Person:Carl Backer (1)

Carl came to the United States in 1892 with his wife and three children. His brother Pete had gone to Chicago in 1888, and that is where Carl went. Also in 1892, but on a different ship, Carl's brothers Ludvig and Olaf and Pete's girlfriend Olga came to Chicago.

All of the familly used the name Bakken when they were in Norway but used Backer in the United States. The adoption of surnames was common, usually to reflect relationship to one's father or a place. Bakken is the name of the farm pictured in Carl's father's profile. Holst is the name of a place in Norway. Brekke is the name of the farm where that branch of the family lived. I asked Randi Anslie, a cousin in Norway, whether there was some system for recording these name changes, and she said not. I guess it makes sense in a time and place when your identity was tied to your father or the place where you lived and being known beyond the locality was not really an issue.

Some of the brothers traveled back and forth between the U.S and Norway, but Carl did not. His passage apparently wasn't a pleasant one because he said he would go back to Norway when a bridge was built between the two countries.

When Carl left Norway it was engaged in a struggle with Sweden for independence only won in 1905. So when Asta announced that she wanted to marry Paul Nelson, a Swede, he asked in his thick accent, "Vat vill you do if Norvay andSveden go to var?"

Carlo Johan var først baker i Tønsberg, senere overvaktmester ved Mc Cormick-bygningen i Chicago og superintendent i Chicago Artificial Ice Company.