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Fortitude is the strength of mind that enables a person to encounter danger or adversity with courage. John Ostlund, a Swedish Immigrant to Minnesota in 1902, exemplifies fortitude.
He was born in 1883, in the province of Jamtland, Sweden. His father was a log scaler and his mother a farmer’s daughter. John relied on fortitude from an early age. He lost his mother to tuberculosis when he had just turned ten years old and had three younger siblings. At that time he was already working 10-hour days at the sawmill to help support his family and had started keeping a diary. At eighteen, during the peak of the European Immigration wave (1880-1920), he emigrated to America and continued recording his many adventures and narrow escapes as well as events that he found significant or exciting. After becoming fluent in English, he translated his Swedish writings in the hope that future generations would find them interesting. These are his memoirs…the sometimes humorous, sometimes harrowing stories of his childhood in Sweden and his journey across the great ocean to America, where he didn’t speak the language and encountered many unforeseen obstacles. Stories of his experiences as an Immigrant, a pioneer in northern Minnesota, a lumberjack, a locomotive engineer in the Iron Range mines, a farmer, a husband and father, and a public servant. Stories about visiting his homeland, bringing his family back to America, wilderness survival, building a homestead, and coping with the hardships of the Great Depression and World War II.
John Ostlund’s memoirs are a true historical treasure that inspires us to pursue our own dreams, despite inevitable obstacles, and encourages us to be resilient when we face challenges.
