Peder Mortensen & Helena Sandersen

Peder Mortensen was the only living child of Morten Pedersen and Karen Hansen. (Morten was married 3 other times and had more children with his other wives.) He was born on 28 January 1806 in Haarbolle, Franefjord, Praesto, Denmark, which is located on a small island called Moen.

 

Helena Sandersen was born 8 March 1808 in Damine, Franefjord, Praesto, Denmark to Peder Sandersen and Ana Kirstine Jorgensen who had a large family. (Most records show Helena Sandersen or Sanders, but she was probably actually born Helena Pedersdatter. Records in Denmark show this as her surname. Some records also show Pedersen as a last name.)

Peder and Helena were marred 9 November 1827 in Haarbolle, Denmark. The couple had nine children, eight living to adulthood. Their children were: Morten, Anne, Anders, Hans, Peder (who died at age 10 in Denmark), Lars, Mette, Mary and Caroline. All the children were born in Haarbolle.

Although crippled at a relatively young age, he was industrious and made a living as a cooper, making wooden barrels, tubs and buckets, and a shoemaker. They also kept animals such as cows and sheep. Helena, or Lena as she was known, was a talented homemaker, wife and mother. The Mortensens were a typical middle class family and lived comfortably, yet they had to work hard and be industrious and thrifty.

Peder played the clarinet and the whole family enjoyed music and dancing.

The family was religious. The studied the Bible and Peder very often prayed for the Lord to send his servants to them so “they could become his disciples in very deed.”

In 1855, the first Mormon missionaries traveled to Haarbolle. When they first came to town, Morten and Anders went to a meeting held by the missionaries. Morten was studying for the ministry in the Lutheran church and attended due to curiosity, taking Anders along for company. After hearing the teachings of the Elders, the brothers were convinced that the Lord had restored His true church. When they returned home, they told their family of their feelings. Peder was skeptical due to the negative reports he had heard about the Mormon Elders. Anders replied that these Elders were what Peder had been praying for and he encouraged the rest of the family to attend the next meeting.

The family did attend and were converted. Morten was baptized 12 February 1855, Anders was baptized 13 June 1855 and Peder, Helena, Anne and Hans were baptized on 16 June 1855.

After the whole family was converted, they began to be persecuted by their neighbors and felt anxious to migrate to America.  In fact, one night, an angry mob came to the home but the mob dispersed when the leader suddenly collapsed at the gate. The family was lucky to own desirable property and was soon able to sell their land and obtain sufficient funds to travel to America.

The family left home on 31 March 1856, arriving in Copenhagen on 23 April 1856. While there, the Scandinavian mission president, Hector C. Hate, approached the oldest son Morten and asked him to serve a mission. The family wanted so much to travel to Utah together. The mission president promised them that if Morten fulfilled a mission that the entire family would reach Zion (Utah) in safety. 

The Mortensen family left Copenhagen on the steamship “Rhoda” which traveled to Keil, Germany. The family then went by railroad to Hamburg, by steamer to Grimsby, England and then by railroad to Liverpool, England where they boarded the ship “Thornton” with about 600 Saints from Europe.
The Saints on the ship were under the leadership on James G. Willie with Miller Atwood, John A. Ahmanson and Moses Cluff assisting.  The ship left on 4 May 1856 and arrived in New York on 14 Jun 1856.

Peder, Lena and family on the register for the ship, "Thornton."

 

Closer view.

The saints were brought by tug boat to Castle Gardens where they were welcomed by John Taylor and Nathaniel H. Felt. Three days later, the family traveled to Ohio and then to Chicago, Illinois. From there, the company was divided and traveled to Iowa City, which was the Western terminus of the railroad at the time and the appointed place for the Saints to prepare to cross the plains.

The family still had plenty of money, enough that they would have been able to buy a wagon and team to take them to Utah, but the Saints were advised to use handcarts which were less expensive. Although Peder was lame and would not be able to walk the trip and their youngest daughter was only about 5 years of age, the family took the advice of their leaders. They were also able to “loan” money to three others, money that was never returned, but surely appreciated.

The family had traveled with dishes, linens and trinkets from home that they hoped to sell but the people around Iowa City were aware that the Saints could only take a few pounds of luggage and waited until the items were abandoned instead of buying them. The Mortensen boys locked up their things in their large steamer trunks and put them into the Mississippi River, saying, “If they get them, they’ll work for them.”

The Mortensen family left with the rest of the Willie Handcart Company on 15 July 1856. The group endured many trials as they traveled to Utah, including loss of oxen and rationed food supply, to harsh conditions due to the lateness of the season.

The crossing at the Platt River was especially hard on the company. It took many tries to find a suitable area to cross with their handcarts. Anders recalled crossing some 90 times in the freezing water. Helena recounted, “We walked by the river day after day burying our dead who gave their lives for the Gospel. We wept as we went on our journey. We went before the Lord, and pled with him to make good his promises which were given by his servant back in Old Denmark. How we implored him to raise the sick, and give us strength to carry our burden without complaint, for we had the lame to haul on our hard carts, the maimed to care for, and our beloved dead ones to bury by the wayside.”

