Vera Sandberg

A childhood in Blekinge sparked the flame (exhibition module 2)

Vera was born on 23 May 1895 in Ljungby. Her father, Victor Sandberg, was a captain in the Kronoberg Regiment. He had eight children with his first wife, who died of cancer. He remarried the 20 years younger Maria Björkman and had eight more children with her. Maria grew up as the foster daughter of the Björkman couple at Långasjönäs in Asarum. Her foster father, patron Samuel Björkman, had in 1889 purchased the Långasjönäs paper mill.

After Vera’s father passed away in 1905, Maria moved with all her children to Långasjönäs. That same year, Vera began at the Girls’ Elementary School in Karlshamn, where she graduated in 1912, aged 17.

In 1911 patron Björkman died and Vera’s mother inherited the Långasjönäs paper mill. Should the mill be sold or could she keep the mill running? Vera’s elder brother Kurt was the only one with knowledge of how a mill functioned and bookkeeping. With his mother’s support he eventually succeeded in selling existing inventory and in this way secured money for continued operations.

After graduation, Vera worked at the paper mill and began to take an interest in chemistry. This experience led her to the realisation that she would become an engineer. Inspired by her elder brother Kurt, who had also studied technical subjects, Vera began to devise a plan to gain admission to Chalmers.

First preparatory technical courses  were needed. In 1913 Vera began at Sävsjö Vocational School, which was founded and led by engineer Vilhelm Sandström. After completing her studies in spring 1914, Vera succeeded in convincing both her mother and her older siblings that she was serious about applying to Chalmers.

A chalmerist among chalmerists (exhibition module 3)

The year was 1914 and Chalmers was officially not open to women. When Vera’s application arrived, the Chalmers management initially did not know how to handle it. It was decided that she should take a qualifying entrance examination in mathematics. Vera passed the test with flying colours and in September 1914 she was enrolled in the higher division of Chalmers Technical Institute.

The 19-year-old Vera began her studies as the only woman among nearly 500 male students. It was a nervous start, but after the shock of a female student had subsided, she was accepted and felt included.

At the beginning of June 1917 Vera graduated from the chemistry programme. This was noted by Svenska Dagbladet in an article published on 14 June:

“Sweden’s first female engineer has in recent days graduated from Chalmers Institute. She is Miss Vera Sandberg, daughter of the late captain in the Kronoberg Regiment, Viktor Sandberg, and his surviving wife, Björkman. That a young woman should in so short a time acquire an engineering degree testifies to unusual diligence and talent. It is in the chemical field that she intends to forge her path.”

The period of study was very demanding. Vera herself said:

“My time at Chalmers was certainly no bed of roses but rather a few years full of forced work. Lectures at Chalmers usually began at 8 o’clock in the morning, and it was by no means unusual that they continued until 7 o’clock in the evening with only an hour’s break for breakfast and lunch. Thereafter followed homework. Many a time it no doubt happened that one could only put the books aside far into the small hours in order to seek a few hours’ rest.”

Vera wore the Chalmers cap with pride. A young woman in a Chalmers cap was of course an unusual sight in Gothenburg at that time. The phenomenon was thoroughly debated and described in words and pictures, among others in the Chalmers student magazine Rasp.

Despite demanding studies, Vera took part in student life and could be seen in the cortège parade on Walpurgis Night.

Laboratory director, manager and chemist (exhibition module 4)

Laboratory Head in Partille

After completing her studies in 1917 and graduating from the higher division of Chalmers Technical Institute, Vera obtained employment at AB Skandinaviska Affineriet in Partille.

Dr Ernst Harbeck (also a Chalmers alumnus), who had founded the company in 1909, had a vacant position as chemist and offered the place to Vera.

Quite quickly she was promoted to laboratory head with six laboratory assistants at her side. The company business was recycling of precious metals such as copper and gold.

