Inger Stensland in Manhattan, Kansas

Inger in the 1950 yearbook

Inger Stensland, her father Per, stepmother Carol, brother Carl (whose name was originally Ola) and half-sister Lucy relocated to Manhattan, Kansas from New York when Per was offered the position of Assistant Professor at Kansas State University in 1948. At this time, Inger had only been in America for 4 years. She spoke very good English, but a hint of her Swedish accent remained. Living at 1200 Kearney Street until Per left Kansas for a professorship in Lubbock, Texas in the 1950s, Inger's activities and accomplishments were often noted in the local newspapers The Manhattan Mercury and The Manhattan Republic. I have compiled those local mentions into one post to give us a better look into the life of teenaged Inger.

Inger's father and stepmother photographed
at their home in Manhattan, Kansas.
Source: Manhattan Mercury. October 17, 1948.

In August 1948, the Manhattan Mercury reported:

Per G. Stensland, formerly of Sweden and now on the Teachers College faculty of Columbia University in New York has been appointed associate professor in the Institute of Citizenship at Kansas State University effective September 1...Stensland will head extensions work of the Institute in Kansas...He is married and has three children: Inger, Carl and Lucy. 

In "Stensland Family Says Manhattan is Friendly City," reporter Joann Blackwelder quoted Inger's stepmother as saying:

Big cities are exciting but we prefer to live in friendly Manhattan. Even though we arrived in Manhattan during a rainstorm, we thought the town looked wonderful. It will be a relief to have the linoleum down and the painting and papering finished. Then we can unpack and get settled...I'm a little frightened about the severe Kansas winters.

The article details that Inger's father received a fellowship to study adult education in the United States from the American-Scandinavian Foundation in the early 1940s. He met Carol in California before settling in New York for several years and requesting Inger and Carl from Sweden. In Kansas, the couple would be prominent members of UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.) Blackwelder cites music and folk singing as favorite pastimes for the whole family—hobbies that Inger would enjoy for the rest of her life—and writes: 

Having attended school in Sweden and in New York City, their two older children—Inger, 14, and Carl, 12—like the junior high school. They have made many friends and think that the school activities and teachers are fine. Inger says that she is especially impressed with Teen Town. Lucy, three and a half, is the other member of the family.

Here are early 1950s directories listing the Stensland family at 1200 Kearney Street.

On the evening of September 17, 1948, Inger had to stand up and introduce herself as a new student and formally respond to a welcoming address for Manhattan Junior High School students.  Although new friends noted Inger was reserved and introspective throughout high school, Inger quickly immersed herself in the social functions expected of teens. She attended dances and parties with her classmates. On October 30th, Inger took part in a Halloween dance hosted by classmate John Stockmyer at St. Paul's Episcopal Church. With new friends, Inger danced and nibbled on sandwiches, orange-frosted donuts with fortunes in the center, candy, nuts and orange soda beverages. On November 20th, Inger was present at Donna Morine's Thanksgiving dance at the Modern Woodman Hall where she enjoyed Coca-Cola, apples, donuts and cider. She was back on the dance floor twice in December when a Christmas dance was held for junior members of the local country club and later, when her classmate Vivian Stewart led a Holiday Hop at the Wareham Hotel.

Inger showed an interest for the performing arts right away, serving as a caroler at the Annual Christmas Masque on December 10th and performing in the Congregational Church's Christmas musical "No Room at the Inn."

Before 1948 ended, Inger had even gained some job experience—she worked at Stevenson's as part of the annual social studies work program. And her father Per won praise from residents when it was reported that his handbook Guide for Group Leaders was being used in colleges across 37 states and was already in its third printing.

In 1949, Inger's dedication to singing and acting increased. Inger performed a vocal solo at a Riley County Red Cross benefit on March 3, 1949. She played the role of a witch sister named Vanilla in a play during her schools' annual art week celebration in May. Inger shined in that year's Christmas festivities once again—singing the soprano solo at Manhattan High School's Christmas concert on December 9 and, two days later, performing with the school's mixed ensemble at the First Congregational Church's Christmas play.

Inger continued to be a respected member of Manhattan High School. She was elected federal council representative for the school on February 3, 1949. She was also invited to dances to celebrate Valentine's Day (at the Wareham Green Room on February 12) and the spring season (an Episcopal Church dance hosted by Betty Kay Dietrich and Marilyn Kulp on April 30 and a party for country club juniors at the clubhouse a week later.)

