Malvin Johan Einarsen

Malvin Johan Einarsen was born on November 17, 1877 to Carl Johan Einarsen and Larsine Karine Andersen in Bergen, Norway. Sometime between 1892 and 1903, he started working as a cook for a steamship. Perhaps as a result of his work, Malvin ended up spending time in the port city of Kristiansund. It was here that he met Anna Slætfjæring, an unmarried woman. During his stay, Malvin and Anna formed an intimate relationship that resulted in her becoming pregnant.

On May 28, 1904, Anna gave birth to their son, Karl. Strangely enough, Malvin was recorded as a witness for his nephew’s baptism in Bergen the following day. Clearly, Malvin had abandoned Anna with their son. Two years later he ended up getting her pregnant yet again. She gave birth to their second son, Anders on June 24, 1906. However, this time, Malvin was not only in a different city but in a different country altogether. Four months earlier, Malvin had emigrated to the United States.

Sometime after his arrival, Malvin started working on the steamship Preston where he remained for approximately two years. The ship’s crew was composed of over twenty Norwegian men who were responsible for shipping goods between the Gulf of Mexico to New Orleans. After World War I began, Malvin continued to work on several different ships based in New Orleans. He eventually registered in the U.S. military on September 23, 1918. However, he didn’t see much action - if any - as World War I ended two months later. On May 20, 1919, Malvin deserted the Steamer Nelson where he had been working as its second cook.

Exactly a year after the war ended, Malvin’s father passed away in Bergen. Furthermore, within the same month, the S.S. Preston and its crew of twenty-seven men were lost at sea while on route to St. Jogo, Cuba. Although this accident happened ten years after Malvin was last reported on the steamship, he undoubtedly knew several of the crewmembers who had perished.

From 1920 to 1924, Malvin is unaccounted for in historical records. However, he possibly returned to Bergen after his father’s death in order to collect his inheritance. Then on December 11, 1925, Malvin joined the Commodore Rollins in Baltimore, Maryland. Less than a month later, he was discharged on January 25th in Mobile, Alabama. Malvin stayed in Mobile for a little less than a month before joining the S.S. Belita as a cook. He worked onboard for four shipping jobs before being discharged in New Orleans on April 29, 1926.

The last historical record to mention Malvin was a newspaper clipping from Sycamore, Illinois. In August of 1930, Malvin visited Inga, his sister, in Sycamore. At the time, he was living in Baltimore and working for the US Navy. The remainder of Malvin’s life is a mystery. However, according to his uncle Petrus, he was “engaged and… thinking of settling in the States for good.”

Comment from Atle Einarsen:

12. Februar 1906 Reiser Malvin som forhyret 7 ansatt på Anker som gikk til New Orlean. Han var 29 år og ugift, han jobbet som skibskokk. Kom han noen gang hjem?