prosperity and they have passed on the passion for the rewards of reaching out. These individuals who possessed the strength to journey across the ocean in search of opportunity planted the seeds of encouragement for an emerging America.

John Frederick Soderstom, an immigrant at age 21 from Smäland in the southeast region of Sweden, farmed, worked as a cobbler and wore the cloth as pastor of the local Swedish Lutheran Mission Church in St. Paul, Minnesota. He spent his life in pursuit of his ‘dream' of a free unfettered life.

Anna Gustafava Erikson, an immigrant at age 16 from Jämtland in the northwest region of Sweden, married John Soderstrom at age 18 and bore six children. She spent her life living the pragmatic reality of achievement and results. And as she passed on the power of perseverance, Anna also bestowed her luminescent smile.

One child, born March 10, 1888 near Waverly, Minnesota, Reuben G. Soderstrom, had entered the world the second son of an immigrant family facing the numerous, ongoing struggles of a new land and a new language. To help support the family, Reuben left home at age nine to work in a blacksmith shop.
Reuben learned from his mother Anna how a practical and pragmatic approach produced desired results. Reuben learned from his father John how to hold on to the dream of a building a better life.

Reuben's entire life focused on family, integrity and service, plus tangible results. As the chronicle of his countless accomplishments for workers unfolds, readers will learn why he would become a legend within organized labor in Illinois.