In 1926 Georg Nillsen became an American. He sailed across the ocean from Sweden because he believed there was a wonderful and exciting new life for him in the United States.
With his name reconfigured in English to George Nelson, he wound up in Mansfield working at the Steel Mill. He was so thrilled with this new world he borrowed a camera and used up a roll of film snapping pictures of his town to send to family and friends back in Göteborg.
It was 84 years later in 2000, some years after George had departed this Earthly plane, when his daughter, Anna Marie Nelson McCracken, made a trip back across the Atlantic to explore the Swedish roots of her father.
She found an old aunt still living in Göteborg, and when they spoke of the United States the aunt seemed to know all about Mansfield. She still had all the photos that Georg had sent from America.
So once again these little snapshots made the trip across the Atlantic, back to Mansfield where they began.
This small album preserves for us a perfect snapshot of our town through the eyes of a young man in love with Mansfield, America.
It is interesting to note that he often found ways to include an American flag somewhere in the photos he sent to Sweden.
This picture was taken at the confluence of Routes 42 and 430 just east of the underpass.
His photos taken in the Mansfield cemetery captured the public amphitheater in its more pristine early years. Below, the same scene is captured 90 years later.
In Memory:
This precious glimpse into the past is presented through the kindness of my friend Anna Marie Nelson McCracken (1935-2008)
Richland County History 