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FOURTH EDITION

Supporting Inquiry-Driven Experiments

Jerry R. Mohrig
David G. Alberg : 2
retchen E. Hofmeister :
ul F. Schatz
Christina Noring Hammond, ae
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 Digitized by the Internet Archive
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https://archive.org/details/laboratorytechni0O000mohr
Laboratory Techniques in
Organic Chemistry
Supporting Inquiry-Driven Experiments

FOURTH EDITION

JERRY R. MOHRIG
Carleton College

DAVID G. ALBERG
Carleton College

GRETCHEN E. HOFMEISTER
Carleton College

PAUL F. SCHATZ
University of Wisconsin, Madison

CHRISTINA NORING HAMMOND

Vassar College

Bis W.H. Freeman and Company

A Macmillan Higher Education Company
Publisher: Jessica Fiorillo
Acquisitions Editor: Bill Minick
Assistant Editor/Development Editor: Courtney Lyons
Associate Director of Marketing: Debbie Clare
Marketing Assistant: Samantha Zimbler
Project Editor: Georgia Lee Hadler
Copyeditor: Margaret Comaskey
Production Manager: Julia DeRosa
Art Director and Designer: Diana Blume
Photo Editors: Eileen Liang, Christine Buese
Project Management/Composition: Ed Dionne, MPS Ltd.
Printing and Binding: R R Donnelley

Library of Congress Control Number: 2013955847

ISBN-13: 978-1-4641-3422-7
ISBN-10: 1-4641-3422-7

© 2014, 2010, 2007, 2003 by W. H. Freeman and Company

All rights reserved

Printed in the United States of America

Third Printing

W. H. Freeman and Company

41 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10010
Houndmills, Basingstoke, RG21 6XS, England
www.whfreeman.com
 CONTENTS

Preface xiii

PART 1 INTRODUCTION TO THE ORGANIC LABORATORY 1

ESSAY—The Role of the Laboratory 1

1 Safety in the Laboratory 3
tel General Safety Information 4
Te Preventing Chemical Exposure 5
123 Preventing Cuts and Burns 8
1.4 Preventing Fires and Explosions 9
at5 What to Do if an Accident Occurs 11
1.6 Chemical Toxicology 13
ifs Identifying Chemicals and Understanding Chemical Hazards 14
1.8 Handling Laboratory Waste 20
Further Reading 21
Questions 21

2 Green Chemistry 22
241 The Principles of Green Chemistry 23
ee. Green Principles Applied to Industrial Processes 24
23 Green Principles Applied to Academic Laboratories 28
Further Reading 31
Questions 32

3. Laboratory Notebooks and Prelab Information 82

onl The Laboratory Notebook 33
Sy Calculation of the Percent Yield 35
38 Sources of Prelaboratory Information 36
Further Reading 39
Questions 39

PART 2 CARRYING OUT CHEMICAL REACTIONS 41

ESSAY—Learning to Do Organic Chemistry 41

4 Laboratory Glassware 44
4.1 Desk Equipment 45
4.2 Miniscale Standard Taper Glassware 45
4.3 Microscale Glassware 47
4.4 Cleaning and Drying Laboratory Glassware 50
Questions 51
vi Contents

5 Measurements and Transferring Reagents De

Dal Using Electronic Balances 52
Bie Transferring Solids to a Reaction Vessel 54
ye) Measuring Volume and Transferring Liquids 55
5.4 Measuring Temperature 62
5.5 Measurement Uncertainty and Error Analysis 64
Further Reading 72
Questions 72

6 Heating and Cooling Methods . 73

6.1 Preventing Bumping of Liquids 73
6.2 Conventional Heating Devices 74
6.3 Heating with Laboratory Microwave Reactors 81
6.4 Cooling Methods 85
6.5 Laboratory Jacks 85
Further Reading 86
Questions 86

7 Setting Up Organic Reactions 86

7a Refluxing a Reaction Mixture 87
Ue Addition of Reagents During a Reaction 89
7.3 Anhydrous Reaction Conditions 90
7.4 Inert Atmosphere Reaction Conditions 93
75 Transfer of Liquids by Syringe Without Exposure to Air 101
7.6 Removal of Noxious Vapors 103
Further Reading 106
Questions 106

8 Computational Chemistry 107

8.1 Picturing Molecules on the Computer 107
8.2 Molecular Mechanics Method 109
8.3 Quantum Mechanics Methods: Ab Initio, Semiempirical, and DFT 115
8.4 Which Computational Method Is Best? 121
8.5 Sources of Confusion and Common Pitfalls 121
Further Reading 124
Questions 124

PART 3 BASIC METHODS FOR SEPARATION, PURIFICATION,

AND ANALYSIS Tz?

ESSAY—Intermolecular Forces in Organic Chemistry Vey

9 Filtration 132
9.1 Filtering Media 132
oF Gravity Filtration 134
eke Small-Scale Gravity Filtration 135
9.4 Vacuum Filtration 137
oD Other Liquid-Solid and Liquid-Liquid Separation Techniques 140
Contents Vil

9.6 Sources of Confusion and Common Pitfalls 140

Questions 142

10 Extraction 142
10.1 Understanding How Extraction Works 143
10.2 Changing Solubility with Acid-Base Chemistry 147
10.3. Doing Extractions 149
10.4 ~=Miniscale Extractions 152
10.5 Summary of the Miniscale Extraction Procedure 155
10.6 Microscale Extractions 155
10.6a EQUIPMENT AND TECHNIQUES COMMON TO MICROSCALE EXTRACTIONS 156
10.6b Microscale ExTRACTIONS WITH AN ORGANIC PHASE Less DENSE THAN Water 158
10.6c Microscale EXTRACTIONS WITH AN ORGANIC PHASE More DeNse THAN WateR 160
10.7. Sources of Confusion and Common Pitfalls 161
Questions 163

11 Drying Organic Liquids and Recovering Reaction Products 163

11 Drying Agents 163
11.2. Methods for Separating Drying Agents from Organic Liquids 166
11.3. Sources of Confusion and Common Pitfalls 168
11.4. Recovery of an Organic Product from a Dried Extraction Solution 169
Questions 173

12 Boiling Points and Distillation 173

12.1. Determination of Boiling Points 174
12.2. Distillation and Separation of Mixtures 176
12.3. Simple Distillation 180
12.3a MiINISCALE DISTILLATION 180
12.3b MiINiscALe SHORT-PATH DisTILLATION 183
12.3c Microscale DISTILLATION USING STANDARD TAPER 14/10 ApparATUS 184
12.3d Microscate DIsTILLATION USING WILLIAMSON APPARATUS 187
12.4‘ Fractional Distillation 188
12.5. Azeotropic Distillation 193
12.6 Steam Distillation 194
12.7. Vacuum Distillation 197
12.8 Sources of Confusion and Common Pitfalls 203
Further Reading 205
Questions 205

163 Refractometry 206

1s The Refractive Index 206
13.2 TheRefractometer 208
13.3. Determining a Refractive Index 208
13.4. Sources of Confusion and Common Pitfalls 211
Questions 211

14 Melting Points and Melting Ranges 211

14.1. Melting-Point Theory 212
14.2. Apparatus for Determining Melting Ranges 213
Vill Contents

14.3. Determining Melting Ranges 215

14.4. Summary of Melting-Point Technique 217
14.5 Using Melting Points to Identify Compounds 218
14.6 — Sources of Confusion and Common Pitfalls 219
Further Reading 220
Questions 220

15 Recrystallization 224
15.1. Introduction to Recrystallization 221
15.2 Summary of the Recrystallization Process 223
15.3. Carrying Out Successful Recrystallizations 224
15.4 How to Select a Recrystallization Solvent 225
15.5 Miniscale Procedure for Recrystallizing a Solid 228
15.6 Microscale Recrystallization 231
15.7. Microscale Recrystallization Using a Craig Tube 232
15.8 Sources of Confusion and Common Pitfalls 234
Questions 235

16 Sublimation 236
16.1 Sublimation of Solids 236
16.2. Assembling the Apparatus for a Sublimation 237
16.3. Carrying Out a Microscale Sublimation 238
16.4 Sources of Confusion and Common Pitfalls 239
Questions 239

17. Optical Activity and Enantiomeric Analysis 240

17.1. Mixtures of Optical Isomers: Separation/Resolution 240
17.2 Polarimetric Techniques 243
17.3. Analyzing Polarimetric Readings 247
17.4. Modern Methods of Enantiomeric Analysis 248
17.5 Sources of Confusion and Common Pitfalls 250
Questions 251

PART 4 CHROMATOGRAPHY 253

ESSAY— Modern Chromatographic Separations 253

18 Thin-Layer Chromatography 255

18.1 Plates for Thin-Layer Chromatography 256
18.2. Sample Application 257
18.3. Development of aTLC Plate 260
18.4 Visualization Techniques 261
18.5. Analysis of a Thin-Layer Chromatogram 263
18.6 Summary of TLC Procedure 264
18.7. How to Choose a Developing Solvent When None Is Specified 265
18.8 Using TLC Analysis in Synthetic Organic Chemistry 267
18.9 Sources of Confusion and Common Pitfalls 267
Contents ix

Further Reading 269

Questions 269

19 Liquid Chromatography 270

19.1. Adsorbents 270
19.2. Elution Solvents 272
19.3. Determining the Column Size 273
19.4 Flash Chromatography 275
19.5. Microscale Liquid Chromatography 281
19.5a PREPARATION AND ELUTION OF A MICROSCALE COLUMN 281
19.5b PREPARATION AND ELUTION OF A WILLIAMSON MICROSCALE COLUMN 283
19.6 Summary of Liquid Chromatography Procedures 285
19.7 Sources of Confusion and Common Pitfalls 285
19.8 High-Performance Liquid Chromatography 287
Further Reading 291
Questions 291

20 Gas Chromatography 291

20.1 ‘Instrumentation for GC 293
20.2. Types of Columns and Liquid Stationary Phases 294
20.3. Detectors 296
20.4 — Recorders and Data Stations 297
20.5 GC Operating Procedures 299
20.6 Sources of Confusion and Common Pitfalls 303
20.7 Identification of Compounds Shown on a Chromatogram 304
20.8 Quantitative Analysis 305
Further Reading 308
Questions 308

PART 5 SPECTROMETRIC METHODS 309

ESSAY—The Spectrometric Revolution 309

21 Infrared Spectroscopy 311

21a IR Spectra 311
21.2. Molecular Vibrations 311
21.3. IR Instrumentation 316
21.4 Operating an FTIR Spectrometer 319
21.5 Sample Preparation for Transmission IR Spectra 319
21.6 Sample Preparation for Attenuated Total Reflectance (ATR) Spectra 323
21.7 —_ Interpreting IR Spectra 325
21.8 IR Peaks of Major Functional Groups 330
21.9 Procedure for Interpreting an IR Spectrum 338
21.10 Case Study 339
Sources of Confusion and Common Pitfalls 341
Further Reading 344
Questions 344
 Contents

72 Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy 348

22 NMR Instrumentation 350
22.2 Preparing Samples for NMR Analysis 353
22.3. Summary of Steps for Preparing an NMR Sample 357
22.4 Interpreting 'H NMR Spectra 357
22.5 How Many Types of Protons Are Present? 357
22.6 Counting Protons (Integration) 358
22.7 Chemical Shift 359
22.8 Quantitative Estimation of Chemical Shifts 366
22.9 Spin-Spin Coupling (Splitting) 377
22.10 Sources of Confusion and Common Pitfalls 391
22.11 Two Case Studies 398
Further Reading 405
Questions 405

23 °C and Two-Dimensional NMR Spectroscopy 408

23.1 °C NMR Spectra 408
23.2 'C Chemical Shifts 412
23.3. Quantitative Estimation of '*C Chemical Shifts 417
23.4 Determining Numbers of Protons on Carbon Atoms—APT and DEPT 427
23.5 Case Study 429
23.6 | Two-Dimensional Correlated Spectroscopy (2D COSY) 431
Further Reading 435
Questions 435

24 Mass Spectrometry 441

24.1 Mass Spectrometers 442
24.2 Mass Spectra and the Molecular lon 446
24.3. High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry 450
24.4 Mass Spectral Libraries 451
24.5 Fragmentlons 453
24.6 Case Study 459
24.7. Sources of Confusion 461
Further Reading 462
Questions 462

25 Ultraviolet and Visible Spectroscopy 465

25.1 UV-VIS Spectra and Electronic Excitation 466
25.2 UV-VIS Instrumentation 471
25.3. Preparing Samples and Operating the Spectrometer 472
25.4 Sources of Confusion and Common Pitfalls 474
Further Reading 475
Questions 475

26 Integrated Spectrometry Problems 476

Contents xi

PART 6 DESIGNING AND CARRYING OUT

ORGANIC EXPERIMENTS 485

ESSAY—Inquiry-Driven Lab Experiments 485

27 Designing Chemical Reactions 488

27.1. Reading Between the Lines: Carrying Out Reactions Based on
Literature Procedures 488
27.2 Modifying the Scale of a Reaction 494
27.3. Case Study: Synthesis of a Solvatochromic Dye 497
27.4 Case Study: Oxidation of a Secondary Alcohol to a Ketone 499
Further Reading 500

28 Using the Literature of Organic Chemistry 501

28.1 The Literature of Organic Chemistry 501
28.2 Searching the Literature of Organic Chemistry 504
28.3. Planning a Multistep Synthesis 506

Index 511
 PREFACE

In preparing this Fourth Edition of Laboratory Techniques in Organic Chemistry, we have

maintained our emphasis on the fundamental techniques that students encounter in
the organic chemistry laboratory. We have also expanded our emphasis on the critical-
thinking skills that students need to successfully carry out inquiry-driven experiments.
The use of guided-inquiry and design-based experiments and projects is arguably the most
important recent development in the teaching of the undergraduate organic chemistry lab,
and it provides the most value added for our students.
Organic chemistry is an experimental science, and students learn its process in the
laboratory. Our primary goal should be to teach students how to carry out well-designed
experiments and draw reasonable conclusions from their results—a process at the heart of
science. We should work to find opportunities that engage students in addressing ques-
tions whose answers come from their experiments, in an environment where they can
succeed. These opportunities should be designed to catch students’ interest, transforming
them from passive spectators to active participants. A well-written and comprehensive
textbook on the techniques of experimental organic chemistry is an important asset in
reaching these goals.

Changes in the Fourth Edition

The Fourth Edition of Laboratory Techniques in Organic Chemistry builds on our strengths in ba-
sic lab techniques and spectroscopy, and includes a number of new features. To make it easier
for students to locate the content relevant to their experiments, icons distinguish the tech-
niques specific to each of the three common types of lab glassware —miniscale standard taper,
microscale standard taper, and Williamson glassware—and also highlight safety concerns.

Stl@
Sections on microwave reactors, flash chromatography, green chemistry, handling air-
sensitive reagents, and measurement uncertainty and error analysis have been added or
updated. The newly added Part 6 emphasizes the skills students need to carry out inquiry-
driven experiments, especially designing and carrying out experiments based on literature
sources. Many sections concerning basic techniques have been modified and reorganized
to better meet the practical needs of students as they encounter laboratory work. Addi-
tional questions have also been added to a number of chapters to help solidify students’
understanding of the techniques.
Short essays provide context for each of the six major parts of the Fourth Edition,
on topics from the role of the laboratory to the spectrometric revolution. The essay
“Intermolecular Forces in Organic Chemistry” provides the basis for subsequent discus-
sions on organic separation and purification techniques, and the essay “Inquiry-Driven Lab
Experiments” sets the stage for using guided-inquiry and design-based experiments.
Rewritten sections on sources of confusion and common pitfalls help students avoid and
solve technical problems that could easily discourage them if they did not have this prac-
tical support. We believe that these features provide an effective learning tool for students
of organic chemistry.
XIV Preface

Who Should Use This Book?

The book is intended to serve as a laboratory textbook of experimental techniques for all
students of organic chemistry. It can be used in conjunction with any lab experiments to
provide the background information necessary for developing and mastering the skills
required for organic chemistry lab work. Laboratory Techniques in Organic Chemistry offers
a great deal of flexibility. It can be used in any organic laboratory with any glassware. The
basic techniques for using miniscale standard taper glassware as well as microscale 14/10
standard taper or Williamson glassware are all covered. The miniscale glassware that is
described is appropriate with virtually any 14/20 or 19/22 standard taper glassware kit.

Modern Instrumentation

Instrumental methods play a crucial role in supporting modern experiments, which pro-
vide the active learning opportunities instructors seek for their students. We feature instru-
mental methods that offer quick, reliable, quantitative data. NMR spectroscopy and gas
chromatography are particularly important. Our emphasis is on how to acquire good data
and how to read spectra efficiently, with real understanding. Chapters on 'H and °C NMR,
IR, and mass spectrometry stress the practical interpretation of spectra and how they can
be used to answer questions posed in an experimental context. They describe how to deal
with real laboratory samples and include case studies of analyzed spectra.

Organization
The book is divided into six parts:
e Part 1 has chapters on safety, green chemistry, and the lab notebook.
° Part 2 discusses lab glassware, measurements, heating and cooling methods,
setting up organic reactions, and computational chemistry.
° Part 3 introduces filtration, extraction, drying organic liquids and recovering
products, distillation, refractometry, melting points, recrystallization, and the
measurement of optical activity.
* Part 4 presents the three chromatographic techniques widely used in the organic
laboratory—thin-layer, liquid, and gas chromatography.
e Part 5 discusses IR, 'H and °C NMR, MS, and UV-VIS spectra in some detail.
e Part 6 introduces the design and workup of chemical reactions based on
procedures in the literature of organic chemistry.
Traditional organic qualitative analysis is available on our Web site:
www.whfreeman.com/mohrig4e.

Modern Projects and Experiments in Organic Chemistry

The accompanying laboratory manual, Modern Projects and Experiments in Organic Chemis-
try, comes in two complete versions:
° Modern Projects and Experiments in Organic Chemistry: Miniscale and Standard Taper
Microscale (ISBN 0-7167-9779-8)
° Modern Projects and Experiments in Organic Chemistry: Miniscale and Williamson
Microscale (ISBN 0-7167-3921-6)
Preface XV

Modern Projects and Experiments is a combination of inquiry-based and traditional

experiments, plus multiweek inquiry-based projects. It is designed to provide quality
content, student accessibility, and instructor flexibility. This laboratory manual introduces
students to the way the contemporary organic lab actually functions and allows them to
experience the process of science. All of its experiments and projects are also available
through LabPartner Chemistry.

LabPartner Chemistry
W. H. Freeman’s latest offering in custom lab manuals provides instructors with a diverse
and extensive database of experiments published by W. H. Freeman and Hayden-McNeil
Publishing—all in an easy-to-use, searchable online system. With the click of a button,
instructors can choose from a variety of traditional and inquiry-based labs, including the
experiments from Modern Projects and Experiments in Organic Chemistry. LabPartner Chem-
istry sorts labs in a number of ways, from topic, title, and author, to page count, estimated
completion time, and prerequisite knowledge level. Add content on lab techniques and
safety, reorder the labs to fit your syllabus, and include your original experiments with
ease. Wrap it all up in an array of bindings, formats, and designs. It’s the next step in cus-
tom lab publishing. Visit http:/ /www.whfreeman.com/labpartner to learn more.

Acknowledgments
We have benefited greatly from the insights and thoughtful critiques of the reviewers for
this edition:
Dan Blanchard, Kutztown University of Pennsylvania
Jackie Bortiatynski, Pennsylvania State University
Christine DiMeglio, Yale University
John Dolhun, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Jane Greco, Johns Hopkins University
Rich Gurney, Simmons College
James E. Hanson, Seton Hall University
Paul R. Hanson, University of Kansas
Steven A. Kinsley, Washington University in St. Louis
Deborah Lieberman, University of Cincinnati
Joan Mutanyatta-Comar, Georgia State University
Owen P. Priest, Northwestern University
Nancy I. Totah, Syracuse University
Steven M. Wietstock, University of Notre Dame
Courtney Lyons, our editor at W. H. Freeman and Company, was great in so many
ways throughout the project, from the beginning to its final stages; her skillful editing
and thoughtful critiques have made this a better textbook and it has been a pleasure to
work with her. We especially thank Jane Wissinger of the University of Minnesota and
Steven Drew and Elisabeth Haase, our colleagues at Carleton College, who provided
helpful insights regarding specific chapters for this edition. The entire team at Freeman,
especially Georgia Lee Hadler and Julia DeRosa, have been effective in coordinating the
XVI Preface

copyediting and publication processes. We thank Diana Blume for her creative design
elements. Finally, we express heartfelt thanks for the patience and support of our spouses,
Adrienne Mohrig, Ellie Schatz, and Bill Hammond, during the several editions of Labora-
tory Techniques in Organic Chemistry.
We hope that teachers and students of organic chemistry find our approach to laboratory
techniques effective, and we would be pleased to hear from those who use our book. Please
write to us in care of the Chemistry Acquisitions Editor at W. H. Freeman and Company,
41 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10010, or e-mail us at [email protected].
 PART

Introduction to the
Organic Laboratory

Essay —The Role of the Laboratory

Organic chemistry provides us with a framework to understand ourselves and the
world in which we live. Organic compounds are present everywhere in our lives—they
comprise the food, fabrics, cosmetics, and medications that we use on a daily basis. By
studying how the molecules of life interact with one another, we can understand the
chemical processes that sustain life and discover new compounds that could potentially
transform our lives. For example, organic chemistry was used to discover the cholesterol-
lowering blockbuster drug, Lipitor®. Current research in organic semiconductors,
which are more flexible, cheaper, and lighter in weight than silicon-based components,
could lead to solar cells incorporated into clothing, backpacks, and virtually anything.
The purpose of this textbook is to provide you with the skills and knowledge to make
new discoveries like these, view the world from a new perspective, and ultimately har-
ness the power of organic chemistry.

It is in the laboratory that we learn “how we know what we know.” The lab deals
with the processes of scientific inquiry that organic chemists use. Although the tech-
niques may at first appear complicated and mysterious, they are essential tools for
addressing the central questions of this experimental science, which include:

e What chemical compounds are present in this material?

e What is this compound and what are its properties?
e Is this compound pure?
e How could I make this compound?
° How does this reaction take place?
e How can I separate my product from other reaction side products?

Keep in mind that the skills you will be learning are very practical and there is a
reason for each and every step. You should make it your business to understand why
these steps are necessary and how they accomplish the desired result. If you can answer
 Part 1 ¢ Introduction to the Organic Laboratory

these questions for every lab session, you have fulfilled the most basic criterion for
satisfactory lab work.

You may also have opportunities to test your own ideas by designing new experi-
ments. Whenever you venture into the unknown, it becomes even more important to be
well informed and organized before you start any experiments. Safety should be a primary
concern, so you will need to recognize potential hazards, anticipate possible outcomes,
and responsibly dispose of chemical waste. In order to make sense of your data and
report your findings to others, you will need to keep careful records of your experi-
ments. The first section of this textbook introduces you to reliable sources of informa-
tion, safety procedures, ways to protect the environment, and standards for laboratory
record-keeping. It is important to make these practices part of your normal laboratory
routine. If you are ever unsure about your preparation for lab, ask your instructor.

There is no substitute for witnessing chemical transformations and performing

separation processes in the laboratory. Lab work enlivens the chemistry that you are
learning “on paper” and helps you understand how things work. Color changes, phase
changes, and spectral data are fun to witness and fun to analyze and understand. Enjoy
this opportunity to experiment in chemistry and come to lab prepared and with your
brain engaged!
"1 CHAPTER

~ SAFETY
IN THE LABORATORY
Carrie used a graduated cylinder to measure a volume of concentrated acid
solution at her lab bench. As she prepared to record data in her notebook
later in the day, she picked up her pen from the bench-top and absent-
All of the stories mindedly started chewing on the cap. Suddenly, she felt a burning sensa-
in this chapter are tion in her mouth and yelled, “It’s hot!” The lab instructor directed her
based on the authors’ to the sink to thoroughly rinse her mouth with water and she suffered no
experiences working long-term injury.
and teaching in This incident is like most laboratory accidents; it resulted from
the lab. inappropriate lab practices and inattention, and it was preventable.
Carrie should have handled the concentrated acid in a fume hood
and, with advice from her instructor, immediately cleaned up the
acid she must have spilled. She should never have introduced any
object in the lab into her mouth. With appropriate knowledge, most
accidents are easily remedied. In this case, the instructor knew from
her shout what the exposure must have been and advocated a rea-
sonable treatment.
Accidents in teaching laboratories are extremely rare; instruc-
tors with 20 years of teaching experience may witness fewer than
five mishaps. Instructors and institutions continually implement
changes to the curriculum and laboratory environment that improve
safety. Experiments are now designed to use very small amounts
of material, which minimizes the hazards associated with chemi-
cal exposure and fire. Laboratories provide greater access to fume
hoods for performing reactions, and instructors choose the least
hazardous materials for accomplishing transformations. Neverthe-
less, you play an important role in ensuring that the laboratory is as
safe as possible.
You can rely on this textbook and your teacher for instruction
in safe and proper laboratory procedures. You are responsible
for developing good laboratory habits: Know and understand
the laboratory procedure and associated hazards, practice good
technique, and be aware of your actions and the actions of those
around you. Habits like these are transferable to other situations
and developing them will not only enable you to be effective in
the laboratory but also help you to become a valuable employee
and citizen.
The goal of safety training is to manage hazards in order to
minimize the risk of accidental chemical exposure, personal injury,
or damage to property or the environment.

¢ Before you begin laboratory work, familiarize yourself with

the general laboratory safety rules (listed below) that govern
work at any institution.
e At the first meeting of your lab class, learn institutional safety
policies regarding personal protective equipment (PPE), the
location and use of safety equipment, and procedures to be
followed in emergency situations.
e For each individual experiment, note the safety considerations
identified in the description of the procedure, the hazards
 Part1 ¢ Introduction to the Organic Laboratory

associated with the specific chemicals you will use, and the
waste disposal instructions.
In addition to knowledge of basic laboratory safety, you need
to learn how to work safely with organic chemicals. Many organic
compounds are flammable or toxic. Many can be absorbed through
the skin; others are volatile and can be ingested by inhalation.
Become familiar with and use chemical hazard documentation,
such as the Globally Harmonized System (GHS) of hazard informa-
tion and Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs) or Safety Data Sheets
(SDSs). Despite the hazards, organic compounds can be handled
with a minimum of risk if you are adequately informed about the
hazards and safe handling procedures, and if you use common
sense while you are in the lab.

1.1 General Safety Information

General Safety 1. Do not work alone in the laboratory. Being alone in a situation
Rules in which accidents can occur can be life threatening.
2. Always perform an experiment as specified. Do not modify the
conditions or perform new experiments without authorization
from your instructor.
3. Wear clothing that covers and protects your body; use appro-
priate protective equipment, such as goggles and gloves; and
tie back long hair at all times in the laboratory. Shorts, tank
tops, bare feet, sandals, or high heels are not suitable attire for
the lab. Loose clothing and loose long hair are fire hazards or
could become entangled in an apparatus. Wear safety glasses or
chemical splash goggles at all times in the laboratory. Labora-
tory aprons or coats may be required by your instructor.
4. Be aware of others working near you and the hazards associ-
ated with their experiments. Often the person hurt worst in an
accident is the one standing next to the place where the accident
occurred. Communicate with others and make them aware of
the hazards associated with your work.
5. Never eat, drink, chew gum, apply makeup, or remove or
insert contact lenses in the laboratory. Never directly inhale
or taste any substance or introduce any laboratory equipment,
such as a piece of glassware or a writing utensil, into your
mouth. Wash your hands with soap and water before you leave
the laboratory to avoid accidentally contaminating the outside
environment, including items that you may place into your
mouth with your hands.
6. Notify your instructor if you have chemical sensitivities or
allergies or if you are pregnant. Discuss these conditions and
the advisability of working in the organic chemistry laboratory
with appropriate medical professionals.
7. Read and understand the hazard documentation regarding
any chemicals you plan to use in an experiment. This can be
found in Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs) or Safety Data
Sheets (SDSs).
Chapter 1 © Safety in the Laboratory 5

8. Know where to find and how to use safety equipment, such as

the eye wash station, safety shower, fire extinguisher, fire blan-
ket, first aid kit, telephone, and fire alarm pulls.
9. Report injuries, accidents, and other incidents to your instructor
and follow his or her instructions for treatment and documentation.
10. Properly dispose of chemical waste, including chemically
contaminated disposable materials, such as syringes, pipets,
gloves, and paper. Do not dispose of any chemicals by pouring
them down the drain or putting them in the trash can without
approval from your instructor.

Chemical Hygiene Your institution will have a chemical hygiene plan that outlines the
Plan safety regulations and procedures that apply in your laboratory. It will
provide contact information and other information about local safety
rules and processes for managing laboratory fires, injuries, chemical
spills, and chemical waste. You can search the institutional web pages
or ask your instructor for access to the chemical hygiene plan.

14 Preventing Chemical Exposure

Mary was wearing nitrile gloves while performing an extraction with
dichloromethane. Although she spilled some solution on her gloves, she
continued working until she felt her hands burning. She peeled off the
gloves and washed her hands thoroughly, but a burning sensation under
her ring persisted for 5 to 10 minutes thereafter. She realized that the
dichloromethane solution easily passed through her gloves and she won-
dered whether her exposure to dichloromethane and the compounds dis-
solved in it would have an adverse effect on her health.

Personal Protective This example illustrates the importance of understanding the level
Equipment of protection provided by personal protective equipment (PPE) and
other safety features in the laboratory.
e Never assume that clothing, gloves, lab coats, or aprons
will protect you from every kind of chemical exposure. If
chemicals are splashed onto your clothing or your gloves,
remove the articles immediately and thoroughly wash the
affected area of your body.
e If you spill a chemical directly on your skin, wash the affected
area thoroughly with water for 10-15 min, and notify your
instructor.

Eye protection. Safety glasses with side shields have impact-

resistant lenses that protect your eyes from flying particles, but they
provide little protection from chemicals. Chemical splash goggles
fit snugly against your face and will guard against the impact from
flying objects and protect your eyes from liquid splashes, chemical
vapors, and particulate or corrosive chemicals. These are the best
choice for the organic chemistry laboratory and your instructor will
be able to recommend an appropriate style to purchase. If you wear
prescription eyeglasses, you should wear chemical splash goggles
 Part 1 ¢ Introduction to the Organic Laboratory

over your corrective lenses. Contact lenses could be damaged from

exposure to chemicals and therefore you should not wear them in
the laboratory. Nevertheless, many organizations have removed
restrictions on wearing contact lenses in the lab because concerns
that they contribute to the likelihood or severity of eye damage
seem to be unfounded. If you choose to wear contact lenses in the
laboratory, you must also wear chemical splash goggles to protect
your eyes. Because wearing chemical splash goggles is one of the
most important steps you can take to safely work in the laboratory,
we will use a splash goggle icon (see margin figure) to identify
important safety information throughout this textbook.

