Lindsborg, KS

Lindsborg, Kansas: Steeped in Swedish Tradition

When residents of Lindsborg, Kan., (pop. 3,249) want to borrow the latest best seller, they visit the bibliotek. To fill a prescription, they stop by the apotek, and to get new shoes, they visit the local clog maker.

Lindsborg, settled by Swedish immigrants more than 130 years ago, is steeped in its European heritage. Many store names are written in both Swedish and English. Ethnic bakeries and cafes dish up traditional treats such as Swedish tea rings, tallrik (hamloaf) and Swedish meatballs. Schoolchildren begin folk dancing lessons in first grade, and the 48-member high school dance troupe is considered a town treasure.

“They’ve been treated like royalty at the Ronald Reagan Museum in California, and they’ve met dance groups in Denmark and all over,” says L’Jean Swisher, troupe director. “The town supports us tremendously, and the folk dancing gives the kids a sense of pride in their community.” Through fund-raisers and donations, the folk dancers are able to perform widely, traveling regularly to Sweden.

“The Swedes brought a great love of the arts, so we’ve grown up with it here,” says Becky Anderson, owner of the Swedish Country Inn, a historic downtown hotel. “A responsibility has been given to my generation to maintain what’s been given to us . . . the arts, the good schools, the music.”

The town takes its cultural responsibilities seriously, supporting some 60 artists and a dozen art galleries.

“Lindsborg has always been a mecca for artists,” says Norman Malm, a Swedish woodcarver who specializes in whimsical tomtes, troll-like creatures believed to live under the floorboards of a house. “If you’re kind to animals and humans, the tomte will look after you.”

The residents, cultural responsibilities toward their founders, music, and faith all harmonize during the Messiah Festival, which has been held every Easter week since 1882 at Bethany College. This is the oldest continuous live performance of Handel’s Messiah in the country and twice has been televised nationally.

“Families have attended for generations,” says Kristi Lewis, director of the Lindsborg Chamber of Commerce. “I remember my grandparents were living in western Kansas many years ago and they’d take the train to Lindsborg every Easter.”

Another popular celebration is the Midsummer’s Day Festival, commemorating the town’s Swedish heritage with folk music, dancing, art, crafts, and ethnic foods. This year’s event is scheduled June 16.

Nearly half the town’s residents have Swedish ancestors, Lewis says. Those Swedish roots were planted in 1869 when Pastor Olaf Olsson shepherded his congregation to Lindsborg from Varmland, Sweden, in search of religious freedom. They soon established Bethany Lutheran Church. The pioneers, mostly farmers, were attracted to the fertile Smoky Valley River.

Before long, they’d built the Smoky Valley Roller Mill, a cherished landmark whose 20-year restoration was completed in 1981. The flour mill rumbles into operation each May during Millfest, among the community’s smorgasbord of celebrations.

Across the street from the Smoky Valley Mill is Heritage Square and the Swedish Pavilion from the 1904 World’s Fair. It was relocated here, along with a dozen historic buildings depicting life on the early prairie. Among them are the 1903 West Kentuck one-room schoolhouse, a blacksmith’s shop, a bank, a broom factory, and the Erickson Brothers’ workshop. The brothers invented the dial telephone in 1898 and improved line switchers that made possible the modern automatic telephone system.

Lindsborg’s official logo, the Dala horse, decorates homes and businesses. The bright red horses named after the Swedish province of Dalarna originated in the 1800s when Swedish soldiers carved them from scraps of wood in exchange for food. Ken Sjogren, whose grandparents homesteaded here, makes a living carving the snub-nosed, tailless horses in his downtown shop.

“People will come here and say that Lindsborg is more Swedish than Sweden,” Lewis says. “Our founding fathers were proud to be Swedish-Americans, but they wanted to preserve their Swedish heritage.”

Marti Attoun is a freelance writer in Joplin, Mo.

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