Icelandic Roots in The News
“Everybody likes looking at old photographs, and
some people take it as a challenge
to try to determine who those people are.”
Blair Swanson, Icelandic Roots volunteer
speaking to CTV News
Over the summer, Icelandic Roots volunteer Blair Swanson appeared on CTV News in Winnipeg and beyond.1
Blair runs the Unknown Photos Project, which uncovers details about the lives of the people depicted in pictures sent in by the Icelandic community. Each month, he posts dozens of historical photos of Icelandic immigrants to Facebook hoping that someone will recognize them.2 Once he has a possible name, Blair uses the IR database and other resources to confirm their identities and discover their stories.
Blair also spoke to the Winnipeg Free Press, “Once you get their name, then you want to find out what ship did they come over on, when did they come over, were they a farmer, were they a fisherman? Just find the trail of their life.”3
Since the project started in 2023, more than 300 photos have been uploaded and the people depicted in 69 of them have been identified. There are many more waiting.
“My hope is to turn them into ‘somebody’… just give them a life. Once you have their name, you expand and try to tell a story about that person.”
Anyone with photos of unknown ancestors can follow the instructions on the "Contact" page to submit them to Icelandic Roots.4
Members with access to the IR database can browse the Unknown Photos by selecting “Unknown Photos” under the “People" tab on the left-hand menu. If you spy someone you recognize, look for the “Contribute Information” button to share what you know.
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Notes
Quotes were taken from CTV News and the Winnipeg Free Press.
If you're not a Facebook user, watch the IR Rætur Fréttir/Roots News for photos.
Sources
1 Unger, Danton. “Project aims to identify unknown Icelandic immigrants in historic photos.” CTV News (Winnipeg). 29 Jul 2026. [online article; video]. Retrieved from:
2 Icelandic Roots (n.d.). Facebook. [Facebook group]. Retrieved from: https://www.facebook.com/IcelandicRoots : 31 Aug 2026
3 Resko, Tiago. “Reclaiming Icelandic ancestors, one photo at a time.” Winnipeg Free Press. 31 Jul 2026. [online article]. Retrieved from:
https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/featured/2026/07/31/reclaiming-icelandic-ancestors-one-photo-at-a-time: 31 Aug 2026
4 Icelandic Roots. “How to Submit Photographs, Newspaper Clippings, and Documents to Icelandic Roots.” Icelandic Roots. [PDF document]. Retrieved from: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TgU4Ewnyxijf06tYfpo6LDMfqE-pcrbK/view : 31 Aug 2026
