| Notes |
- From Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olof_Persson_Stille
Olof Persson Stille (1610–1684) was a pioneer settler of New Sweden, a colony along the lower reaches of the Delaware River in North America claimed by Sweden from 1638 to 1655.[1] Stille served as the first chief justice of the Upland Court, the governing body of the New Sweden colony following Dutch West India Company annexation from Swedish colonial rule.
Background
Olof Persson Stille was born in Sweden on the island of SoIö in Roslagen, northeast of Stockholm, the son of Per Stille, supervisor of the Penningby estate in Länna parish, Norrtälje Municipality in Uppland, north of Stockholm. In 1627 when Per Stille retired, he was granted land by the owners of Penningby on a nearby island called Humblö in the Stockholm archipelago. This was where Olof Stille married and began his family.[2]
New Sweden
In May 1641, the Charitas departed for New Sweden. The passengers included Olof Stille, a millwright, with his wife, a daughter, Ella, and son Anders.[3] Also on board were Olof's younger brother Axel Stille and the family of Måns Svensson Lom, whose wife appears to have been Olof's younger sister.[4] His daughter Ella married Hans Månsson in 1654 and became the mother of John Hansson Steelman.[5]
In New Sweden, Olof Stille settled at a place located between present Crum Creek and Ridley Creek. The property of Stille was at the mouth of Ridley Creek, now Eddystone, Pennsylvania. Local Indians became acquainted with Olof Stille. They considered his heavy, black beard unusual conferring the name Tequirassy on him because of it.
Stille became a leader among the settlers and played a key role in promoting the July 1653 list of grievances, which was submitted to Governor Johan Printz, protesting his strict rule. Printz considered this action mutiny and subsequently returned to Sweden.[6] Stille was unapologetic about his role in submitting the list of grievances, and when the new governor, Johan Risingh, raised unresolved questions about the "rebellion," Stille posted bail and demanded to be tried according to the law, though Risingh chose to let the matter drop.[7][8]
Upland Court
After the surrender of New Sweden to the Dutch West India Company, Governor Peter Stuyvesant agreed to allow the Swedish colonists living north of the Christina River to govern themselves as the "Swedish Nation." While Governor Risingh and some of his followers returned to Sweden, most of the colonists remained. Stuyvesant agreed that the colonists would be governed by a court with magistrates of their choosing, could exercise freedom of religion, would organize their own militia and choose officers, would be allowed continued trade with Indians and retain their landholdings, in return for pledging their loyalty to New Netherland. On August 4, 1656, the "Swedish Nation" was formally recognized with a ceremony at Ft. Christina and four magistrates of the newly created court were recognized: Olof Stille, along with Mats Hansson, Peter Cock and Peter Gunnarsson Rambo.[9]
Olof Stille served as the chief justice of this Upland Court at Chester in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, until his retirement in 1664. During that time there were many policy clashes as well as demands made by the Dutch on the Swedish colonists. Stille was credited with being an able defender of the Swedes' position. He was called upon to settle disputes among the colonists even after he had officially retired.
Wolley Stille
Wolley Stille, a house near Chester which was first completed about 1700, was named for Stille, who owned a neighboring property. Wolley Stille is located in Nether Providence Township, Pennsylvania[10] The house is now in the National Register of Historic Places. Olof Stille moved to Moyamensing (now south Philadelphia) where he died about 1684.[11]
References
"Delaware". World Statesmen. Retrieved January 18, 2015.
Olof Persson Stille and his Family (by Dr. Peter Stebbins Craig. Swedish Colonial News, Volume 1, Number 16. Fall 1997) "Olof Persson Stille and his Family". Archived from the original on 2009-11-15. Retrieved 2009-09-09.
Mark L. Thompson (2013). The Contest for the Delaware Valley: Allegiance, Identity, and Empire in the Seventeenth Century. Louisiana State University Press. ISBN 978-0-8071-5060-3., p. 116
Måns Svensson Lom, Forgotten Forefather, and his Seven Daughters (Peter Stebbins Craig . Swedish Colonial News. Volume 1, Number 12. Fall 1995) [1]
Peter Stebbins Craig, "Olof Persson Stille and his Family," Swedish Colonial News, Volume 1, Number 16, Fall 1997
History of Delaware County, Pennsylvania (Henry Graham Ashmead. Philadelphia: L. H. Everts & Co. 1884 Chapter LIV. Ridley Township) [2][usurped]
Thompson, p. 128
Jean R. Soderlund, Lenape Country: Delaware Valley Society Before William Penn, University of Pennsylvania Press, Philadelphia, 2015, p. 88
Peter Stebbins Craig, The 1693 Census of the Swedes on the Delaware: Family Histories of the Swedish Lutheran Church Members Residing in Pennsylvania, Delaware, West New Jersey & Cecil County, Maryland 1638-1693,SAG Publications (January 1, 1993), p. 4.
"National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form" (PDF). Wolley Stille. October 29, 1979. Retrieved October 19, 2009. [dead link]
History of Ridley Township, Pa. (From: A History of Delaware County, Pennsylvania. John W. Jordan, Published By Lewis Historical Publishing Company, New York 1914) [3] Archived 2015-04-24 at the Wayback Machine
Other sources
Myers, Albert Cook Narratives of Early Pennsylvania, West New Jersey and Delaware 1630-1707 (Charles Scribner's Sons, 1912)
Johnson, Amandus The Swedish Settlements on the Delaware Volume I: Their History and Relation to the Indians, Dutch and English, 1638-1664, (1911)
Smith, George (1862). History of Delaware County, Pennsylvania. H.B. Ashmead. p. 581.
