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THE
LIFE OF LOUISA JOHNSON
LARSSON
My
grandmother Louisa Johnson
Larsson was born 21 May 1871 at 2
Palmer Street, Stepney, London.
She was the daughter of Charles
John Larsson of Norkopping,
Sweden and Harriet Mary Johnson
of London.
Louisa's
parents met on an ocean voyage.
Her mother Harriet was at sea for
her health and her father Charles
was a crewmember who worked on
the passenger decks, possibly as
a steward. The ship sailed to
Sydney, Australia where Harriet
disembarked and took a job as a
domestic, while Charles continued
to work at sea. Charles and
Harriet married 13 March 1865 at
Scot's Church, Sydney,
Australia.Their first child,
Charles George Larsson was born
in Sydney on 10 December 1865. In
1867, they decided to return to
Harriet's birthplace of London,
England. The family sailed from
Australia to England and a
daughter, Eliza Johnson Larson
was born "off the coast of
Africa" during the voyage. From
1869 to 1879, four more children,
including Louisa, were born in
and around London. During this
period Charles Larsson tried
working on shore, at jobs which
included Railway Porter, Brewer
at a Brewery, Brewer's Traveller,
Waterside Labourer and Shipping
Agent. About 1880, Charles
Larsson returned to a life at
sea, working as a Ship's
Steward.
About
1883, 12 year old Louisa Johnson
Larsson, recited a poem called
"The Fisherman" at the London
Sailors Institue and won a prize.
She was also a member of a Thames
River women's rowing club and was
known as a skilled
oarswoman.
In
1892, Louisa Johnson Larsson
married her first husband
Frederick Stansfield Day in
Hackney and began to raise a
family.
In
September 1894, the first Lyons
teashop opened at 213 Piccadilly.
In later years, Louisa recounted
the story to her family many
times, that she was the first
hostess in the first Lyons
teashop in London.
In
April 1907, Louisa, her husband
Frederick and six of seven
children emigrated to Canada The
eldest son remained behind to
finish school at Christ's Church
Bluecoat School in Horsham. The
family travelled 10 days on a
steamship, and then seven days
across Canada by train to a coal
mining town called Nanaimo on
Vancouver Island off the coast of
British Columbia. There, husband
Frederick went to work as a
bookkeeper for Dupont Powder
Works.
The
arrival in rural British Columbia
must have been a terrible shock
for a family from a large city.
They were in a small town
surrounded by wilderness, living
at first in a tent until they
could find a house to rent. In
September 1907, Louisa gave birth
to an eighth child, a daughter.
In September 1908, husband
Frederick Stansfield Day died of
cancer. Louisa was left with
nothing, no family nearby, and no
way to support the seven children
at home, ranging in age from one
year to fourteen years. Friends
and neighbours came to the rescue
and helped the family to survive
this incredible hardship.
In
1910, Louisa Johnson Larsson
married Elijah Dudley and then
over the next five years, bore
four more children including a
set of twins. The last child
would unfortunately die after
only a few days..Second son
Walter Day, aged 17, died
in December 1911 in an explosion
at the Powder Works. Eldest son
Ralph Day, who had joined the
family in Canada after finishing
school, was killed in August 1914
in a farm accident.
In
1915, the family moved to the
city of Vancouver on the mainland
of British Columbia. The three
eldest children, all girls,
obtained jobs to assist in
supporting the family. One
daughter married in 1926 and the
first grandchild was born in
1927. Louisa's second husband
Elijah Dudley died of cancer in
1927. She remained widowed for
the next thirty-five years.
Louisa
loved to cook and bake,
maintaining a well kept home for
her family of nine remaining
children. There was the annual
canning of vegetables,
particularly pickled red cabbage
that was shared with everyone. Of
course as each of the children
gained a spouse and more
grandchildren were born, the
family grew until a total of
twenty-four sat around the
table.
In
1944, Louisa went to live with
her eldest daughter and husband.
She was now 73 years old and
would live in their home for the
remainder of her life. It was now
this home where all family
members gathered together, as
Louisa was still the centre of
the family.
Louisa
loved to write poetry. They were
just simple peoms, but meant a
lot to each family member who
received one. She also loved to
write letters and would write to
anyone on an occasion she thought
was special. I still have the
letter she wrote to me on my
graduation from High School.
There were also jingles, which
were popular on radio in those
days. She wrote jingles
constantly and won several prizes
on one of the local radio
programmes.
Louisa's
eyesight was extremely poor in
later years, which caused her to
fall at times simply because she
couldn't see a step or a curb.
However, that sense of humour
still helped her cope with this
difficulty as well. Between
daughters and granddaughters,
there were so many girls in the
family, Louisa used to play a
sort of guessing game as to which
female walked into the room. She
rarely got the given names
correct, but we used to play the
game along with her until she
finally laughed and said, "oh,
its you". Then you received a hug
and kiss no matter what your name
was.
Incredibly,
Louisa had never been sick a day
in her life. About 1955, when she
was in her mid 80's, Louisa, her
eldest daughter and husband were
involved in a car accident.
Louisa's leg had been badly
gashed, so she was taken to a
hospital for the first time in
her life. It happened to be a
Catholic hospital and when she
awoke from surgery, she thought
the nun's were angels and she had
finally made it to heaven. For
the next week, she was a delight
and a wonder of amusement to the
staff at the hospital. No matter
what the circumstances, she
always had a smile and met each
new event in life as just another
adventure.
On
16 May 1962, Louisa Johnson
Larsson died after a massive
stroke. She was aged 90 years, 11
months and 360 days
This
woman I have shared with you, was
my grandmother. Infact, the only
grandparent I ever knew. I will
always remember her for her
smile, her warmth and her sunny
disposition.
I
am fortunate to have several
items in my possession that were
hers - a serving platter, a
potatoe masher and a small
tablecloth, reminders of her
cooking days. I also have a
brooch, a ring, and a silver
watch, reminders of her as an
individual. The most value of
course, is in the memories that
are attached to these items. The
wonderful memories of an
extraordinary person.
Louise
Elizabeth Post
British Columbia, Canada
25 June 2004
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