Swedish

Settlement and Immigration Patterns

Between 1868 and 1919 more than one million Swedes emigrated to Canada and the United States. A large proportion of these were landless labourers and the sons and daughters of small farmers who stood little chance of inheriting a title to the Swedish family land.'l'his exodus was fuelled by a series of crop failures in Sweden.

Immigrants were offered a free homestead of 160 acres of land on the Canadian prairie. For this, the settler had to reside on his land and cultivate it. Until 1914, the Canadian Government allowed immigrants with land to obtain citizenship after three years' residency. This citizenship entitled an immigrant to secure clear title to his land. Thousands of settlers acquired both land and citizenship and a commitment to Canada, their new home.

Many Swedish immigrants arrived from Minnesota and North Dakota. They settled the Prairies, the qu'Appelle Valley, Dubuc and many other Saskatchewan communities. They put down roots in Calgary, Edmonton and the communities in between.

Centres such as New Sweden drew a large concentration of Swedes as did the rural areas of Manitoba and the Kenora region of Ontario. They also moved to the inland and coastal communities in British Columbia.

At the beginning of the 20th century, Swedish industrial workers began arriving in greater numbers. By the 1920s, a larger proportion of these immigrants were industrial labourers and many sought opportunities in Canadian cities and industrial areas. With the Second World War came the third wave of Swedish immigration. Swedes were attracted by job opportunities in major Canadian cities. This brought a shift in the earlier settlement patterns. The Pacific Coast, with its milder climate and work offered by war industries, drew many. Vancouver soon replaced Winnipeg as the capital of Swedish culture in Canada.

Swedish Canadians initiated co-operatives and credit unions, provided a strong base for populist movements such as the C.C.F. (Co-operative Commonwealth Federation) in Saskatchewan and the Social Credit Party in Alberta and made outstanding contributions to Western agriculture.

The festival of St. Lucia.
This ancient Swedish festival of light, which takes place on December 13th, marks the beginning of the Christmas season. This crown of flickering candles is what the oldest daughter of many Swedish families wears on St. Lucia Day. It is said that St. Lucia comes to make the darkness disappear. Her name means "light" and her day used to fall on the winter solstice.

(Credit: Heritage Canada)

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