[5]
- Olof Petersson Stille, of Penningby and Humlo in Lanna parish, Roslagen, Uppland, came to New Sweden in 1641 as a freeman with his wife, his daughter Ella (then 7) and son Anders (then 1 1/2) after two sentencings had brought him to economic ruin. He first settled at Techoherassi on the north side of Ridley Creek, moving by 1664 to Moyamensing, where he died c.1684. Under Printz’ rule, he was the alleged instigator of the 1653 complaint against Printz, signed by himself and 21 other freemen. However, Governor Stuyvesant approved his appointment in 1656 as the chief justice of the Swedes’ court, a position that he held for several years. His daughter Ella married first the Swedish soldier Peter Jochimisson and then the freeman Hans Mansson. Anders Stille moved by 1658 to New Castle County, where he died before 1693, leaving minor sons named Jacob and (probably John).
John Ollesson Stille (Moyamensing, £100): Born in New Sweden in 1646, John inherited his father’s farm and married by 1683 Gertrude Skute (1664-1744), youngest daughter of Captain Sven Skute and Anna Johansdotter. By the time of this census, they had five children: Christin (born 1684), Anna (1685), Olof (1687), Sara *1690), and John (1692). Seven more were to follow. John Stille died at Moyanmensing on 24 April 1722; his widow on 16 Jan. 1744. Both were buried at Gloria Del.
[1]
- Note on Find a Grave:
Olof Peterson Stille was the son of Peter Stille. he was born in Penningsby Manor, Ruslagen, Sweden in the year 1610.
From two publications, Olof Stille in New Sweden by Fritz Nordstrom, and the Stille Family in America 1641-1772 by Peter Stebbins Craig, we learn much about our Swedish forefather, Olof Stille. He was an impetuous youth which led to his expulsion from Sweden. As a young man in the new world, he was a prosperous plantation owner. In his later years, he was admired and respected as a magistrate.
On May 3, 1641, Olof Stille, his wife and two children (Ella then 7years old, and Anders, then one-and-a-half years old ) boarded the Charitas in Stockholm for the long voyage to New Sweden, (Wilmington, Delaware), via Goteborg. After a stormy voyage, they arrived in November 1641. Stille went on to become a very prosperous plantation owner. He resided on Tinicum Island and owned the land between Ridley and Crum Creeks. In 1658, after the Dutch took possession of the country, he was one of the four commissioners or magistrates appointed to administer justice among the inhabitants, neighboring colonists, and the Indians, the later giving him the name, "Black Beard." A bronze Memorial above the South Broad Street entrance to City Hall in Philadelphia, honors Olof Stille and the early Swedish settlers.
Many of the direct descendants of Olof Stille migrated from the Wilmington/Philadelphia area to New Jersey. Their gravestones may be seen at Head of River Church, Upper Township, New Jersey, and the United Methodist Church in Tuckahoe, New Jersey.
He died in Passyunk, Philadelphia in 1684.
[2]
- Olof Stille of New Sweden
by Fritz Nordstrom
Swedish American Genealogist, v.6, no.3, article 2. 9-1-1986.
https://digitalcommons.augustana.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2059&context=swensonsag
- Once sentenced to death in Sweden, Olof Stille ran a mill and became a chief justice here.
By Amy Grant
Born on the island of Solö, near Stockholm, Olof Stille was the son of Per, a supervisor of the Penningby estate. By 1627, Per, now retired, was granted land by the owners of Penningby on a nearby island called Humblö. Here Olof married and began his family.
Although he was on good terms with Erik Bielke, who inherited Penningby in 1629, Olof did not think well of Bielke’s wife, Lady Catarina Fleming. At the Norrtälje fair in 1636, Olof indiscreetly voiced his opinion of Fleming, who retaliated by prosecuting Olof for defamation and seized his property at Humblö. When Olof refused to leave the island, he was imprisoned.
After securing his freedom, Olof and his family resettled in Matsunda, where he was joined by one of his former servants named Anders. Claiming that Anders had broken a verbal agreement with the late Lord Bielke to be their servant, Fleming, now a widow, had Anders seized in 1638 and imprisoned at Penningby.
Olof breaks in … and frees his friend Anders
Hearing the news, Olof entered Penningby Castle by a secret door, broke the lock to the dungeon, and fled with Anders. After a warrant was issued for Olof’s arrest, he went to trial, was convicted of burglary, and sentenced to death by the sword. The appellate court, however, modified the sentence to a fine.
Three years later, in May 1641, when the Charitas departed for New Sweden, the passenger list included Olof, a mill-maker, his wife, and two of their children. In New Sweden, Olof settled as a freeman at a place called Techoherassi by the Indians, located near Ridley Creek. The Indians liked Olof very much, but they considered his heavy, black beard a monstrosity.
Setting up the first Swedish gristmill on Cobbs Creek
As the only known mill-maker in the colony, Olof was probably in charge of building the first Swedish gristmill on Mill (now Cobbs) Creek. But life under the rule of Governor Johan Printz was unpleasant. Olof and other freemen were placed under unfair restrictions. So Olof led the freemen in protest. They submitted a signed letter of grievances to Printz in 1753. Printz labeled this action mutiny and promptly left for Sweden. His replacement Governor Rising let the matter drop.
After the surrender of New Sweden, the Dutch governor, Petrus Stuyvesant, agreed to allow the Swedes and Finns living north of the Christina River to govern themselves. The first Swedish court, organized in 1656, had Olof as its chief justice.