Protective attire. Clothes should cover your body from your neck to
at least your knees and shoes should completely cover your feet in
the laboratory. Cotton clothing is best because synthetic fabrics could
melt in a fire or undergo a reaction that causes the fabric to adhere to
the skin and severely burn it. Wearing a lab coat or apron will help
protect your body. For footwear, leather provides better protection
than other fabrics against accidental chemical spills. Your institution
may have more stringent requirements for covering your body.

Disposable gloves. Apart from goggles, gloves are the most com-
mon form of PPE used in the organic laboratory. Because disposable
gloves are thin, many organic compounds permeate them quickly
and they provide “splash protection” only. This means that once
you spill chemicals on your gloves, you should remove them,
wash your hands thoroughly, and put on a fresh pair of gloves.
Ask your instructor how to best dispose of contaminated gloves.
Table 1.1 lists a few common chemicals and the chemical resis-
tance to each one provided by three common types of gloves. A

TARE tot Chemical resistance of common types of gloves

to various compounds
Glove type

Compound Neoprene Nitrile Latex

Acetone Good Fair Good

Chloroform Good Poor Poor
Dichloromethane Fair Poor Poor
Diethyl! ether Very good Good Poor
Ethanol Very good Good Good
Ethyl acetate Good Poor Fair
Hexane Excellent Excellent Poor
Hydrogen peroxide Excellent Good Good
Methanol Very good Fair Fair
Nitric acid (conc.) Good Poor Poor
Sodium hydroxide Very good Good Excellent
Sulfuric acid (conc.) | Good Poor Poor
Toluene Fair Fair Poor

The information in this table was compiled from http://www.microflex.com,

http:/Awww.ansellpro.com, and “Chemical Resistance and Barrier Guide for Nitrile
and Natural Rubber Latex Gloves,” Safeskin Corporation, San Diego, CA, 1999.
Chapter 1 © Safety in the Laboratory vA

FIGURE 1.1 A typical

chemical fume hood. Gretchen
Hofmeist

more extensive chemical resistance table for types of gloves may

be posted in your laboratory. Additional information on disposable
gloves and tables listing glove types and their chemical resistance
are also available from many websites, for example:
http:/ /www.microflex.com
http:/ /www.ansellpro.com
http:/ /chemistry.umeche.maine.edu /Safety.html

Chemical Fume You can protect yourself from accidentally inhaling noxious chemi-
Hoods cal fumes, toxic vapors, or dust from finely powdered materials by
handling chemicals inside a fume hood. A typical fume hood with
a movable sash is depicted in Figure 1.1. The sash is constructed
of laminated safety glass and can open and close either vertically
or horizontally. When the hood is turned on, a continuous flow of
air sweeps over the bench top and removes vapors or fumes from
the area. The volume of air that flows through the sash opening is
constant, so the rate of flow, or face velocity, is greater when the
sash is closed than when it is open. Most hoods have stops or signs
indicating the maximum open sash position that is safe for handling
chemicals. If you are unsure what is a safe sash position for the
hoods in your laboratory, ask your instructor.
Because many compounds used in the organic laboratory are at
least potentially dangerous, the best practice is to run every experi-
ment in a hood, if possible. Your instructor will tell you when an
experiment must be carried out in a hood.
e Make sure that the hood is turned on before you use it.
e Never position your face near the sash opening or place your
head inside a hood when chemicals are present. Keep the
sash in front of your face so that you look through the sash to
monitor what is inside the hood.
e Place chemicals and equipment at least six inches behind the
sash opening.
 Another Random Document on
Scribd Without Any Related Topics
family in 1831, and bought fifty acres of land, which after four years
of cultivation he sold at a profit of $500. Writing to a friend near
Stavanger in 1835, he spoke in terms of high praise of American
legislation, equality, and liberty, contrasting it with the extortion of
the Norwegian official aristocracy. He counseled all who could to
come to America, as the Creator had nowhere forbidden men to
settle where they pleased.[42] Of this and other letters by Hovland,
copies were made by the hundred and circulated in the Norwegian
parishes, and many of the early immigrants have stated that they
were induced to emigrate by reading these letters.[43] Another man
whose words prompted to emigration, was Gudmund Sandsberg,
who came to New York in 1829 with a family of four.[44]
These letters scattered through western Norway from 1830 to 1840,
were as seed sown in good ground. Times were hard; money was
scarce and its value fluctuating.[45] The crops were often short, the
prices of grain were high, and the demand for the labor of the
peasants was weak; the economic conditions of the lower classes,
especially in the rural districts—much the greater part of the country
—were growing worse rather than better.[46] Even the oldest son,
who was heir to his father’s homestead, was likely to find himself
possessed of a debt-burdened estate and with the necessity of
providing for the mother and numerous younger children.[47] The
younger sons, being still worse off, were forced to try their hands at
various occupations to earn a bare living. Ole Nattestad, already
mentioned, was by turns before his emigration farmer, peddler,
blacksmith, and sheep-buyer.[48] To many a man with a large family
of growing children the possibility of disaster in the United States
was less forbidding than the probability of ultimate failure in Norway.
But not to occasional letters alone was the peasant,—and the
emigration movement—to be left for information and inspiration.
Young men who had prospered in the new life returned to the
homesteads of their fathers and became, temporarily, missionaries of
the new economic gospel, teaching leisurely but effectively by word
of mouth and face to face, instead of by written lines at long range.
One such man was Knud A. Slogvig, who returned to his home in
Skjold in 1835 after ten years in America, not as an emigrant agent
nor as a propagandist, but as a lover to marry his betrothed,—an
early example which thousands of young Scandinavians in the years
to come were to follow gladly.[49] Whatever may have been the
results of his visit to Slogvig personally, they were of far-reaching
importance to the emigration movement in western Norway. From
near and from far, from Stavanger, from Bergen and vicinity, and
from the region about Christiansand, people came during the long
northern winter, to talk with this experienced and worldly-wise man
about life in New York or in Illinois—or, in their own phrase, “i
Amerika.” There before them at last, was a man who had twice
braved all the terrors of thousands of miles of sea and hundreds of
miles of far-distant land, who had come straight and safe from that
fabulous vast country, with its great broad valleys and prairies, with
its strange white men, and stranger red men. The “America fever”
contracted in conferences with Slogvig and men of his kind, was
hard to shake off.[50]
The accounts of America given by this emigrant visitor were so
satisfactory, that when he prepared to go back to the United States
in 1836, a large party was ready to go with him. Instead of the fifty-
two who slipped out of Stavanger, half-secretly in 1825, there were
now about 160, for whose accommodation two brigs, Norden and
Den Norske Klippe, were specially fitted out.[51] The increased size
of this party was doubtless due in some measure to discontent with
the religious conditions of the kingdom, but more to the activity of
Björn Anderson Kvelve, who desired to escape the consequences of
his sympathy with Quakerism, and of the marriage which he, the son
of a peasant, had contracted with the daughter of an aristocratic,
staunchly Lutheran army officer.[52] Being, as his son admits, “a
born agitator and debater”—others have called him quarrelsome,—
he persuaded several of his friends to join the party, and he soon
became its leader.[53] The greater part of the two ship-loads, after
arrival in New York, went directly to La Salle County, Illinois, a few
stopping in or near Rochester. For several years after the arrival of
this party, the immigrants from Norway generally directed their
course towards the Illinois settlement, which, as a result, grew
rapidly and spread into the neighboring towns of Norway, Leland,
Lisbon, Morris, and Ottawa.
The actual process of migration from Norway to Illinois or Wisconsin
was full of serious difficulty, and to be entered upon by those only
who possessed a strong determination and a stout heart. The
dangers, discomforts, and hardships which everywhere attended
immigration before 1850, were made even more trying, in prospect,
by the weird stories of wild Indians, slave-hunters, and savage
beasts on land and sea, all of which were thoroly believed by the
peasants. Moreover, the church took a hand to prevent emigration,
the bishop of Bergen issuing a pastoral letter on the theme: “Bliv i
Landet, ernær dig redelig.” (Remain in the land and support thyself
honestly.)[54] Until a much later time, no port of Norway or Sweden
had regular commercial intercourse with the United States, and only
by rare chance could passage be secured from Bergen or some
southern port direct to New York or Boston. The usual course for
those desiring passage to America was to go to some foreign port
and there wait for a ship; it was good luck if accommodation were
secured immediately and if the expensive waiting did not stretch out
two or three weeks. The port most convenient for the Norwegians
was Gothenburg in Sweden, from which cargoes of Swedish iron
were shipped to America; from that place most of the emigrants
before 1840 departed, tho some went by way of Hamburg, Havre, or
an English port.
Long after 1850, the immigrants came by sailing vessels because the
rates were, on the whole, cheaper than by steamer; those men who
had large families were especially urged to take the sailing craft.[55]
The days of emigrant agents, through-tickets, and capacious and
comparatively comfortable steerage quarters in great ocean liners
were far in the future; the usual accommodations were poor and
unsanitary; the danger from contagious diseases, scurvy, and actual
famine were very real, especially if the voyage, long at the best, was
prolonged to four and perhaps five months.[56] The cost of passage
varied greatly according to accommodations and according to the
port of departure. Sometimes the passage charge included food,
bedding, and other necessaries, but usually the passengers were
required to furnish these. One company of about 85 in 1837 paid
$60 for each adult, and half fare for children, from Bergen to New
York.[57] In the same year another company of 93 paid $31 for each
adult from Stavanger to New York, without board; still another,
numbering about 100, paid $33 1-3 for each adult passenger from
Drammen in Norway to New York; the Nattestad brothers paid $50
from Gothenburg to Boston.[58] In 1846, a large party went to
Havre, and paid $25 for passage to New York.[59] The extreme
figures, therefore, seem to be about $30 and $60 for passage
between one of the Scandinavian ports and New York or Boston.
When the cost of transportation from the Atlantic seaboard to Illinois
and Wisconsin is added to these figures, it will be plain that a
considerable sum of ready cash, as well as strength and courage,
was necessary for undertaking the transplantation of a whole family
from a Norwegian valley in the mountains to an Illinois prairie.
 CHAPTER IV.

The Rising Stream of Norwegian Immigration.

