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Vasa Children’s Home

History of the Vasa Children’s Home (1865-1955)

Translated by Mrs. Dennis M. Lundell

Vasa Children's Home Phase 2
Vasa Children’s Home Phase 2

The Vasa Children’s Home is the oldest Home in Minnesota and the Augustana Lutheran Church.  It dates back to 1865.  In the fall of 1865 Eric Norelius, pioneer pastor, living in Red Wing, visited St.  Paul.  Friends told him of a family, Mikola Erik Erickson, who had come to St.  Paul from Sweden.  Shortly after their arrival Mr.  and Mrs.  Erickson became ill and died, leaving four children.  Pastor Norelius was asked if could do something for them and relates that it was a though a voice had told him, “Take them with you home.”  He did.  The following Sunday he took them along to services which were conducted in the Goodhue County Court House, Red Wing.  He told his congregation of the case.  An offering was immediately taken to help defray expenses for the care of the children.  The next thing was to find a matron and a home for the children.

They were cared for in the basement of the Vasa Church under the supervision of Mrs.  Britta Nelson, a Christian school teacher from Stockholm, Wisconsin.

Mrs.  Nelson related that poverty dwelt in their midst.  At times they lacked both food and clothing.  Being in these straightened circumstances caused both the matron and children to depend upon God’s help.  She relates that in the middle of winter one year both flour and bread were at an end.  “Then I told the children that they must pray fervently or we would have to go out and beg.  The children fell upon their knees several times a day.  Each time when they arose they sang with such enthusiasm until I almost laughed at them.  Evening came and we had only one loaf of break left.  The children fell asleep and forgot all about worries.  I sat up and mended their clothes.  At about 11 o’clock there was a knock on the door a man shouted, “Open the door and you will receive a sack of flour because I am of the opinion that you are out of flour.”  I opened and the flour was emptied into the flour barrel, which became nearly filled.  When the children came downstairs the next morning they discovered that the flour barrel was filled.  Seeing this and thinking of several prayers offered they shouted, “God has been here and given us four.”  They firmly believed that such was the case.”

Mrs.  Britta Nelson served as matron for four years, from 1865 to 1869.  She succeeded by Miss Caroline Magny.  At this time a small home was built.  In this home Miss Magny worked.  Dr.  Norelius, speaking of this Home, said, “There you see the first orphanage building, a simple hut, yet warm.”  Dr.  Norelius had succeeded in buying 10 acres of land for $150.  It was on this tract the first and succeeding homes were erected.

For eleven years Dr.  Norelius conducted the orphanage himself.  As the work developed he found it impossible to carry the responsibility and therefore

Inga and Eric Norelius 1855
Inga and Eric Norelius 1855

offered the institution to the Minnesota Conference at its convention in 1876.  The Conference accepted the offer and continued the work in Vasa until 1926.  From time to time additional tracts of land were purchased until the Home had a farm of 245 acres.

In 1879 at midnight between July 2nd and 3rd, a terrific cyclone destroyed the Home, sweeping it completely away.  Five children died as a result of the storm, three of them being killed outright.  Two little infants, in the midst of it all, were found in their cribs in the wreckage perfectly safe.  The Conference immediately raised funds and constructed a new home.  This third Home was destroyed by fire on January 16, 1899.  A small, feeble minded boy had been playing with the matches in  one of the clothes closets and some clothing caught fire.  The house was totally destroyed.  A fourth and larger structure was immediately erected.

Mr.  J.  A.  Hultgren and wife served a superintendent and matron from 1880 to 1888 and again from 1895 to 1905.  At this time between 70 and 80 children were cared for at the Home.  Mr.  and Mrs.  Lewis Mellin filled the positions of superintendent and matron from 1888 to 1895.  Others who had served as superintendent and matron are:  Mr.  and Mrs.  J.  E.  Hedberg, Mr.  and Mrs.  C.  G.  Lind, Mr.  and Mrs.  O.  C.  Herbert, Mr.  and Mrs.  Philips Johnson, Miss Wilhelmina Holmberg, Mrs.  Hilda Nelson, Miss Lydia Becklund, Mrs.  Anna L.  Johnson and the present resident director, Miss Luella Hammerberg.  From 1924 to 1951 Dr.  L.  B.  Benson served in capacity of general superintendent of the Home.

