For our purposes, let us begin our tour in Växjö in Småland. One must start somewhere, so the perfect place would be a visit to The House of Emigrants. At the opening ceremony of the house in 1968 Vilhelm Moberg donated his "emigrants chest", packed full with the source material of his four emigrants novels. Utvandrarnas Hus i Växjö Större bild i färg Drive towards Kalmar along Highway 25. In Lessebo, which is famous for the manufacture of fine stationery, there is a turn towards Ljuder. Along that road lies the Ljuder Church. It is unexpectedly large as it sits high overlooking a lake. With its wide, bright, and spacious interior it was categorized as a real "Tegnérlada" (Tegnér barn). The bishop and poet Esaias Tegnér permitted the construction of just these types of Småland churches during his time and they all looked similar. The church in Ljuder is from the period of emigration, built just prior to the middle of the 19th century. Previous to this the old medieval church had become too small for the members of the parish who would soon put their fate in God's hands and search for happiness in America. They were dirt poor and starving but they were still able to share what they had for charity. It was clear that without the unbelievably pious sacrifice of the Ljuder parishioners, Bishop Tegnér could never have built his church. And when Vilhelm Moberg describes those who governed the parish during Karl Oskar's and Kristina's time he cites Romans 13, verses one to three, from the bible: "…For there is no power but of God…" If Bishop Tegnér said that a new church should be built, then those orders came directly from God. The members of the parish believed this and the poorer they were the more vigorously they believed it. If one is lucky the cantor, Yngve Wirkander, will be at the Ljuder Church. And if one has even more luck he may feel like talking a bit about the local area since he has been a part of it for forty years. Yngve Wirkander made four graphic prints when The Emigrants novels were first published which he sent to the author. They were lovingly inspired by the epic of the emigrants. But Wirkander's tone, as he tells it, is just as austere as Karl Oskar's, "I said to Vilhelm Moberg that if he didn't like them there's always the waste paper basket." Ljuders Kyrka Större bild i färg But Moberg did like them. In fact, he liked them so well that he hung them on the walls of his writing cabin on the island of Väddö. And from there the pictures found their way back to Småland and ended up in The Swedish Emigrant Institute in Växjö. There, Moberg's writing cabin is restored in the same form as it appeared originally, with every item in place and including Moberg's voice over the loudspeakers. Yngve Wirkander's four etchings hang there above the desk for all to see. "He phoned me one time and was angry because Korpamoen had been pointed out on the map. He said that it was one of his imaginary places, certainly nothing from reality. But then I said that in that case he would have to contradict what he himself had said in the newspaper, Expressen, and then he was assuaged." The cantor smiles contentedly at the memory, "Moberg changed his tone quickly when he was angry, and later he pondered about if the girls from the township of Skruf were still as pretty as ever..." But what was this business with Korpamoen and Expressen? That comes later. But first we must get on with our tour. Next page The Musical | Background | Interactive guide | Merchandise | Downloadables | Swedish