The second period of Norwegian immigration, extending from 1836

to 1850, is marked by the strengthening and deepening of the
emigration impulse in Norway and by its spread to new districts, and
also by the deflection of the course of the rising stream in the United
States. Not merely in the vicinity of Stavanger, from which a second
party, made up of 93 persons from Egersund, followed the wake of
the first and reached Illinois in 1837, but from Bergen and in the
districts near it, the “America fever” was spreading. The letters of
Hovland circulated there, and at least three men journeyed to
interview Slogvig. Knud Langeland, whose little book on the
Northmen in America is frequently quoted in these pages, relates
how, as a young man of sixteen, his imagination was fired by
reading a small volume written by a German and entitled Journey in
America, which he discovered in the library of a friend in Bergen in
1829; how he read eagerly for several years everything which he
could lay hands on relating to America; and how he gathered all
possible information about the emigration from England, during a
visit to that country in 1834—and then became himself an
immigrant.[60]
By 1837 a goodly number were determined to emigrate, and had
disposed of their holdings of land. A way opened for them to make
the long voyage under especially favorable circumstances. Captain
Behrens, owner and commander of the ship Ægir, on his return to
Bergen in the autumn of 1836, learned that a large party wanted
transportation to America. In New York he had seen vessels fitted up
for the English and German immigrant traffic; he had learned the
requirement, of the laws of the United States on the subject; two
German ministers who returned to Europe in his ship, gave him
further information. He therefore fitted up his vessel for passengers,
and carried out his contract to transport to New York the party which
finally numbered 84, being mainly made up of married men each
with “numerous family,” at least one of which counted eight persons.
[61] From New York the company proceeded to Detroit, where they
were joined by the two Nattestad brothers from Numedal, and from
thence they went by water to Chicago.
Their original intention was to go to the La Salle County settlement,
but in Chicago they met some of the Fox River people, Björn
Anderson among others, who gave such an unfavorable account of
conditions in that colony that the majority determined to seek
another location. At the instigation of certain Americans, presumably
land speculators, a prospecting party of four, including Ole Rynning,
one of the leading spirits of the company, went into the region
directly south of Chicago and finally chose a site on Beaver Creek.
Thither about fifty immigrants went, and began the third Norwegian
settlement, which proved to be the most unfortunate one in the
history of Norwegian immigration. Log huts were built and the winter
passed without unusual hardships, tho it was soon evident that a
mistake was made in settling so far from neighbors and from a base
of supplies at that time of the year when the soil produced nothing.
Serious troubles, however, developed with the spring, and grew with
the summer. The land which appeared so dry and so well-covered
with good grass when it was selected and purchased in August or
September, proved to be so swampy that cultivation was impossible
before June. Malaria attacked the settlers, and as they were beyond
the reach of medical aid, nearly two-thirds of them died before the
end of the summer. The remnant of the colony fled as for their lives,
regardless of houses and lands, and scarcely one of them remained
on the ground by the end of 1838.[62]
One of the victims of these hard experiences was Ole Rynning, who
succumbed to fever in the autumn of 1838. Tho in America scarcely
a year and a half, he is one of the uniquely important figures in the
history of Norwegian immigration. The son of a curate in Ringsaker
in central Norway, and himself dedicated by his parents to the
church, he passed the examinations for entrance to the University of
Christiania, but turned aside to teaching in a private school near
Throndhjem for four years before his emigration.[63] He is invariably
spoken of as a man of generous, philanthropic spirit, genuinely
devoted to the human needs of his fellow immigrants.
Having learned by personal observation in America the answers to
many of the questions which he, as a man of education, had asked
himself in Norway, he took advantage of the confinement following
the freezing of his feet during a long exploring tour in Illinois, to
write a little book of some forty pages, to which he gave the title (in
translation): “A true Account of America, for the Instruction and Use
of the Peasants and Common people, written by a Norwegian who
arrived there in the Month of June, 1837.”[64] The manuscript of this
first of many guidebooks for Norwegian emigrants was taken back to
Norway by Ansten Nattestad and printed in Christiania in 1838.[65] It
plays so large a part in a great movement, that a detailed analysis is
worth presenting.
The preface, bearing the author’s signature and the date, “Illinois,
February 13, 1838,” is translated as follows:
“Dear Countrymen,—Peasants and Artisans! I have now been in
America eight months, and in that time I have had an opportunity of
finding out much in regard to which I in vain sought information
before I left Norway. I then felt how disagreeable it is for those who
wish to emigrate to America to be in want of a reliable and tolerably
complete account of the country. I also learned how great is the
ignorance of the people, and what false and ridiculous reports were
accepted as the full truth. In this little book it has, therefore, been
my aim to answer every question which I asked myself, and to clear
up every point in regard to which I observed that people were
ignorant, and to disprove false reports which have come to my ears,
partly before I left Norway, and partly after my arrival here.”[66]
The body of the book is made up of thirteen chapters devoted to
these questions and their answers:
 1-3. The location of America, the distance from Norway, the
nature of the country, and the reason why so many people go
there.
4. “Is it not to be feared that the land will soon be
overpopulated? Is it true that the government there is going to
prohibit immigration?”
5-6. What part of the land is settled by Norwegians, and how is
it reached? What is the price of land, of cattle, of the
necessaries of life? How high are wages?
7. “What kind of religion is there in America? Is there any sort of
order and government, or can every man do what he pleases?”
8-9. Education, care of the poor, the language spoken in
America, and the difficulties of learning it.
10. Is there danger of disease in America? Is there reason to
fear wild animals and the Indians?
11. Advice as to the kind of people to emigrate, and warning
against unreasonable expectations.
12. “What dangers may be expected on the ocean? Is it true
that those who are taken to America are sold as slaves?”
13. Advice as to vessels, routes, seasons, exchange of money,
etc.