During his eight years as chief justice of the Swedes’ court, there were frequent policy clashes between the Swedes and the Dutch. Olof proved himself to be an able defender of the Swedes’ position and usually prevailed.
Retiring as chief justice in 1664, Olof moved to Moyamensing (later south Philadelphia). Even in retirement, he was called upon to arbitrate disputes among the settlers. He died about 1684.
Historic Gloria Dei (Old Swedes' ) Preservation Corporation.
https://preserveoldswedes.org/olof-persson-stille/
[6]
- The Life and Times of Olof Stille
Peter Stebbins Craig
Historic Gloria Dei Preservation Corporation
Foundation Magazine, Winter 2021.
https://archive.org/details/hgdpc-winter-2021-screen/mode/2up
- Olof Persson Stille and his Family
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 1, Number 16 (Fall 1997)
Olof Stille was born on the island of SoIö in Roslagen, northeast of Stockholm, the son of Per Stille, a relatively prosperous supervisor of the Penningby estate in Länna parish. By 1627 Per Stille had retired and was granted land by the owners of Penningby on a nearby island called Humblö. Here Olof Stille married and began his family. Although Olof Stille was on good terms with Erik Bielke, who inherited Penningby in 1629, he did not think well of Bielke's wife, Catarina Fleming.
At the Norrtälje fair in 1636, Olof Stille indiscreetly voiced his opinion of Lady Catarina Fleming, who retaliated by prosecuting Olof for defamation and took his property at Humblö. When Olof refused to leave the island, he was imprisoned. After securing his freedom, Olof and his family resettled in Matsunda, where he was joined by one of his former servants named Anders. Lady Fleming, now a widow, had Anders seized on 18 March 1638 and imprisoned at Penningby under the claim that Anders had broken a verbal agreement with the late Lord Bielke to be their servant.
Olof Stille heard the news the next day, entered Penningby Castle by a secret door, broke the lock to the dungeon with his axe and then fled, with Anders carrying the axe and Olof his own rapier. On complaint from Lady Fleming, the Governor issued an order for Olof Stille's arrest on 28 March 1638 - the same day that the first expedition to New Sweden was landing at the Rocks. At the trial on 13 April 1638 Olof Stille was convicted of burglary and sentenced to death by the sword. The appellate court, however, modified the sentence to a fine of 100 daler silver money, the equivalent of 17 months pay for a New Sweden soldier.
Three years later, in May 1641, when the Charitas departed for New Sweden, the passenger list included Olof Stille, a mill-maker, his wife, a daughter aged 7 and a son aged 11/2. Also on board were Olof's younger brother Axel Stille, and the family of Måns Svensson Lom, whose wife appears to have been Olof's younger sister. His older brother, Johan Stille, later pastor at Fundbo, 1644-1672, and his sister Kerstin remained in Sweden.
In New Sweden, Olof Stille settled as a freeman at a place called Techoherassi by the Indians, located between present Crum Creek and Ridley Creek (called Olof Stille's Creek). Joining him at this location were his brother Axel Stille and the Lom family. The Indians were frequent visitors to Techoherassi and liked Olof Stille very much, but they considered his heavy, black beard a monstrosity and conferred a strange name on him because of it.
As the only known mill-maker in the colony, Olof Stille probably was in charge of building the first Swedish gristmill on Mill (now Cobbs) Creek. He also became a leader among the freemen and played a key role in promoting the July 1653 list of grievances, signed by Olof Stille and 21 other freemen, which was submitted to Governor Johan Printz, protesting his dictatorial rule. Printz labeled this action mutiny and promptly left for Sweden. To Olof Stille, however, it was simply exercising the right of free speech. When Governor Rising arrived, Olof asked for a prompt trial. Rising, who took a more kindly view toward the freeman, let the matter drop.
After the surrender of New Sweden, the Dutch governor, Petrus Stuyvesant, agreed to allow the Swedes and Finns living north of the Christina River to govern themselves. The first Swedish court, organized in 1656, had Olof Stille as its chief justice and also included Peter Larsson Cock, Peter Gunnarsson Rambo and Matts Hansson from Borgå, Finland.
During his eight years as chief justice of the Swedes' court, there were frequent policy clashes between the Swedes and the Dutch. Olof Stille proved himself to be an able defender of the Swedes' position and usually prevailed.
Retiring as chief justice in 1664, Olof Stille moved to Moyamensing (later south Philadelphia) with Lars Andersson Collinus (who had married Måns Lom's widow) and his son-in-law Marten Roosemond. Even in retirement, he was called upon to arbitrate disputes among the settlers. He died about 1684. He was survived by his brother Axel Stille, who had no children, and four children who have been identified:
1. Ella Stille, born in 1634 in Roslagen, married twice. By her first husband, Peter Jochimsson, she had two children, Peter Petersson Yocum, born 1652, and Elisabeth Petersdotter, born 1654, who married John Ogle, an English soldier. By her second marriage to Hans Månsson, she had six more sons, originally known by the patronymic Hansson but later adopting the surname of Steelman. They were John, Jöns (James), Christiern, Peter, Charles and Eric. Ella died in 1718 in Gloucester County NJ.
2. Anders Stille, born in 1640 in Roslagen, moved to New Castle about 1658 and married there, by 1671, Annetje Pieters, daughter of the Dutch brewer, Pieter Wolfertsen van Couwenhoven. Soon after his marriage, he moved to Christina Creek, taking up residence next to his niece, Elisabeth Petersdotter Ogle. Later, they moved to White Clay Creek in New Castle County, where he died between 1688 and 1692, survived by two sons, John and Jacob, and one daughter thus far identified, Elisabeth, who married Charles Hedges.
3. Christina Stille, born in America c. 1643, became the second wife of Marten Roosemond, a Dutch "cleinsmit" (toolmaker), who moved from New Castle to Moyamensing after his marriage. Two landmarks on that property were named Roosemond Creek and Hollanders Creek. Roosemond returned to New Castle before 1671 and served as judge on the New Castle court and deacon of the Dutch church there until his death in 1677. It is unknown whether Christina had any children.
4. Johan Stille, born in America in 1646, married about 1683 Gertrude, daughter of Mårten Gerritsen and Christina Lom of New Castle County. They had twelve children: Christina (born 1684), Anna (1685), Olof [William] (1687), Sarah (1690), John (1692), Brigitta (1693), Barbara (1697), Peter (1699), Gertrude (1701), Morton (1704), Helena (1705) and Allemisha (1709). Johan Stille inherited the Moyamensing plantation, where he died in 1722. His widow died in 1744.
https://web.archive.org/web/20091115095000/http://www.colonialswedes.org/Forefathers/Stille.html
The Swedish Colonial Society [7]
- “The Third Swedish Expedition to New Sweden. The following names of persons, who embarked in Sweden, in 1641, for the colony of New Sweden, area obtained from copies of lists, preserved in the Royal Archives at Stockholm, in the possession of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, on of which comprising thirty-three individuals:”
[LKH NOTE: the list includes:]
“Olof Persson Stille, of Penningsby Manor, Liinna Parish, Orslagen, a millwright, to engage in agriculture, paid at the start 50 daler, copper money, drawing no additional wages, but to be paid for whatever work he does for, and for whatever he furnishes to, the Company; accompanied by his wife and two children, one seven, the other one and a half years old. He is not mentioned in the List of 1644, but his place of residence in 1655 is indicated on Lindatrom’s Map. In 1658, and subsequently, he was one of the magistrates on the Delaware. He was still living in July, 1684, when he obtained confirmation of a grant of land in Passyunk, in Philadelphia County, Pa., (ceded to him June 3, 1664, by d’Hinojossa, the Dutch Governor on “South River,”) but died before May, 1693, leaving as heir on only son, John Stille, born in American in 1646, the ancestor of a well-known Philadelphia family.”
From Emigrants to Pennsylvania, 1641-1819: A consolidation of ship passenger lists from the Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography. Edited by Michael Tepper, 1979. Pages 1-3.
LKH note:
The other passenger included:
A lieutenant with his wife, a maid and a little child; a priest; a young nobleman a burgomaster’s son who was also an adventurer; a tailor, formerly a lieutenant to engage in agriculture; a gunner for the new fort and to engage in agriculture accompanied by his wife; the gunner’s brother to cultivate tobacco; three men who became sailors; wood-sawyer; a carpenter; a Dutchman who made tobacco-casks; a miller; some to serve as soldiers; several who are listed as servants and laborers for agriculture and to cultivate tobacco who would gain the status of freemen by 1648.
- Passenger lists
Name Olof Petersson Stille
Arrival Year 1641
Arrival Place Delaware Bay or River
Primary Immigrant Stille, Olof Petersson
Family Members Wife; Daughter Ella 7; Son Anders 1
Source Publication Code 1381
Annotation Place and date of arrival or of first mention of residence in the New World. Entries located in vol. 10:1 are indicated in this index by the code A. Original version of the census, Svenska ecklesiastika, Handlingar, 1686-94, vol. R 1100, no. 184, is locat
Source Bibliography CRAIG, PETER STEBBINS. "The 1693 Census of the Swedes on the Delaware." In Swedish American Genealogist (SAG), vol. 9:1 (Mar. 1989), pp. 1-9; vol. 9:3 (Sep. 1989), pp. 97-113; vol. 10:1 (Mar. 1990), pp. 1-16; vol. 10:3 (Sep. 1990), pp. 127-145; vol. 11:1 (Mar. 1991), pp. 34-51; vol. 11:2 (Jun. 1991), pp. 67-88; vol. 11:3 (Sep. 1991), pp. 177-197; vol. 12:1 (Mar. 1992), Additions & Corrections, pp. 20-26.
Household Members (Name) Age
Olof Petersson Stille
Ella Stille 7
Anders Stille 1
Stille
- The new Ridley Public School House stands on the next lot but one, west of the old Plummer Meeting House, and opposite the properties of William W. Maddock and Miles M. Stille.* The latter is the descendant of an old Swedish family, who were among the earliest settlers in this vicinity. Olof Stille, whose passport or certificate of character bears date Dec. 2, 1634, came from the lordship of Penningby and Nyanes, in the Duchy of Lodermania, about 30 miles south of Stockholm, in Sweden ; he resided on and owned the land between Ridley and Crum Creeks. On Lindstrom's MS. Map, this tract is designated as '' Stillen's Land, le pays de Stillen,'' and Ridley Creek is called, '' Oele Stillen' s Kill”. The Indians called it Techorassi or Teguirasi.
