Conclusions
In the life of the Tamminen family, 1878–1887 marked a relatively steady period during which the family integrated into Mikkeli’s middle-class society. The early years were characterised by the establishment of central family values, such as the Fennoman ideology, and also by the emergence of a shared goal—namely, social status among the rising intelligentsia.
The Tamminens’ prospects were changed by the death of the family breadwinner in 1887. Hanna became the sole supporter of her three minor children. From 1887 to 1900, she fought to preserve the central family values and to meet the shared goal despite the family’s reduced economic circumstances. Yrjo’s diary entries show that both the above-mentioned family values and the shared goal were carried on to the next generation. In the end, the Tamminen children were able to successfully claim a place among the rising intelligentsia.The Tamminen case shows that the Finnish middle class of the time could be divided into at least two sub-classes. For the Tamminens, upward social mobility meant mobility within the middle class. Because the Tamminens were not remarkably wealthy, their social ascent was not so much bound to economic capital as to cultural and social capital—namely, education and networking. For them, the grammar school was an institution that provided the youth with the practical means to enter upper middle-class professions and the social network required for a successful career. The Tamminen family invested in education both by campaigning for Finnish grammar schools in general and by enabling their children’s entrance to grammar school, regardless of the family’s economic circumstances.
Pierre Bourdieu’s notion of cultural distinctions as a means of constructing social status is supported by the Tamminen case. The Tamminens constructed a social status among the rising intelligentsia by making distinctions concerning both the uneducated common people and the old elite.
Because the old elite remained out of reach for the Tamminens, they had to identify themselves with the new elite that was furthering the Fennoman ideology.In Yrjo’s case, Fennoman sympathies intertwined with a sense of sacrifice and duty. He constantly strove to become a better person. In the process, he made sharp distinctions with other people who did not take self-improvement seriously—to the uneducated common people because they did not know better and to the members of the old elite because they simply did not care. While it is obvious that Yrjo did not always succeed in his ambitious endeavours, the ideals he communicated in his diaries reveal his affiliation with the rising intelligentsia.
Furthermore, the Tamminen case shows how individual lives intertwine in families, forming networks of lives. The choices of individual family members are influenced by other family members and their respective choices. Moreover, the Tamminen case indicates that a close-knit network such as a family may give rise to shared goals that guide or restrict the individual family members’ choices. As mentioned above, social status among the rising intelligentsia became one of the guiding principles for the Tamminens. After the death of her husband, Hanna chose to become a workhouse matron because public-sector social work provided her with the socially accepted means to support her children and finance their grammar school education. Yrjo’s decision to choose a future on the railways over a literary career reflects his understanding of his role as a co-supporter of the family. On the other hand, the fact that he was bound to pursuing a law degree indicates that he was hoping for a career as an upper middle-class railway official.
Individual life choices are also influenced by the time and the place in which the individuals live. The careers of Hanna Tamminen and her husband in particular were made possible by the growth of the public sector at the end of the nineteenth century.
Because the qualifications for the new openings were rather unspecified initially, and because the educational background of the Finnish population in general was weak, people with some amount of education were usually able to seize these new positions. Juho Tamminen is an example of ‘a middle-class general worker’ who never finished grammar school but held several posts as an official. His meandering path is contrasted by the relatively straightforward career of his son on the railroads. While both men eventually became treasurers, the level of professionalisation required in their posts was clearly different. This, in turn, points to the modernisation of Finland.Notes
1. For the benefits of choosing a partner with a similar social status, see Häkkinen (2014, 29).
2. Because there were no competence requirements for attorneys until 1898, Juho Tamminen could present himself as one even though he did not have a degree in law.
3. For ‘passing’ as the ability of an individual to be seen as a member of a category other than his or her own, see Ginsberg (1996); Renfrow (2004).
4. For ordinary people as research subjects, see Annola 2018b; Vainio-Korhonen (2012, (2012, 270–271, 277). For the positive and negative connotations attached to the concept of social climbing, see Rojola (2009).
5. The discussions between Pirkko Tamminen and the present author took place in 2004–2013. While the author’s thanks can no longer reach Ms Tamminen, she wishes to express her gratitude to the surviving members of the family for their support and cooperation.
6. In the 1880s, Mikkeli was a small inland city of under 2,000 inhabitants. The county administration of Mikkeli Province, a garrison, and three grammar schools were located in the city. From the contemporaries’ point of view, the socio-economic division between the Swedish-speaking administrative elite and the Finnish-speaking majority was sharp (Kuujo 1971, 296–303, 374, 379).
7. For marriage as a means of integrating into a local network, see Annola (2016, 143–145); Dribe and Lundh (2010, 374); Dribe and Svensson (2008, 128–129, 140).
