History and Guide

 

Stockholm History

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Stockholm, Maine, Tri-Cultural Community

The west half of T16-R3 (Stockholm) was surveyed for settlers in 1879, again in 1883 when it was sold to the Burleigh heirs by the Samuel Hersey Estate for $3995.80, and again in 1915, when a Plan was drawn showing lot owners. Settlement of the wooded lots destined to become farms began in 1881 but deeds passed much later (1898).

Jons Sodergren came from Undersåker, Sweden in 1879 via Trondhjem, Hull, Liverpool, Ireland, New York, Providence, Boston, Woodstock, Caribou, New Sweden Capitolium, Noak Larsson's, and to New Jemtland, where he and his wife and youngest son Peter settled on the North Jemtland Road near the Stockholm border. With the Pastor's help they sent a ticket for daughter Brita. When she arrived she had a husband, Alfred Swenson. They settled on lot #2 which Peter had reserved, the first farm in Stockholm. Other early settlers on that road (now Main Street) were Johannes Anderson, Johan Nilsson Lind, A. Fred Anderson, Frederick Peterson, Fred Berquist, Alfred Tall, John Tall, Lars Erick Anderson, and Hedeens; on the "Sugar Heights" road (now Route 161), were Paul Sodergren, Nels Edlund, Nels Wik, and John J. Sodergren.

In Stockholm's heyday-1925

Upsala

Beginning about 1890 people began wading or using a log or simple bridge (which often washed out) or ferry-raft to cross the river and settle in the area they called Upsala on the north side of Madawaska Stream. These included Fred Palm, Olaf Swenson, Olaf Sodergren, Thure Larson, Swen Lind, Anders Gunnerson, Victor Palm, Carl G. Pearson. Later: Fred Hjelm, Carl Sandstrom, Fred Berquist, John Sjogren, Olof Simonson, "Little" John Anderson.
 

Bangor and Aroostook Railroad

In 1890 the population was 66. In 1900, it was 191, with some railroad workers to supplement the Swedish farmers. In 1898 work began on the Bangor and Aroostook Railroad through Stockholm to Van Buren and the iron bridge was built. By the end of 1899 a flag station was completed and a mixed freight and passenger run started. Thereafter, the mail was carried by train rather than by stage as before, thus ending a colorful era in Aroostook history.
 

Stockholm Lumber Company

In 1900-01 a dam and long lumber mill was erected by
was surveyed for settlers in 1879, again in 1883 when it was sold to the
Burleigh heirs by the Samuel Hersey Estate for $3995.80, and again in 1915, when a Plan was drawn showing lot owners. Settlement of the wooded lots destined to become farms began in 1881 but deeds passed much later (1898).

Jons Sodergren came from Undersåker,Sweden in 1879 via Trondhjem, Hull, Liverpool, Ireland, New York, Providence, Boston, Woodstock, Caribou, New Sweden Capitolium, Noak Larsson's, and to New Jemtland, where he and his wife and youngest son Peter settled on the North Jemtland Road near the Stockholm border. With the Pastor's help they sent a ticket for daughter Brita. When she arrived she had a husband, Alfred Swenson. They settled on lot #2 which Peter had reserved, the first farm in Stockholm. Other early settlers on that road (now Main Street) were Johannes Anderson,

Stockholm Mills with old wooden bridge (before 1923)

Perry and Yerxa. It was later sold to Charles and Carl Milliken (later a Governor of Maine), who operated as The Stockholm Lumber Company. The company also built a large boarding house, a store, twelve houses on Red Row for their workers' families, a stable and two barns. By 1902 they had 150 men working with a daily output of 50,000 shingles and 15,000 other lumber. There were many crews working in the woods in the winter. Yerxa also built a set of sporting camps at Square Lake. The first permanent bridge of wood with rock piers was also built in 1900, as was the road jokingly called Fåfanga ("vanity, foolish"), now Lake Road, paralleling the river from town to the Fort Kent Road. This was later used as a stage route to Guerrette.

The First Store

In November 1900 Lewis and John Anderson came to Stockholm from Jemtland, where Lewis had worked in Jacob Hedman's store. They had earlier worked in Brownville with their brother Andrew and several other Swedes. Now they built the first store in Stockholm, a 20x20 1 1/2 story building, and opened the general store in 1901. (In 2001 it was named to the National Register of Historic Places.) In 1888 a new Post Office had been established in Jemtland, and in 1901 one was established in Stockholm, with Lewis Anderson as Postmaster. In 1905 Olof Anderson began delivering mail on the new 23 mile free delivery route from New Sweden to about 120 houses.

Stockholm also became the name of the Plantation that was organized in 1895, although the north side of town was still called Upsala and was so listed on the early railroad timetables. Stockholm became a Town in 1911.

