Swedish Glee Club began as 1892 quartet

Many retreated home to Sweden during hard '30s

The roots of the Waukegan Swedish Glee Club go back to 1892 when Hjalmar Fredbeck organized a quartet composed of Hjalmar, his brothers Simon and Harald, and K. Hagstrom. It wasn't until 1905 that a Swedish- language newspaper reported, "A Swedish Chorus was organized in Waukegan on December 8, 1905, led by conductor Gustav Stark."

Officers of the Swedish Glee Club were Richard Rinaldo, president; Adolf Anderson, treasurer; and Jonas Johnson, secretary. Early activities took place at Woodman Hall in Waukegan. The first rehearsals were held on Sunday mornings in Parker Hall on South Genesee Street, called Marion Street (south of Belvidere) at the time. Sunday rehearsals were a must because of the long work days (12 and 13 hours) that were required to make ends meet.

The club's first concert was a benefit ($200) for Dr Watkins's Tuberculosis Colony. It was held in the Schwartz Theater (which stood where Buhler's grocery was on Water Street).

The Glee Club celebrated its first anniversary with a concert and dinner at Woodman Hall on December 6, 1906. A young Frank "Frankie" G. Wallin (mayor of Waukegan from 1941 to 1949) sang a vocal solo as part of the program. In 1909, $300 was raised for the benefit of the Jane McAllister Hospital.

In the early days, picnics were held at Washburn Springs, a park area between Eighth and May streets, and at the Valhalla Order of Vikings grounds in Gurnee. The club sang for different societies that held events at Weiss Field, called Electric Park back then.

Discussions of building a clubhouse of their own surfaced as early as 1914. Lots were purchased and sold over the years. Two world wars and the Depression interrupted plans to proceed with a building project. During the early years, quartets were formed and dissolved on several occasions as membership waned and hard times prevailed. During the Depression, many of the singers, unable find work, went back to Sweden.

After many starts and stops, the club finally bought property on Belvidere Street in 1940. On April 21, 1939, with some difficulty, but with the assistance from a strong ally of the club, Attorney Albert Hall Sr., the Swedish Glee Club became chartered as a State of Illinois corporation.

With incorporation came the opportunity to develop the club. A liquor license was obtained and slot machines (while they were still legal) were put in the rented clubhouse at 411 May Street. Some say that this was the moneymaker that provided the initial funding source for the club that was eventually constructed on the Belvidere Road property. The club was located at 411 May Street from 1939 to 1949.

Dec. 6, 1949, the doors of the Swedish Glee Club's very own building were opened. The dream that started in 1914 had become a reality.

Although there are many who were responsible from time-to-time for revitalizing the chorus as it went through tough economic times and world wars, there can be no greater contribution than that provided by Axel Fredbeck, the youngest of the Fredbeck brothers, who emigrated from Sweden in 1911. Within two weeks of his arrival in Waukegan, he became involved with a quartet and eventually directed the Waukegan Swedish Glee Club for 28 years, from 1913 to 1941.

The Swedish Glee Club's 100-year anniversary was celebrated with an anniversary concert on May 15, 2005, at Trinity United Lutheran Church in Waukegan and a traditional Julmiddag concert and smorgasbord at the Chevy Chase Country club in Wheeling on Dec. 11, 2005.