Consulate General of Sweden, New York City
LocationNew York City
AddressOne Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza
885 Second Avenue, 40th floor
New York, NY 10017
Coordinates40°45′39″N 73°58′15″W / 40.76089°N 73.97079°W / 40.76089; -73.97079
Opened1834 (as consulate)
1914 (as consulate general)
Consul GeneralCamilla Mellander
WebsiteOfficial website

The Consulate General of Sweden is the diplomatic mission of Sweden in New York City. It is located at One Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza in Turtle Bay, Manhattan, near the headquarters of the United Nations.

History

The consulate here, established as a result of the Chancellery and Collegium of Commerce's request on October 14, 1799, originally covered the states of New York and Connecticut. However, in 1834, it merged with the consulate general for the United States of North America, a responsibility assigned to the Swedish mission in the United States since 1822, relocating from Philadelphia in that year (1834). Before 1833, the consul general, who received a salary of 4,000 Riksdaler banco, had no right to collect consulate fees from Swedish vessels. Still, according to the decision of King in Council on March 13, 1822, they received two Spanish piasters for each issued certificate.[1] By royal decree on May 25, 1850, the consulate general encompassed the entire union, excluding California. However, in connection with a royal decree on June 15, 1858, the mission moved to Washington, D.C.. Simultaneously, it was stipulated that a separate consulate should be established in New York City, covering the same states as a district, with an office budget of 500 Riksdaler banco. This amount was increased to 1,000 on November 15, 1867, and to 1,500 on November 11, 1870, in the same currency. By royal decree on July 1, 1886, a paid vice consul was appointed alongside the consul, initially earning 6,000 Swedish kronor. Still, on November 17, 1899, it was raised to 9,000 kronor and, since August 28, 1908, to 12,000 kronor.[1]

Through a royal decree on December 5, 1890, the consulate also became salaried (salary of 30,000 kronor), and its district expanded to include, besides the state of New York, all seaports in the states located along the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. After the dissolution of the union between Norway and Sweden the consulate salary was withdrawn, and the consulate was initially filled only by an appointed unpaid consul who received office support (initially 8,000, but after September 28, 1907, only 4,000 kronor; the salaried vice consulate, however, was retained.[1] According to a royal decree on August 28, 1908, the consulate was again salaried (salary of 24,000 kronor plus 6,000 kronor in office expenses) and includes a district consisting of the states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Delaware, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Texas, as well as the District of Columbia. At the 1913 Riksdag, King in Council's proposal for transforming the consulate into a consulate general and raising the salary to 28,000 kronor was approved.[1] On January 1, 1914, the consulate was upgraded to a consulate general.[2]

In 2010, the general consulate - a mission with about 25 employees, diplomats as well as local employees - was closed for budgetary reasons. In connection with this, the smaller Swedish honorary consulate general opened. Prime Minister Stefan Löfven announced in November 2014 that Sweden would re-open a general consulate in New York City,[3] then no earlier than fall of 2015.[4] On October 29, 2015, the Swedish government decided to upgrade the Swedish presence in New York City by opening a consulate general. The new mission was staffed by two people from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and a number of local employees.[5] On 27 January 2016, Sweden's new consulate general in New York City was inaugurated in a ceremony with, among others, Minister of Enterprise and Innovation Mikael Damberg, Sweden's new consul general Leif Pagrotsky, ambassador Björn Lyrvall, Deputy Commissioner Hillary Schrenell and outgoing honorary consul general David E.R. Dangoor.[6]

Activities

The consulate general provides consular services to Swedes (for example, passport applications, name registration, application for coordination numbers, assistance to Swedes in an emergency) and helps Americans and other nationalities, including residence permit and visa applications. The consulate general also conducts Swedish promotion activities by supporting and marketing Swedish culture in the New York area, as well as promoting trade between Sweden and the United States, and stimulating foreign investment in Sweden. The consulate general's district includes the states of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. The consulate general reports to the Embassy of Sweden, Washington, D.C.

Buildings

600 Park Avenue and East 64th Street, where Sweden's Consul General in New York City lives.
Entrance to the property on 600 Park Avenue and East 64th Street.

