Background

Rurik Pitkänen was born in 1898 to a farmer family in Siilinjärvi. He became deaf after a scarlet fever as a 9-year-old school boy and continued his school in the Kuopio Deaf School, getting his school leaving certificate in 1914.

Rurik studied printing likewise many other Deaf. In 1919, he started learning typesetter’s profession and continued his studies in Helsinki until 1924. Later, he complemented his studies with graphic course in Ateneum in 1923-1925, and after a few years got a foreman’s diploma, becoming Finland’s first Deaf foreman of a printing house. In the 1920′s and 1930′s he worked in the printing house as a typesetter and later as a foreman. As a sophisticated man, he specialised as a reviser of academic texts, a job which requires definite linguistic skills.

Printing house Surdus

Rurik worked with the Deaf vocational education and employment on a grass root level. The printing business remained dear to him through his life as he sat in the board of the Surdus printing house from 1931 until his death. The Helsinki-based printing house Oy Surdus Ab, founded in 1929, can well be counted as one of the important professional and financial networks of the Deaf in the 20th century. Even most of the shareholders were Deaf.

The original father of the combined printing house and vocational school was Oskar Wetzell but he didn’t live to see the founding of Surdus. When Rurik began his career in the Surdus board in 1931, among other board members were e.g. Lauri Wainola and Eino Karilas. The last 10 years of his life Rurik was the chairman of the board. Dozens of Deaf got their vocational education in printing in Surdus and worked there until the 1970′s.

Background

Torsten Rikström was born in Loviisa in 1916, becoming deaf at three years of age. He was sent to the Swedish speaking Deaf school in Porvoo which he finished in 1932. After school, he worked as a book binder first in Loviisa and later in Helsinki, in Suomen Kirjallisuuden Kirjapaino Oy until his retirement.

Torsten joined the Helsinki Deaf Club in 1937 and got soon carried away with club activities. He was known by his nickname ”Totti” by everyone. Totti took care of different positions of trust altogether 27 years. He and Aura Ahlbäck founded the youth club in 1940, and the first Nordic youth camp was organised based on his suggestion. In 1953, Totti got married with Ulla Hilden and the couple got three children.

A Man of Culture

The Finnish Deaf community remembers Totti as an active man of culture with his bravura being J. L. Runeberg’s poem Joutsen (The Swan) in visual sign language. He was at his best on stage and in recitation and he performed for years in the National Culture Days of the Deaf and in cultural events of the elderly. One can never forget his interpretation of Aleksis Kivi’s tailor Eenokki in 1958 nor  Moliére’s The Imaginary Invalid in 1978. As many other famous Deaf before him, Torsten Rikström continued the tradition of leading sign language choirs. He conducted e.g. Kajander’s hymn Isänmaalle (Hymn for Fatherland) in the opening ceremonies of the first Culture Days in 1956.

Totti was a proper gentleman, always polite and considerate, with a twinkle in his eye. He came to club meetings dressed in a suit and a tie until the very end. Children were especially dear to Totti and many times he entertained them with dramatised stories from familiar subjects.

Torsten Rikström loved Deaf theatre. No matter what was on stage, he was always in the audience. In honour of Totti Rikström the Theatre of the Deaf changed it name to ”Teatteri Totti” (Theatre Totti) in 2005.

Background

Svante Lagergrén was born in Halmstad, Sweden in 1844. His merchant father left the family in the 1850′s and his mother was left to support her four children with a meagre teacher’s salary. Svante was four years old when he became deaf. The artistically talented boy got an apprenticeship in a portrait painter’s studio in the hometown, Halmstad. At the age of 13, Svante was sent to Manilla School in Stockholm where he learned, next to the school subjects, carpentry.

Lagergrén, the Photographer

In 1871, Svante Lagergrén moved to Finland and got a place as a carpenter’s apprentice in Turku Deaf School, under Deaf Herman Fonselius. The work was hard and Svante started to look for other means of livelihood.

Fritz Hirn, then a teacher in Turku school, offered his help. He had got a spark for photography from his own teacher, C. O. Malm, and had worked as a photographer in Helsinki before his career as a teacher. Now he started to teach photography to Svante.

