Will County IL Archives Biographies.....Berggren, Hon August W 1840 - 
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File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Deb Haines ddhaines@gmail.com May 5, 2007, 10:40 am

Author: Portraits & Bio Sketches, 1890

HON. AUGUST W. BERGGREN, Warden of the Illinois State Penitentiary at Joliet, 
has held several important official stations in other parts of this State, and 
won a high reputation for his uprightness, good judgment and public spirit. He 
was appointed to the position he now holds in April, 1889, and took charge on 
May 1st, following. He is a native of the Scandanavian Peninsula, his 
birthplace Sweden, and his natal day August 17, 1840. His parents were John 
and Catherine Berggren, the latter of whom died in their native land, leaving 
to her husband's care six sons and one daughter. In 1856 the widower and his 
family came to America, drawn to cross the briny deep by the accounts they had 
heard of the "land of the free and the home of the brave," and its 
opportunities for all who desire to rise in the social scale or improve their 
worldly condition. A location was selected at Oneida, this State, but the 
father subsequently went to Glendale, Iowa, where he breathed his last in 
1863. Two of his children have also passed away: Peter Anton died in the 
Hawkeye State, in 1863; and Anna Christina in Knox County, this State, the 
year after her arrival in America. The surviving members of the fraternal band 
are: John Eric, a Methodist Episcopal minister, now retired and living in 
Iowa; Louis G., a farmer in Polk County, Neb.; Charles, a stonemason in 
Garrison, Kan.; he of whom we write; and William, a farmer in Pettis County, 
Mo., who holds the office of Justice of the Peace. In his native land August 
W. Berggren was apprenticed to the tailor's trade, serving two years. After 
reaching the Western Continent he wrorked at his trade both in Galesburg and 
Monmouth, this State. His workmanship was always to be relied upon, and his 
citizenship was equally trustworthy. Ere long these facts were recognized by 
his fellow-citizens, and while still quite young he was placed in public 
office. In 1869 he was elected Justice of the Peace, in 1872 became Sheriff, 
and to the latter station was re-elected in 1874, 1876 and 1878. A still 
higher honor awaited him, his friends desiring his services in a more 
important function, to which his intelligence, interest in public welfare, and 
keen perception of its needs fitted him. In 1880, therefore, he was sent to 
the Senate, representing the Twenty-second District, composed of Knox and 
Mercer Counties. Four years later he was returned to the Senatorial body as a 
member from the same district, then composed of Knox and Fulton Counties. 
During the last session of his second term Senator Berggren was President pro 
tem of the Senate. His record as a lawmaker is a matter of history and well 
known to his constituents, whose cordial esteem he has won by his position on 
the side of all that is elevating and true. The Hon. Mr. Berggren is quite 
interested in social and benevolent orders, and is identified with the Knight 
Templars and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He has been President of 
the Covenant Mutual Benefit Association of Illinois, located at Galesburg, 
since its organization in 1877, and he is also a Director in the Galesburg 
National Bank. He chose as his companion in life a Swedish lady, Miss 
Christina Naslund, their marriage being celebrated March 8, 1866. Mrs. 
Berggren excels in housewifery, is intelligent and refined, and with a 
character which causes her to be highly regarded by all to whom she is known. 
The union has been blessed by the birth of six children—Capitola Maud, Guy 
Werner, Ralph Augustus, Claus Eugene, Jay Valentine and Earl Hugo. The 
daughter is finely educated, being a graduate of Knox College, and the others 
have also received excellent advantages proportionate to their years. Death 
has entered the family circle, removing from its midst the son and brother, 
Ralph Augustus, who was accidentally killed by a gravel train on the Santa Fe 
Railroad, on May 20, 1887.

Additional Comments:
Portrait and Biographical Album of Will County, Illinois, Containing Full Page 
Portraits and Biographical Sketches of Prominent and Representative Citizens 
of the County; Chicago: Chapman Bros., 1890 
 


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