Rynning assured his readers, in the seventh chapter, that America is

not a purely heathen country, but that the Christian religion prevails
with liberty of conscience, and that “here as in Norway, there are
laws, government, and authority, and that the common man can go
where he pleases without passport, and may engage in such
occupation as he likes.”[67] Then follows this strong, significant
paragraph, intelligently describing the slavery system, which
undoubtedly had a powerful influence on the future location, and
hence on the politics, of the immigrants from Scandinavia:
“In the Southern States these poor people (Negroes) are bought and
sold like other property, and are driven to their work with a whip like
horses and oxen. If a master whips his slave to death or in his rage
shoots him dead, he is not looked upon as a murderer.... In Missouri
the slave trade is still permitted, but in Indiana, Illinois, and
Wisconsin Territory it is strictly forbidden, and the institution is
strictly despised.... There will probably soon come a separation
between the Northern and Southern States or a bloody conflict.”
From the account given thirty years afterwards by Ansten Nattestad,
it appears that a chapter on the religious condition of Norway was
omitted by the Rev. Mr. Kragh of Eidsvold, who read the proofs,
because of its criticisms of the clergy for their intolerance, and for
their inactivity in social and educational reforms.[68] This has led
some writers like R. B. Anderson to attribute large weight to religious
persecution as a cause of emigration. While religious repression was
a real grievance and affected many of the early emigrants, the cases
where it was the moving or dominant cause of emigration after 1835
are so few as to be almost negligible.[69] At best, it re-enforced and
completed a determination based on other motives. For most
Norwegian dissenters, the Haugians for example, lack of toleration
was rather an annoyance than a distress, save, perhaps, for the
more persistent and turbulent leaders.[70] It is hardly fair, therefore,
to compare them, as a whole, with the Huguenots of France.[71]
In the years immediately following 1838, the “America Book,”
distributed from Christiania, went on its missionary journeys and
reached many parishes where the disaster at Beaver Creek and the
untimely death of Ole Rynning had never been heard of. By its
compact information and its intelligent advice, it converted many to
the new movement. The diary of Ole Nattestad, printed in Drammen
in the same year, seems to have exerted very little influence, but the
visit of his brother Ansten to his home in Numedal, in east-central
Norway, a hitherto unstirred region, awakened keen and active
interest in America, and again men travelled as far as 125 English
miles to meet one who had returned from the vast land beyond the
Atlantic.[72]
The first party from Numedal left Drammen in the spring of 1839,
under the leadership of Nattestad, and went directly to New York. It
numbered about one hundred able-bodied farmers with their
families, some of them being men with considerable capital. From
New York they went to Chicago, expecting to join Ole Nattestad at
the Fox River. At the latter city they learned that he had gone into
Wisconsin after his brother left for Norway in 1838, and that he had
there purchased land in the township of Clinton in Rock County, thus
being probably the first Norwegian settler in Wisconsin. Accordingly
the larger part of the Numedal party followed him to the newer
region, where better land could be had than any remaining in La
Salle County, Illinois, at the minimum price, and took up sections
near Jefferson Prairie. Thus the current of Scandinavian settlement
was deflected from Illinois to Wisconsin, and later comers from
Numedal, in 1840 and afterwards, steered straight for southeastern
Wisconsin. In 1839 and later other recruits for the growing and
prosperous settlement of Norwegians in Rock County and adjoining
counties came from Voss and the vicinity of Bergen. Possibly the
difference of dialects had something to do with drawing people from
the same province or district into one settlement, but in a general
way the same reasons and processes operated among the
Norwegian emigrants as among those from Massachusetts,
Pennsylvania, and Virginia who settled in various States in sectional
groups, sometimes dividing a county by a well-defined line.
Closely connected with this settlement, begun under the leadership
of the Nattestad brothers, were other settlements in adjacent
townships,—at Rock Prairie or Luther Valley, comprising the present
towns of Plymouth, Newark, Avon, and Spring Valley in Rock County,
Wisconsin, and Rock Run in Illinois. Through these settlements many
new comers filtered and spread out rapidly toward the West and
Northwest, reaching in a few years as far as Mineral Point, more
than fifty miles from Jefferson Prairie.
Other sections of Norway than those already mentioned began to
feel the effects of the emigration bacillus after 1837, and the
processes illustrated by the movements from Stavanger, Bergen, and
Numedal were repeated—the emigration of two or three, letters sent
home, the return of a man here and there, the organization of the
party, the long journey, and the selection of the new home.
Thelemark, the rugged mountainous district in south central Norway,
was in a condition to be strongly moved by stories of freer and
larger opportunities. Long before 1837, great tracts of land in Upper
Thelemark became the property of two wealthy lumber men, and
the tenant-farmers were drawn more and more into work in the
lumber mills, to the neglect of farming and grazing. Consequently,
when logging was suspended in the hard times, and the wages,
already low, were stopped altogether, great distress resulted, and
emigration seemed about the only means of escape. “With lack of
employment and with impoverishment, debt and discontent
appeared as the visible evidences of the bad condition. That was the
golden age of the money-lenders and sheriffs. So the America fever
raged, and many crossed the ocean in the hope of finding a bit of
ground where they could live and enjoy the fruits of their labors
without daily anxiety about paydays, rents, and executions.”[73]
A company of about forty, representing eleven families from
Thelemark, failing to get accommodations with the Nattestad party
at Drammen, went on to Skien and thence to Gothenburg, where
they secured passage in an American vessel loaded with iron, and
made the voyage to Boston in two months.[74] Three weeks more
were consumed in the circuitous journey to Milwaukee by way of
New York, Albany, the Erie Canal and the Great Lakes. Like several
other parties of that year they originally aimed at Illinois.[75] But
their boat “leaked like a sieve,” and the stop at Milwaukee was
probably precautionary. Instead of proceeding further, they were
persuaded to send a committee, under the guidance of an American,
into the present county of Waukesha, where they selected a tract
about fourteen miles southwest of Milwaukee, on the shore of Lake
Muskego.[76] Here each adult man took up forty acres at the usual
minimum price of $1.25 per acre, and so began the Muskego colony
proper, the name, Muskego, however, being later applied to the
group of settlements in Waukesha County and to several towns in
Racine County.[77] Like the colony in Rock County, the Muskego
group grew rapidly in spite of malarial troubles, and for ten years it
was an objective point for immigrants from Thelemark, and a halting
place for those bound for the frontier farther west in Wisconsin or in
Iowa.
As the emigration movement from Norway increased, the planning of
settlements and the organization of parties took on a more definite
and business-like air. The process is well illustrated in the case of the
town of Norway in Racine County, Wisconsin, which was one of the
most successfully managed settlements in the Northwest. In the fall
of 1839, two intelligent men of affairs, Sören Bakke, the son of a
rich merchant of Drammen, and John Johnson (Johannes
Johannesson), came to America on a prospecting tour, for the
purpose of finding a place where they might invest money in land as
a foundation for a colony, which they may possibly have intended to
serve as a new home for a sect of dissenters known as Haugians.[78]
After visiting Fox River in Illinois, and various locations in Wisconsin,
they found a tract that suited them—good land, clear water, and
abundance of game and fish, enough to satisfy the most fastidious.
This they purchased, building a cabin on it and awaiting the coming
of their friends to whom they sent a favorable report.[79] The party
arrived in the autumn of 1840, under the leadership of Even Heg, an
innkeeper of Leir, who brought still more money, which was also
invested in land. Altogether, the money which Bakke brought with
him, or received later, amounted to $6000.[80] It was all used for
purchasing land, which was either sold to well-to-do immigrants, or
leased to new comers. This business was supplemented by a store
kept in the first cabin. Upon the death of Johnson in 1845, Bakke
went home and settled upon an estate owned by his father in Leir,
one of the first of the very small number of men who have returned
to permanent residence in Norway after some years spent in
America.[81] Even Heg became the real head of the colony at
Norway, Wisconsin, after the departure of Bakke, whose interests he
continued to look after, and under his management a steady
development followed. This settlement became the Mecca of
hundreds of immigrants arriving in Milwaukee in the late forties, and
“Heg’s barn was for some months every summer crowded with
newcomers en route for some place farther west.”[82]
Another important and highly prosperous group of settlements,
called Koshkonong after the lake and creek of that name, sprang up
in 1840 and 1841, in the southwestern corner of Jefferson County,
Wisconsin, and the adjacent parts of Dane and Rock Counties. The
beginning was made by men who removed thither from the Fox
River and Beaver Creek localities after investigating the lands in
Wisconsin. In 1840 there were nine entries of land by Norwegians in
the present townships of Albion, Christiana, and Deerfield, the usual
purchase being eighty acres; the next few years saw the spread of
the colony to the townships of Pleasant Valley and Dunkirk, from the
influx of immigrants from Illinois and from Norway.[83] After the
stress and hardship of the first pioneer years, the fortunate choice of
location in one of the best agricultural sections of Wisconsin told
very promptly, and Koshkonong became “the best known, richest,
and most interesting Norwegian settlement in America, the
destination of thousands of pilgrims from the fatherland since
1840.”[84] Many of the farms are still in possession of the families of
the original settlers, whose children are prominent in business,
professional and political circles.
The movement of the stream of Norwegian immigrants after 1845
was distinctly in a direction westward from the Wisconsin
settlements; the land farther out on the prairies was better, tho it did
not have the combination of timber and stream or lake which the
early settlers insisted on having, often to their detriment, since land
chosen with reference to these requirements was apt to be marshy.
The fresh arrivals, after a few weeks or months in the friendly and
helpful communities of early immigrants, were better prepared by a
partial acclimatization, by knowledge of the steps necessary for
acquiring citizenship and land-ownership, and by the formation of
definite plans of procedure, for the next stage in the western course
of their empire. Occasionally a shrewd farmer of the older companies
took advantage of the rise in the value of his farm, sold out, and
bought another tract farther out on the frontier, perhaps repeating
the process two or three times.[85] John Nelson Luraas, for example,
was one of those men who first spent some time in Muskego, then
bought land in Norway, Racine County; after improving it for three
years, he sold it in 1843 and moved into Dane County.[86] Here he
lived for twenty-five years, and then moved into Webster County,
Iowa, taking up new land. After a few years he went back to his
Dane County property, where he spent another thirteen years;
finally, as an aged, retired, wealthy farmer, he died in the village of
Stoughton in 1890.[87]
Provision for religious instruction and ministration was one of the
early concerns of the Norwegian immigrants, as would be expected
from a people essentially religious, who moved by whole families.
Nor was there much distinction between the more orthodox and the
dissenters. After their magnetic center shifted to the west in 1835
and the settlements and population multiplied, a good deal of lay
preaching of one sort and another went on,—Lutheran, Methodist,
Haugian, Baptist, Episcopalian, and Mormon. Lay services, in fact,
were the rule all along the westward moving frontier, and services
conducted by regular clergymen the exception. One of the
Norwegians wrote: “We conducted our religious meetings in our own
democratic way. We appointed our leader and requested some one
to read from a book of sermons.... We prayed, exhorted, and sang
among ourselves, and even baptised our babies ourselves.”[88]
Cut off by language from much participation in English worship—a
man must know an alien tongue long and thoroly to make it
serviceable for religious purposes—the men from Numedal, Vos, and
Drammen, felt keenly a great need for some one to instruct their
children in the Norwegian language and in the Lutheran religion
after the Old World customs. In 1843, two hundred men and women
in the flourishing group of settlements around Jefferson Prairie,
Wisconsin, signed a petition addressed to Bishop Sörenson in
Norway asking him to send them a capable and pious young pastor,
to whom they promised to give a parsonage, 80 acres of land, $300
in money, and fees for baptisms, marriages, and the like.[89] Tho
this petition itself seems not to have been answered, it was not long
before a properly ordained clergyman arrived.
Claus Lauritz Clausen, a Danish student of theology seeking
employment as a tutor in Norway, was persuaded, probably by the
father of Sören Bakke in Drammen, to heed the call from America.
[90] On his arrival in the West in 1843, he found the need for a
pastor and preacher more urgent than for a teacher, and accordingly
he sought and received ordination at the hands of a German
Lutheran minister, October, 1843.[91] He proceeded to organize, in
Heg’s barn at Norway, the first congregation of Norwegian Lutherans
in the United States, and so began a career of useful ministration
which lasted nearly half a century. Not long after his ordination, its
validity was called in question by strict Lutherans. The question was
finally submitted to the theological faculty of the University of
Christiania, which decided that “the circumstance that an ordination
is performed by a minister and not by a bishop, cannot in itself
destroy the validity of the ministerial ordination.”[92] At any rate,
Clausen’s activity, general helpfulness, staunchness of convictions,
and length of service, if not his ordination, make him one of the
typical pioneer preachers.[93]
Another clergyman of the same class as Clausen, was Elling Eielsen,
a Haugian lay-preacher who went from place to place in the
Northwest from 1839 to 1843, holding services with his countrymen.
He was ordained in the same month as Clausen, and, like him, in a
semi-valid fashion, by a Lutheran clergyman, not a bishop.[94] Like
Clausen, also, his term of labors as a Haugian apostle, passed forty
years.[95]
Whatever irregularities in the ordination of Clausen or of Eielsen may
have disturbed the consciences of the stricter of the Lutheran sect,
nothing of the sort attached to the Rev. Johannes Wilhelm Christian
Dietrichson, who arrived in 1844, fresh from the University of
Christiania and from the ordaining hands of the Bishop of Christiania.
He was a diligent, aggressive, zealous young man of about thirty,
sent out as a kind of home missionary in foreign parts at the
expense of a wealthy dyer of Christiania. For two years, summer and
winter, he went back and forth in southern Wisconsin ministering to
the Norwegians of all ages and beliefs,—and all for the stipend of
$300 yearly.[96] One of the results of these labors, was a little book,
Reise blandt de norske Emigranter i “de forenede nordamerikanske
Fristater,” in which Dietrichson gives the earliest detailed account of
the settlements in Wisconsin and Illinois before 1846. He described
the origin, numbers, conditions, and prospects of each community in
his wide parish. At Fox River, he says he found about 500, who were
of all creeds, mostly dissenters, including 150 Mormons.
Three church edifices were erected in 1844-5, and dedicated within
a short time of each other. Dietrichson dedicated one at Christiana,
Dane County, Wisconsin, December 19, 1844, and another at
Pleasant Valley a little further west; Clausen dedicated his church at
Muskego on March 13, 1845.[97] All were simple structures, as would
be expected; a plain table was the altar, and the baptismal font was
hewn out of an oak log. But they served none the less as effective
and inspiring centers of the religious life of the settlements. For the
Muskego church, Even Heg gave the land, and Mr. Bakke of
Drammen, whose protégé Clausen was, gave $400 towards
construction. Dietrichson left his two churches in Koshkonong in
1845, and returned to Norway where he remained about a year.
Aided by benevolent friends and by the Norwegian government, he
came back to his prairie parishes in 1846 for a final stay of four
years.[98] But his ways were not altogether ways of pleasantness,
nor entirely in the paths of peace. The records of the church, and his
own story, show that he had more than one stormy time with his
people.[99] He departed for Norway in 1850, and never again was in
America.[100]
The preceding account of the beginnings and progress of the earliest
Norwegian settlements in Illinois and Wisconsin has been given in
some detail, for the reason that the course of these settlements, in a
very broad sense, is typical of all the Norwegian colonization in the
Northwest, and of the Swedish and Danish as well. In the later
chapter on economic conditions, the causes which led these people
to settle upon the land rather than in the cities will be discussed at
length. Suffice it here to say that the average immigrant brought
only a small amount of cash, along with his strong desire for land,
and he consequently went where good land was cheap, in order the
more speedily to get what he wanted. This meant that he would
push out on the newly accessible government land in Iowa,
Minnesota, and the Dakotas in turn. So the transformation of the
frontier has witnessed the continual repetition of the experiences of
the early Norwegian immigrants in Illinois and Wisconsin in the years
from 1835 to 1850, as they are described in this and the preceding
chapters. At the present time, in the remoter parts of the Dakotas,
Montana, Washington, Oregon, and Utah, the same story is being
retold in the same terms of patience, hardship, thrift, and final
success.
 CHAPTER V.