With the basic skills acquired, Svante got apprenticeships with photographers in Turku and Helsinki. In the mid 1870′s he already founded his own atelier in Tampere, which was the first of its kind in town.

An announcement from 1876 tells that the Svante Lagergrén atelier was located close to the Tampere market square and was open every day from nine to four. The business included photography, copying and enlarging old photos and paintings but especially famous Svante was from his landscape photos. His clientele included all ranks of society from bank managers and merchant’s wives to servants and weavers. The Lagergrén atelier worked in Tampere without competition until 1879. In 1881, Svante was already wealthy enough to marry brewery owner’s daughter Anna Wilhelmina Muhr. Svante Lagergrén worked in Tampere for about 15 years. Later he practised photography e.g. in Hanko and Pori.

The Savisaari family has had deafness in several generations. The first known Deaf in the family was Elias Savisaari (1850–1906) who married his former school friend Maria Valkama (1857–1938) and the family settled in Savisaari tenant farm in Alavus. All the children were deaf and were sent to the Turku Deaf School. The family language was sign language. The second youngest boy, Elias (1890–1972) became an enthusiastic member of the Turku Deaf Club after getting a job as a tailor. For his family background, Elias had a good deal of Deaf awareness and was well-balanced and positive person. He married a Finnish-Swedish Deaf girl, Rakel Karlsson (1896–1984) in 1923.

Hearing children of Deaf family: Runo and Eino

All four children of the Savisaari family were hearing. Elise, Runo, Tora and Eino were raised as members of the Deaf community. The children visited regularly their both grandparents and thus inherited four languages: spoken Finnish and Swedish as well as Finnish and Finnish-Swedish sign languages.

Runo Savisaari (1927–2007) joined the association activities in 1958 and acted as the Executive Director of the Finnish Association of the Deaf between 1962–1991. His father is known to have said to him: ”You are always to listen to the Deaf.” And so he did! Due to his background he always considered the Deaf as equal. He was a popular lecturer, and an active and political writer in Kuurojen Lehti (Magazine of the Deaf). He often acted as an interpreter, began the development work to enhance the position of African Deaf, and was a member of the Nordic Council of the Deaf. Runo’s era in the Finnish Association of the Deaf is also remembered by several building projects, e.g. the Malmiharju course centre for the Deaf and the Valkea Talo (The Light House).

The former Executive Director of the Finnish Association of the Deaf, Liisa Kauppinen, wrote about Runo Savisaari:

His respectful attitude towards our hopes, initiatives, and opinions also in the Association’s goals and in the development of societal services has had a strong effect on the growth of the Association’s activities and on improving our societal position.

Eino Savisaari (1933–1989) is remembered as the pastor of the Deaf in Turku and Porvoo districts. He started his career in 1961 and continued until his death. In his work, he used skilfully both the Finnish and Finnish-Swedish sign languages which he had, after all, learnt as his first languages. Developing the sign language was important to Eino. He was involved in developing the first picture dictionary of the Finnish sign language and edited a lot of sign language teaching materials. As his brother Runo, Eino was involved in international activities. Deaf Mission, development work of the Finnish Association of the Deaf and the World Federation of the Deaf sent him abroad several times.

In the early 20th century in Tampere and Pirkanmaa region there were two influential Deaf families: the Talvia and the Ritala. Siiri, Evert, Heikki and Juho Talvia were the founders of the Tampere Deaf club, and Kaarlo, Vilho, Eeva and Akseli Ritala amongst the founders of the Heffata Deaf club in Huittinen. The two families were joined when Eeva Ritala and Juho Felix Talvia got married.

The Talvia family (earlier: Helin)

The Talvia family had four children: Heikki (1872–1943), Evert (1874–1934), Juho (1879–1960) and Siiri (1883–1964). Heikki, Juho and Siiri were deaf. In the late 1800′s Albert Tallroth travelled around the country emancipating the Deaf and next to Talvia brothers, also Kaarlo and Eeva Ritala got engaged with the new activities in Tampere.