Office

Until the closure in 2009, the consulate general's office was housed at One Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza, the intersection of the 48th Street and the Second Avenue, on the 45th floor.[7] When the honorary consulate general opened in 2010, the office moved to 445 Park Avenue between 56th Street and 57th Street, for the reason that the honorary consul general David E.R. Dangoor already had offices in this building.[7] After the upgrade to consulate general in December 2016, the consulate general's address became 445 Park Avenue until further notice.[8] Since 2017, the office is again located at One Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza, but on the 40th floor.

Residence

After World War II, the Swedish state looked for a residence building for the Swedish consul general. In 1946, the house at 600 Park Avenue was purchased for this reason. When the properties on 61-63 East 64th Street were for sale, the consulate were given the opportunity to make room for the consulate general and staff housing. This meant that a refurbishment of the interiors of the houses was necessary. The staff moved in during 1947. Shortly thereafter, the properties 604 and 608 Park Avenue were also acquired. The consulate general's business expanded considerably and in 1965 the Ministry for Foreign Affairs decided to move the office functions to more modern office premises.[7]

The buildings have since 1981 been classified as "landmark", ie buildings with a historical value whose exteriors may not change. In 1984-85, the National Swedish Board of Public Building (Byggnadsstyrelsen), the National Property Board of Sweden's predecessor, carried out a thorough rebuilding of the four houses in order to achieve a functional housing for the consul general and as many apartments as possible. The construction work started in August 1984 and the houses were ready for occupancy in the fall of 1985. After the renovation, the properties had a total of 21 apartments, laundry rooms, storage rooms and a sauna. Well-known Swedish designers such as Carl Malmsten, Josef Frank, Carl-Axel Acking and Ingegerd Torhamn are represented in the interior. The works also included renovation of the facades.[7]

The property, registered as 600, 604 and 608 Park Avenue and 61-63 East 64th Street, houses housing for Swedish personnel. In 2011-2013, the National Property Board of Sweden renovated the property after an ambitious care program with the aim of highlighting the cultural-historical values that were lost during previous renovations. The National Property Board of Sweden completed the major renovation of 600 Park Avenue with the renovation of adjacent facades and windows in 2014. For some time, the property was the residence of the Swedish UN ambassador.[7]

Heads of Mission

Consul general Lennart Nylander (right) with the CEO of SAS, Per Norlin, in New York City, September 1946.
NamePeriodTitleRef
Henrik Gahn21 November 1799 – 3 Augusti 1834Consul[9]
Severin LorichAugust 1834 – 11 March 1837Consul general[9]
Gustaf af Nordin14 May 1838 – 9 October 1845Consul[9]
Adam Christopher Lövenskiold10 December 1846 – 25 September 1850Consul; acting 14 November 1845[9]
Georg Sibbern4 May 1852 – 20 April 1858Consul; acting 25 September 1850[9]
Carl Edvard Habicht6 October 1859 – 11 November 1870Vice consul 1845; consul n.h.o.v. 28 July 1854[9]
Christian Börs9 June 1871 – 19 June 1890Consul[9]
Carl Gustaf Marius Woxen12 June 1891 – 13 May 1898Consul[9]
Christopher Ravn30 June 1899 – 31 October 1905Consul[9]
Alexander Edward Johnson3 November 1905 – 11 December 1908Acting consul general[10][9]
Magnus Clarholm11 December 1908 – 1919Consul (consul general from 1 January 1914)[9][11][2]
Sven Magnusson Lagerberg1916–1918Acting consul general
Nils Jaenson1919–1919Acting consul general[12]
Olof Lamm1919–1921Acting consul general[13]
Olof Lamm1921–1933Consul general[13]
Gustaf Weidel1933–1935Consul general[14]
Martin Kastengren1935–1945Consul general[15]
Lennart Nylander1945–1955Consul general[16]
Erik Kronvall1955–1962Consul general[17]
Love Kellberg1963–1963Consul general[18]
Tore Tallroth1963–1970Consul general[19]
Gunnar Lonaeus1970–1975Consul general[20]
Carl-Henric Nauckhoff1975–1978Consul general[21]
Bengt Friedman1978–1983Consul general[22]
Magnus Faxén1984–1988Consul general[23]
Arne Thorén1988–1992Consul general[24]
Dag Sebastian Ahlander1992–1999Consul general
Olle Wästberg1999–2004Consul general
Kjell Anneling2004–2006Consul general
Ulf Hjertonsson2006–2009Consul general
David E.R. Dangoor2010–2016Honorary consul general
Leif Pagrotsky2016–2018Consul general
Annika Rembe2018–2021Consul general
Camilla Mellander2021–presentConsul general