Berquist School

In 1896 Stockholm's first school was built on the Berquist farm and was thus called the Berquist School. (The building has since been converted to a home and moved to north Jemtland). Several Stockholm schools have been built since then, one halfway up Lind Hill, one above the Lutheran Church, the primary-grades Brown School, and the big High School, but all have burned except for the current consolidated school on the High School site. Several other buildings have been used as temporary schools and for school lunches, including the Lutheran Church basement, the Merrill House, and the Company Store. The First Baptist Church was organized in 1904, the Lutheran Church in 1906, St.Theresa's Catholic Church largely built and the first mass held there in 1928 (Father Cremillon from France), but services for these and other persuasions were held somewhat earlier.

In 1902, having retired from farming in New Sweden, Alfred Anderson built a large two-family home and rooming house at the corner of Main and Lake Streets, his daughter Lillie and husband Lewis Anderson to occupy one apartment.

The Veneer Company

Also in 1902, the Standard Veneer Co. (Warren Trafton and Allen Quimby) purchased 20 acres of lot #36 from the Burleighs. By the middle of 1904, they were shipping two cars of product each week. The company also ran a starch factory from 1904 to 1909, when it was converted to the Standard Box Company which made cleated plywood boxes for phonograph companies. Trafton and Quimby in 1906 were the officers of the new Winterville Veneer Company, which was dismantled in 1910 and re-erected in Stockholm, with the companies merged to become the Allen Quimby Company. The mill burned February 1912 but was quickly rebuilt. Another plant was built in the early 1920's to make clothespins, peavey and pick-pole handles, whiffle-trees, snowshoes and perforated chair seats. It was later converted to a long lumber mill. The Veneer company also had its own store and the Veneer Hall, which was used for movies and dances and meetings and church services. In 1905, Lewis Whitten held the record for hauling the largest load (11 tons) of birch logs 6 miles to the mill with one pair of horses! Nevertheless, the next year, the new steam log hauler made its first trip to the woods, followed by many more!

The Boom Town!

Stockholm was beginning to boom! The population grew to 715 in 1910, 1038 in 1920, and 1101 in 1930, with a peak of about 1300 around 1925. At the peak of Stockholm's industrial development it was estimated that 330 men and women were employed. Many of these new people were French or English from the St. John Valley, eastern Canada, or southern Maine. The language and customs of three countriesSweden, France and Englandwere subsequently all absorbed into the community.

About 1912 Nate Kline operated a clothing store, sold before 1916 to Arthur Peterson (who, among other wares, sold one-button union suits). At various times, Bert Drake, W.W Ketchum and J.P. Ellis had barber shops and sold cigars, and Ellis had a pool room. B.P. Roy sold meat on Lake St. and advertised that he had the "Best Market In Town". Peter Carlstrom had started a combination variety store, pool hall, wired-pin bowling alley, and also cut hair; S.W. Coates had a restaurant upstairs. John Anderson built himself an electric plant to supply his store, his home, the Lutheran Church and a few other locations. The Standard Veneer Company also had a plant to supply their buildings, and soon much of the downtown had electricity (as well as street lights!) The White Mountain Phone Company had initiated service in town in 1904. The large Merrill House operated as a hotel, restaurant, general store, post office, Morgan's Furniture Store (1924), and residence until torn down in the 1940's. Nick Wessell bought the Fred Palm house and operated their home as an Inn (with rooms and/or meals), and they later opened their own grocery store opposite John Anderson's.

During the boom years, there were many other businessmen and stores, including a slaughter house, stables, blacksmith shops, garages, hat shops, an ice cream parlor, and even a few bootleggers.
 

Eureka

It wasn't until 1924 that a fine concrete bridge was built over the river to replace the wooden one washed out in the flood of 1923. By then, wooden sidewalks had been installed throughout most of the downtown area, to be replaced by gravel walks. In the early 1920's the Odd Fellows built a large Hall and operated it for ten years. They then turned it over to the Eureka Club (later to Albert Leo Anderson), and the building at various times housed a movie theater-hall-basketball court, bowling alley, pool hall, barber shop, variety store, town jail, and town office. (Later, the top floor was removed and one end converted to a residence. Then the building was vacant for several years, and eventually restored in 1998 for use as The Eureka Hall Restaurant).
 

The High School

In 1919, the Town voted to have a grade C high school. In August when the boys returned from World War One, the townspeople gave them a big banquet. In 1920 the former Stockholm Lumber Co. became the Standard Supply Co. In 1922 the Stockholm Band was organized. In 1925 Stockholm had a huge fourth of July Celebration, an earthquake, the local American Legion Post was organized,

Quimby sold out to the Atlas Plywood Co., Dr. Theriault was living and practicing in town, potatoes were 40¢ a barrel on 3/20 and $6.00 on 11/2. In 1930 the Odd Fellows Hall put in the first "talkies" movie machine. The train station-passport to the outside world.

Stockholm rail road section crew

The "drought" and the salesmen. In 1905 the local paper reported that a local citizen was arrested for selling liquor, his liquor was seized, and "it goes without saying that a drought has come upon the village of Stockholm." It was also reported that the steel range salesmen have struck Stockholm, consisting of a pair of long-eared mules and two smooth-tongued salesmen.