Artistically talented Juho Felix went to Europe’s big cities e.g. Paris and Berlin to study arts, but could never forget the Ritala girl, Eeva. Once he returned home they started dating and got married in 1906.

Ritala Estate’s Deaf siblings

Ritala estate stood by the River Kokemäenjoki in Pirkanmaa. In the early 20th century, it was a wealthy house with a lot of domain. The Ritala house got a whole generation of Deaf: Kaarlo (1875–1928), Vilho (1876–1945), Eeva (1877–1953) and Akseli (1879–1940).

The father died in 1911 and the siblings had to fight in court to free themselves from the custody and to inherit their vast property. With testimonies of Rev. Huugo Nyberg and Julius Hirn, they were declared legally competent. Still, two trusted men were ordered to overlook their interests.

Rise of the club activities in Pirkanmaa

In 1907, Elma Ignatius (née Eklund), the very soul of the Helsinki Deaf community, moved to Pirkanmaa with her husband, and brought the idea of an own Deaf club. There were 28 Deaf present, including the Ritala brothers, in the founding meeting in Huittinen parsonage.

There was always room for Deaf in the Ritala house. Many of the Sunday meeting visitors arrived already for the sauna on Saturday night. Also bigger festivities were organised, there were long time visitors and even work for those in need. There were social evenings and plays – one might see even magic tricks by Oskar Wetzell and Bruno Mouton playing Chaplin!

Julia Tavaststjerna (1844–1929) belonged to an upper-class family and married her cousin Karl Alfred Stadius with a special permission. From their three children the middle one, Valter Stadius (1869–1935), became deaf when he was three years old. A new life began for Mrs. Stadius. She used her literary skills and high social position in benefit of the Deaf. She was one of the founding members of the Helsinki Deaf Club as well as the Finnish Association of the Deaf. She was one of the most prominent figures in the Deaf community in the turn of the century.

In 1880, the Stadius sent their 9-year-old son to Stockholm, to Tysta Skolan. After four years, Valter returned to Finland to continue his studies in the Porvoo Deaf school. In the same autumn with 15-year-old Valter, also factory worker’s daughter Olga Härkönen, 7, and farmer’s daughter Hulda Hakala, 9, began their school. Valter finished his school in 1889 while small Olga remained in school until 1893.

The Stadius living room served as a meeting point for the Deaf in Helsinki before founding the club and in 1890′s one could meet there many of the prominent persons of the Deaf history. This group, led by Albert Tallroth, Julius Hirn, Valter and Julia Stadius, founded the Helsinki Deaf Club in 1895.

Valter and Katarina

In 1896, Valter Stadius’ life went topsy-turvy when Katarina Popoff, 25-year-old daughter of an orthodox priest, joined the Helsinki Deaf club. Soon there were sparks in the air and already in the next year Valter and Katarina announced their engagement in Kuuromykkäin Lehti (Magazine of the Deaf). But something went wrong. In 1898, 29-year-old Axel Edvard Klöfverskjöld joined the club. The love triangle led to the end of the engagement and already the same year Katarina and Axel Edvard got married. All three continued their activities in the Deaf club and Valter could not help meeting the newlyweds. Soon after his father died, he moved with his mother first to Hämeenlinna and then to Paris. Katarina and Axel Edvard moved to Sweden.

Love between former school friends

Valter Stadius returned to Finland in 1904 and at the Helsinki Deaf Club met his former school friend, now a temperamental young woman, Olga Härkönen, who later became one of the founders of the Women’s Club. The wedding took place in November 1905 and already next summer they got a hearing daughter, Rea (1906–2003). The family lived with Julia Stadius in a big wooden house, where Julia had a boarding house.

The Deaf club became as important to small Rea as it was to her parents and her grandmother. The family language was sign language and everyone gave the Deaf community their very best. When Rea was just a little girl her grandmother asked her to carry on her work with the Deaf once she was gone. Rea never got married but dedicated her life for the Deaf cause, acting as an interpreter, organising jobs etc.