School has been maintained at the Home since its early history.  Among the earlier teachers may be mentioned J.  T.  Lindholm, J.  A.  Dahlin, Miss Hilma Hultgren and Miss Mathilda Briteson.  In 1910 Miss Hortense Bodelson, now Mrs.  Dennis M.  Lundell, served as principal of the school for 16 years teaching the 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th grades.  A new school building was erected and a semi-graded school established.  Those who served as primary teachers having charge of grades 1,2,3 and 4 were:  Mabel Johnson Anderson, Edith Miller Peterson, Eleda Swanson Johnson, Florence Berg, Esther Olson Berg, Esther Bodin Anderson, Ellen Carlson Erickson and Clara Olson Chellberg.  During the summer Bible School was conducted for two months.  When the Home moved to Burnside in 1926, the children attended the Burnside Consolidated School.

The children attended services at the Vasa Lutheran Church only a short distance from the Home.  Morning and evening devotions were conducted regularly and the children were taught the Christian way of life.

For several weeks during the summer months of 1920 and 1921, twenty children, ten girls and ten boys, were taken on a program tour through several districts of the Minnesota Conference.  They were accompanied by the pastor of the Vasa Church, Rev. E. A. Lindgren, the superintendent of the Home, Mr. O. C. Herbert, and the two teachers, Miss Estehr Olson and Miss Hortense Bodelson.  Traveling was done in a Ford truck.  The children gave programs of sacred songs and recitations in approximately one hundred churches throughout the Conference.  Donations received were to be used for the erection of a new building for the children at the Home.  The children and personnel were received with much kindness and generosity in all congregations visited.

For several years agitation was carried on to move the Children’s Home from Vasa to Red wing or Twin Cities.  A committee was elected by the Minnesota Conference to investigate the proposition. Christmas Eve, 1923, Prof.  And Mrs. A. P. Anderson of Burnside offered to donate one half of their 800 acre farm with all buildings thereon for a new site for the Home.  This offer was accepted, and the Home retained in this locality on the Conference.  This tract of land lies about six miles northeast of Vasa.

Vasa Children House
Vasa Children House

In 1926 the present structure housing 50 children and personnel was erected on this new location.  The building is fireproof with all modern facilities.  April 21, 1926, Dr. C. J. Sodergren, then vice-president of the Conference, conducted religious ceremonies at the ground breaking of the new home.  The cornerstone was laid by Crown Prince Gustaf Adolph of Sweden. Thousands of people attended this auspicious occasion.  In the presence of a large gathering, the Home was officially opened for the children October 16, 1926.

More than a thousand children have been cared for at the Vasa Home.  These children are found in various walks of life.  Among them are businessmen, lawyers, pharmacists, soldiers, sailors, farmers, stenographers, teachers and pastors.

God has richly blessed the work of the Home both materially and spiritually.  May the spiritual truths taught the children bear fruit to eternal life.

Since September,1954, the Home has cared for mentally retarded children.  It continues to be supervised by the Board of Christian Service.

Mr. Morton Bjorkquist is the present superintendent of services to children and aged.  The pastor of the Vasa Lutheran Church is chairman of the board of the Vasa Home.

Excerpted from:  “Vasa’s Vision & Victory of a Century 1865-1955.

Source:  Lutheran Social Services of Minnesota.  For more information about LSS of Minnesota, visit: www.lssmn.org

24 Replies to “Vasa Children’s Home”

  1. I have a quilt with many names. I wonder if it was a fundraising quilt. It includes VASA Loge #142 St. P in one of the circles with embroidered names. I am trying to find a home for this historic quilt. There is also VASA Liljan and many names . It has 24 squares and is a comforter that is tired. I would be glad to send you pictures if you are interested. Could it possibly have been done as a fundraiser for the home?

  2. My great, great grandfather Arnold “Ace” Elofson grew up in the Vasa Children’s home with his other siblings Mavis and Elroy. My great, great grandfather was 9 at the time of the 1930 census. His brother Mavis was 11 and Elroy was 7. It was very interesting for me to be able to find this website and learn some more history about the home. I am researching more about my family history and I came upon this. I was hoping to find some pictures, as I have no pictures of my great, great grandfather. Maybe someone could direct me in the way of finding any more pictures. Thanks!

    • Thank you for personalizing this entry. I am sorry to report, we do not have any additional photos; however, you may want to contact the Lutheran Social Services of Minnesota, as they were the source of this entry. Best wishes, Jack Hansan

    • There are many wonderful pictures of the Children’s Home at the museum next to the church. I also have pictures in my own collection that my grandfather gave me. He was Pastor Lindgren, the superintendant of the home.