Olof Stille was one of the principal men in the Swedish Colony, having been deputed by Gov. Printz, as the bearer of the official protest made by the Swedes to the Dutch Governor, against the encroachments of the West India Company on the rights of the Swedish Crown on the Delaware. In 1658, after the Dutch took possession of the country, he was one of the four commissioners or magistrates appointed to administer justice among the inhabitants, and thus became a Judge of the first Court of which history gives us any information, held among the Europeans on the banks of the Delaware. He was also employed in various negotiations with the neighboring colonists and with the Indians, by whom he was styled, "The man with the black beard." He died about the year 1666. His son, John Stille, was born near Tinicum, in the year 1646, and died April 24, 1722, aged about 76 years, and was buried in the graveyard of the Swedes' Church at Wicacoa, where his tombstone still remains. He was one of the original trustees of that church, and the pastor, in recording his death, adds: "He lived a goodly life in this world."
Chester (and its vicinity,) Delaware County, in Pennsylvania: with genealogical sketches of some old families. By John Hill Martin. 1877.
https://archive.org/details/chesteranditsvic00mart/page/510/mode/2up
[8]
- This plantation was east of Cobb's Creek, near the Swedes' mill. Techoherassi was Olof Stille's place, on the Delaware near the mouth of Ridley's Creek, and below Tinnecum and Fort Gottenburg. Stille, an original Swedish colonist, sold to the clergyman, Laurentius Carolus, and then settled in Moyamensing, where lie took up swamp lands in 1678.
History of Philadelphia, 1609-1884, v.1.
by Thomas J. Scharf. page 74.
https://archive.org/details/historyofphilade01scha/page/74/mode/2up?q=stille [9]
- OLOF STILLE
Olof Stille was born on Penningby Manor in Länna parish, Roslagen, Uppland, Sweden. His father was Per Stille, who appears to have been a supervisor on the manor and later lived on the island farm of Humblö, also on the manor. (1)
His wife’s name is unknown. However, emigration records state that Olof left Sweden with a wife and two children.
Children: (2)
Ella, born about 1634.
Anders, born about 1640.
Christina, born about 1643.
John, born in 1646.
Following is a synopsis of information contained in “Olof Stille of New Sweden,” by Fritz Nordström, and “The Stille Family in America 1641-1772,” by Peter S. Craig. Additional information is cited in footnotes.
Olof appears to have immigrated to America after being convicted of crimes related to a dispute with the widow of his former lord. Following is a brief description of the incident.
On April 13, 1638, Olof was tried in an “extraordinary session” of the assizes of Frötuna and Länna for crimes against her Ladyship Katarina Fleming of Penningby Manor, the widow of Erik Bjelke. Olof, who had been a servant of the recently deceased lord, had a history of disputes with Her Ladyship that resulted in fines and prison time. As a result of his antics, he was ordered off his farm at Humblö. However, Olof was allowed to keep his cattle on the farm until the following spring and two of his servants remained there. The key point of dispute in the case was whether one of the servants, a man named Anders, was obligated to the late lord or to Olof.
In any case, Olof ordered Anders to come to work for him. After several months, on March 18, Anders returned to Väsby and began quarreling with Her Ladyship’s servants. She then had him seized as a runaway.
Olof found out about Anders’ situation the next day. Nordström reports that the court was told Olof “went into Jacob of Torpet’s place, where he was told that Anders had been locked up. Then he grabbed a wood-axe and said, ‘I shall get him out, in the name of the bad one.’ … He let himself into Penningby through a secret door, and found the room where Anders was imprisoned, under the very house in which the said Late Lordship lay a corpse. Since the lock was strong he broke apart the masonry, took away the lock and keeper (worth one daler silvermynt), took the servant out, gave him the axe and sent him on ahead. When he himself turned from the wall he bared his sword, which was witnessed by Olof Svensson (who alone was at home in the castle, as the rest of the servant folk were at the census enrollment).
“Then, Olof Svensson testified, Olof Stille swept his sword around, uttered foul language and said, ‘I dare you to come and take me!’ Where upon he fled.
“The others came home then, and wanted to apprehend him, but they were held back because of the risk to their own lives that could involve.”
The court found Olof guilty of robbery – taking Anders, who had been locked up for breach of contract – and condemned to beheading. However, the supreme court reviewed the sentence on May 28 and reduced it to paying a fine and compensation for physical damage to the house.
On May 3, 1641, the manifest for the Charitas shows Olof Stille, his wife and two children – a 7-year-old daughter and a 1½-year-old son – among the passengers bound from Göteborg to the colony of New Sweden in America. The manifest states Olof was a millwright and intended to be a farmer in America. Also among the passengers was Axel Stille, who has been identified as Olof’s brother.
The Charitas and the Kalmar Nyckel left for America in July and arrived at Fort Christina – the present city of Wilmington, Del. – in November.
Olof eventually settled on a tract of land known as Techoherassi, which is now part of Eddystone, Pa. Craig cites a 1702 sources that describes the property: “Techoherassi, Olof Stille’s place, was a small plantation which was built by Swedish freemen, who gave it that name. They were frequently visited by the Indians, as it was on the river-shore, and surrounded with water, like a small island. Olof had a thick black beard from which the Indians had given him the name of ‘the man with the black beard.’ ” The Swedish historian Israel Acrelius covered similar ground in 1759: “The savages stayed much with Olof Stille at Techoheraffi, and were very fond of the old man; but they made a monster of his thick black beard, from which also they gave hi a special name.” (3)
Despite his brushes with the law in Sweden, Olof appears to have been respected enough to get himself appointed as a judge. On July 10, 1643, he sat as one of 10 judges in the trial of an Englishman who tried to establish a settlement nearby. On Oct. 6, 1646, he was chose by the New Sweden’s Gov. Johan Printz to deliver a protest to representatives from the Dutch colony of New Netherlands.
Olof’s rebellious side arose again by 1648, when he became involved in a dispute with Gov. Printz concerning a calf. Then, in 1653, a number of prominent settlers, including Olof, signed a complaint to Printz, who considered it mutiny. Printz had a solider, whom he thought to be a ringleader, shot and ordered that Olof and the local pastor stand trial. However, Printz soon left the colony and the trial apparently never happened. (4)
When the new governor, Johan Rising, arrived in May 1654, Olof signed the oath of allegiance to the Swedish crown.
Rising got himself into trouble when he attacked a Dutch colony at the present site of New Castle, Del. The angered Dutch returned and drove out the Swedish officials and ended that country’s colonial ambitions in North America. However, Olof and other Swedes stayed in their new homeland.
Under the Dutch, the Swedish settlers continued to have a degree of self-government and Olof became one of their magistrates. (5) In addition to these duties, in 1661, the Dutch asked Olof to go to Maryland to try to convince Swedish settlers who had abandoned the Dutch colony to return.
When, in 1664, the English seized the Dutch colony, Olof continued his role as magistrate. He retired in 1675.
The English 1671 census of Delware shows Olof living at Moyamensing. A 1677 tax list show Olof’s household including his son John.
Olof fails to appear in a 1683 census and subsequent documents, probably indicating he was in ill healthy or had died by this point.
(1) “Olof Persson Stille and his Family,” by Peter S. Craig, from www.colonialswedes.org, originally published in “Swedish Colonial News,” Vol. 1, No. 16. Also, “Olof Stille in New Sweden,” by Fritz Nordstrom, and “The Stille Family in America 1641-1772,” by Peter S. Craig, reprinted from the “Swedish American Genealogist,” Vol. VI, Nos. 3 and 4. For detail and explanations, please the articles in “Swedish American Genealogist.” (2) Information on children comes from Craig’s “Olof Persson Stille and his Family.” (3) Acrelius’ account is contained in “Narratives of Early Pennsylvania, West New Jersey and Delaware, 1630-1707,” edited by Albert C. Myers, page 74. (4) More details on this incident in contained in “The 1693 Census of the Swedes on the Delaware,” by Peter S. Craig. (5) Listed as a magistrate for the South River, another name for the Delaware River, in 1657, under “Officers of the Dutch on the Delaware,” in “The Pennsylvania Archives,” Series 2, Vol. 9, page 610.
The Old Homestead.
http://bowershomestead.com/stilly.html
- From: The Swedish Settlements on the Delaware: Their history and relations to the Indians, Dutch and English 1638-1664 with an account of the South, the New Sweden, and the American companies and the efforts of Sweden to regain the colony, v.1. By Amandus Johnson, 1911. Pages 462-463
During the winter preparations for the expedition had been made at Gothenburg and Stockholm. The Kalmar Nyckel was repaired at the former place and Van Schotting bought provisions there and large quantities of hay and oats for the cattle that were to be shipped over, while ammunition and various other articles were procured by Beier, Kramer and Fleming at Stockholm, where a second ship, the Charitas was being prepared. The colonist from the various districts of the northern provinces were instructed to assemble at the capital, before the sailing of the vessel and, May 3, 1631, she left Stockholm on her way to Gothenburg with thirty-five souls on board, destined for New Sweden. A list of these has been preserved. Being of considerable interest, as it describes each individual colonist and vies us an idea of the general character of the immigrants, it will be quoted in full:
List of the persons who sailed from here to Gothenburg on the ship Charitas, May 3, 1641, and from where they shall be brought over to Nova Svecia [New Sweden], namely:
(1) Ivert Hinderricksson, hired to serve as a soldier. He is to have a suit of clothes and a salary of 20 R.D. a year of which he has received 20 D. cop. Money here.
(2) Olof Pevalsson, hired to serve as a soldier. He is to have a suit of clothes and a salary of 20 R.D. a year of which he has received 20 D. cop. Money here.
(3) Per Johannson, hired to serve as a soldier. He is to have a suit of clothes and a salary of 20 R.D. a year of which he has received 20 D. cop. Money here.
(4) Johan Erickson, hired to serve as a soldier. He is to have a suit of clothes and a salary of 20 R.D. a year of which he has received 20 D. cop. Money here.
(5) Anderson Hansson, the brother of the constable (gunner) , hired to serve as a soldier. He is to have a suit of clothes and a salary of 20 R.D. a year of which he has received 20 D. cop. Money here.
(6) Jacob Sprint , hired to serve as a soldier. He is to have a suit of clothes and a salary of 20 R.D. a year of which he has received 20 D. cop. Money here.
(7) Paul Joransson , hired to serve as a soldier. He is to have a suit of clothes and a salary of 20 R.D. a year of which he has received 20 D. cop. Money here.
(8) Axel Stille, hired to serve as a soldier. He is to have a suit of clothes and a salary of 20 R.D. a year of which he has received 20 D. cop. Money here.
(9) Henrick Matsson, a boy. He shall have a salary of 10 R.A. a year and he received 10 D. copper money on departing.
(10) Johan, a boy. He shall have a salary of 10 R.A. a year and he received 10 D. copper money on departing.
(11) Olof Erickson, a boy. He shall have a salary of 10 R.A. a year and he received 10 D. copper money on departing.