Although some Manhattan natives wondered about the Stenslands due to their births in a foreign nation—pinned with the label of being "other" or "exotic," a hurdle Inger would face in Hollywood as well— Per continued to garner accolades for his work as a professor and even dropped by Inger's school on PTA night to deliver a presentation on the importance of Adult Education in January 1949.

\

Although not identified, I believe Inger is serving punch at this Y-Teens event as she was the refreshments leader for the club and the hair and profile match. 

 

Inger is pictured in a group photo with the Girls' Glee Club. A close up of Inger is below.

The year 1950 started out much the same as the previous year for 15-year old Inger. She continued to be named in the local newspaper for her good grades and placement on the school's honor roll. In the spring, Inger was very active musically. On March 31, Inger competed by singing a solo at the Emporia District Music Festival. That April she was elected song leader of Y-Teens and Hi-Y organizations for the upcoming school year and, on April 26th, Inger performed two songs at an Acquaintance Club meeting at the home of Mrs. J.W. Truax.

But by summer the mentions about Inger in the local newspaper were drastically different. There was no local involvement in plays, clubs, or dances, because Inger was no longer local—she'd disappeared.

Despite all of her social involvement, Inger's friends—when interviewed by Inger biographer William Patterson—remembered her as being quite shy, with a strong sense of wrong and right, and relegated to the frumpy, outdated clothes her parents allowed her to wear. Although she walked to school for blocks in the cold each day, Inger did not have a winter coat. Per and Carol were considered by Inger's classmates to be incredibly strict and lacking in affection for their two oldest children. For example, Inger and Carl (originally Ola, but given a more American name) were not allowed to use the family record player or sewing machine, and were responsible for endless chores. One friend recalled, to Patterson, that Inger had confided that she'd even been pushed down the stairs once by Carol. Inger's social life was very controlled by her parents and though we see that she was involved in performing, she missed out on a lot of other plays and performances due to her curfew. Inger did have a boyfriend named Pat, but she usually had to sneak out to see him. Inger would say, "I witnessed an awful lot of fighting in my family. I got used to keeping things to myself and never really said what was on my mind. I was always afraid of hurting somebody." Inger may not have said anything, but she did do something.

When everyone was occupied by a flood that came through Manhattan in July 1950, 15-year-old Inger packed her bags and ran away to live with relatives in Chicago. William Patterson writes that this was actually the second time Inger had run off to Lennert and Helen Samuelson, her father's aunt and uncle. Determined to make her own way and not be a burden to anyone, Inger immediately got a factory job in Chicago. A month later, in August, Inger was planning to return to her parents but at the last minute, boarded a train to Kansas City instead. She needed a job in Kansas City and sought work in the box office of the Folly Theatre, but ended up performing under the name of Kay Palmer in a burlesque chorus line at the theatre instead. Although afraid she would be arrested for being underage, Inger was remembered by Ed Ross, theatre manager as being a "pleasant girl, but always eager."

In December, the now 16-year-old Inger was horrified to look out in the audience and see her disapproving father Per, having been notified by someone of her whereabouts, watching her burlesque routine. Inger was swiftly packed up and returned to Manhattan with her father where she went back to being a dedicated, hardworking student and an active member in organizations and social obligations as if no trauma had ever happened—something we would see the resilient Inger do many times in response to traumatic events in her life, most notably after her suicide attempt in 1959. Inger was not the only unhappy Stensland at 1200 Kearney Street. Facing the same pressure as his older sister who had always been his protector, brother Carl ran away—to Dallas—following Inger's disappearance and only returned after Inger came back.

Inger is returned home days before Christmas.

Inger's father and stepmother, of course, made no mention of the true details surrounding Per's discovery of Inger when the Manhattan Mercury published a story on her return. The December 27, 1950 article read:

Inger Stensland, 16-year-old high school girl missing since September, returned Friday to the home of her father and stepmother, Mr. and Mrs. Per G. Stensland, 1200 Kearney. Her brother, Carl Stensland, 14, who disappeared Dec. 9, still is missing.

Mrs. Stensland said she and her husband met Inger in Kansas City after Inger had called them from Chicago. She said Inger had told them she had been working in Chicago and "had her fill" of being on her own. 

Inger brought some Christmas presents with her and she and the family did a lot of hurried shopping in Kansas City after the reunion. 

Inger was relieved to learn her father had sent a Christmas package from the family to a younger brother, Peter, who lives in Sweden with his mother and her husband.

After some biographical details about the family's background, the article concludes:

The family hopes that news of the return of Inger will reach Carl. Stensland said he was sure Carl had been upset at Inger's absence and he believed the boy would return when he learned his sister was home. Inger said she had not known Carl was gone and had not heard from him.

