Albinus Hasselgren

Who was Albinus Hasselgren?

Albinus Hasselgren was a Swedish-American artist. Hasselgren was born 20 March 1880 in Gävle, Sweden, and died 9 April 1916 in Westfield, Massachusetts, USA. He was brother to the Swedish artist Elfrida Gustava Ewerlöf. In 1903, Hasselgren immigrated to the U.S., where he changed his first name to Albinus. Soon after his arrival to his new homeland he became involved in the discussion about early Viking settlements in North America. Hasselgren was convinced that the Newport Tower was a remain from such a settlement, something that he developed in his most famous painting Vinland the year 1127, which was published in the immigrant magazine Prärieblomman 1912. The painting was also commented on in the local press. In the painting, we see Vikings together with Native Americans in front of the tower.. Hasselgren also painted altar pieces for Lutheran churches in New England. Two are still in the church of which he became a congregation member, the Lutheran Church in Worcester. He lived his last four years at a sanatorium in Westfield, Massachusetts, after being diagnosed with tuberculosis. Hasselgren was buried on April 11, 1916, in the Old Swedish Cemetery, Worcester.