(12, 13, 14, 15, 16). Mans Svensonn (Loom), a tailor, who has also been a lieutenant. He intends to begin agriculture in the colony. He received 5 R.D. on departing but otherwise no salary or monthly wage. Goes with his wife, two almost grown up daughters and a little son.
(17, 18, 19, 20). Olof Stille, a mill-maker, [“Oloff Stille ein Muehlen Macher”, an expression undoubtedly means that he was a mill-wright, a Mill-builder”] who will begin farming there. He received 50 R.D. copper money, but he seeks no pay. He will be paid, however, for what he does for the company or for what he supplies. He has a wife, and two children, one seven the other one and a half years of age.
(21). Mats Hansson, one of Fleming’s servants. He is to have no pay, but to be supplied only with necessary clothing [and food[, because he has committed some offense, and must go along as punishment.
(22) Per Kock, an imprisoned soldier fr0m Smedjegarden. He must serve as a soldier for penalty, and is to receive necessary sustenance and clothing. [note: imprisoned soldiers in Stockholm were kept in Smedjegarden.]
(23) Karl Johansson, formerly a bookkeeper at Koxholm, who must go along for punishment and he shall also serve at times as a soldier.
(24). Eskel Larsson, a deserted soldier from the College of War at this place, sent over as punishment.
(25). Herr Christoffer, a priest, goes along on the recommendation of the Royal Admiral, who also gave him 100 D. copper money for this purpose from his own means. Otherwise he has demanded nothing beside his board, because he only wishes to gain some experience or try his luck through this journey.
(26). Gustaf Strahl, a young nobleman, goes along to try his luck (or gain experience) on the recommendation of the Royal Admiral, and he received nothing frm the company except his board.
(27). Mickel Jonaaon (Bolm), son of the Mayor of Reval, is also an adventurer, seeks no pay, because he goes along to try his luck.
(28, 29, 30, 31). Mans [Nilsson] Kling, with his wife, a servant girl, and a little child. His quality and extra allowances have not yet been agreed upon. He is to serve as a lieutenant at the salary of 40 florins a month, to being on May 1, 1641. Beside he was presented with 50 R.D. through Fleming in lieu of his time in waiting [for the expedition].
(32, 33). Hats Hansson, constable at the new fort. He has received nothing on departing. His salary has not been fixed as yet. He also wishes to being a farm or tobacco plantation together with his wife.
(34). Lars Markusson, hired as a servant to work on the tabacco plantation. He shall have a salary of 20 R.D. and a suit, but he received nothing on departing.
(35). Pafvel Schal, a boy, the son of a baker, in Norrmalm. Receives no pay from the company.
The Charitas probably arrived at Gothenburg about the beginning of June, and a number of other colonists were undoubtedly in readiness there. The cargo and provisions were brought on board the two ships as soon as possible. It is probable the Kalmar Nyckel carried the majority of the settlers and that the horse, goats, sheep, cattle and farming implements were loaded into the Charitas. It seems that some arrangements were made for the cattle and passengers, perhaps partitions or cabins being built, but the nature of these is not know. The cost of the cargo and the expenses connected with the expedition were very high.
The majority of the sailors and soldiers on the vessels were Swedes, but the officers, with one or two exceptions, were Dutchmen, and there was a sailor-boy (Jacob Evertssen Sandelin, who was along on the first expedition, was mate on the Charitas) from Dublin among the crew. The ships probably left Gothenburg in July. They most likely first touched some point in Holland and from there they went to France.
On August 19, 1641, the two vessels left the shores of Europe. The voyage was a stormy one. Two of the colonists and some cattle died on the journey and then the expedition arrived at Fort Christina, November 7, the people and animals were very weak and powerless.
Pages 151-155
In 1653 there was much trouble in New Sweden and in the autumn the situation reached a crisis. Ships did not arrive, some colonist deserted and a “revolt” arose against Governor Printz. Several colonist had real or imaginary grievances against the governor. A written supplication in eleven articles, signed by twenty-two settlers, was present to him on July 27. It states that the colonists were “at no hour or time secure as to life and property”; it complained that they were all prohibited from tracing with either the savages or Christians, although the governor never refrained from grasping an opportunity of traffic with these parties; the governor was accused of brutality and avarice and of passing judgement in his own favor again the opinions of the jury; he was accused of forbidding the colonist from grinding the four at the mill and of prohibiting them the use of the “fish-waters, the trees in the woods, the grass on the ground and the land to plant on, from which they had their nourishment.” The petition then prayed that Anders the Finn might be released from his fine, “in order that his wife and children should not starve to death.”
On account of these and other troubles, the petitioners said, they were obliged to send two men to Her Royal Majesty and the Hon. Company in the mother country to ascertain if they were entirely neglected . . . and what they should od, since the were not able (allowed?) to seek their subsistence in this county.” The petition kindled the wrath of the governor. Anders Jonsson, who appears to have been the leader of the opposition, was arrested, tried and “executed [on the charge of treachery’ on August 1, 1653.”
These names are (in the order of their signatures): Mats Hansson, Olof Stille, Axel Stille, Johan Hwiler, Hindrick Matsson, Ifvar Hindricksson, Mans Anderson, Olof Ericksson, Hinrick Matsson the Finn, Valerius Loo, Hans Mansson, Peter Jochim, Anders Andersson, Per Rombo, Peter Kock, Sven Gunnarsson, Anders Hansson, Marten Martensson, Klas Johansson, Johan Fysk, Lars Thomasson Bross.
LKH NOTE: Olof Still, Axel Stille, Hans Mansson and Peter Jochim are all signers.