The Stockholm Lumber Company

school purposes. The Collins Mill also burned after five years of operation, but rebuilt and started up again. And there was a big forest fire over by the rock cut. Town affairs were taken over by the State and Bion Jose was made Commissioner.
 

The Boy Scouts

In January 1940 a Lutheran/Baptist sponsored Boy Scout Troop was organized, and in May a separate Catholic Troop. John Anderson's store became an IGA, the Company store was remodeled into a school, and the former Wessell store became the Post Office. In April Germany invaded Norway (after they had split Poland with Russia), and by June they were in Paris. There was a nationwide registration for the peacetime draft. Several local men went to the city to work. In 1941 the NYA project was working on the Merrill House and the Company store. Some local boys who had been in the CCC joined the Army. Local carpenters were employed on a rush job at Presque Isle Army Air Base (used to ferry bombers to Britain). On December 7, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor and we were in World War Two.
 

World War II

WW II essentially ended the Depression as people went off to join the military or to work in wartime industries, and farming again became profitable for those who remained. Food Ration Books were distributed to try to fairly apportion the limited supplies available. No new cars were available until after the war. In October 1942 the local Lutheran Parish (Stockholm and New Sweden) began sending a series of 44 newsletters to all the service people and others from this area. Copies are kept in the Museum. The fire tower was manned 24 hours a day on three 8-hour shifts for fire warning and plane spotters. In 1943 the Hobart Store and the Standard Supply buildings were sold by sealed bid for use as potato houses. A successful iron scrap drive was conducted. The Service Honor Roll was dedicated. In 1944 there was a lot of coming and going by servicemen and others, and a lot of property changing hands. State control of the town ended, a 5-man Council was elected, and it appointed Agnes Baxter as Town Manager. In 1945, Ger
 

The Bust!

But the BOOM in Stockholm was over! Timber was becoming scarcer and by the end of 1931 the entire Atlas Plywood Mill was shut down and many of their houses were sold, mostly to employees. The Antworth saw mill was sawing custom lumber on a smaller scale. In 1933 the Standard Supply store and goods were sold to G.G. Wakem of Caribou. The farmer's depression had started earlier (potatoes were down to 45¢/barrel in 1932, 15¢ in 1934) and the stock market crashed in 1929. Now nearly everyone was caught in the Great Depression. There were no jobs. In the 1932 Presidential Election 287 people cast 1432 ballots for 5 Electors. President Roosevelt took office in March, 1933, and announced that all banks in 36 states would be closed. The town drastically cut appropriations and empowered the selectmen to borrow all sums possible through the Reconstruction Finance Corp. (for the poor and work relief). Also, the Post Office was settled into the Baxter Store building. C.W.A.(before P.W.A. and W.P.A.) work started up. In 1934 work started under E.R.A. The government shipped 1456 cars of potatoes out of (Caribou) area for relief purposes. In 1935 Tony Disy bought the old veneer mill and it was rapidly demolished. In 1936 Stockholm had a big spring flood and nearly lost Eric Sandstrom (Ernest Ek poetically immortalized the event.) WWI vets received bonus bonds, but there was a big lay-off at the Quoddy Project where several locals worked. The town started the Stockholm Cemetery Association and voted money to tar roads (with state-aid).
 

The Stockholm Winter Carnival

1936 saw the first Stockholm Winter Carnival (continuous since). In 1937 Albert Anderson bought Eureka Hall. In 1938 the former Baxter store was remodeled and opened by George Fogelin. In January 1939 the North Main Street School burned and the Merrill House was fixed up for 

Left to right: the Alfred Anderson house and the historic Anderson Store, now the Stockholm Museum, and the Post Office (2001).

many and later Japan surrendered and servicemen began coming home, stayed awhile, but then many moved on to greener pastures. By 1947 there was an oversupply of potatoes and farmers were hauling them to the dump (in 1951 the government paid farmers to again dump their potatoes). In 1948 the American Legion was re-activated and a new Legion Hall was built. In 1950 the Korean War started and more men went into the service. Loring Airbase at Limestone was built, and the pea vinery was working in this area in the early 1950's, providing work. The Aroostook Brigade Lodge was built in the late 1960's.
 

The Tri-Cultural anniversary

In 1971 Stockholm celebrated its 90th anniversary with a memorable 3-day affair. The Stockholm Historical Society was formed in 1975; the Museum was opened and the American Bicentennial was celebrated in 1976. In 1980-81 New Sweden and Stockholm jointly sponsored a Tri-Cultural Continuity (TCC) project supported by the Maine Council for the Humanities. Stockholm's population had fallen to 891 in 1940 and fell further to 641 in 1950, 649 in 1960, 388 in 1970, 319 in 1980, 286 in 1990 and 271 in 2000. But every year hundreds and thousands come back to the old home town to show their loyalty and to re-invigorate their souls. This was especially evident during Stockholm's giant 1981 nine day Centennial Celebration, with the dedication of the Museum, a grand parade, a Centennial Pageant, a Band Concert, and a Tri-Cultural Day.

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