This week’s theme is “Power.” Does that mean physical strength, political power, power in the family, electrical power? Think of an ancestor or relative who can be connected to the word “power”.
This is a tough one – certainly my family is not among the rich and powerful!
I do have a 3x-great-uncle who was in the Wyoming Senate. So that’s about as close to “political power” as I think I can get.
This would be John W. Johnson 1843-1922.
He was born as Johan Johansson on September 6, 1843 in Älvsborg (now known as Västra Götaland), Sweden. He was an orphan at the age of 10 and was in the care of the church for several years. He came to America in 1869. He worked in the Midwest for a few years, then got hired on at Fort Fetterman, Wyoming as the head carpenter. That was a dangerous job in those days. Even though he was a civilian, he got “hazard pay” of $75 per month. He worked there for two years and saved up enough money to buy land. He bought a “milk ranch” near Carbon and sold milk for the miners at the nearby town of Carbon. He also sent money back to Sweden for his sister Gustafva (my great-great-grandmother) and her family to come to America.
He eventually settled in Laramie, Wyoming. He was a bank vice-president and was elected to the Wyoming Senate. My great-grandmother Clara Brodd worked for his family as a nanny/maid for a year or two. I have several letters that he sent to the family between 1916 and 1921.
Here’s a quick chart that shows how I’m related to him:
