The Mattson & Dalbo Families of West Jersey

by Dr. Peter Stebbins Craig
Fellow, American Society of Genealogists
Fellow, Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania
Historian, Swedish Colonial Society

originally published in Swedish Colonial News,
Volume 2, Number 2 (Summer 2000)

Three hundred years ago in 1700, Rev. Andreas Rudman reported in his book of burials the death of Elisabeth Dalbo, aged 78, "born in Sweden, Anders Dalbo's widow, previously married to Matts Hansson."

Elisabeth died at the home of her youngest son in Gloucester Co., NJ. She had been a 19-year-old bride when she arrived in New Sweden in 1641, yet by 1671 she was twice a widow and lived for the remainder of her life with her youngest son, Olof Dalbo. Through her three married sons, she had 25 known grand-children and at least 114 great grand-children.

Her first husband was Matts Hansson, who was hired to be a gunner at Fort Christina. They departed from Stockholm on the Charitas among a group of new settlers that included Hansson's brother, Anders Hansson. After five years of service at Fort Christina, Matts Hansson became a freeman on 1 December 1646. Like other freemen, he soon became unhappy with Governor Printz's harsh treatment of the settlers. On 27 July 1653, he and his brother joined other freemen in filing a complaint with the Governor. Printz, however, branded the complaint a "mutiny" and left for Sweden, leaving the colony under the rule of his son-in-law Johan Papegoja, threatening to take legal action against the mutineers on his return.

Fearing for their lives, many of the freemen who had signed the complaint fled New Sweden in the fall of 1653. Anders Hansson made it safely to Kent Island in the Chesapeake Bay, but Matts Hansson did not. Papegoja hired Indians to bring back the escapees, dead or alive. Two of the freemen were overtaken and killed, with the Indians bringing back their heads on stakes. One of those killed was Matts Hansson.

Widow Hansson returned safely to New Sweden with her two small sons. She then married her second husband Anders Larsson Dalbo from Dalsland, Sweden who had been sent to the New Sweden colony on the Kalmar Nyckel in 1640 as punishment for a minor crime. After seven years of servitude, he secured employment with the New Sweden company as a provost (sheriff) on 1 Nov. 1647 at a wage of 15 guilders per month and served in this capacity until Printz's departure in 1653. In 1654 he became a freeman. Two years later, when the Swedes were permitted to select their own government by the Dutch, Dalbo was named lieutenant of the Swedish militia. He made his home in Kingsessing, but died before 1671, when the first English census identified Widow Dalbo as the head of household there.

By her two husbands, Elisabeth had four sons and, through them, 25 grand-children, two of whom became wives of Gloria Dei's first pastors - Andreas Rudman and Andreas Sandel.

1. Peter Mattson, alias Peter Dalbo, was born in New Sweden in 1647. When the first English patent was issued for Widow Dalbo's Kingsessing plantation in 1671, it was issued in the name of Peter Dalbo, her eldest son.

On 16 February 1674 Peter Mattson married Catharina Rambo, daughter of Peter Gunnarsson Rambo. They settled on new land adjoining her father's plantation in Passyunk, on the east side of the Schuylkill, where they lived for ten years. In 1684, however, they moved to Little Mantua Creek in Gloucester Co., which remained their home until Peter's death in 1699. He was survived by his wife and nine children:

2. John Mattson, alias John Dalbo, was born in New Sweden c. 1649. By 1673 he had married Maria Lom, youngest daughter of Måns Svensson Lom, and owned 1/4 of the Moyamensing tract south of Wicaco. He sold his share in 1684 and acquired land on Great Mantua Creek, Gloucester Co., where he died in 1701, survived by 7 children:

3. Lars (Lasse) Dalbo, born in 1657, became the head of the Dalbo household in Kingsessing after his older half-brothers married and moved away. In May 1683, he took a census of Kingsessing for the new William Penn government and, with his brother Olof, helped build a new courthouse and prison for Chester (former Upland). He died unmarried c. 1685.

4. Olof Dalbo, born in 1660, joined his half-brother Peter Mattson in the move to Little Mantua Creek in 1684 with his new bride, Catharina Friend, daughter of Nils Larsson Frände and Anna Andersdotter. After the death of his half-brother Peter Mattson, Olof moved to Raccoon Creek, where he was one of the founders of the Swedish log church built at present Swedesboro about 1703. He died in January 1712, survived by his widow and 9 children: