VAN ESSEN Genealogy - 1888 Autograph Book - Introduction

In 1888, when Josephine Nelson, age 12, was visiting in Brainerd, Minnesota,
my great-grandaunt-to-be, Anna Bellmuth, age 14, gave her an autograph book.
This is the decorative inside overleaf from it:

This autograph book was the key to finding out about my Swedish roots.
The people who have this book wanted to find out about this "cousin" connection
(see the autograph entries in the links below) and connected with me in the process.

The links below will take you to other pages in the book.
The Swedish page gives more info about the Swedish connection.