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.

This site has been set-up to exhange information about the family of Jonas Klang and Maja Lisa Nilsdotter.  See the page Jonas Klang and Maja Lisa Nilsdotter for information about their lives in Småland.  Maja Lisa Nilsdotter was the daughter of a career military cavalryman (husar) and she married Jonas (Samuelsson) Klang who was also a career military cavalryman, both with the Smålands Dragon Regemente.  Military reserves were provided with a house and land (croft) for their use during their service.  Jonas Klang and Maja Lisa Nilsdotter raised their family in Husartorp (cavalryman's farm) No. 34 in Boda i Bomåla ) located northeast of Målilla and near the border with Lönneberga parish and Carlstorp parish and close to the croft of Nils Lif and Brita Johansdotter, the parents of Maja Lisa Nilsdotter.

Of their twelve children, the two older sons likely died as young men, their fifth child, Gustaf, remained in Sweden but probably also died as a young man, and the last two both died as infants.  Maja Lisa Nilsdotter died at age 47 in 1849.  The remaining seven children all emigrated to America.  I am a descendant of their eighth child, Samuel.

The tabs above lead to family pages including genealogy, biographies and photographs.

These siblings and extended family all settled around Jamestown, New York in Chautauqua, Cattaraugus and Warren counties - most chose Jones as their last name (similar to Jonsson which was the typical shortened form of Jonasson - son of Jonas).  Klang (translation: the sound of a bell) was the professional surname of their father - which was often used as the last name by other immigrants but only shows up in Swedish records for our family. 

The immigrants included (in order of arrival):

1852 Charles Jones (3. Charles) 26 years old, older brother

1853 Frank Jones (6. Frank) 21 years old, older brother

1853 Augustus N. Jones (9. Augustus N.) 13 years old,  younger brother

1853 Johanna Maria Jonsdotter Klang (10. Johanna) 13 years old, younger sister

1866 Samuel Jones (8. Samuel) 30 years old, himself

1866 Anna M. Jones (Anna Maria Ekholm) 30 years old, wife

1866 John Frederick Jones (Johan Fredrik) 2 years old, son

1869 Caroline Parsons (7. Caroline) 35 years old, older sister

1869 Peter J. Parsons (Jonas Peter Jonsson) 34 years old, brother-in-law

1869 John Andrew Parsons (Anders Johan Petersson) 10 years old, nephew

1869 Peter J. Parsons (Jonas Peter Petersson) 7 years old, nephew

1870 Louise Peterson (4. Louise) 42 years old, older sister

1870 Carl Peterson 44 years old, brother-in-law

1870 Emma Christa Petersson 11 years old, niece

1870 Sven Joh. Svensson 49 years old, uncle

1870 Anna Gustafa 26 years old, first cousin

1870 Christina Louisa 22 years old, first cousin

1870 Johan August 17 years old, first cousin