Swedish Immigration Before 1850.

When the Swedish emigration of the nineteenth century began, it is

doubtful if many persons in Sweden knew of the existence of the
descendants of their compatriots of the seventeenth. The last
Swedish pastor of Gloria Dei Church in Philadelphia died in 1831,
and there is no evidence that any immigrant after 1800 turned his
steps toward Philadelphia or the valley of the Delaware expecting to
join the third or fourth generation of Swedes there.[101] Before
1840, in New York, Philadelphia, and a few other places, a Swede
might now and then be found. One of these adventure-seeking
young fellows was Erick Ålund, who reached Philadelphia in 1823;
another was O. C. Lange who arrived in Boston in 1824, and by
1838 found himself in Chicago, probably the first of that mighty
company of Swedes which has made Chicago the third Swedish city
in the world.[102] Olof Gustaf Hedström, who left Sweden in 1825,
and his brother Jonas, were influential early arrivals.[103] But the
number of such men could not have been large, for ignorance as to
America was quite as dense in Sweden as in Norway, the name
being all but unheard of in parts of the kingdom.[104]
Sixteen years elapsed after the “Sloop Folk” landed in New York, and
five years after they located in their second American home, in
Illinois, before the Swedish immigration really began. The first party,
or regular company, of Swedes, consisting of about twelve families,
arrived in 1841 under the leadership of Gustav Unonius, a young
man who had been a student at the University of Upsala.[105] It was
made up of the “better folk”, and included some, like Baron Thott,
who were entitled to be called “Herr.”[106] The immigration does not
appear to have been induced by any religious persecution or
discontent, but was purely a business venture of a somewhat
idealistic sort, into which the immigrants put their all, in the hope
that they could get a more satisfactory return than they could from a
like investment in Sweden.
From New York the party went by the water route to Milwaukee,
following in the wake of parties of Norwegians. There they met
Captain Lange, who seems to have persuaded them to select a
location near Pine Lake—a name that would certainly attract a
Swede—in the neighborhood of the present town of Nashotah, about
thirty miles west of Milwaukee. Here they were later joined by a
variegated assortment of characters attracted by letters which
Unonius wrote to newspapers in Sweden,—noblemen, ex-army
officers, merchants, and adventurers,[107] so that the colony took on
almost as motley an air as that at Jamestown in the first years after
1607. While they hardly could have succeeded under more favorable
circumstances, they were particularly unfitted by their previous
manner of living to become farmers or to undergo the deprivations
and hardships of pioneering. The winter of 1841-2 was severe, and
their poorly-built houses gave inadequate protection against the cold
of January and February in Wisconsin; their land was badly tilled,
tho they labored earnestly; and their first crop fell short of their
necessities. Their hope of leading an Arcadian life in America was
rudely shattered. Captain von Schneidau, late of the staff of King
Oscar, was a farm laborer, and Baron Thott became a cook for one of
the settlers in order to get a bare living.[108] Sickness, misfortune,
want of labor, and lack of money led to almost incredible suffering at
the first, and some of the settlers, like Unonius and von Schneidau,
went to Chicago, where the former became pastor of a Swedish
congregation, and the latter prospered as “the most skilful
daguerreo-typist, probably, in the whole state.”[109]
Frederika Bremer, the famous Swedish traveller, visited both the
Norwegian and the Swedish settlements in Wisconsin in 1850, and
has left a very graphic and sympathetic account of the Pine Lake
colony where she spent a few days.[110] She found about a half
dozen families of Swedes. “Nearly all live in log-houses, and seem to
be in somewhat low circumstances. The most prosperous seemed to
be that of the smith; he, I fancy, had been a smith in Sweden ...; he
was a really good fellow, and had a nice young Norwegian for his
wife; also a Mr. Bergman who had been a gentleman in Sweden, but
who was here a clever, hard-working peasant farmer.”[111] At one of
the houses she met twenty-one Swedish settlers. The failure of the
colony, to Miss Bremer’s mind, was not altogether due to
circumstances; the settlers at first “had taken with them the Swedish
inclination for hospitality and a merry life, without sufficiently
considering how long it could last. Each family built for itself a
necessary abode, and then invited their neighbors to a feast. They
had Christmas festivities and Midsummer dances.”[112]
Notwithstanding the hard life of the first years at Pine Lake, the
letters from well-educated and well-known men like Unonius,
especially those published in the Swedish newspapers, helped to
stimulate a desire for emigration in Sweden. A company of fifty, from
Haurida in Smaaland, left in the autumn of 1844, part of them going
to Wisconsin, and at least one family going to Brockton,
Massachusetts, and beginning the considerable Swedish settlement
in that city.[113] In the following year, five families were influenced
by letters from a Pine Lake settler, to leave their homes in
Östergötland, and to set out for Wisconsin. At New York, however,
they were persuaded, probably by Pehr Dahlberg, to go to Iowa,
then just admitted to the Union, where land was supposed to be
better than at Pine Lake, and could be had at the same price. The
route followed was an unusual one for Scandinavian immigrants,—
from New York to Pittsburg, down the Ohio River, and up the
Mississippi. The location finally chosen was in Jefferson County,
Iowa, about forty-two miles west of Burlington; and the settlement
was christened New Sweden. To it many immigrants from the
parishes of Östergötland found their way in later years. The second
rural settlement of the Swedes thus established was, quite in
contrast to the first one, distinctly successful from the start.[114]
The first Swedish settlements in Illinois, may be traced to the efforts
of the brothers Hedström already mentioned. Olof visited his old
home in 1833, after an absence of eight years, and on his return to
New York he was accompanied by his brother Jonas.[115] These two
men influenced the course which Swedish immigrants were to take
in America down to 1854, in much the same way as the Nattestad
brothers had earlier affected the Norwegians. After several years,
spent presumably in New York, Jonas moved into Illinois and settled
in the township of Victoria, in Knox County.[116] Olof Hedström was
converted to Methodism in America, and became a zealous minister
of that church; in the history of Methodism in New York City and in
the chronicles of Scandinavian immigration, his is a unique figure.
The needs of the multiplying hosts of immigrants of all sorts, who
were flocking to New York, were thoroughly understood by the
Methodist authorities of that city, and Hedström was put in charge of
the North River Mission for Seamen. His “Bethel Ship” work began
about 1845, a time when there was great need for a helping hand to
be extended to the Scandinavians, among other immigrants, for
whom agents, “runners,” and “sharks” were lying in wait. The Rev. E.
Norelius, the cultivated and scholarly pastor and historian, who had
personal experience of the kindly offices of Hedström, declares that
the missionary was a father to the Scandinavian people who came to
America by way of New York.[117]
With Olof Hedström offering friendly greeting, help, and advice in
New York, and working in connection with his brother Jonas in
Illinois, no prophetic instinct was needed to foretell the goal which
would be ultimately sought by those who came under the
benevolent ministrations of this Swedish Methodist preacher. The
path to Illinois became a highway for multitudes of Swedes, and that
State was to the Swedish immigration what Wisconsin was to the
Norwegian.
Swedish settlement on a large scale began in 1846, with the
founding at Bishop Hill, in Henry County, Illinois, of the famous
Jansonist colony, whose history is exceedingly interesting and, at
times, highly pathetic. Not only were there many hundreds of
Swedes and some Norwegians grouped together in a single county,
but the colony was also an experiment in communism, based on
peculiar religious tenets.[118]
The Jansonist movement in Sweden, which must not be confused
with the Jansenist school or system of doctrine of another time and
place in Western Europe, began about 1842 in Helsingland, in the
prosperous agricultural province of Norrland.[119] For fifteen years
there had been an undercurrent of dissent in the Established Church
in that province, led by Jonas Olson, who called his followers
“Devotionalists.” The agitation was carried on primarily against the
general ignorance of the people and the sloth of the clergy, but not
until Eric Janson appeared on the scene did any organization of the
dissenters take definite form. When he moved from Wermland to
Helsingland in 1844 and published the high claim that he
represented the second coming of Christ and was sent to restore the
purity and glory of Christianity, he was received with great
enthusiasm by the restless peasants, and accepted as a divinely
appointed leader who should gather the righteous into a new
theocratic community.[120]
The progress of the dissenting sect was so rapid that the Established
Church, backed by the civil authorities, took stern measures to
suppress the heresy. It must be confessed that the dissenters
continued to show a fanatical spirit, and gave the ecclesiastical
officers special cause for alarm. In June, 1844, for example, the
Jansonists made an immense bonfire near Tranberg, and burned as
useless and dangerous, all the religious books which they could lay
their hands on, with the exception of the Bibles, hymn-books, and
catechisms. As if one offense of this kind were not enough to shock
the pious Lutherans and everywhere stir up the zeal of the Lutheran
clergy, a second burning of books followed in October, in which the
Bible alone was spared.[121]
Janson was repeatedly arrested and imprisoned; his followers were
subjected to the same treatment; and finally, a price was put upon
the head of the pestilent arch-heretic. It was these persecutions,
supplemented by letters from a Swedish immigrant in America,
which turned the thoughts of the Jansonists towards the United
States. So it happened that when Janson was rescued by his friends
from the crown officer who had him in custody, he was spirited off
over the mountains to Norway, and thence to Copenhagen, where he
embarked for America. In New York he met Olof Olson, the “advance
agent,” who was sent out by the new sect in 1845 to spy out the
better country where there was no established church, no
persecution for conscience’s sake, and no aristocracy.[122] Olson met
Olof Hedström on landing in New York, and by him was directed to
his brother Jonas in Illinois, who gave the new-comer a hospitable
reception, and assistance in a prospecting tour of Illinois, Wisconsin,
and Iowa. Olson decided on Illinois as the State in which to plant the
proposed colony. On the arrival of Eric Janson in 1846, the exact site
in Henry County was selected, and the name Bishop Hill given it
after Biskopskulla, Janson’s birthplace in Sweden.[123]
Janson appointed leaders for the would-be emigrants,—captains of
tens and of hundreds—before he left Sweden, and under their
guidance several parties made their way to Henry County in 1846,
usually going by way of New York, the Erie Canal, and the Great
Lakes. Nearly 1100 persons were ready to emigrate, but, like the
early Norwegians, they experienced great difficulty in securing
passage, being compelled to go in companies of fifty or one hundred
in freight vessels, usually loaded with iron.[124] The greater number
sailed from Gefle, though some went from Gothenburg and some
from Stockholm.[125]
The greater part of these emigrating Jansonists were poor peasants,
unable from their own means to bear for themselves and their
families the great expense of the long journey from Helsingland to
Illinois. In addition to other difficulties some of them had to
purchase release from military service. It was to solve these
problems of poverty and expense, that Janson followed the example
of other leaders of religious sects, even of the early Christian
leaders, and instituted community of goods for the whole sect. The
pretext seems to have been religious, but from this distance it is
clear that the motive of the leader was essentially economic and
philanthropic. Nothing could better attest the tremendous
earnestness of these uneducated enthusiasts than their implicit
obedience to the commands of Eric Janson, for they gave all they
had into his care and discretion—their property, their families, and
themselves. The amounts contributed to the common treasury after
the sale of individual property varied greatly, of course. Some turned
in almost nothing, while others gave sums reaching as high as
24,000 kroner, or about $6,500.[126]
The methods and practices of the sect are revealed, in
unsympathetic and perhaps exaggerated fashion, in a printed letter,
dated at New York, May 23, 1847, written by one who found himself
unequal to the high demands of the new faith and its self-appointed
apostle.[127] This backslider, who emigrated with the rest, tells a
story that sounds strangely like accounts of the action of more
recent sects and their “divinely ordained” prophets and priestesses.
Janson and all his works are denounced in very bitter terms. After a
five-months voyage not more than fifty out of three hundred, says
the writer of the letter, were well, and many were suffering from
scurvy; but Janson’s “prophets” came aboard and “tried to work
miracles and heal the sick,” even damning those who did not believe
they were well when they were raised up. He further says that the
Jansonists were warned in Illinois to use medicine or the
government would take a hand in their affairs. The letter closes with
a statement that more than a hundred had already left the society.
The colony had a homestead at the outset, for Janson and his co-
workers purchased for $2000 a tract of 750 acres, part of which was
under cultivation. By the end of 1846, new recruits brought the
number in the settlement up to about 400 souls, who were
accommodated in log-houses, sod-houses, dug-outs, and tents. A
church was improvised out of logs and canvas, and services were
held daily at half past five in the morning and in the evening. In
spite of the community of goods, the first year with its crowding
brought much suffering; the funds of the society were depleted by
the expenses of the great journey for so many people, and by the
expenditures for land.
With the coming of spring in 1847, the settlement became a hive of
industry. Adobe bricks were made, a new saw-mill was erected,
better houses were built, and more land was bought to
accommodate the new arrivals. By 1850 the community owned
fourteen hundred acres of land, nearly free from debt. The religious
or economic attractiveness of the colony is evidenced by the fact
that its population in 1851 reached the considerable figure of about
eleven hundred,[128] nearly one-third of the total population of
Henry County, notwithstanding a schism in 1848 whose centrifugal
force drove upwards of 200 from the fold, and notwithstanding the
epidemic of cholera in 1849 which claimed 150 victims. Among these
hundreds were representatives of almost every province in Sweden.
The communistic principle worked well, at least in the first years, in
spite of the severity of the religious discipline. The land was
thoroughly cultivated. The growing of flax became a prominent
factor in the prosperity of the colony, and from this crop were made
linen and carpeting which found a ready market, the product of the
looms reaching 30,579 yards in 1851.[129]
The death of Eric Janson by the hands of a Swedish adventurer,
John Root (or Rooth), with whom he had a quarrel of long standing,
removed the prophet and builder of this New Jerusalem, but did not
seriously interrupt its development. In fact it might be said to have
been a benefit to the colony, for Janson was not a careful and skilful
man of business, and he had involved the community in debt. To
relieve this pressure of obligation, Jonas Olson, Janson’s right-hand
man, was sent out with eight others, in March, 1851, to seek a
fortune in the California gold fields.[130]
The period of which this chapter treats ends with 1850; but
inasmuch as that year marks no break in the history of Bishop Hill, it
will be well here to finish the sketch of the development of that
colony. On learning of the death of Janson, Olson returned at once
from California and became the head of the colony after February,
1851. Improvements immediately followed; the government, which
had been autocratic or theoretically theocratic, became more and
more democratic under Olson. Finally, as a completion of this
broadening evolution, an act of the Illinois legislature of 1853
incorporated the Bishop Hill Colony, and vested the government in a
board of seven trustees who were to hold for life or during good
behavior, their successors to be elected by the community.[131]
The trustees were from the first afflicted with a speculative mania,
and invested in all sorts of enterprises—in grain, in lumber, in Galva
town lots, in railroad and bank stock, and in a porkpacking
establishment. Disaster after disaster followed between 1854 and
1857, when a general panic prostrated the industries of the country.
The climax of the reckless mismanagement of the Colony came in
1860, and the corporation went into the hands of a receiver, only to
get deeper and deeper into financial and legal troubles.
Individualization of property took place in 1861, when $592,798 was
distributed among 415 shareholders, and other property to the value
of $248,861 was set aside to pay an indebtedness of about
$118,000.[132] The last traces of communism were gone, and with
the disappearance of communism went also the old religious tenets
peculiar to the faith. The majority of the Jansonists joined the
Methodist communion; even Jonas Olson deserted and became “an
independent Second [Seventh?] Day Adventist.”[133]
Difficulties continued, however, for Olof Johnson, the chief offending
trustee, secured his appointment as one of the receivers.
Assessment followed assessment, and when the totals were footed
up the chicanery of trustees and receivers was made clear: to pay
an original debt of $118,403, these ill-fated people of the Bishop Hill
Colony actually expended in cash $413,124, and in property
$259,786, or an aggregate of $672,910.[134] Of course a lawsuit was
begun, and the “Colony Case” dragged along in the courts for twelve
years, to be finally settled by compromise in 1879, nine years after
the death of Olof Johnson.[135]
Besides the numerous companies which went to Bishop Hill, many
others between 1846 and 1850 sought different localities in the
United States.[136] Some remained in Chicago; some built homes in
Andover, Illinois; others began the large Swedish settlement in
Jamestown, New York; while still others were persuaded to go to
Texas, thus beginning the only considerable permanent settlement of
Scandinavians in the Southern States before 1880, with the
exception of settlements in Missouri. During these years, knowledge
of the prosperous condition of the immigrants was spreading, in the
usual fashion, into every province of Sweden; Småland, Helsingland,
Dalarne, and Östergötland, were especially affected. Not merely
were Jansonists and dissenters moved to emigrate, but men of the
Established Church as well; a Jansonist’s word in matters of faith,
Scriptural interpretation, and religious practice was worse than
worthless to staunch Lutherans, but there was no reason to doubt
the accuracy of his statements regarding land, wages, prices, and
opportunities in Illinois or Iowa. Even Lutheran clergymen began to
lead little companies of their adherents to the “States,” and no one
considered it a mortal sin or eternal danger to follow in the footsteps
of worldly-wise heretics.[137]
 CHAPTER VI.

