Each tombstone has its own story - Vilhelm Broända

William Broenda's gravestone at Greenwood cemetery in Astoria, Oregon. Picture: Jan Anderson

One of my hobbies when visiting another locality is walking in the local cemetery if there’s even a little time left. In addition to looking for relatives and characters, I am looking to find both aesthetic beauty and peace of mind. Cemeteries are soothing and stopping oases in the middle of a noisy, dusty and restless city. Tombstones and the names written and carved on them tell about the history of the region, the power structures of the past, the linguistic and religious division, and the spectrum of surnames of the region. Every person listed on the tombstone has their own life story, sometimes very colorful.

A few days ago, I received a photo of a tombstone off the west coast of the United States in Astoria. Astoria is a city at the mouth of the Columbia River in Oregon. This city, which lived on salmon fishing, became one of the significant destinations and bases of Finnish immigrants from the 1880s onwards. The tombstone tells of the deceased being born in my hometown of Lappeenranta. The image of that tombstone erected 113 years ago on my screen invited, even outright demanded, to tell the story of the deceased buried in the caches of the archives. 

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Picture: Jan Anderson

Vilhelm Broända was born in Lappeenranta, southeastern Finland, in 1853. Although his date of birth is marked on March 26, 1853 in church records, there is no complete certainty about the date of birth. Namely, his name cannot be found in the list of those born and baptized in Lappeenranta from 1852-1853. Vilhelmi's parents were Erik Broända (laborer, born 28.10.1826) and Anna Helena Kemppi (2.1.1814 - 27.3.1871). Anna Helena and Erik were married on April 12, 1852 and the wife was thus 12 years older than her husband. The marriage was Anna Helena's second. Her first husband Anders Kemppi had died at the age of 49 on May 10, 1850 from diphtheria. Would the absence of Vilhelm's name from the list of births and baptisms be explained by the fact that the parents were in another place at the time of the child's birth and baptism was performed there? 

Vilhelm lived in Lappeenranta until 1875. On May 2, 1875, he applied to the priest of the Lutheran congregation for a certificate of migration with the intention of moving to St. Petersburg, the then capital of Russia. At that time, there was a practice in Finland according to which every migrant had to apply to the authorities of his or her home area for a certificate of migration, which recorded the most important personal information such as date of birth and marital status, literacy and possible vaccination. This paper was then presented to the authority both on the way to the new locality and at check-in to the authorities of the new home area. If the traveler could not find a certificate of migration, he/she could be arrested for detachment and patched up in his former home area once it had been found out. 

The exact date of Vilhelmi's move to St. Petersburg is not known, but he registered as a member of the Finnish Lutheran congregation there on November 13, 1876 and at the same time presented his certificate of migration he had brought from Lappeenranta. Enrollment as a permanent resident of St. Petersburg was accelerated by a planned marriage. Vilhelm had apparently met a young lady, Maria Mathilda Eskola, in St. Petersburg. Maria had moved to the city at the beginning of August 1875 at the latest. Maria, born on September 30, 1852 in Oulainen, Ostrobotnia, had taken her certificate of migration from Vihanti, where she lived at the time, to Vyborg in southeastern Finland on September 21 1872. The certificate paper of migration contains entries about the stay in the Kivennapa on Karelian isthmus (October 12, 1873) and in Siestarjoki in Ingria (February 19, 1874). The wedding of Mary and Wilhelm was celebrated in St. Petersburg on December 26, 1876. 

The newly married couple stayed in St. Petersburg for about fourteen years. Vilhelm's profession is listed in the church book (in German) Arbeiter, but there is no mention of Mary's possible professions or work. Apparently the marriage was childless. In the 1890s, American fever had also taken over many Finns in St. Petersburg. It also grabbed Broända’s couple. They applied for a certificate of migration on February 8, 1891 and their destination was the United States. At the same time, it was the last mention of them in the documents of the Finnish Lutheran Church in St. Petersburg. Vilhelm Broända, who then turned into William Broenda, pops up on the west coast of the United States in the city of Astoria in the summer of 1899. In a local newspaper, he advertises his Russian baths, or maybe we should say in Finnish, his sauna.  

More than eight years later, William's life ends in the city of Astoria at a fairly young age, as he was only 54 years old when he died on November 21, 1907. William is buried there in Greenwood Cemetery. Instead, his wife Maria lived for a long time and married Anton Johnson (1853 - 1935). Maria's life ended in Astoria at the age of 84 on September 13, 1937.

