John Ernest was the family wanderer. He apparently left home about age 17 and traveled across the country. We have some places that we suspect he may have been, but have not been able to verify them. It is likely that his travels went through Minnesota as he had two sisters there, Selma Amelia Helander and Jennie Elizabeth Ellsworth. The man in the picture at the right has Oberg facial features and was found in a picture collection passed down from Jennie.

There is also a tempting entry in the 1920 Census in Kingston Township, Meeker County, MN. It lists a John Oberg married to a Mary with children named Clifford, Esther, Olga and Adolph. The 1930 Census shows Mary remarried to a Arvid Calander. Did John take off? The immigration year of 1872 on the 1920 Census from Meeker County matches but we're still looking for other points of verification.

The first clear evidence we have of his location after 1880 is a news article which appeared in the Cook County Herald, Arlington Heights, IL on 22 Jun 1923.

His residence from 1930 (Census) to the time of his death was 143 Court Street, Salem, Oregon. This address appears to have been a downtown apartment building, along the water front, on the Willamette River. John died at age 72 and was buried in the Salem Pioneer Cemetery. His death notice said he was single and a lumber worker in the Oregon and Washington forests, but hadn't worked since 1922. He was buried in what was listed as IOOF space, paid for by "relief", probably the cemetery's "potter's field."