  3. My father, Clifford Arthur Eugene Anderson lived in the Vasa Home during the Spanish flu of 1918 with his brother, Theodore both of Amery, Wisconsin at the time. Their father had died when they were young and their mother could not feed them. They lived there for three years or so when his mother had to take them home or give up her parental rights.
    The brothers lived with their older brother at first and then he was sent to live with a foster family to work on the farm and when he was to return home to Amery he did not want to go and stayed with his foster family.
    My Dad said the matrons were quite nice to him. He did not like being separated from his younger brother as they were divided by age. My Dad was born in 1910 and lived to be 96, his brother was born 1913 and died at 87.
    Are there any records available? Does the Lutheran Church conference keep them
    Thank you.

    • Dear Shirley Case: Thank you for the interesting comment about the Vasa Children’s Home. In response to your question about records, I recommend you contact the Lutheran Social Services of Minnesota at http://www.lssmn.org. They have been very helpful for me in learning more about their services. Best Wishes, Jack Hansan

  4. All I have is the picture of Eva’s mother in a rather formal setting, and my folks have pix of Eva, I’m sure. Unfortunately, I don’t have any other information regarding Eva’s life at the Home.

  5. My great gramma Eva Engeldinger (her married name) lived in the Vasa home in Vasa as a child. Her mother died from cancer. I don’t know about her dad, though my folks and relatives were well acquainted with him.

    Eva married, and she raised 8 kids in a 2-bdrm house across the street from the ice house on West Main in RW. Her husband of course worked for RW Potteries. “Gramma E,” as we called her, died in about 1990 when I was 25 and had dozens of great grandchildren as well as several great great grand children. She was well over 90 years old and lived in the Seminary Home for a quite a few years. Her funeral was at St. Paul’s in RW. I never heard anything bad about the Vasa Home she lived in.

    I have a “tin type” picture of Gramma E’s mother from, I am told, the 1860s.

    Coincidentally, as a high school student in Red Wing in the 1980s, I knew a classmate who lived in the house in Vasa. Her folks owned it. Her name was Aimee Richcreek.

    • Mike Will: Thank you for the comment. If you have any collateral information you are willing to share I would be please to review it and return it to you. Regards, John Hansan

  6. My maternal grandmother, Eva Anderson Engeldinger, lived @ the Vasa Home in the late 1800’s to the early 1900’s. I recall her speaking about a girl – Esther Sartorius – I believe, who was like a sister to her while they were living there. Any memories?

    • Ms. Johnson: Thank you for the comment. You will note there are several comments on the Vasa Home page. Otherwise, I have no knowledge of residents. Regards, John Hansan

  7. Hi, we found out upon my mother-in-laws passing a couple of weeks ago that she was in the Vasa Home somewhere around 1942 or 1943. We are not sure of the year she went there along with her sisters and possibly brothers. Her name at that time was Viona Darlene Cummins. Any information anybody has would be greatly appreciated. We know she was adopted and it was finalized in 1950 but not sure if she was there the entire time.

  8. My grandmother as an infant was sent to live with grandparents in Vasa. She stayed there taking care of her g-parents to their death. This is all I know about the time Anna Dahlstrom spent in Vasa. See my Tree on Ancestry.com. Anna Olivia Dahlstrom, born 30 june 1879, died 15 dec 1961

  9. We were exploring the crawl space in our house in rural White Rock MN when between the rafters we found an old notebook. The note book was written in Swedish. I was told it was the history of the Vasa Childrens home. My Mother donated it some where.She passed away some time ago. However I never did know where it ended up. would be very interested to know where it went and why It was found in our crawl space. If anyone has any Ideas please let me know.

  10. My mother and her siblings lived at the Vasa Children’s Home from about 1938 to 1943. Their father was unable to care for them after the death of their mother. The children were well treated there. A few years ago, many of my family, along with my mother, toured the home. It was under renovation but we were able to view the rooms she and the other girls lived in and all of the rest of the house. It was very special to me.

    • Dear Karen B.: I am very pleased to receive your comment. It will be posted on the bottom of the entry. If you have photos or if you would be able to write a longer piece I would certainly try an use whatever you prepare. Again, thank you. Jack Hansan

      • So sorry I have just now seen your reply. If you are still interested I do have some photos from that era. One is a colorized photo of my mom and six of her brothers and sisters in front of the home and another black and white photo of the home itself. One story my mom related was she and her best friend, Emmy, peeling potatoes in the basement at Vasa and they would sing down there. (I suppose the acoustics were good) One time, not realizing they were being listened to, they finished singing and the matrons and the other children were at the top of the stairs clapped and cheered.

  11. My grandmother was raised at the Vasa Children’s Home and said she lost her only doll in the fire. Her name was Selma Viola Victoria Norberg. My Aunt Hilma was dropped off at the Home from an Orphan Train. She married my grandpa’s brother, Victor (who I thought was a teacher there).

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