Hussarstorp 34, Boda

 I have been trying to detail the life of Jonas Klang and Maja Lisa Nilsdotter and their family. The soldier's croft which served as their home during their married life was Hussarstorp 34, Boda rote in Målilla parish. There has been interest throughout Sweden in restoring soldier's crofts, but it does not seem that No. 34 survived into our era.

Where was this house (croft)? Strangely, in Målilla parish there are two places named Boda. One is in the northwest in the direction of Carlstorp (farm of Jonas Klang's parents) and one is in the east in the direction of Rakenås (croft of Maja Lisa's parents). For some time I believed that the location of the croft was near Rakenås (see the earlier post).

However, I recently came across a map of the hussartorps for this region. This topographical map with rote numbers handwritten over the location of each croft indicates that No. 34 was located near the other Boda, 9 km west, northwest of Målilla. The croft that served as a home for the seven children who emigrated was located near 58.100N 16.483E.

I still have not been able to locate the precise location of the croft using historical maps, references or satellite photographs. 

Jonas (Samuelsson) Klang lived at this same soldier's croft from age 21 until his death in 1862 at age sixty-eight. Uncharacteristic for the system, even after his retirement Jonas Klang still remained at the croft.

Detail:  Krigsarkivet map 0400:13B:043 b4 Smålands husarregementes husartorp betecknade med läge och nummer., 1800-talet [Hvetlanda 0043b_4]

 More Background

Army reservists were supported in Sweden by a system that forgave taxes on farms in exchange for the provision of a house (croft) and provisioning of the reservists by the owners of the farms. A rote was the aggregate of farms that provided the basis for one military reservist. 

The reservist was often from a local family. Jonas Samuelsson grew up about six miles (10 km) away from the soldier's croft number 34 in Bomåla part of Boda rote in Målilla parish.

Jonas Samuelsson seems to have left his home at 18 to enroll at the regional army center in Eksjö. He joined the Smålands Husartorp as a cavalryman (hussar). His first posting was in Högruda rote in Järeda parish (about 10 miles from his parent's home). At age 21 he was listed by his military surname Klang and reassigned to soldier's croft number 34 in Bomåla part of Boda rote in Målilla parish. In that same year he married Maja Lisa, the daughter of Nils Lif, a senior cavalryman in  Klang's cavalry regiment.

As a reservist , Jonas Klang was required to be ready to fight and was mustered each year for drills. In return he had job security, a house and a small farmstead to work. As a cavalryman (hussar), he was also provided with a horse. The remainder of the year he farmed the land set aside for them by the local rote. Although the military was esteemed, upon retirement the reservist left the croft and moved on. No land security was derived from service.