Samuel Johan Forsgard
Waco, McLennan County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Samuel Johan Forsgard Born in Klockergarden, Forserum, Sweden, Samuel Johan Forsgard (1828-1912) came to Texas in 1855 during the first wave of Swedish immigration to Texas. In 1857, he married Mary C. Johnson (1827-1897) in Austin and they moved to Waco to make a home. Forsgard established a bakery, restaurant and confectionary business before joining Gurley's Regiment of the Confederate Army in 1861. After the war, he resumed some of his businesses, but also found time to invent and patent farming equipment and to establish Ambold's Sporting Goods Company. A well-known resident of Waco for more than 50 years, Forsgard played a significant role in the city's 19th-century development. (2001)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Born in Sweden in 1828, Samuel Johan Forsgard joined the first wave of Swedish immigration to Texas in 1855 and settled in Waco, where he opened a bakery, restaurant, and confectionery. He served in the Confederate Army during the Civil War, then returned to business, patented farming equipment, and helped establish a sporting goods company. Over more than fifty years he became a well-known figure in the city's 19th-century growth.
Why it matters
Forsgard's story links Scandinavian immigration, wartime service, and Gilded Age invention — a reminder of how newcomers helped build the economic fabric of Texas towns.
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Related people
- · Samuel Johan Forsgard
- · Mary C. Johnson
Themes & tags
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