[10]
- On their [the local Indians] account the people were compelled to live close together, as also to have stories on their houses provided with loop-holes. By their intercourse with the savages the Swedes became well acquainted with the Indian language, and there are still a few of the older ones who express themselves quite well in it. The savages stayed much with Olof Stille at Techoheraffi, ad were very fond of the old man; but they made a monster of his thick black beard, from which also they gave him a special name.
Olof or Olle Stille, millwright, of Techoheraffi, at the mouth of Olle Stille's Kill, now Ridley Creek, at the present borough of Eddystone, Pennsylvania, was a native of Roslagen, in the parish of Lanna, and Penningsby Court, in Sweden, and came over in 1641. His descendant the late Charles J. Stille was provost of the University of Pennsylvania, and president of the Historical Society of Pennsyvlania.
Narratives of early Pennsylvania, west New Jersey and Delaware, 1630-1707. page 74.
[11]
- 10. Other Places.
Other places were only well known, and not fortified.
[long list of places, includes:]
Techoherassi (6) - Olof Stille's place
(6) On the Delaware at the north side of the present Ridley Creek, now Eddystone Borough.
page 68-69 [12]
- From: Reminiscences of Old Gloucester
Upon the island of Tinicum, as we have said before, was the great capital New Gottenborg, the residence of of all the Johns, and the intended Stockholm of the new world. On a peninsula a little north of Upland lived the black bearded Olof Stille and some other Swedish freemen who had much dealing with the Indians.
[13]
- Newspaper clippings giving historical and genealogical sketches of Chester, Pennsylvania families.
Sketches of Chester - No.56.
"The new Ridley public school house stands on the next lot but one, west of the old Plummer meeting house, and opposite the properties of William M. Maddock and Miles M. Stille. The later is the descendent of an old Swedish family, who were among the earliest settlers in this vicinity. Olof Stille, whose passport or certificate of character bears date Dec.2, 1634, came from the lordship of Penningby and Nyanes, in the Ducky of Lodermania, about 30 miles south of Stockholm, in Sweden; he resided on and owned the land between Ridley and Crum creeks. On Lindstron's MS. map, this tract is designated as "Stillen's Land, le pays de Stillen," and Ridley creek is called, "Ogle Stillen's Kill. The Indians called it Techorassi or Teguirasi. Olf Stille was one of the principal men in the Swedish colony, having been deputed by Governor Printz, as the bearer of the official protest made by the Swedes to the Dutch Governor, against the encroachments of the West India Company on the rights of the Swedish Crown on the Delaware. In 1658, after the Dutch took possession of the country, he was one of the four commissioners or magistrates appointed to administer justice among the inhabitants, and thus became a Judge of the first court of which history gives us any information, held among the Europeans on the banks of the Delaware. He was also employed in various negotiations with the neighboring colonists and with the Indians, by whom he was styled, "The man with the black beard." He died about the year 1666. His son John Stille, was born near Tinicum, in the year 1640, and died April 21, 1722, aged about 76 years, and was buried in the graveyard of the Swedes' church at Wicacao, where his tombstone still remains. He was one of the original trustees of that church and the pastor in recording his death adds: "He lived a goodly life in this world."
[14]
- Annals of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania in the olden times.
We are not aware of any place, new known, on which any of the aforesaid Swedish family dwelt, save that of the Still family in the time of its head, Olof Stille, which is marked in Lindstrom's map, as "Stille's land," in the neck. Its Indian name was Techoherassi, being "a place on the Schuylkill shore, and surrounded with water like an island." It was "a small plantation, built by freemen, and was much frequented by the Indians, who gave Mr. Stille the name of 'the man with the black beard,' because of his strong black beard."
The manner of living among the Swedes, as told by themselves, in a letter in the year 1693, to John Thelin, of Gottenberg, is as follows: We are almost all of us husbandmen, and our meat and drink is after the old Swedish custom. The country is very rich and fruitful, and we send out yearly to our neighbours on this continent, and the neighbouring islands, bread, grain, flour and oil. We have here, thank God, all kinds of venison, birds and fishes. Our wives and daughters spin wool and flax, and many of them weave. We live in great peace and friendship with the Indians; and we only wish we had good and faithful shepherds and guardians of our souls; we many add, that since we are no longer under the government of Sweden, we have been well and kindly treated by the Dutch and the English." The foregoing letter was presented to King Charles XI., who thereupon ordered three ministers to be sent with Bibles, prayer books, and catechisms.
page 233.
[15]
- There is much mention, too, ion the old records, of a big burly mill-wright, Olof Stille, of Techoherassi, who "was much reverenced by the Indiana in spite of his great black beard." He served as magistrate, and engineered the difficulties with the Dutch with wisdom and discretion, but seems to have had a weak side toward the lads and their love-making, for we find him slyly helping off runaway couples, and shielding disorderly old Fabritus for marrying them. This Olof was the great-grandfather of Charles Stille, provost of the Pennsylvania University.
From Harper's New Monthly Magazine page 709-710
Part of a compilation of papers titled:
Descendants of John & Ann (Brown) Chamberlain of Boston, Mass. Complied by Geo. T. Fish.
From the Rochester Public Library, Reference.
Found on Family Search https://www.familysearch.org/library/books/viewer/1003916/?offset=100&return=1#page=1&viewer=picture&o=info&n=0&q=
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1610 - 1684 (74 years)
[1, 2, 3, 4] 
: Address
: Location
: City/Town
: County/Shire
: State/Province
: Country
: Not Set
