In May of 1911, Berndt Georg LANG, of Nosaby, Sweden, traveled from Sweden to Minnesota, via England and New York City. The details of the start of his journey are a bit unclear, but it appears that he first travelled to Copenhagen, Denmark, probably via Malmö, or Gothenburg (Göteborg), Sweden. From there he caught transportation to Harwich, Essex, England, and from there crossed England to Liverpool. On 20 May 1911, he departed from Liverpool, England, on board the RMS Lusitania. [4600] The ship arrived the following week on the 26th in New York.. The passenger list reports that he intended to visit his friend, Ely CHRISTOFFER [sic], who was in fact, his uncle by marriage to his aunt Annette LANG. As of 1910, Eli CHRISTOPHER lived at 2211 5th Ave. N., Minneapolis, Minnesota, and the address given in the passenger list looks like “22 5th ave” but it may simply be a poor copy of the record. The record was also a bit off in stating that he was travelling to St. Paul, Minnesota, but he certainly could have arrived there first. [4597] He remained in Minnesota until 2 Mar. 1912, when he travelled to Canada, apparently settling in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. He remained in Canada for just over a year and on 12 Apr. 1913, he crossed the border at Noyes, Minnesota, again to visit his uncle, “Eli CHRISTOF” (this time the record states the correct Minneapolis address). [4603], [4604] At this time, he was now calling himself George LANG. It is not known how long he stayed in Minneapolis this time, but by 5 June 1917, he had found work in Park Falls, Price Co., Wisconsin, at Roddis Lumber & Veneer Company. From there, he eventually ended up in Seattle, Washington, and stayed there until 1929, at which time his place of residence was 609 Yesler Way, Seattle, Washington, which was reportedly the home of John FOLE. On 7 June 1929, George (but using his original Swedish name) applied for U.S. Citizenship by submitting a “Declaration of Intent” in the U.S. District Court in Seattle. [4601] Then on 21 Sep. 1929, he was issued a travel visa, which he used to return temporarliy to Sweden. On his return trip to the United States, he departed Gothenburg on 23 Aug. 1930 on the S.S. Gripsholm, which arrived in New York on 1 Sep. 1930. This time his intended destination was Seattle, Washington, specifically to the 609 Yesler Way address. The passenger list acknowledges his previous visit to the United States in 1911 and the fact that he stayed unitl 1929 (omitting mention of the year in Canada). He did report that his “last permanent address” was Seattle, Washington. And he gave as a reference back in Sweden, the name and address of his sister, Alma THULIN, of Kristianstad, Sweden. [4598], [4599] Unfortunately he passed away only three years later, in 1933, still in Seattle. [4605]

The accompanying 1930 photo of George is from the time he visited Clinton J. CHRISTOPHER (Eli’s son) and family in Minnesota, and so this was probably on his way back to Seattle.

Based only on the 1930 census, I did not find anyone named John FOLE (or anything close) living at 609 Yesler Way in Seattle (enumeration district 17-168, Sheet 5A).

George may have worked for the railroad at some time (I believe this was Clinton J. CHRISTOPHER’s recollection).

Served three years as a Private in the Swedish Cavalry. [4602]