Swenson Swedish Immigration Research Center

05/19/2026

Love those Swedish dishcloths! So versatile. Use them in your kitchen, in your gym bag, laundry room, shower, shed, pool, just about anywhere!. Three designs, $6 each or 4 for $20 plus $3 postage.

Support the Swenson Center with your purchase of these eco-friendly, biodegradable dishcloths! Dishcloths can be used just as you would a regular sponge. You can even wash them in your washing machine.

05/12/2026

Join our May virtual genealogy club meeting on Monday 18 May at 6pm Central US. We'll talk about genealogy research in Västergötland, Sweden. Free for Swenson Center members. Do you have ancestry from there? Tell us about your successes and struggles. Click on the link below and then the RSVP button. Enter your contact info to receive the Zoom link 24 hours beforehand.

Research in Västergötland Province

05/08/2026

A Swedish tradition greeting the coming of spring is kosläpp (letting the cows out), which is when farms release their cows out into the fields after a long winter in the barns. The event, typically sponsored by dairy firms making arrangement with local farmers, is hugely popular, drawing more than 200,000 people and selling out quickly.

Released to feed on their own on grass and dandelions, the cows jump and prance to the delight of onlookers, who, it is claimed, primarily come from urban areas far from any livestock. For this year's festivities, my daughter even color-coordinated with the happy bovines, but that is not a requirement.

04/29/2026

Free and open to the public! Wednesday, May 6 at 1pm central. In-person only.

04/21/2026

It's back for another year! Watch The Great Moose Migration live from northern Sweden, 24/7. There isn't always any wildlife to see (only the natural beauty!), but keep watching or checking back. There are several cameras with lots of opportunities.

It will ask you about cookies first, with the choices "allow necessary," "customize," and "allow all."

Then it will ask you to log in or create account, or continue without logging in.

Finally, click on "Spela" (Play) to start watching. If you want to take part in the chat, you will need an account.

I flera tusen år har älgarna vandrat samma leder för att komma till sommarens rika betesmarker. For several thousand years the moose have walked the same path to get to the rich pastures of summer. Follow the walk live from Kullberg in the north of Sweden.

04/11/2026

Sign up for our April 20th virtual genealogy club meeting. Geoffrey Fröberg Morris will tell us about naming customs in Sweden. Free for Swenson Center members; $10 nonmembers. RSVP at the link below to receive the Zoom link 24 hours before. Välkomna!

Have you been confused by a first or last name in Swedish records? Maybe you cannot find your ancestor because their given name was recorded differently? Or, maybe their last name changed completely? But why would a person change their last name?

04/10/2026

04/09/2026

Our rotation of *virtual* Swedish language classes is coming around again with instructor Alex Hart! Levels 1-4 are now scheduled to begin May 2 & 3, and enrollment is live. See the link below for details, schedules, prices (discounted for Swenson Center members), and enrollment. Join us! https://www.swensoncenter.org/swedishclasses

Swenson Swedish Immigration Research Center is a national and international library, archives, and genealogy center for the study of Swedish-American history and relations.