Stories of the Past: How Swedish Americans Shape Their Heritage with Jennifer Attebery, Professor Emerita at Idaho University

The Swedish Club is excited to partner with SAHS (The Swedish-American Historical Society Swedish-American Historical Society and the Society for the Advancement of Scandinavian Studies (SASS) for a lunch and lecture on the opening day of the SASS conference in Seattle. This conference, held annually in cities across the country, welcomes hundreds of scholars and students of Nordic and Scandinavian studies from all corners of the world to convene and exchange ideas related to their scholarship.

Lunch will feature guest speaker and SAHS member Jennifer Eastman Attebery who will share examples from her new book As Legend Has It: History, Heritage, and the Construction of Swedish American Identity (University of Wisconsin Press, 2023). The book and talk examine how immigrants and their descendants used legendary materials to claim a place in American history. The event will include a short tour of the space led by Club staff members.

Jennifer Eastman Attebery is professor emerita of English at Idaho State University, where she taught folklore and American Studies. In writing histories of their own communities, Swedish Americans draw on historical legends that distill a sense of ethnic identity and heritage. In addition to her new book, she is the author of academic books concerning letter-writing by Swedish immigrants and the Swedish-Americans’ summer holidays, and articles in Swedish American Historical Quarterly and Scandinavian Studies. And many know Jennifer from her many years of service on the Swenson Swedish Immigration Research Center advisory committee.

Ticket | $30 (+tax)