Background

Jämsänkoski-born Raija Nieminen became gradually deaf between the age years of 3–20. She took her matriculation examination in Jämsä yhteiskoulu in 1956, and later graduated as a Bachelor of Arts. In the late 1960′s, she found the sign language using community and immediately felt at home. She got positions of trust in the Finnish Association of the Deaf but after finishing her studies in 1975, she moved with her husband and two sons to St. Lucia Island for her husband’s job in the UN. On the island Raija worked voluntarily in the local Deaf school. Later she wrote a book about her life on St. Lucia. The book Äänetön saari (Voyage to the Island) has been translated into English and dramatised in 1991.

Life’s work with Deaf culture

After returning to Finland, Raija Nieminen started her work as a secretary in the Finnish Association of the Deaf. The Deaf culture played an important part in her work. She was secretary in the cultural work group founded by the Ministry of Education in 1982, and the cultural secretary of the Finnish Association of the Deaf.

Once the Deaf Cultural Centre was established, Raija became the first director. She aimed at bringing forth the Deaf culture also outside the Deaf community and thus ensuring the financial basis of the work. The Cultural Centre followed the same lines as the Deaf culture before, adding to it the Museum of the Deaf and the Theatre of the Deaf. Raija was also responsible of the National Culture Days of the Deaf. According to her, the culture was to follow its time and thus the cultural changes were to show also at the Culture Days, though traditional forms of the culture, e.g. recitation and folk dance, should also hold their place.

Raija Nieminen was elected as the chairman of the Commission of Culture and Arts in the World Federation of the Deaf, and she presented the Finnish Association of the Deaf in Nordic cultural seminars and festivals. First she felt that the work was very demanding but by and by it got easier. She regarded her work with the World federation of the Deaf not limiting her input for the Finnish Deaf culture but increasing it.

Deaf Awareness

Deaf Awareness movement finding its way to Finland in the turn of 1970′s–1980′s, Raija was actively involved in lecturing, and organising events. The Deaf had the right to be Deaf and feel themselves as important as the hearing. According to Raija, this demanded acknowledging the sign language as a language among other languages.

Elin Carlstedt (1864–1949) was one of the Deaf teachers before implementation of oralism. She taught handicrafts for Deaf girls in 1882–1893. Elin Carlstedt was a chairman for the Porvoo Swedish Deaf Club for more than 20 years.

Background

Elin Carlstedt was born in 1864 to a Porvoo military family. She became deaf in the early childhood due to a scarlet fever. When seven years old, she entered the Porvoo Deaf School which was then run by Selma Åkerstedt and Achilles Sirén. It is possible that she attended the school already in the era of C. H. Alopaeus. Elin finished her school in 1881.

Finnish-Swedish teacher

In 1882, the talented 17-year-old Elin taught handicrafts for young children without salary in her former school. She was very skilled, especially in embroidery. In 1881–1882 there were altogether 15 pupils, of which 5 girls and 10 boys from Swedish speaking families. From 1886 onward, Elin got paid from her work. She worked together with her former school friend Isak Eneberg who was a teacher in Porvoo for 16 years, starting from 1877. In 1890, the school got a new headmaster, Elin’s cousin Valter Forsius. After two years, Valter became an inspector of schools for defective children. Elin had to quit her job in 1893 as the school started using oralism as a teaching method. This resulted by and by into a withdrawal of Deaf teachers.

After being forced to leave her post as a teacher, Elin got her livelihood as a tie maker. Ms Carlstedt was known to sew the finest ties in Porvoo, and she even got to sew the flag of Helsinki Deaf Club. Besides her job, Elin led the Porvoo Deaf Club for over two decades. Elin never got married. She died in Åvik, Hyvinkää, in 86 years of age.

The contemporaries of Oskar Wetzell (1888–1928) considered him as one of the most prominent persons in the Deaf community. He was a multi-talent who became famous amongst the Deaf as well as the hearing, as an athlete and a magician. He represented Finland in two Olympics (1908 and 1912) in diving and won nine Finnish diving championships. He is an important part of the Finnish sports history and his example has inspired many young athletes.

