Federal Writers' Project – Life Histories/2020/Summer II/Section 013/Josephine Petterson

Overview
Josephine Petterson was a Swedish woman who immigrated to the U.S. during a boom of European immigration. She often faced challenges to find work either due to a lack of opportunity or facing a patriarchal society. When she was younger, she worked diligently in school where she received a middle school education and transitioned into the workforce. She moved from work to work eventually finding herself in the U.S. as a house girl studying stenography. Petterson found a husband who quickly passed away and she spent her final days singing in her church choir, translating Scandinavian languages, and reading to the sick and blind.

Early Life
Petterson was born in 1862 on an island called Skogsby off the coast of Sweden. Her parents, Karin and August Peterson, taught her reading, writing, and arithmetic at an early age. Upon the death of Petterson’s grandfather, her grandmother began to teach younger children how to read and Petterson naturally helped tutor these children as there were few schools on this village island. However, Petterson’s mother needed her home to focus on her own schooling despite being years ahead and help care for her younger siblings. Petterson took a preparatory course in 1889 to become a missionary as she was a longtime member of the Young Women’s Christian Association. Upon the competition of the course, she was examined by physicians and deemed not strong enough for missionary work and was directed to an institution for crippled children in the city. Three years later, she received a letter from her uncle explaining that two of their children died in adulthood and the third worked in government service. They wanted Petterson to travel to the U.S. and live with them in Mobile as their daughter.

Immigrating to the U.S.
Her mother thought it was Petterson's duty to live with her in-laws and took her to the train station to send her off alone to Gothenburg on September 17, 1902. From Gothenburg, she took a small boat along with 800 other international passengers where the sleeping quarters were below deck and kept in subpar, sickening conditions. After numerous ferry stops, baggage searches, and security checks, Petterson made it into Philadelphia. She took a train to Mobile and her uncle picked her up from an attendant at the Louisville and Nashville Station. Within two weeks, Petterson found work as the house girl for Mrs. S. J. Lawler and began to learn English. In 1903, her uncle and his wife left to Sweden for health issues and could not spare the expense for the return of Petterson, so she remained with Mrs. Lawler and the Rolston's for a few months. For a time, Petterson began working as a house girl for multiple households and sought to further her education and learn the language by taking stenography courses at a local college. After going through various different types of work, Petterson found employment at Mobile Truck Company at a pay of $5 per week for 10 years until the owners’ children were old enough to take over.

End of Life
In 1920 People’s Ice Company offered Petterson employment and she remained here until she married in 1929. Petterson underwent intense physical therapy for her rheumatoid hands due to years of work and she took up voice lessons to improve her English and music proficiency. In 1930, her husband died of illness and left a will primarily to his first wife’s daughter. Petterson was left with $3,000 where she lost $2,000 to a poor investment and passed away of elderly age.

Immigration in the Early 20th Century
The early 20th century resulted in a great influx of European immigrants where “Between 1900 and 1915, more than 15 million immigrants arrived in the United States.” Unlike previous years, the primary group of immigrants was non-English speaking Europeans. By 1910, nearly 75% of New York was either an immigrant or a first-Generation American. As a result of the increase of immigrants who sought work, cities became overcrowded and the services of the city couldn’t keep up. These groups resulted in the formation of enclaves and "the social benefits of the immigrant enclave were immense."

Progressive Era
The Progressive Era resulted in U.S. women gaining rights as equals, however, these rights took many years of protesting and opposition to work. Women aimed to not only gain the right to vote, but they sought social and economic equality. As a result, women’s jobs increased from 2.6 million to 7.8 million from 1880 to 1910. Despite an increase in employment, many women were overlooked for higher-paying titles. Along this path, in 1896 only four states permitted women the right to vote and it continued this way until all states gradually granted women the rights of any equal. Women began needing to find support on there own so many began to take on "home-based work such as finishing garments and shoes for factories, laundry, or preparation of snacks to sell in the market or streets."