Jokaisella hautakivellä on tarinansa - Vilhelm Broända

Vilhelm/William Broändan/Broendan hautakivi Greenwoodin hautausmaalla Astoriassa. Kuva: Jan Anderson

Yksi mieliharrastuksistani vieraillessani toisella paikkakunnalla on kävely paikallisella hautausmaalla, jos vähänkin jää aikaa yli. Sukulaisten ja merkkihenkilöiden etsimisen ohella etsin löydän sieltä sekä esteettistä kauneutta että mielenrauhaa. Hautausmaat ovat rauhoittavia ja pysähdyttäviä keitaita meluisen, pölyisen ja rauhattoman kaupunginkin keskellä. Hautamuistomerkit ja niihin kirjoitetut ja hakatut nimet kertovat seudun historiasta, menneiden aikojen valtarakenteista, kielellisestä ja uskonnollisesta jakautumasta sekä seudun sukunimien kirjosta. Jokaisella hautakiveen kirjatulla henkilöllä on on oma elämäntarinansa, joskus hyvinkin värikäs.

Sain joitakin päiviä sitten valokuvan hautakivestä Yhdysvaltain länsirannikolta Astoriasta. Astoria on Columbia-joen suulla oleva kaupunki Oregonissa. Tästä lohenkalastuksesta eläneestä kaupungista  muodostui yksi suomalaisten siirtolaisten merkittävistä päämääristä ja tukikohdista 1880-luvulta alkaen. Hautakivessä kerrotaan vainajan syntyneen kotikaupungissani Lappeenrannassa. Tuon 113 vuotta sitten pystytetyn hautakiven kuva näytölläni kutsui, jopa suorastaan vaati, kertomaan arkistojen kätköihin hautautuneen vainajan tarinan.

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Kuva: Jan Anderson

Vilhelm Broända syntyi Kaakkois-Suomessa Lappeenrannassa vuonna 1853. Vaikka kirkonkirjoissa hänen synnyinpäiväkseen on merkitty 26.3.1853, täyttä varmuutta synnyinajankohdasta ei ole. Nimittäin hänen nimeään ei kuitenkaan löydy Lappeenrannan syntyneiden ja kastettujen luettelosta vuosilta 1852-1853. Vilhelmin vanhemmat olivat työmies Erik Broända (syntynyt 28.10.1826) ja Anna Helena Kemppi (2.1.1814 - 27.3.1871). Anna Helena ja Erik vihittiin avioliittoon 12.4.1852 ja oli siis 12 vuotta vanhempi kuin aviomiehensä. Avioliitto oli Anna Helenan toinen. Hänen ensimmäinen aviomiehensä Anders kemppi oli kuollut 49-vuotiaana 10.5.1850 kuristustautiin. Olisiko Vilhelmin nimen puuttumiselle syntyneiden ja kastettujen luettelosta selitys siinä, että vanhemmat oleskelivat lapsen syntymän aikoihin jollakin toisella paikkakunnalla ja kaste suoritettiin siellä?

Vilhelm asui Lappeenrannassa vuoteen 1875 saakka. Toukokuun 2. päivänä 1875 hän haki luterilaisen seurakunnan papilta muuttokirjaa aikomuksenaan muuttaa Venäjän silloiseen pääkaupunkiin Pietariin. Tuohon aikaan Suomessa oli käytäntö, jonka mukaan jokaisen muuttajan tuli hakea kotiseutunsa viranomaisilta muuttokirja, johon merkittiin tärkeimmät henkilötiedot kuten syntymäaika ja aviosääty, luku- ja kirjoitustaito sekä mahdollinen rokotus. Tämä paperi sitten esitettiin viranomaiselle sekä matkalla uudelle paikkakunnalle että kirjautuessa uuden kotiseudun viranomaisille. Mikäli matkalaiselta ei muuttokirjaa löytynyt, hänet voitiin pidättää irtolaisuudesta ja passittaa entiselle kotiseudulleen, kun se oli saatu selville.

Tarkka ajankohta Vilhelmin muutolle Pietariin ei ole tiedossa, mutta hän kirjautui siellä suomalaisen luterilaisen seurakunnan jäseneksi 13.11.1876 ja esitti samalla Lappeenrannasta mukanaan tuomansa muuttokirjan. Kirjautumista Pietarin vakituiseksi asukkaaksi vauhditti suunnitteilla oleva avioliitto. Vilhelm oli tutustunut ilmeisesti Pietarissa Maria Mathilda Eskolaan, joka oli muuttanut kaupunkiin viimeistään elokuun alussa 1875. Oulaisissa Pohjanmaalla 30.9. 1852 syntynyt Maria oli ottanut Vihannista, jossa hän silloin asui, muuttokirjan kaakkoiseen Suomeen Viipuriin 21.9.1872. Muuttokirjassa on merkintöjä oleskelusta Kivennavalla Karjalan kannaksella (12.10.1873) ja Siestarjoella Inkerissa (19.2.1874). Marian ja Vilhelmin häitä vietettiin Pietarissa 26.12.1876.

