Guide to the Scandinavian Immigrant Experience Collection

Scandinavian Immigrant Experience

The Scandinavian Immigrant Experience (SIE) Collection is a depository of historical materials relating to immigrants to the Pacific Northwest from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden. The collection includes records of Scandinavian cultural heritage organizations, family and personal papers, newspapers and publications, and the New Land, New Lives: Scandinavian Immigrants in the Pacific Northwest Oral History Collection.
For more information or to schedule a research appointment, contact archives@plu.edu.

Cultural heritage organizations

Regional Scandinavian cultural heritage organizations whose records are held by PLU Archives & Special Collections can be viewed by clicking the links below. Some materials from various organizations have been digitized as seen in the "Digitized materials" column. To read documents available in this way, click on their preview image.
Name Records Digitized materials
Daughters & Sons of Norway PhotographsN/APhotographs
Daughters of Norway Embla Lodge No. 2DescriptionNewsletter
Daughters of Norway Grand LodgeDescriptionHistorical information
Leif Erikson FoundationDescriptionN/A
Nordlandslaget NordlysetDescriptionN/A
Norwegian American Anniversary CommissionDescriptionN/A
Sons of Norway District 2Description1982 Scrapbook
Sons of Norway Supreme LodgeDescription1919 Correspondence
Swedish Order of Valhalla RecordsDescriptionN/A
Vasa Order of America RecordsDescriptionN/A
Western Rosemalers AssociationDescriptionScrapbooks, Newsletters

Scandinavian Music and Performance Groups

Regional Scandinavian music and performance groups whose records are held by PLU Archives & Special Collections can be viewed by clicking the links below. Some materials from various groups have been digitized as seen in the "Digitized materials" and "Photographs" columns. To read documents available in this way, click on their preview image.
Name Records Digitized materials Photographs
Normanna Male Chorus RecordsDescriptionScrapbooksPhotographs
Pacific Coast Norwegian Singers Association of AmericaDescriptionProgramsPhotographs
Pacific Coast/American Union of Swedish SingersDescriptionN/AN/A
Skagit Valley Mannskor RecordsDescriptionN/AN/A
Svea Male Chorus ProgramsDescriptionN/AN/A
United Swedish Singers of the Pacific Coast RecordsDescriptionN/AN/A
United Scandinavian Singers RecordsDescriptionN/AN/A

Local Scandinavian Publications

Publications can be read by clicking on the preview image.
Puget Sound PostenTacoma Swedish language weekly newspaper. 206 issues available online from 1908-1932.
Tacoma TidendeTacoma Norwegian language newspaper. 522 issues available online from 1911-1924.
TidendeTacoma Norwegian language newspaper. 51 issues available online from 1897.
VestkystenTacoma Norwegian language newspaper. 51 issues available online from 1928.
Washington PostenSeattle weekly Norwegian language newspaper. 7 issues available online from 1943-1960.
Western VikingTacoma Norwegian language newspaper. 426 issues available online from 1929-1949.

Oral Histories

The New Land, New Lives Oral History Collection contains the recorded interviews of 282 men and women who emigrated from Scandinavia and settled in the Pacific Northwest. The project was directed by Dr. Janet E. Rasmussen and the collection was transferred to the Archives and Special Collections Department upon completion.
Each link below leads to interview audio, partial transcripts, and photos from interviewees from that country. For a list of all interviewees with links to their materials, please visit the Guide to the New Land, New Lives Oral History Collection.
Denmark Finland Iceland Norway Sweden

Manuscript Collection

The SIE Manuscript Collection consists of materials relating to Scandinavian immigrants and their descendants including biographies, personal documents, scrapbooks, correspondence, publications, and photographs. The collection is divided into MSS Files for more extensive entries and Subject Files for shorter entries. Some materials have been digitized and can be viewed by clicking the preview image.

Browse all SIE holdings
Browse all SIE digital objects
Browse SIE materials in the PLU Library Catalog