Photo Credit unknown: The original Swedish Quartet, 1892
HISTORY OF THE SWEDISH GLEE CLUB
The roots of the Swedish Glee Club go back to 1892 when a group of four men known as The Swedish Quartet was organized in Waukegan by Hjalmar Fredbeck. The quartet was composed of Hjalmar, his brothers Simon and Harold, and K. Hagstrom. Although this group later disbanded, its cultural contribution to the community was appreciated and other quartets were formed.
Interest in Swedish song increased among the Scandinavian population of Waukegan, and in 1905 a double quartet expanded into a chorus and was christened "The Swedish Glee Club." Although no official records of this organization are known to exist, the following translation from a Swedish language newspaper dated 1905 announces the group's formation: "A Swedish Chorus was organized in Waukegan, Illinois on 8 December under the leadership of Mr. Gustav Stark. Charter members were Adolf Anderson (treasurer), Oskar Bjork, Hjalmar Fredbeck, Erik Forsberg, Einar Hellman, Karl Hellstrom, Jonas Johnson (secretary), Axel Lybeck, Bernard Nystrom, Charles Ramsell and Richard Rinaldo (president).
A tradition of dinners, picnics, and other social activities was quickly established in the Glee Club and has been carried on all through the years. Benefit concerts for worthy causes were given early in the Club's history. Two such occasions were in 1906 when, according to Einar Hellman, the group raised $200 for Dr. Watkins's tuberculosis colony, and in 1909 when $ 300 was raised for the benefit of Jane McAllister Hospital.
In 1913, the group officially joined the American Union of Swedish Singers (AUSS), becoming affiliated with dozens of male choruses from the United States and Canada and eligible to participate in the biennial singing conventions of the AUSS and its regional division. These conventions have always been a highlight in the singing experience of Glee Club members.
The first six years of the 1920's were a rough time for the Glee Club. Minutes for November, 1921 report a poll of the members to determine whether they wanted to continue rehearsals. An entry for January, 1922 brings the sad news that nine singers resigned and only four remained. The four decided to try to sing as a quartet and if they could "show progress the Club's property will be turned over to them as custodians." The following month the treasury was divided and each member was given $9. In September, 1925 by-laws were adopted and they included an amendment that stated, "As long as four members are willing to continue, the Club cannot be dissolved." One hundred copies of the by-laws were to be printed in Swedish. In the 1920's the arrival of several young Swedes who were good singers made possible the revitalization of the Club.
As early as 1914, the Glee Club members were making plans toward building a clubhouse, and by 1929 the members were again talking about building a clubhouse. Apparently the ensuing Great Depression deterred any further possibility of building in that era. It was on April 21, 1939 that the Waukegan Swedish Glee Club was granted a charter by the State of Illinois as a non-profit organization. "With incorporation came our big opportunity to develop the Club," recalls Swante Bystrom who was president at that time. The City of Waukegan granted a liquor license to the Club at this time. A prominent feature in the Club's quarters on May Street were the slot machines which, of course, were legal at that time and produced a nice flow of cash for the Club.
Now a new class of membership was introduced - the associate membership. While the singers in the Chorus (the active members) were required to be at least partially of Scandinavian ethnic origin, the associate members were not required to be Scandinavian and were not permitted by the by-laws to hold any property rights, vote, or hold office in the Club.
The physical home of the Swedish Glee Club moved from rented space on the south side of Waukegan (1905- 1949) to the doors of the Swedish Glee Club's very own building were opened and years of dreams were realized! Major additions to the original building were completed in 1957 and 1960 and minor additions and modifications have been made from time to time. The building and surrounding property as we see it today represent tangible evidence of the "good singing spirit" of the Club as mentioned by Richard Rinaldo in his history and an edifice far beyond the wildest dreams of the singers who had a dream of building a clubhouse in 1914.
With far more adequate space, the associate membership has increased many times over from the approximately 800 in 1948. Over the years since 1949 a wide variety of social activities has provided active and associate members and their families and guests with a rich social fare. These have included an annual picnic, children's Christmas party, steer roast, ethnic nights, midsummer festival, Julmiddag (Christmas dinner), New Year's Eve party, St. Pat's party, and many other social events. Dinners, smorgasbords, noon lunches, banquets, seafood buffets, Sunday morning brunches, and torsk dinners have pleased the palates of thousands of members and guests. The Club had a reputation for fine cuisine served in a congenial and dignified atmosphere.
Since 1937 the Ladies' Auxiliary of the Glee Club has been an invaluable means of sustaining interest in the singers' wives and daughters. The Auxiliary holds regular monthly meetings from September to May I and assists the Glee Club in its social and charitable work.
One of the highlights of the past eight years was singing at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in September, 1977 at the invitation of the ASEA Company of Sweden. The occasion was a gala celebration of Sweden's participation in the America's Cup sailing competition.
The Glee Club's publication KEYNOTES has faithfully informed members each month since February, 1952 of the musical, cultural, and social activities sponsored by the Club. In addition, KEYNOTES provides feature articles aimed primarily at enhancing readers' appreciation of our Scandinavian heritage. Few clubs can boast as good a record as the Glee Club can in the area of honesty and dedication of its employees. Under the surveillance of the Board of Directors, the manager and his staff uphold the tradition that has won the Glee Club an enviable place among social organizations in Waukegan. To demonstrate its appreciation of its employees the Club instituted a pension plan in 1973.
In recent years the Glee Club has renewed a cycle that started soon after the Club was established. In the fall of 1976 a committee of singers began searching for property to purchase as an investment. The work of this committee culminated in the purchase of the 14-acre Myrtle (Mrs. Howard) Erickson property near Gurnee on April 15, 1978. The evolution of the physical home of the Swedish Glee Club moved from a fulfillment of the dream of owning our own beautiful clubrooms on Belvidere Road in Waukegan (1949 -1987) to living on the "farm" near Gurnee (1988 -1989). Rehearsal began to be held at the farm then. With the inevitable onslaught of development, however, it seemed prudent to sell to a developer on July 20, 1989, and eventually 28 luxury homes were built on the site. The Glee Club continued its rehearsals and social activities in the American Legion Hall in Lake Forest from 1990 to 2015. The Legion Hall had kitchen and dining facilities as well as a good-sized room for rehearsals,
In 2016, singers requested that we consider moving to a new rehearsal space to a venue that was somewhat more central in the county. Although still in eastern Lake County, we found and moved to a beautiful, new rehearsal home in the Fellowship Hall of St. James Lutheran Church on Waukegan Road in Lake Forest. The new venue is easily accessible to singers both traveling to and within the building.
Except for 2020, we have continued to present an annual Julmiddag (Christmas dinner) concert replete with a delicious authentic Julbord in the lovely Chevy Chase Country Club, in Wheeling, IL. Our annual spring concerts are held in various churches around Lake County, IL.
The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 created the need to move rehearsals to online. Zoom.us allowed us to continue singing even when the state of Illinois shut-down in March 2020. The chorus persisted during our initial 3months of online singing, although The desire to create the feel of in-person rehearsals and creative thinking led to more satisfying rehearsals in the fall of 2020 as the pandemic continued. Initially meeting outdoors in the warmer weather, we moved indoors to a large, well-ventilated space at St. John’s United Church of Christ on McAree St. in Waukegan. Our a semi-rotating group of 6-8 singers, our director, and accompanist - all masked and physically-spaced well-apart - sing to those rehearsing from home with the help of an H6 microphone and Zoom.
Throughout the years and even in this pandemic year, the Club's purpose continues - to promote Scandinavian song and culture.