Manager at Långasjönäs Paper mill

After a year in Partille, Vera returned home to Långasjönäs in 1918. At the request of her mother Maria, Vera became manager of the family’s paper mill. The work as manager revolved largely around purchasing, sales, deliveries, customer contact, and accounting.. The family had plans to invest in a new paper machine. That dream was shattered on 7 January 1919 when the mill burned to the ground with machines and all.

Head of the laboratory in Karlshamn

Eight years after Vera graduated from Chalmers, she took a Master of Philosophy degree at Stockholm College (now Stockholm University). After graduating in 1925, she was offered employment as acting head of the laboratory at Reymersholm’s Oil and Feed Factory in Karlshamn.

Chemist at Helsingborg rubber factory

When the temporary position at the oil factory in Karlshamn ended in 1926, Vera moved to Skåne. She was employed as a chemist at Helsingborg Rubber Factory AB.

Laboratory head at Karlshamn oil factory

At the beginning of 1928 Vera was contacted by the Oil Factory, which offered her permanent employment in her previous position as laboratory head. She left her job in Helsingborg and moved back to Karlshamn.

Sieverts cable works

In spring 1929 Vera wrote down her curriculum vitae. She surely felt lonely in Karlshamn after the whole family had moved to Östergötland. In 1930 she was offered work at Sieverts Kabelverk in Sundbyberg and left Blekinge for good, moving to Stockholm.

Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson had in 1928 purchased Sieverts Kabelverk from Ernst Sievert. During the 1930s the company was mainly engaged in the manufacture of cables for telephony. At the cable works’ oil laboratory, the focus was on extensive research work on insulating materials.

An advocate for lifelong learning (exhibition module 5)

After graduating from Chalmers, Vera began to work but wanted to continue  her education. She spent much of the years 1920–1922 in Germany because she thought it wise to deepen her knowledge abroad to become a skilled engineer.

“The engineering profession is, particularly in Germany, England and America, rather widely frequented by women. Why then not also in Sweden? The difficulties are not insurmountable, though relatively great, but for a capable engineer, male or female, bread for a living will doubtless not be lacking.”

Vera had to return to the school bench. In autumn 1923 she began studying as a private candidate in Gothenburg at the Higher Secondary School of Science (Högre Realläroverket). Determined and diligent, she managed to cover three years of upper secondary courses in barely three months and took her studentexamen on 18 December that same year.

After her studentexamen she moved to Stockholm and began to study mathematics, chemistry, biology and physics at Stockholm College, today Stockholm University.

After completing her studies, her professional career truly began. Vera continued to cultivate her interest in mathematics and chemistry, among other things as a member of the Swedish Society of Engineers (Svenska Teknologföreningen).

Vera’s reflection on women’s professions and the conditions required for success:

“I do not understand why this profession should not suit a woman. But above all one must learn to be a good comrade with men, which I for my part consider to be the alpha and omega for the modern woman in every field of work where she wishes to succeed. She must work clearly and with determination and thereby convince the world that, strictly speaking, when it comes to work it does not depend on the skirts but on working capacity.”

A person, a life (exhibition module 6)

In spring 1937 Vera resigned from her position at Sieverts Kabelverk and ended her professional career. She married the widower Ragnar Resare and moved to Värmland. Ragnar was also a Chalmers alumnus and department head at the pipe works in Storfors.

The marriage included five stepsons. Vera wholeheartedly embraced the motherly role. She was not only a stepmother, she was their mother. That was how the boys saw her and that was how she saw the boys.

After Vera’s husband Ragnar passed away, and once she had ensured that all the boys received good educations, she left Värmland and settled in Östermalm in Stockholm to live near her sons and their families.

Vera continued as an active member of the Swedish Society of Engineers and as a board member of the family’s new paper mill in Kisa, Östergötland, which had been purchased after the fire in Långasjönäs. She invested wisely in shares, bonds and other securities and thanks to her long-term perspective she was able to live financially independent after ending her professional career.

Vera passed away peacefully on Christmas Eve 1979, aged 84, surrounded by her loved ones. A pioneer left this world, but her memory and her deeds remain, and continue to inspire.