Alice Staël von Holstein
I got a mail last week asking me about Alice Staël von Holstein. When I started to look for information about her I found out that she was a very interesting lady.
ALICE was born 29th of August 1897 i Chestnut Hill i USA. Her parents were Clark Dillenbeck and Elenore Tennent Morrison. Her first marriage was to a man whose last name was Grantham.
On 24th october 1930 she got married to the swedish friherre Lage Fabian Vilhelm son of Carl Jakob Joakim and Hilda Augusta Strokirk. Lage Fabian Wilhelm Staël von Holstein was born in Stockholm 15th april 1886. He studied in Uppsala and got his mogenhetsexamen on 6th of mars 1903. He studied at the university in Uppsala and got a bachelor of Arts 14th september 1905. He got a Lisentiat degree on 15th of september 1908. Ater that he took a "kansliexamen" in Stockholm on 22th of april 1911. He worked as a "docenteur en Science politique" in Bryssel 25th of mars 1912. He studied att the university in Lund 1913. Lage published many articles in diferent swedish and international newspaper.
I found a photo and this article about his wife Alice in the Henry Ford organisations achive.
"Swedish baroness Alice Stael von Holstein sits behind the wheel of a 1940 Lincoln-Zephyr Continental Cabriolet in the Garden Court of Ford Motor Company's exposition building at the New York World's Fair. The visiting baroness, who belonged to the Royal Auto Club of Sweden and had driven through most of Europe, was considered Sweden's leading female driver."
It is a Lincoln Saphyr for Swedens´s leading women driver
"World traveller and top-ranking women driver in Sweden Baroness Alice Stael von Holstein of Stockholm, is shown her behindes the weels of a Lincoln Saphyr continental cabriolet in beautiful Garden Court at the worlds fair Ford exposition. it´s the finest car I have ever seen, ske said and of war conditions had not neccesitated me flying back I would sertainly return to Sweden with a Lincoln Saphyr. Baroness Staël von Holstein is a member of the Royal Autoclub of Sweden. She says tha she has driven Ford over most of the european continent. She has never driven anything but Ford: her latest car a 1937 club cabiolet has crossed the border of most the european contries now at war it has taken in its strid two dangeres passes in the Swiss alps in the space of three hours, bridges in Norway so narrow that it was nessesary to go out and messure them before proceeding them: the most primitive roads and the most modern; the fine four-lane German express highway, the present war she said has interrupted her plan to take her Ford on tour of south Arica and perhaps to Tibet. She has spent 1 month in the United states, left in June on the Atlantic Clipper for Lisbon. baronessa Staël says that she will settle down in Portugal and write a book if she runs into dificulties to geting back to Sweden, once she lands in Lisabon."
FRIDAY, MAY 31, 1940 THE MANSFIELD NEWS-JOURNAL PAGE VTVfi DECLARES U, S, SHOULD FOLLOW SWEDISH PLAN American-Born Baroness Has .Fjngers Crossed In Fear Of Neutrality Break. PHILADELPHIA--INS-- America can stay out of the present European war by following Sweden's example and maintaining a determined neutrality, according to Baroness Stael von Holstein, who, until she married a Swedish nobleman in 1925. was simply Alice Dillenbeck, of Chestnut Hill. Here visiting her parents, the Baroness admitted that she is keeping her fingers crossed in the hope that her adopted homeland will remain at peace, but she has a strong belief that Sweden's policy will continue to bring her calm, "There is nothing accidental about Sweden's peace," she said. "It is a result of the strictest neutrality--really honest neutrality-coupled with complete preparedness to defend that neutrality." Reside* In Stockholm. The former Miss Dillenbeck lives in a 64-apartment building in Stockholm and since outbreak ol the war has been "Hemsylddsle- daren" for the place. "That means 'Home Protection Leader.'" she said, "and the job may give some idea of the thoroughness of Sweden's prepare tions. Like the others, I arranged an air-raid shelter in the basement of the building. I equipped it as a hospital with cots and gas masks. "It is such preparations that enable the Swedes to keep calm and feel assurance that their neutrality will be respected. The Swedes, I am sure, are the calmest people in Europe today."
I have in a book called "The Dockstader Family: Generations seven and eight.." by
Doris Dockstader Rooney found the following information about Alice and her father, mother and sister.
"Mr Dillenbeck designed and was a member of Wyndemoor Luthers church in the suburb of Philadelphia. He was a member of the union Legue club of Philadelphia, the SAR and the society of the war of 1812. Surviving are his widow and two daughters baroness Alice Staël von Holstein and Mrs R.A Perry of Summit N.J. The New York Times sun 10 october 1948."
Citations/book:
Elgenstierna, Gustaf: Svenska adelns ättartavlor, Stockholm, 1932
Newspaper;
HE MANSFIELD NEWS-JOURNALFRIDAY, MAY 31, 1940
New York Times sun 10 october 1948.
Archive:
Henry Ford organisations achive. Alice Stael von Holstein