Jonas Swensson

As an immigrant from Sweden in 1856, Jonas Swensson was the fourth of the quartet of pastors who pioneered the Augustana Synod: Lars P. Esbjorn, Tufve N. Hasselquist, and Erland Carlsson. Like Hasselquist and Carlsson he served as president of the synod.

Swensson was born in Snollsbo, Sweden, August 16, 1828. He attended high school at Vaxjo after having learned the craft of blacksmith. He was ordained at the Vaxjo Cathedral on October 8, 1851. His only Swedish pastoral service was at Unnaryd, 1851-1856. He married Maria Blixt in Sweden and emigrated the same year to begin work at Hessel Valley, Pennsylvania, and Jamestown, New York. After serving as secretary of the church for several years, he was president of the Augustana Synod from 1870 to his death December 20, 1873.

Description:
The majority of materials in this collection are in Swedish. A significant exception is the correspondence index which is in English. The materials include documents relating to Swensson's life and departure from Sweden: his student days, his ordination, and his emigration. However, the bulk of the papers relate to Swensson as immigrant pastor to immigrant people near Jamestown, New York, and rural Andover, Illinois, and as second president of the Augustana Lutheran Synod. The collection also has his diaries and correspondence.