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A Tribute to the Swedish American Line | ||||||||
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A Tribute to the Swedish American Line | ||||||||
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Rune Dahlstrand
Barber on the Gripsholm During WWII
Page 1
Three pages follow, see link below
These pictures have been contributed by Rune Dahlstrand.
Many thanks to Mr. Dahlstrand for sharing these unique memories.
Work in progress. More information will be added.
| Please email us if you can identify persons whose names aren't noted below the pictures. If you recognize yourself or a relative, and in any way are offended by the picture being published, please send an email and the picture will be removed. |
 Rune Dahlstrand on the Gripsholm |
Läs en artikel i GT om Rune Dahlstrand.
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Rune Dahlstrand managed the Beauty Salon and served as a barber on the Gripsholm from 1938 to 1946, during the exchange and repatriation voyages during World War II. As a barber, he met and talked with most of the passengers and crew, from POW's to ambassadors and the ship's officers. The barber shop was an information hub. At the age of 90, Mr Dahlstrand has an extensive knowledge of these voyages. For an introduction, click on this link to read the summary of the Exchange and Repatriation Voyages, written by Lars Hemingstam. |
The Gripsholm's crew members were given U.S. Coast Guard passes, and could see movies and attend USO dances when the ship was laid up in Yonkers. There was no USO organization in Yonkers when the ship arrived for the first time, but a group of ladies formed a chapter. Many crew members were employed in bars and restaurants ashore. The crew was also offered to study at Columbus University. Only two crew members accepted the offer, one of them was Rune Dahlstrand. He studied import/export administration and English. He was studying while the ship was at sea and took examinations when he returned to New Jersey. When the Kungsholm was purchased by the U.S. Government after the attack on Pearl Harbor, and renamed John Ericsson, many members of the Kungsholm's crew decided to stay in the United States. In order to become U.S. citizens they served in the Armed Forces. After the war, the army veterans were given priority to purchase army surplus products. Rune Dahlstrand left SAL after the war and teamed up with two of the Kungsholms ex crew members who had served in the army. Together, they started a business selling army surplus goods in Sweden. Later, Dahlstrand traveled the USA, selling imported Swedish products to American retailers.
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 Rune Dahlstrand saved newspaper articles from many ports that the Gripsholm visited. |
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 A letter sent from Yonkers, NJ, to Sweden in 1944. |
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Mail to the crew was carried on ships in convoys
across the Atlantic. |
The stripes on this letter were applied by the censors |
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Back to the Bridge and Crew Page
Drottningholm and Gripsholm
Mercy Ships During WWII
More than 100 web pages developed and maintained by Lars Hemingstam ©1998-2010
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Regardless of which ship we sailed on or which year - the memories we share are the same!
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| Recommended Books | |||||||||||
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M/S Kungsholms inredning Första M/S Kungsholm, Amerikalinjens stora passagerarfartyg, byggdes på 1920-talet. Det gick mellan Göteborg och New York. Arkitekten Carl Bergsten fick uppdraget att hålla i den påkostade inredningen som skulle visa för världen vad svenska konstnärer kunde åstadkomma. Under andra världskriget togs fartyget i beslag av amerikanarna för att användas i trupptransporten till Europa. Inredningen revs då ner och förstördes. Anne-Marie Ericsson har letat i arkiv och museer efter beskrivningar, ritningar och gamla fotografier för att försöka rekonstruera denna makalösa uppvisning i svensk inredningskonst. |
Amerikabåtarna Christer Winberg, professor i historia vid Göteborgs universitet, har skrivit en bok om SAL som bygger på bevarat samtida material från Svenska Amerika Linien på Landsarkivet och Sjöfartsmuseet i Göteborg. Det omfattar exempelvis reserapporter, minnesberättelser och personligt färgade reseskildringar. Författaren har också samlat in eget material genom intervjuer med f.d. anställda.
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Andrea Dorias undergång I Andrea Dorias undergång berättar Britt-Marie Mattsson den fascinerande berättelsen om kollisionen, den heroiska räddningsaktionen och det rättsliga efterspelet till den mycket uppmärksammade olyckan - sin tids Titanic. Mattssons far var vid tiden för olyckan informationschef vid Svenska Amerika Linien. Britt-Marie Mattsson har träffat flera av de överlevande och intervjuat dem för denna bok. Hon har bland annat talat med vittnen som ger information som kan kasta nytt ljus över vad som egentligen orsakade den fruktansvärda kollisionen. Boken är rikligt illustrerad i svartvitt. | ||||||||
A book about the Kungsholm of 1953. |
Journalist Per Fält has recommended |
"Såna" på Amerikabåtarna SAL har skildrats i böcker, dokumentär-filmer, journalfilmer och tidningsartiklar. Oftast är det glamouren som uppmärk-sammats men en grupp har alltid saknats i beskrivningarna: homosexuella män. Såna på Amerikabåtarna är en välskriven, lättläst och underhållande studie av en värld som gått i glömska. | |||||||||
De Flytande Palatsen From the very inception of the line in 1915, the ships of the Line attracted much attention on both sidesof the Atlantic. Not only did they represent the bonds between the old country and the new, they also represented new concepts in service, decor, and furnishings as well as in art and handicraft. Published in 1987. This book can be found on Amazon.
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Huset Broström Huset Broström för tankarna till Forsythesagan och Onedinlinjen. Inget svenskt företag har upplevt så stor dramatik som just Broströms. Detta är den dramtiska berättelsen "inifrån Huset", om det som skedde i det som syntes ske. Utgiven 1980. | ||||||||||
Out of the Fog is an American edition of a Swedish book by Algot Mattsson, who was the information officer for SAL, the owner of Stockholm, the ship that collided with Andrea Doria in 1956. The book describes the collision from the perspectives of both ships as well as the heroic rescue of hundreds. Testimony given at the hearing is also included as is a legal opinion by the American editors, one of whom was directly involved with the case. |
Detta är en berättelse om den dramatiska färden över Atlanten, från de hårda och riskfyllda överfarten med små lastskutor i mitten av 1800-talet, till lyxresorna med Amerikalinjens sista skepp. Utgiven 1982 | ||||||||||