The Danish Immigration.

The Danish immigration began much later than the Norwegian and
Swedish, and its proportions were inconsiderable until after the Civil
War. Not until 1869 did the annual influx of Danes reach 2,000. Tho
the population of Denmark was and is somewhat greater than
Norway’s, yet the Danish immigration has never in any one year
equalled the Norwegian, and in but seven years has it been more
than one-half. As against Norway’s total of nearly 600,000 from 1820
to 1905, Denmark’s is only about 225,000.[138] In calculating the
immigration, however, a large allowance must be made. Since the
duchies of Schleswig and Holstein were acquired by Prussia in 1864
and 1866, their emigrants have of course been recorded as German.
Nevertheless, taken as a whole, the movement from Denmark has
lacked momentum; its proportions are relatively small; and the
influence of the Danes in the United States is much less important
than that of either of the other Scandinavian nationalities.
The causes of the smaller emigration from Denmark are to be found
in the nature of the people and in the conditions of the kingdom
itself. Generally speaking, the Danes are not highly enterprising,
adventurous, or self-confident; instead of daring all and risking all
for possible, even probable, advantage, they remain at home, for,
“Striving to better, oft we do mar what’s well.”
Want is practically unknown in Denmark outside the slums of
Copenhagen. The condition of the common people has steadily
improved since the beginning of the nineteenth century, when nearly
all the land was in the hands of the nobility; at the present time, six-
sevenths is owned by the peasants. While this change has been
going on, another, of even greater significance, has taken place.
Improved methods of cultivation, in the course of a hundred years,
have multiplied the productive power of the land by ten, which is
equivalent to increasing tenfold the available area of the kingdom.
No nation, except the United States and Canada, has in recent times
had such agricultural prosperity.[139]
As already noted, the activity of the Mormon missionaries drew off
into the wilderness of Utah nearly 2000 Danes between 1850 and
1860, and nearly 5000 more in the next decade. In the two Prussian
duchies after 1866, the discontent of Danes who preferred
emigration to German rule drove a large number to the United
States; and as these were far from being sympathizers with
Mormonism, they found homes in the middle west. Settlements
sprang up after 1870 in Wisconsin, at Racine; in Iowa, at Elk Horn in
Shelby County and in the adjoining counties of Audubon and
Pottawatomie; and in Douglas County (Omaha), Nebraska, just
across the line from Pottawatomie County, Iowa. It should be noted
in this connection that all the Danish settlements save those in Utah,
were well within the frontier line, and hence are not to be classed as
pioneering work, for which the Danes have shown little inclination.
The efforts of the Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church in America,
organized at Neenah, Wisconsin, in 1872, have been several times
directed deliberately to the organization of new Danish colonies,
always, of course, with a view to strengthening the church or to
carrying out some of its peculiar ideas. Of the four colonies,—in
Shelby County, Iowa, in Lincoln County, Minnesota, in Clark County,
Wisconsin, and in Wharton County, Texas,—that in Iowa is the most
noteworthy and successful. Soon after 1880, the church secured an
option on a tract of 35,000 acres in Shelby County from a land
company. In return for 320 acres to be given by the company to the
church for religious and educational purposes when one hundred
actual settlers were secured, the church promised to use its
influence to secure settlers for the whole tract. The company agreed
for three years time to sell only to Danes at an average price of $7
per acre, for the first year, with an advance not exceeding $.50 per
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