Treasure Chest Thursday - The Bible of Anna Lydia

Over two weekends last September, Donald and I went through my step-mother's basement, finding many precious treasures from my dad's family; Bibles, books, furniture, china, silver, photos, negatives and slides. After months of airing out, I am now in the process of photographing and scanning these items and sharing them here on Treasure Chest Thursday.

"Anna Lydia Johansdotter in Fjärhestra, Ullesjö parish. In memory of her first communion 1 September 1895. Psalms119:165; Jeremiah 15:15; Johannes 6:67."

There is no good picture of this and it isn't just lighting,
the print closest to the edge of the page is very faded.

According to her own notes inside the back cover, Anna Lydia Johansdotter was born in Sweden on September 8, 1881. We have an extensive family history, in Swedish, completed in 1968 by a couple named Annie and Bertil Freidlitz. According to their research, Anna Lydia married Oscar Nimrod Johnson, my great-grandmother's brother, after immigrating to the United States. They settled in Manchester, Connecticut and had one son, Bertil Einar Oscar, in 1905. Sadly, Anna died in 1907 when Bertil was less than two years old.

According the Freidlitz history, which I have yet to verify, Oscar sent Bertil to Sweden to be raised by his maternal grandmother the year after Anna Lydia died. Bertil returned to the U.S. when he was sixteen, worked as a toolmaker like his father and eventually married Carrie Webster. Bertil and Carrie had one son, Irving. Oscar, Anna, Bertil and Carrie are all buried in East Cemetery in Manchester under one headstone. I have yet to find and photograph the headstone for myself, but have seen it on Find-A-Grave.

This photo was also part of the basement stash and fortunately for me, has names on the back. The couple on the left are my great-grandparents and their baby is my grandmother, Dagmar Alice Viola. The couple on the right are Oscar and Anna Lydia with baby Bertil.

Anna's Bible is in better condition than that of my great-grandfather that I shared last week. It must have been very handsome when it was new.

 

Below I have photographed the pages referenced inside the front cover of Anna's bible and written the translations of each passage.

Psalm 119:165 (KJV) "Great peace have they which love
thy law: and nothing shall offend them."

Jeremiah 15:15 "Oh Lord, thou knowest: remember me,
and visit me, and revenge me of my persecutors;
take me not away in thy longsuffering:
know that for thy sake I have suffered rebuke."

John 6:65 "Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away?"

According to a document found on Ancestry, Irving Johnson, only grandchild of Anna Lydia, died in 2010. I don't know if he had any children. I contacted a cousin a few days ago, a grandchild of my grandmothers eldest brother, to see if she has any record. If Irving Oscar Johnson had children, I would love to pass their great-grandmother's Bible on to one of them.