Charles Magnus Ahlstrom

As told by Sarah Ahlstrom Nelson We have no records in our family of my grandparents on my mother’s side, only what I can get from a history written by Charles brother’s family, Peter Ahlstrom. And a little from an obituary and some from Albert Mitchell’s book on Iron County Drama and Music.

Charles Magnus Ahlstrom was born July 20, 1842, in Malmo, Malmohus, Sweden to Ole Nilsson Ahlstrom and Ingborg Bunderson Ahlstrom. Ole was a carpenter so Charles M. learned this trade also.

At the time Ole was a boy in Sweden it was the custom when a male child was one year old, they were enrolled in the King’s Army. When they were old enough to serve, they were put on active duty. In those days the children always took their fathers name, not his surname. At this time there were so many Nilssons in their company, that Ole and Hans, a brother, were given the name of Ahlstrom. AHL is the name of a berry that grows by the stream in Sweden and STROM is referred to as a stream; hence the name Ahlstrom or “berry by a stream.”

Charles had two brothers, Peter born 15 April 1835, who lived in Manti, Utah, and John Godfrey, born 7 December 1850, who lived in Tooele County. He also had two sisters, Mary Ingrid, born 26 January 1838, who married William Asper and lived in Salt Lake City, and Wilhelmia (Minnie) born November 29, 1845, who married William Bracken and lived at Stockton, Tooele, County.

The Ahlstrom family became converts to the Latter-Day-Saints religion about 1854 or 1855. After leaving Malmo, Sweden, they went first to Copenhagen, Denmark, then went on Steamship “Lyon” for Kiele in Sliesvig. Then by train to Glenkstadt where another steamship took them to England and by train to Liverpool. They began their journey to America in October 1855 and left aboard the John J. Boyd from London, December 12, 1855. There were 508 Mormon converts on board. It was a terrible journey all the way.

The Ahlstrom family landed at Castle Garden, New York, February 16, 1856, and on February 21st left by way of Dunkirk, Cleveland and Chicago for Burlington, Iowa. Here they stayed for awhile and looked for work. The father, Ole Nilsson Ahlstrom, secured a job felling trees in a forest not far from Burlington. He continued to work until June 13, 1865, when he was killed in an accident caused by a falling tree. As he ran to get out of the way of the falling tree he stumbled and fell. The tree rolled against the top of his head fracturing the skull.

All the family went to work to help keep the family and save to get to Utah. Peter left Iowa in 1857 for Salt Lake City. Charles, his mother, two sisters and brother John, left Burlington, Iowa, in the spring of 1860. They walked all the way to the Salt Lake Valley. Later Charles moved to Cedar City, Iron County, Utah in 1864.

Charles married Sarah Evans about 1866. They had four sons and three daughters:--Charles Magnus, David, Margaret Alice, William Otto, Daniel Katherine and Minnie, who died when 4 months old. His wife Sarah died October 17, 1881, from childbirth complications. Charles tried to take good care of baby Minnie and would take her to bed with him, along with a bottle of milk to keep warm, but sometimes this milk would be curdled when he tried to give it to her. She only lived 4 months.

Charles married Hannah Pitt July 20, 1882, and adopted her two month old son, Tipton. They had four sons and one daughter: Alonzo, Caroline, Byron, Webster, Aspen and Milton. The last two died in infancy.

Charles Magnus Ahlstrom was the first butcher for a company of stockmen in Cedar City. Every Friday a herd of sheep was driven into town and slaughtered in the town slaughter yard, north o town. Mr. Ahlstrom gave away the hearts and livers to the young children who came to watch. At 4:00 a. m. Saturday morning the butcher shop (at the sight of the old Leigh Furniture Store on Main Street) was opened and members of the town rushed down to get their fresh meat before the flies were too active.

The meat was cut into quarters and the buyer brought his own sack in which to carry the meat home, as no wrapping was provided at the shop. A hind quarter sold for 60 cents: a front quarter for 40 cents. These prices, low as they were, brought the company$2.00 per head and they still had the hide which they sold to the Mercantile. There it was tanned and made into high-topped shoes for the ladies—all by local labor.

The wage Mr. Ahlstrom earned was five cents per head for butchering, cutting, and selling. (I, William R. Palmer, have a receipt dated in 1881, showing that Mr. Ahlstrom was paid $16.75 for killing 335 sheep over the summer months.)

From Albert Mitchell’s book we find the Ahlstroms were very interested in drama and in 1892 when the old Social Hall was in a dilapidated condition a Stock Company was reorganized, promoted by Joseph T. Wilkinson, and financed mostly by Charles M. Ahlstrom and his sons Magnus and Will Otto. Plans for a new opera house were made in 1895 and it was opened on the Ahlstrom property on corner of First East and First South (now 2nd South). The building was made of lumber double-boarded with heavy cardboard between. The auditorium was 35 x 50 feet including the wings. Scenery and curtains were made by Magnus Ahlstrom, who created some fine wood scenes and street scenes.

The opera house players were not content with the scenery they made at first, and kept adding to it, building special set ups for outstanding dramas—they covered the floor of the stage with canvas hidden with crystal salt. This gave the appearance of water, and whenever they wanted to show a wave all they had to do was to roll the canvas. They built a ship on rollers and a tract for it to move across the stage on. It had candles in the portholes and could be made dark for night scenes. This was use in “Beyond Pardon” and was the talk of the town.

From his obituary notice, it states—“Mr. Ahlstrom was a devoted Latter-day Saint, a kind father and loving and affectionate husband; was of jovial and happy disposition, held in high esteem by his friends. He was a farmer, livestock man and was in legislature. Just prior to this death in 1905 he was door keeper of the House Branch of that Body, and at the time of his death was Justice of the Peace of the Precinct.”

He had property in Cedar, in the field and on Cedar Mountain.

Charles M. Ahlstrom died June 30, 1905, after being thrown from a load of hay he and his son Alonzo were hauling from one of the fields, and after loading their wagon were crossing a water ditch when the father was thrown from the wagon violently to the ground, breaking his thigh bone and injuring him internally, resulting in his death.

An odd thing about the accident, as my mother told me, the night before the accident, grandfather had a dream that one of his sons was thrown off a load of hay when they hit a chuckhole in the road and was killed. So, the next day after loading the wagon he wouldn’t let Lon drive, but drove the wagon himself and so the accident happened as he had dreamed when it hit this ditch and turned a little, throwing him off and injuring him so badly he never recovered. He lost his life saving the life of a son.

Charles M. Ahlstrom was buried in the Cedar City Cemetery on the lot where his wife Sarah and seven babies were buried.