Mrs. Stensland said she and her husband did not intend to ask Inger a lot of questions about her activities. She said they were satisfied to have her home and were sure she was sincere in telling them she had enough of being on her own. 

Inger's brother also ran away in 1950, but returned shortly after Inger.

Inger in the 1951 yearbook

Inger settled back into life in Manhattan in 1951 and continued to receive notice for her performances and involvement. On March 16, 1951 Inger acted in "The Balcony Scene" with other students in competition at the District Speech and Play Festival at Clay Center. She served as head of refreshments for Teen Town Student Council and sang at the Hi-Y and Y-Teens program on September 12th. On November 28th, Inger participated in the "Voice of Democracy" speech contest sponsored by the National Junior Chamber of Commerce and the National Broadcasting Association. Along with fellow finalists Diane Saunders and Bill Wareham, Inger delivered her speech in a local radio broadcast—how I'd love to listen to that recording! Bill Wareham was later announced the contest winner.

Inger competes for Blue M Queen in 1952.

The Blue M Queen candidate in the Manhattan Mercury

As pictured above, Inger competed for the title of Blue M Queen in February 1952 but lost to classmate Joyce Steele. She is noted as being interested in music, dramatics and art. On February 1, Inger performed the songs, "Three Queens," "Eight Spades," "Three Hits and a Miss," "The Showboat Ensemble," and the "Deep South Dixieland Band" with an ensemble at the high school to raise money for the Sunset Fund.

In early March, Inger's father Per was appointed the chairman of the Public Affairs Committee of the Adult Education Association of the United States. Per's duties included conducting surveys and recommending changes for adult education institutions around the county. On April 27, Per moderated a panel for the state CIOI legislative conference and the following month he was selected by radio station WOI-TV at Iowa State College to participate in a work session of "The Role of Mass Communication in Social Action." Later that year, Per would accept a position at Texas Technical College and relocate, with wife Carol and daughter Lucy, to Lubbock, Texas. Inger and Carl would opt to remain in Manhattan, Kansas.                

Inger's father in 1957 in Lubbock, Texas

Inger's father in 1955 in Lubbock, Texas

Inger's brother Carl in the 1952 yearbook

Inger finished out her final year at Manhattan High School showing off her dramatic and vocal skills. On March 25, 1952, Inger played the role of a daughter in the play, "Sweethearts." On April 14, Inger competed in the vocal competition at the District Musical Contest in Emporia, Kansas, where she scored a grade of II—relative to a "B" letter score. On May 12, Inger is awarded a dramatics award at Manhattan High School's Senior Award Night. Four days later, Inger gave an impression of Betty Hutton at the MHS Final Senior Assembly. As a senior, Inger earned honors (a blue felt pendant decorated with a white M felt script and chevrons) for attaining good grades consistently over three years. She'd earned honors her junior year as well.

Inger in the 1952 yearbook

Inger's activities listed in the 1952 yearbook

By 1953, Inger was working as a model in New York City. She'd get her first break, in a Vel detergent commercial, the following year.

Screen capture of Inger in an early Vel commercial

In 2007, Inger was inducted into the Manhattan High School Wall of Fame. Click here to view Inger's Wall of Fame page on the Manhattan High School Alumni Association's website.

Except for the details about Inger's relationship with her family and time in Chicago and Kansas City which were provided in Patterson's biography of Inger, I found all information shared in this post within the archived pages of The Manhattan Mercury, The Manhattan Republic, and the Manhattan High School yearbooks. I spent many happy days getting to know the gifted and driven teenaged Inger as I sifted through online newspaper archives and content.

You can find a timeline of Inger's life, which is compiled from Patterson's book and various newspapers, by clicking here.

Sources:

Manhattan Mercury:

1948: August 26; September 19; October 17; September 22; November 3; November 9; December 1; December 8; December 26; December 29.

1949: January 5; January 23; February 1; February 17;  March 3; May 4; May 8; May 11

1950: February 1; March 14; March 31; April 12, April 21; April 26; September 20; December 17; December 27; December 31.

1951: March 16; May 13; September 12; November 28; 

1952: February 1; February 3;  February 11; February 13; March 2; March 19; April 4; April 7; April 25 

Manhattan High School Yearbooks, 1950-1952. Ancestry Library Edition.

Texas Technical College, 1955-1957. Ancestry Library Edition.

Patterson, William T. The Farmer's Daughter Remembered. Xlibris. 2000.