Vastavihitty aviopari jäi asumaan Pietariin noin neljäksitoista vuodeksi.  Vilhelmin ammatiksi on merkitty saksankielisessä kirkonkirjassa ”Arbeiter”, mutta Marian mahdollisesta ammateista tai työstä ei ole mainintoja. Ilmeisesti avioliitto oli lapseton. Amerikankuume oli 1890-luvulla vallannut myös monen Pietarin suomalaisen. Se tarttui myös Broändan aviopariin. He hakivat muuttokirjaa 8.2.1891 päämääränään Yhdysvallat. Se oli samalla viimeinen merkintä heistä Pietarin suomalaisen luterilaisen seurakunnan asiakirjoissa. Tämän jälkeen William Broendaksi muuttunut Vilhelm Broända pulpahtaa esille Yhdysvaltain länsirannikolla Astorian kaupungissa kesällä 1899. Paikallisessa sanomalehdessä hän mainostaa venäläisiä kylpyjä eli suomalaisittain saunaansa.

Runsas kahdeksan vuotta myöhemmin Williamin elämäntaival päättyy Astorian kaupungissa melko nuorena, sillä hän oli kuollessaan 21.11.1907 vain 54-vuotias. William on haudattu siellä Greenwoodin hautausmaalle. Sen sijaan hänen vaimonsa Maria eli vielä pitkään ja solmi toisen avioliiton Anton Johnsonin (1853 - 1935) kanssa. Maria elämäntaival päättyi Astoriassa 84-vuotiaana 13.9.1937.

Williamin hautakivessä on muistolause:
Ystäväni armaani
otettu on rinnaltani
Herra meidät yhdisti
hänpä myöskin eroitti
kiitetty nimens olkoon !

Finntown in Butte, Montana

An abandoned sign of Finn Town

I've made altogether four trips to the Rocky Mountains area. Some years ago I visited one the most famous mining towns there, Butte, Montana. In the end of 19th century Butte was given a nickname ”The Richest Hill on the Earth”. I tried to find Butte Finntown, and get information about local Finnish American past.

This town had very significant Finnish population, in 1893 estimated number was 400, later  it climbed up to  3000 - 4000 inhabitants. Finnish American singer Hiski Salomaa mentions in his well known song Lännen lokari "Piutin = Butte" among the other major Finnish American towns and areas. City's East Side community was dominated by Finnish and Swedish people. This part of town was called Finn Town or Finntown and it roughly included the area east of Arizona Street, and with Granite, Broadway and Park streets. It was an interesting little community and a busy neighborhood. In the 1920s it housed twelve saloons, six grocery stores, eighteen boarding houses, a community hall, and three saunas. Finns were relative latecomers to Butte, arriving in big numbers around 1910. The Finns were very supportive of each other and helped each other adapt to their new lives.  For example The Broadway Dining Room and Boarding House, run by Mrs. Riipi, was said to serve up to 600 meals a day to Finnish miners. Local Finns were mainly union people, leaning to the left. Only a few of them were religious. There were two Finnish Lutheran churches in Butte, the Evangelical Lutheran with 21 paying members in 1925, and the Apostolic Lutheran, which was even smaller. The later had it's church at 615 Park Street.

One of the remaining buildings in former Butte Finntown

Today, most of Finntown is gone. It was one of the small ethnic communities engulfed by the Berkeley Pit when the open pit mining operation began in 1955. However, one remnant of Finntown, the Helsinki Bar, still remains in uptown Butte. The Helsinki was built in the 1890s and was operated by Margaret Dalton as a boarding house. However, by 1906, Hilda Nurmi managed the boarding house, the first of several Finnish proprietors. By 1911, the property boasted that treasured Finnish institution: the sauna. Here, for twenty-five cents, Finns bathed, socialized, and renewed their connection to their homeland. In 1915, the baths were open from three to midnight, with Fridays reserved for ladies. In 1937, John Niemi opened a beer parlor here; it later became the Corner Bar, then the Helsinki.  Today, the Helsinki Bar and Steam Bath stands alone, a potent reminder of the once vibrant Finnish neighborhood.

I found in the Finnish American Reporter Dave Maki's article about Butte's Finntown:
Finntown's last stand (February 2007)
Maki had interviewed Helsinki Bar's longtime owner Erv Niemi. Niemi told, that despite of strong Finnish population,  none of local bars had a Finnish name. When Erv Niemi took over family business (1954) from his father, he changed Corner Bar to Helsinki Bar. Int the 80's Niemi brought a traditon from his native state of Minnesota. He introduced the St. Urho's Day celebration to Butte. This tradition still continues. As the years passed Butte's Finntown shrank from a thriving neighborhood to little more than a chapter in Butte History books. But The Helsinki Bar is still standing...

 

Helsinki Bar backdoor

The legend of St. Urho is every year it celebrated on March 16 in Butte and an honorary St. Urho is crowned. More recently, also a woman of Finnish descent has been crowned LadyUrho.

 Here you can read more about Finns in Butte in Montana Standard
and  here you can see  PBS Independent Lens' Documentary Butte, America

A view over former Finntown area in Butte

Butte downtown in the 50's

Butte downtown in the 50's