Adventures of Ester Nyholm Baker

Esther, front row, fourth from right, at the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition in Seattle, 1909. Photo fromThe Swedish Finn Historical Society archive.

Adventures of Esther Nyholm Baker

by Toni Nelson

Interview with Esther’s granddaughter, Cathy Maxwell, on June 5, 2022.

The long and adventurous life of Esther Nyholm Baker began with her birth in Åbo, Finland in 1887. Within a year or two of her birth, she and her family moved from Åbo to Åland because of a job her father, Gustaf Petterson Nyholm had taken as a blacksmith on the Grelsby Estate. This estate was initially established by the Kingdom of Sweden and was used by Swedish nobility. Esther’s family lived in nearby Mariehamm but within a few years they moved to Möckelby in Åland. Her father, Gustaf built a home and had a blacksmith shop. Esther took part in confirmation at the medieval St. Olaf’s Church in Jomala. St. Olaf’s is regarded as the oldest Christian Church in Finland with a history dated 1260–1280.

As a young girl in Åland, Esther was educated in the folk school movement in Jomala. At the time formal education was restricted to the upper class. The folk school movement provided access to education for rural populations. Esther enjoyed her experience in folk school so much that she kept many of her treasured school books which are preserved now by her granddaughter. A large variety of subjects were taught according to individual needs and interests. Subjects such as music, art, design, and writing were taught, as well as, religion, philosophy, and literature. Cultural identity, customs and native language were a strong component of folk school as Finland understood the importance of keeping their customs and culture alive for future generations. Amid the social and political upheaval of Russian domination the risk of losing their Finnish identity posed a real threat. Russian presence had become increasingly prominent in Finland. There was talk of disbanding the Finnish army and the beginning of compulsory enlistment in the Russian army. Esther shared an incident when Russian soldiers came into their home asking for food. The soldiers were formidable and unnerving until her father returned to the house and their demeanor completely changed in the presence of a male. Gustaf’s brother, Andrew Petterson, who along with Gustaf was born in Katternö, Pedersöre, Finland. Andrew immigrated to the United States in 1890 and settled in Seattle, Washington. In about 1899, he purchased forty acres in Brownsville, Kitsap County, Washington. With Andrew’s encouragement, Gustaf made the journey to America in 1902. Leaving his family behind in Åland, he was grateful to be reunited with his brother. He began practicing his trade of blacksmithing in Seattle.

In two years, he was able to send for Esther, her mother and three siblings. They boarded the Hellig Olav in Copenhagen for the nine day crossing to America. Esther found her time on the ship to be an adventure and later commented that the food onboard was plentiful and good. She was sixteen years old and would never return to her native Finland. With her beloved books from folk school packed in her bag, she set off for a new life in America.

Arriving in Seattle, the family was together again at last. Within three or four years their life as a family was about to change again. Gustaf with his wife and two youngest children moved to Brownsville from Seattle in 1908, to join his brother, Andrew. Together they built a shingle mill on the forty acres purchased in Brownsville around 1914. Gustaf continued to blacksmith from their home. Esther remained in Seattle where she met another Swedish Finn immigrant by the name of John Nyman Baker (1873–1954). John was born in Bredarholm, Pedersöre, Finland and immigrated to the United States in about 1895. The two had never met until after their arrival in the United States. They eventually married and settled in Seattle where the first two of their six children were born. The family moved to Brownsville from Seattle in 1915, with their two daughters, Marion and Bernice. John went to work at the shingle mill with his father-in-law, Gustaf. Four more children were born to Esther and John in Brownsville: Cynthia, John, Henry and their baby daughter, Sylvia who lived only five days. Their lives were absorbed by demanding work both at the mill as well as at home. Eventually, grandchildren began to arrive, and it was Marion’s daughter, Cathy, who took an interest in listening to her grandmother sing the songs she had learned as a young girl in Åland. Esther loved to sing, and Cathy wanted to preserve the beautiful sounds of her grandmother’s voice, so she began recording and translating her grandmother’s songs. Living in the same community in Kitsap County, Washington, provided many opportunities for Cathy to enjoy her grandmother’s songs and to hear beloved tales from her childhood in Åland. Cathy explained that Esther especially enjoyed sharing her experiences attending folk school.

In 1954 John passed away, but Esther lived until the age of ninety-eight passing in Poulsbo, WA, in 1986.

*Esther corresponded with a cousin in Finland until the cousin’s passing; there are no known relatives remaining in Finland nor has Cathy had occasion to travel there.

Left: Esther Mathilda Nyholm, 1907. Right: Ester’s parents, Gustaf and Mathilda Nyholm. Photos courtesy of Cathy Maxwell. 12