8. The other members included the mayor’s wife, Fanny Alopaeus, and the owners of the Antell School for Girls, Alexandra and Alina Antell. While voluntary fire brigades were non-profit associations that sought to unify all people for the public good, they were nevertheless often managed by officials, entrepreneurs, and other prominent men. Respectively, their wives were expected to engage themselves in supportive activities. According to Risto Alapuro (1994, 74) and Henrik Stenius (1987, 234–267), a high social status usually equalled a high status in the fire brigade and vice versa.
9. For the networking and the mutual aid of aspiring men, see Ollila (1998, 195).
10. Hanna’s salary was decent even in comparison with annual salaries in other typical middle-class female occupations in 1897. Nurses: 200–600 Finnish marks plus keep; rural midwives: 400–800 Finnish marks, no keep; rural female workhouse directors: 240–500 Finnish marks plus free quarters, heating, and lighting; rural female primary school teachers: 600 Finnish marks plus free quarters, heating, and lighting; female teachers in rural ambulatory schools: 200–450 Finnish marks, no keep (FWA 1894, 175, 179, 188, 203, 207–208).
11. It was typical for the contemporaries among both the rising intelligentsia and the working class to assume that the daughter (i.e. not the sons) of the family would be the one taking care of her ageing parents (Markkola 1994, 111; Moring 2008, 111; Ollila 1998, 25–26, 61).
12. For diary as a vehicle for (religious) self-education, see also Hakosalo 2014.
13. For Fennoman ideology as a legitimation for personal aspirations, see Ollila (1998, 195, 205); Leskelä-Kärki (2006, 625).
Archival Material
Census List. Mikkeli City Archives, Mikkeli.
———. Census List. 1887. Mikkeli City Census Lists.
———. Census List. 1888. Mikkeli City Census Lists.
Diary of Yrjo Tamminen. 1897–1900. Tamminen Family Private Archives, Helsinki.
Estate Inventory Deed.
1887. The estate inventory deed of Juho Tamminen. August 13. The National Archives of Finland, Mikkeli.Great Petition. 1899. Mikkeli City. The National Archives of Finland, Helsinki. http://digi.narc.fi.
Janakkala Communion Book. 1896–1905. Janakkala Parish Archives. 143 I Aa:8. The National Archives of Finland, Hämeenlinna.
Janakkala Parish Council. 1896. The record of parish council meeting. September 28. Janakkala Communal Archives, Janakkala.
Jyväskylä Birth Records. 1796–1832. Jyväskylä Parish Archives. I C:2. The National Archives of Finland, Jyväskylä.
Luhanka Children’s Book. 1839–1857. Luhanka Parish Archives. I Ab:5. The National Archives of Finland, Jyväskylä.
Mikkeli Birth Records. 1880–1889. Mikkeli Parish Archives. I C:10. The National Archives of Finland, Mikkeli.
Mikkeli City Council. Mikkeli City Archives, Mikkeli.
———. 1879–1889. The records of city council meetings. Mikkeli City Council Archives. Ca:2—Ca:5.
———. 1880. The record of city council meeting. June 21. Mikkeli City Council Archives. Ca:5.
———. 1881. The record of city council meeting. January 9. Mikkeli City Council Archives. Ca:5.
———. 1884. The record of city council meeting. January 14. Mikkeli City Council Archives. Ca:4.
———. 1887a. The record of city council meeting. June 1. Mikkeli City Council Archives. Ca:5.
———. 1887b. The record of city council meeting. July 22. Mikkeli City Council Archives. Ca:5.
———. 1889. The record of city council meeting. April 11. Mikkeli City Council Archives. Ca:5.
Mikkeli City Treasury. Mikkeli City Archives, Mikkeli.
———. 1881a. The record of city treasury members’ meeting. June 21. Mikkeli City Treasury Archives. IV 5, Ca:1.
———. 1881b. The record of city treasury members’ meeting. November 21. Mikkeli City Treasury Archives. IV 5, Ca:1.
———. 1882. The record of city treasury members’ meeting. May 2. Mikkeli City Treasury Archives. IV 5, Ca:1.
Mikkeli Communion Book.
The National Archives of Finland, Mikkeli.———. 1859–1869. Mikkeli Parish Archives. I Aa:27.
———. 1880–1889. Mikkeli Parish Archives. I Aa:33.
Student Register. 1817–1901. University of Helsinki Archives, Helsinki. www.helsinki.fi/keskusarkisto/matrikkelit/yo_matrikkelit.htm.
Tamminen, Pirkko.
———. 2007a. In discussion with the author. June 12.
———. 2007b. In discussion with the author. October 20.
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