I'm hoping someone can help me. I am researching my husband's family, who is Finnish. Both grandfathers came to the UP (one in 1889, the other, in 1909), recruited to work in the mines (probably Marquette County, but possibly Baraga or Houghton counties). I'm specifically looking for information on which companies recruited miners from Finland in this time frame, particularly 1889. (The g-f who came in 1909 came via Canada. Was this the case in the late 1800s?) I've found lists of Cornish miners (indicating a master list exists somewhere). I also have census listings, but am thinking that if lists exist from the mining companies (and I can identify likely companies), perhaps I can glean additional personal data and info from where in Finland they were recruited. Any ideas would be appreciated. Libby                

Hi! If you they still used their original Finnish names you might get an idea from which part of Finland they came (or even find them if you are lucky) in the Finnish Church records on-line http://www.genealogia.fi/historia/indexe.htm (By the way what were their names?) The genalogical society has a lot of other material on-line http://www.genealogia.fi/indexe.htm You can also search the passport database and passenger database of The Finnish Migration Institute on http://www.migrationinstitute.fi/migration/pl/asp/search_e.asp Good Luck! Håkan Bergström ----- Original Message ----- From: <tjarv@hiwaay.net> To: <MIGEN-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Wednesday, January 14, 2004 6:14 PM Subject: [MIGEN] Finnish Miners in the UP > I'm hoping someone can help me. I am researching my husband's family, > who is Finnish. Both grandfathers came to the UP (one in 1889, the > other, in 1909), recruited to work in the mines (probably Marquette > County, but possibly Baraga or Houghton counties). > > I'm specifically looking for information on which companies recruited > miners from Finland in this time frame, particularly 1889. (The g-f who > came in 1909 came via Canada. Was this the case in the late 1800s?) > > I've found lists of Cornish miners (indicating a master list exists > somewhere). I also have census listings, but am thinking that if lists > exist from the mining companies (and I can identify likely companies), > perhaps I can glean additional personal data and info from where in > Finland they were recruited. > > Any ideas would be appreciated. > > Libby > > > > > > > > >

Thanks for responding, Not to say I've seen everything, but I have been to the sites below and studied them. The problem is, from what I've been told, neither of them used their original Finnish names. The one I'm stuck on right now is the one who came in 1889 (according to US census data). Once here, he took the last name of Laukka. Family lore has it that he took the name of a family he worked for.  Not sure whether this was before he came to the US or after. I find no listing of him (or anything close) in passenger records, or Naturalization records either. From his death certificate, I think he was born in 1869. He made his home in Negaunee, Michigan. And, I'm afraid that's about all I know. I was hoping since he came here in 1889 (before the large migration in the early part of the 1900s), I might find a clue or two in mining company records - if they exist. Thank you again, Libby