Hedstroms and the Bethel Ship Saga: Methodist Influence on Swedish Religious Life

By Henry C. Whyman

The first book-length biographical treatment of Olof Gustaf Hedstrom and his brother Jonas documents their work in spreading Methodism among Swedish immigrants to America. Henry C. Whyman discusses the Bethel Ship Saga, a ministry unique in American immigrant history, and examines the larger picture of the role of religion in nineteenth-century European immigration to the United States.

The Bethel Ship, a floating chapel in New York Harbor, was the vehicle and headquarters for an effective ministry to immigrants arriving in America. Olof Hedstrom, a Methodist minister serving in the Catskill Mountain area, was called to New York to organize and lead this endeavor.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0809317621
• ISBN13: 9780809317622
• Release Date: August 1992
• Publisher: Southern Illinois University Press
• Length: 200 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.5" x 8.5"