Gunnila Bernadotte

Getting around

Walking 100 Kilometers for Daily Errands

In the early 20th century, some residents relied on walking extreme distances; a man named Hans Henrik Hansson regularly walked 100 kilometers to Sundsvall and back in a single day to deliver errands.

At the table

Milk as the standard mealtime drink

Milk was the standard beverage for everyday meals in Swedish households during this period. Water was rarely cited as a mealtime drink because it was often associated with poverty or stinginess.

What people wore

Boyish fashion trends of the 1920s

In the 1920s, the ideal female look became boyish with a slim body and short, shingled hair, while skirt lengths rose dramatically to above the knees.

Music

Widespread popularity of the fiddle

Although new instruments like the accordion and brass ensembles grew in popularity, the fiddle remained a widely played instrument, often found in almost every farmhouse by the turn of the century.

Daily life

Daily household costs and diet

Kerosene for lighting could cost up to 10 öre per day for those doing sewing work, and children often relied on crusts of bread softened in coffee for breakfast.