Måns Svensson Lom and Anna Petersdotter were early settlers of New Sweden on the Delaware. They had a large family, but they are not as prominent as families like Rambo or Cox. As Peter S. Craig put it, “Although the surname of Lom died out by 1685, it is probable that Måns Svensson Lom had more descendants than any other settler of New Sweden. He had nine children, fifty or more grandchildren and at least 250 great-grandchildren.”1 The explanation is obvious. Seven of the nine children were daughters.
They immigrated in 1641 on the Charitas with the Stille brothers, Olof and Axel, so Måns was probably from Roslagen, as they were. His wife was Anna Petersdotter, and she is believed to be a sister of Olof and Axel.2 On the passenger records of the Charitas, Lom is listed as a tailor, who “intends to begin agriculture in New Sweden. He has received 5 Riksdaler but otherwise no salary; he goes with his wife, two almost grown-up daughters and a little son.”3 The children were Margaret, Catherine and Peter. Another daughter was born at sea and five more children followed in New Sweden.
With the Stille brothers, Måns and Anna settled on the banks of the Delaware River between Ridley Creek and Crum Creek. On October 1646 he delivered an ultimatum from the Swedish Governor Johan Printz to Andries Hudde, the Dutch commander at Fort Nassau. By July 1653 he was probably dead, since his name is missing from a petition submitted by many of the Swedish settlers to Governor Printz, setting forth various grievances.4
His widow Anna later married Lars Andersson Collinus, a minister, who later served on the Upland Court. It is not known when she died.
Children of Måns and (probably) Anna:5
Margaret, b. 1626 in Roslagen, d. 1703, m. Peter Larsson Cock. They lived on an island at the mouth of the Schuylkill, where Peter died in 1687. He was prominent in the affairs of the colony, serving on the court and meeting with the Indians. Margaret outlived him and died in 1703. Children: Lars, Eric, Anna, Måns, John, Peter, Magdalena, Maria, Gabriel, Brigitta, Margaret, Catherine.6
Catherine, b. ab. 1628, m. John Wheeler. Wheeler was an Englishman who signed the 1653 protest against Johan Printz. To avoid reprisals he fled to New Castle County and later moved to Cecil County, Maryland. Catherine died by 1671; John died about 1677. Children: Samuel, John, Anna, Anders.7
Peter, b. ab. 1638 in Roslagen, married a daughter of Sven Gunnarsson and moved to Cecil County, Maryland. Had a son Anders.8 An Ancestry tree said his wife’s name was Helene.
Anna, b. at sea in 1641, m. Giösta (Gustaf) Danielsson. He immigrated in 1654 as a tailor and soldier. They lived in Upland, where he died in 1681. Children: Margareta, Brigitta, Maria.9
Beate, b. 1643, m. Pastor Lars Carlsson Lock. Lock immigrated in 1648. In 1669 he owned land next to Ridley Creek, known formerly as Preacher’s Kill.10 He later owned the plantation of Olof Stille, Techoherassi. He was pastor to the churches at Tinicum Island and Crane Hook. He died in 1688, survived by Beata. Children: Anders, Måns, Catharina, Johan, Peter, Maria, Gustaf and an unidentified daughter.11
Christina, b. ab. 1645, m. Mårtin Garrettsson. Marten owned land on Christina Creek, patented to him in 1668. He drowned in his canoe on the Christina River in 1680. Children: Gertrude, Armegot, Gerrit, Marten.12
Sven, b. ab. 1648, died about 1685 in Blockley Township, Philadelphia County. The name of his wife is unknown. Child: Utro (Gertrude?)13
Helena, b. 1650, d. 1720, m. Michael Laicon in 1679. They moved to Shackamaxon, and later to Gloucester County, where he died in 1704. She died in 1720 in Gloucester County. Children: Catherine, Anna, Gertrude, Nils, Måns, Anders, Christina, Michael, Helena, Zacharias.14
Maria, b. ab. 1652, m. John Mattson, son of Matthias Hanson. They lived in Moyamensing, then moved to Gloucester County, where John died in 1701. They cared for the children of Lars and Beata Lock (Maria’s sister) after their deaths. Children: Matthias, Anna, Måns, Gertrude, Anders, Maria, and one or two daughters not identified.15
- Peter Stebbins Craig, Måns Svensson Lom, forgotten forefather, and his seven daughters, Swedish Colonial News, vol. 1, no. 12, 1995, at www. colonialswedes.org/Forefathers/ Lom.html. This article is no longer online in 2017, although it can still be referenced through the Internet Archive. Because Lom died before 1653, he does not appear in the 1671 or 1693 census of Swedes, although his children are there. Cf. Peter Craig, 1671 Census of the Delaware, 1999; Peter Craig, 1693 Census of the Swedes on the Delaware, 1993. ↩
- Craig, 1995. He bases this identification on the Swedish naming patterns, since Måns named his first son Peter (and his second son Sven). A son named Olof would have clinched the argument. ↩
- Craig, 1995. ↩
- Craig, 1995. ↩
- Craig, 1995. Craig assumes that the childen were all with one wife. As he states, “It is unknown when Lom’s wife died. However, she was the mother of nine children.” However, there is a noticeable gap between the births of Catherine about 1628 and Peter about 1638. This suggests that Måns may have married twice, and that Anna was not the mother of the two oldest daughters. With no information about the names of the mothers of Måns or Anna, we have no onomastic evidence to go on. This question probably can’t be resolved with existing records. ↩
- Craig, 1993, 1995. ↩
- Craig, 1993, p. 46; 1995. ↩
- Craig, 1993, p. 33; 1995. ↩
- Craig, 1999, p. 31; 1995. ↩
- His land there was shown on Thomas Holme’s map, circa 1685, as “Preest”, a name the Quakers gave to ministers of other faiths. ↩
- Craig, 1995; 1999, p. 33. ↩
- Craig, 1999, p. 65. ↩
- Craig, 1995. ↩
- Craig, 1995. ↩
- Craig, 1995. ↩