Summary Information
Lund Family Papers
1762-1972
Micro 830
1 reel of microfilm (35mm)
Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)
Papers primarily related to Theodore Lund (1810-1895), an artist, who studied art at the Royal Academy of Copenhagen from 1832 to 1834 and immigrated to America from Denmark around 1836. Lund worked as a painter in New York City before moving in 1846 to a farm in Racine County, Wisconsin, where his family lived while he painted in various cities in Europe and America. The papers consist mostly of the research notes and correspondence of two descendants of Theodore Lund--Maude Leone Fish and Judith Lund Chisholm, who wrote a history of the Lund Family. Included in the collection are several letters of Theodore Lund; copies of the Civil War records of his sons, Charles and Julius Lund; a diary by Charles; an annotated plat book of Racine County; and memorabilia.
English
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-micr0830 ↑ Bookmark this ↑
Biography/History
The Lund family history has been traced back as far as Peter Lund who was born circa 1740. He moved from Norway to Denmark where he worked as a customs officer and married Johanne Christine Schwartzkopf (various spellings of her name are used in the papers). One of their sons, Olaus Lund, was born in 1780 in Nykobing, Falster, Denmark. Olaus, a clergyman, and his wife, Sophie Elizabeth Peets, were the parents of Harold Emil Theodore Lund, an artist, who is the central figure of this collection.
Harold Emil Theodore Lund (usually referred to as Theodore) was born July 26, 1810 in Nykobing, Falster, Denmark. At age sixteen he was apprenticed to an apothecary but, according to a family story, he ran away to Copenhagen to study art. From 1832 to 1834, Theodore was a student at the Kunstakademiet, Copenhagen, and completed an apprenticeship as a painter. Because he was an itinerate artist, documentation for various phases of Theodore's life and work is sparse. The date of Theodore's arrival in the United States is not known but the New York Historical Society's Dictionary of Artists in America, 1564-1860 lists him as a miniaturist painter who worked in New York City between 1836 and 1843.
Theodore married Caroline Matilda Handson (whose parents, according to records not included in this collection, were probably Hans Gerhard Abel and Suzanne Margrethe Zarendt) in New York City, July 27, 1839. They had six children, Julius George, Charles Adolphus, William (who died in childhood), Theodore Jr., William George, and Josephine Augusta. In 1846, Theodore and Caroline bought a farm in the township of Raymond, Racine County, Wisconsin. While his family operated the farm, Theodore worked as an artist in various cities in the United States and Europe. During the Civil War, Theodore's son Charles served in the Union Army and died of smallpox while his oldest son, Julius, who had been working in New Orleans, served in the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia.
The Lund Family Papers were generated primarily by descendants of Theodore Lund, Maude Leone Fish and Judith Lund Chisholm, as they worked together from 1966 to around 1972 to research and write the Lund family history. Judith Lund Chisholm, the daughter of Philo and Agnes Lund, was born in Cheyenne, Wyoming, in 1925. She graduated from the University of Washington with a B.S. degree in nursing in 1948. In 1949 she married William Duncan Chisholm of Seattle, Washington. Maude Fish, the daughter of Thomas J. and Josephine A. Lund Fish, was born October 26, 1893 on a farm in the township of Yorkville, Racine County, Wisconsin. She earned a B.A. degree from Western Michigan University and an M.A. degree in administration and supervision from the University of Michigan. She was an elementary school teacher and principal in Grand Rapids, Michigan until her retirement in 1955. Maude Fish died September 11, 1975.
Scope and Content Note
The papers include correspondence, research notes, transcripts and photocopies of documents, the transcribed diary of Charles Adolphus Lund, writings, plat maps, and memorabilia. The collection consists primarily of the correspondence and research notes of Maude Fish and Judith Chisholm related to their study of the Lund family history, mostly between 1966 and 1971. The emphasis of their study was on Theodore Lund, the artist, but during the course of their research, they collected data related to his descendants including copies of the Civil War records of Charles and Julius Lund. The genealogy provides few details about family lines connected to the Lunds through marriage although there is some information about the family of Thomas Jefferson Fish who married Josephine Augusta Lund. There are several letters to and from artist Theodore Lund.
The Correspondence, arranged chronologically, consists mainly of the incoming letters (1961-1971) of Maude Fish from her cousin, Judith Lund Chisholm, concerning their research on the Lund family history. There is a small amount of correspondence from other relatives and libraries, museums, and archives related to Maude Fish's search for information about Theodore Lund. There are several Lund family letters dated from 1837 to 1886 including two letters from Theodore Lund to his daughter, Josephine, in which he refers to his work as a painter.
The Research Notes include the working papers of Judith Lund Chisholm and Maude Fish that were used for writing the history of the Lund family. Most of the papers are undated but probably cover the years from circa 1966 to 1972 when Judith and Maude worked together on their family's history. Included is information sent by Paul Rasmussen of the Royal Archives of Copenhagen, Denmark, who assisted Judith and Maude in their research. This series also contains biographical sketches of Lund family members, lists of sources used for research, and lists of family photographs and paintings of Theodore Lund. The original order of the papers has generally been maintained.
The Documents (1842-1895), arranged by type of document, include a transcribed marriage certificate of Theodore Lund and Caroline Matilda Handson; photocopies of the Civil War service records of Charles and Julius Lund, and the pension file of Theodore Lund from the National Archives and Records Service; and transcriptions of deeds from the office of the Register of Deeds of Racine County, Wisconsin, concerning the land holdings of the Lund family.
A transcription of Charles Adolphus Lund's Diary (1863-1864) is present. It mainly relates daily activities on the Lund farm but also includes an account of Charles's brief service in the Civil War before he died of smallpox at Knoxville, Tennessee, in March, 1864.
The Writings consist of an undated draft of the Lund family history titled, “The Lund Family in Denmark and America,” written by Judith Lund Chisholm and Maude Fish.
The Plat Map is a 1957 plat book of Racine County. Indicated on the maps of the townships of Raymond and Yorkville are locations relevant to the history of the Lund family.
The Memorabilia (1873-1903) consists of a volume titled, “Mental Photographs: An Album for Confessions of Tastes, Habits, and Convictions.” The album includes entries by Theodore Lund, Julius R. Lund, William G. Lund, Theodore Lund, Jr., Mary Lund, and others. The volume contains several photographs of Lund family members. The memorabilia also includes Theodore Lund's calling card which identifies him as a portrait and historical painter, and a graduate of the Royal Academy of Copenhagen.
Administrative/Restriction Information
Originals loaned for microfilming by Mrs. Arthur Wunsch, White Cloud, Michigan, 1980. Accession Number: M80-270
Processed by William Cunningham, October, 1980.
Contents List
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Correspondence
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Reel
1
Frame
1
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Early Letters, 1837-1886
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Reel
1
Frame
32
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Maude Fish, 1966-1971
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Reel
1
Frame
471
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Research Notes, 1966-1971
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Documents
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Reel
1
Frame
690
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Marriage Certificate of Harold Emil Theodore Lund and Carolina Matilda Handson, 1839
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Civil War Records
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Reel
1
Frame
691
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Charles Lund
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Reel
1
Frame
709
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Julius Lund
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Reel
1
Frame
722
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Theodore Lund's Pension File
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Reel
1
Frame
737
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Deeds
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Reel
1
Frame
747
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Diary
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Reel
1
Frame
766
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Writings
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Reel
1
Frame
857
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Plat Maps
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Reel
1
Frame
872
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Memorabilia
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