References

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 Almquist 1914, p. 346
  2. 1 2 "Svenskt generalkonsulat i New York" [Swedish Consulate General in New York]. Vestkusten (in Swedish). No. 3. San Francisco & Oakland, Cal. 15 January 1914. p. 1. SELIBR 4085814. Retrieved 25 October 2019.
  3. ↑ Bergin, Erik (21 November 2014). "Generalkonsulatet i New York ska öppnas igen". Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish). Retrieved 19 December 2014.
  4. ↑ "Sverige öppnar generalkonsulat i New York" (in Swedish). Swedish Cabinet Office. 22 November 2014. Archived from the original on 19 December 2014. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
  5. ↑ "Regeringen har beslutat att öppna ett generalkonsulat i New York" (in Swedish). Government Offices of Sweden. 29 October 2015. Retrieved 31 May 2019.
  6. ↑ "Invigning av generalkonsulatet i New York" (in Swedish). Government Offices of Sweden. 28 January 2016. Retrieved 31 May 2019.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 "New York, USA. FN-ambassadörens residens" (in Swedish). National Property Board of Sweden. Retrieved 19 December 2014.
  8. ↑ "Om generalkonsulatet" (in Swedish). Consulate General of Sweden, New York City. 18 May 2016. Archived from the original on 8 June 2016.
  9. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Almquist 1914, p. 347
  10. ↑ Westrin 1910, p. 63
  11. ↑ Vem är det 1945, p. 210.
  12. ↑ Svensson & Ekstedt 1955, p. 452
  13. 1 2 Svenskt biografiskt lexikon 1977–1979, p. 199
  14. ↑ Svensson 1953, p. 1113
  15. ↑ Lagerström 1968, p. 494
  16. ↑ Lagerström 1966, p. 692
  17. ↑ Lagerström 1968, p. 517
  18. ↑ Salander Mortensen 1996, p. 606
  19. ↑ Vem är det 1984, p. 1088.
  20. ↑ Salander Mortensen 1996, p. 720
  21. ↑ Salander Mortensen 1996, p. 805
  22. ↑ Salander Mortensen 1996, p. 355
  23. ↑ Salander Mortensen 1996, p. 328
  24. ↑ Salander Mortensen 1996, p. 1115

Print

  • Almquist, Johan Axel (1914). Kommerskollegium och Riksens Ständers Manufakturkontor samt konsulsstaten 1651-1910: administrativa och biografiska anteckningar (PDF). Meddelanden från svenska Riksarkivet, Ny följd. Ser. 2, 99-0506720-5 ; 4 (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. SELIBR 844316.
  • Lagerström, Sten, ed. (1966). Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1967 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1967] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. SELIBR 3681518.
  • Lagerström, Sten, ed. (1968). Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1969 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1969] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. SELIBR 3681519.
  • Salander Mortensen, Jill, ed. (1996). Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1997 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1997] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. ISBN 91-1-960852-7. SELIBR 3681533.
  • Svensson, Stina, ed. (1953). Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1953 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1953] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. SELIBR 9649164.
  • Svensson, Stina; Ekstedt, Tage, eds. (1955). Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1955 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1955] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. SELIBR 3681511.
  • Westrin, Theodor, ed. (1910). Nordisk familjebok: konversationslexikon och realencyklopedi (in Swedish). Vol. 13 (New, rev. and richly ill. ed.). Stockholm: Nordisk familjeboks förl.
  • Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1945 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1945] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. 1945. SELIBR 8261511.
  • Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1985 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1985] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. 1984. ISBN 91-1-843222-0. SELIBR 3681527.
  • "Lamm, släkt". Svenskt biografiskt lexikon (in Swedish). Vol. 22. National Archives of Sweden. 1977–1979. Retrieved 11 September 2019.
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