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2001
“Being Swedish-American Today”
This conference examined contemporary aspects of Swedish immigration to the
U.S. and what it means to be Swedish or Swedish-American in America today.
Scholars from both Sweden and the U.S. discussed questions like the
characteristics of the contemporary Swedish-American community; who the
Swedish-Americans are today, socially, religiously, politically and
culturally; why Swedes that have moved to the U.S. during the past half
century and who they have been; and the connections, if any, which exist
between recent Swedish immigrants to the U.S. and the descendants of the
mass immigration a century or more ago. The keynote address, which also
served as the
Ander
lecture in immigration history, was given by Professor Barbro Klein of
Uppsala University.
1998
“The Migration of Ideas: Sweden and the United States in the Twentieth
Century”
This conference focused on one important dimension of the relationship
between Sweden and the United States in the twentieth century: the exchange
of ideas. It examined ways in which ideas have migrated between the two
countries, how they were perceived and received, how they were transformed,
and how they influenced the respective countries. Paper presenters came from
the United States and Sweden, and the keynote address, which also served as
the
Ander lecture in immigration history, was given by Professor H. Arnold
Barton of Southern Illinois University.
The
papers from "The Migration of Ideas" were published in the
Swedish-American Historical Quarterly, volume
50, July and October 1999.
1996
“O Pioneers! Swedes on the American Frontier” and “Swedes in the
Twin Cities”
In 1996 the 150th anniversary of the beginnings of Swedish immigration to
the United States was celebrated in both Sweden and the U.S. The Swenson
Center sponsored or co-sponsored two conferences.
The first,
"O Pioneers! Swedes on the American Frontier" was held on the Augustana
campus in Rock Island in April, and focused on the early phase of Swedish
immigration to the U.S. Scholars from the U.S. and Sweden presented papers,
and the keynote address, which also served as the Ander lecture in
immigration history, was given by professor Kathleen Conzen of the
University of Chicago.
The papers from "O Pioneers!" were published in the
Swedish-American Historical Quarterly, volume
49, October 1998.
The
second conference, “Swedes in the Twin Cities”, was held in St. Paul,
Minnesota in
 September and dealt with the history of Swedish immigration to
the Twin Cities. Co-arranged with the
Minnesota Historical Society, the
Swedish-American Historical
Society, and the
American-Swedish Institute, the conference included presentations by two
dozen scholars from the U.S. and Sweden on a variety of aspects of Swedish
immigrant life in the Twin Cities. The conference formed the basis for the
book Swedes in the Twin Cities: Immigrant Life and Minnesota's Urban
Frontier, edited by Philip J. Anderson and Dag Blanck and published by
the Minnesota Historical Society Press of St. Paul, Minnesota and
Acta Universitatis
Upsaliensis
in Uppsala in 2001
1992
“Scandinavian Immigrants and Education in North America”
Our 1992 conference focused on the educational experiences of Scandinavian
immigrant groups in North America. Scholars from the U.S. and Canada
discussed the role and significance of education for Swedes, Norwegians,
Danes, Finns, and Icelanders in North America. The keynote address, which
also served as the Ander lecture in immigration history, was given by
Professor M. Mark Stolarik of the University of Ottawa. The papers
presented at the conference are included in Philip J. Anderson, Dag Blanck,
and Peter Kivisto, eds., Scandinavian Immigrants
and education in North America (Chicago:
Swedish-American
Historical Society, 1995).
1988
“Swedish-American Life in Chicago”
 In 1988, together with the
Swedish-American Historical Society, the Swenson Center sponsored a
major conference on Swedish-American life in Chicago, the "capital of
Swedish America." Held on the campus of North Park College in Chicago, it
attracted some twenty scholars from the U.S. and Sweden, and dealt with the
complex and varied experience of Swedish immigrants in the Windy City. Most
of the presentations at the conference are included in Philip J. Anderson
and Dag Blanck, eds.,
Swedish-American life in Chicago: Cultural and Urban Aspects of an Immigrant
People, 1850-1930 (Urbana, Illinois and
Uppsala: University of Illinois Press
and
Acta Universitatis
Upsaliensis, 1992).
1987
“Marcus Lee Hansen and the Third Generation Hypothesis”
 In 1987, the Swenson Center arranged a conference commemorating the 50th
anniversary of immigration historian Marcus Lee Hansen's influential lecture
at Augustana College on the role of generations for immigration history
(Hansen's famous dictum being "What the sons seek to forget, the grandsons
seek to remember"). The conference attracted a number of leading American
and Canadian scholars in immigration history and ethnic studies, including
John Higham and Nathan Glazer. The essays in the book American Immigrants
and Their Generations: Studies and Commentaries on the Hansen Thesis after
Fifty Years (edited by Peter Kivisto and Dag Blanck and published by the
University of Illinois Press in 1990) originated in this conference.
For more information or
to learn about our upcoming conferences please
contact the
Swenson Center.
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