Background

Oskar Wetzell was born in 1888. His father worked first at the Sinebrychoff Brewery in Helsinki, later as a merchant. The boy became deaf after an influenza at two years of age and he was sent to the Porvoo Deaf School when seven years old. He is known to have been temperamental but obedient. He obtained a book binder’s profession in a Helsinki-based printing house Helsingfors Centraltryckeri, where he remained for the next 20 years. He was considered a warm-hearted, honest and socially skilled man.

Sport activities

Lively Oskar grew quickly interest in sports. In 1903, he started swimming in Helsinki Swimming Club and progressed fast. He specialised in diving, which was still rather unfamiliar in Finland those days. His speciality was the springboard but he attended also platform competitions. His first diving competitions at national level were in 1906, after which he got five championships in springboard and in platform diving.

Successful Oskar was chosen to represent the country in Deaf as well as hearing athletic events. In 1908, he participated in the London Olympics. In platform diving he was just a beginner and did not pass the first round but in springboards he made it all the way to the semi-finals. He participated the Olympics also in Stockholm, in 1912.

Next to diving, Oskar was interested in wrestling and gymnastics. During his 20-year career in athletics, he won nine Finnish championships and 70 other prizes. He participated actively also in club activities, and was one of the founding members of the Finnish Athletic Association of the Deaf.

Martin Hellöre (1914–1992) was actively involved in club activities and sports but especially he is remembered  about his colourful travel stories which he also wrote in Tidskrift för Dövstumma and Dövas Värld (Finnish-Swedish Magazines of the Deaf).

Cycling to Stockholm in 1934

In the summer 1934 Martin Hellöre grabbed his bike and took a direction to Stockholm. The journey, altogether 2 000 kms, was to lead from Pietarsaari around the Gulf of Bothnia through Tornio to Sweden. The left-hand traffic caused some difficulties, and once he even was about to hit another cyclist, driving on the wrong side of the road. Nights he often spend in hey barns by the road. Many things seemed to be better in Sweden: there even was wheat bread which Martin had never eaten before. He also saw his first electric train in Luleå town.

On the road to Umeå he stopped a man to ask for directions. The man invited him to his house to consult a map. He was given provisions for the journey and a yellow band for his arm which was obligatory for the Deaf in traffic, ordered by the Swedish traffic law. Close to Umeå Martin stayed overnight by a Finnish family, the Jussilas, who were also Deaf. He was very surprised to hear that his hostess had already heard about his journey while visiting Finland. Martin continued another 19 km after Umeå but maybe for the tiresome journey he then, after pondering for a long time, decided to turn back and go home. After all, neither was the bike in a good shape anymore.

Cycling via the Baltic States to the Exposition Universelle, Paris, 1937

The Exposition Universelle in Paris, in 1937, was Martin’s next destination. The journey started in June and was to lead to Paris through the Baltic States. He spent his nights where ever he could: in the home of a local Deaf club chairman, in barns by the road, or with people he had met on the way. Estonia he crossed in two days. In Riga he met Latvian Deaf and visited the Riga Deaf club.

The trip to Paris ended at the Lithuanian border as the border guard did not let him pass through by bike but he should have taken a train. Martin didn’t want to give up his new bike – there was no one to buy it anyway – so he had to give up his dream to reach Paris and turn back to Pietarsaari. He cycled directly from Riga to Tallinn in 30 hours without rest. In Tallinn he took the steamboat S/S Suomi to Helsinki and was back in Pietarsaari just in time for the Midsummer’s night celebrations.

Going to the USA

Martin Hellöre was caught up in between the fighting great powers during the World War II on the way to the USA in 1941. An English warship stopped the ship sailing from Linhammar to Baltimore and forced it to Iceland where Hellöre was taken to a prison camp. Later he was taken to England with German prisoners. Martin was suspected on fraternising with Germans as there was a German stamp in his passport from the year 1936 when he had hitch-hiked to the Olympics. In opposition, Martin started a hunger strike. He was held captive for three weeks before he was released and could return via Norway to Finland.