Today is Mother's Day, so I want to acknowledge my mother, along with aunts Jan and Iris, who have helped me learn more about my grandmother Mae. It was Jan who passed on my email to Chuck Charnquist, who contacted me last week. Chuck is the son of Harris Charnquist, Mae's oldest brother. He has found a great deal of information about Carl Ewald and Carl Erick Charnquist, my great and great-great grandfathers. According to Chuck, Carl Erick, "considered the father of the Swedish Methodist Church in Texas, was an incredible individual- a stone mason, organist, composer, preacher, printer, newspaper editor and publisher, author, entreprenuer- and the father of nine children."
He is featured in several accounts about the "Swedish Texans." I found this photo at the "Swedes in Texas" website: http://www.swedesintexas.com/getperson.php?personID=I21221&tree=sit0001. Carl Erick and his wife Carolina Anderson are seated in front, and I assume that Carl Ewald, Mae's father, is the mustachioed man standing second from the left, since he was the first-born son.
I look forward to corresponding with my new-found relative about his family research and will pass on any information here. Thank you, moms, for keeping the stories of our past.
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