After crossing the river and getting into the mountains, the company encountered severe snow storms and the company’s food supply was basically a few ounces of flour per person each day. Helena remembered an old pin cushion she had brought from Denmark which was filled with bran. In their desperation, the cushion was torn apart. Helena made dough with the bran and it was baked and eaten. They also would take pieces of rawhide off the hand cart wheels and boil them in water to make soup. To further supplement their food, Lena would gather berries for juice, herbs for teas, soups and stews and even mad a warm barley drink from small amounts of rationed grain.

Lena was a strong woman who encouraged her family along the trek. Once her son Hans left his hand cart and felt he could go no further. She gave him something to drink and some dry biscuit and said, “Be brave, my boy. We must go on.” After a short rest, Hans took up his hand cart and the family caught up with the rest of the company.

Peder used his shoemaking skills to make sure that his children always had something to protect their feet from the cold ground, using whatever material he could find.

Although many of the members of the Willie Handcart Company were buried on the way to Utah, but the entire Mortensen family (minus Morten who was still serving in Denmark) reached Salt Lake City, Utah on 9 November 1856 feeling very blessed. Morten would join the family three years later.

Only a few days after arriving in Salt Lake, the family was advised to travel to Southern Utah and make Parowan their home. With their hand carts, the family traveled to Parowan and arrived 1 December 1856.

In Parowan, Peder took up shoe making again and continued to make sure that his girls had good soles on their shoes, which was not always common during this time. Lame for the remainder of his life, Peder was transported to and from church in the same hand cart that carried him across the plains to Utah. Neither held any major positions in the church, but were faithful members and regularly attended their meetings.

Peder and Helena were sealed in Salt Lake City on 14 October 1859 at the Endowment House. The couple spoke Danish to each other, but tried to speak mainly English to their children and grandchildren.

After suffering greatly from some sort of heart problem, Peder died, “full of faith,” on 9 April 1866 in Parowan at the age of 60. Before he died he asked his daughter Mary to take care of her mother, which she did.

Lena had a pleasant disposition and did not like arguments. She loved to dance and would dance for her children and grandchildren.  She was neat and taught her daughters to keep a tidy home. She also was independent, even later in life when being cared for by her children. In fact, she once turned down fast offering money from her bishop, asking him to give it to someone who needed it. She knew her children would care for her and that is all she needed. She was very hospitable and loved serving everything from cookies to fine meals to her family.

Lena always wore some type of small cap and when she went out she had a fancier bonnet with ribbons and trimmings.

At some point, Lena suffered a stroke leaving her left hand useless.

 

1870 and 1880 Census records showing Lena living with her children in Parowan.

 

 

Before she passed away, her daughter Mary asked what she could do to make her happy. Lena said that she wanted all of her girls around the table once more. She loved her family dearly and left a large posterity. Lena died on 24 August 1890 at the age of 82. Her grandson, Anders, said of her: “No more faithful soul than she ever lived, may her memory ever be sacred.”

 

(Quotations without citation in this history are from a short history of the Mortensen family written by Anders Mortensen, son of Anders Jorgen Mortensen. Other information was taken from several DUP histories.)

Click HERE to see Peder's headstone on Find-A-Grave.

Click HERE to see Helena's headstone on Find-A-Grave.

Christine Andersen

Christine Andersen (Christendatter) was born 26 December 1833 at Erae, Jutland, Denmark to Christian Andersen and Ann Katherine Peterson (Pedersdatter). 

Note: In Denmark, the last names used to come from their father’s first name. Christine was born Christine Christendatter, meaning Christine, daughter of Christen. Her brother’s last name would be Christensen, meaning son of Christen. Often when the Danish emigrated, they would change their names to their father’s last name. So, Christine’s name after coming to America is Christine Andersen.

Another note: Christine in Danish is pronounced Christina.

The family joined the LDS church while in Denmark.  Christine was baptized on 12 February 1854 in Erae, Jutland, Denmark.

In January 1855, the family crossed the Atlantic Ocean on the ship “James Nesmith” with more than 400 Scandinavian saints, arriving in New Orleans on 23 Feb 1855.

 

Page from passenger list of the "James Nesmith" with Christine and her siblings.
(Her parents were on the previous page.)

Passenger list, enlarged and cropped.

 

The company made their way up the Mississippi River to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas and then on to Mormon Grove, Atchison, Kansas. The family remained there for the year and Christine and one sister obtained house work during the winter of 1855-56.  During this winter, Christine’s parents both became sick at died in Mormon Grove.

Christine joined the Willie Handcart Company, were see became well acquainted with the Mortensen family who had a son her age named Anders. The company arrived in Salt Lake City on 9 November 1856. Soon after, the Mortensens continued to Parowan, Utah and Christine remained in Salt Lake for 3 or 4 months.

She them made her way to Parowan and became reacquainted with Anders. The couple was married on 22 August 1857 in Parowan. They traveled to Salt Lake to the Endowment House in October of 1861 where they received their Endowments and were sealed to each other.

Anders

She was 5’6” tall with deep blue eyes and dark chestnut braids wreathing her head.

In their log cabin, the only light they had was the fire, so they had to keep the fire “alive” because they had no matches. If the coals went out they would have to borrow coals from a neighbor. Christine would save the fat from the butchered sheep, render it to tallow, and then dip a piece of yarn into the hot tallow again and again to make simple candles. She would also wash wool, card it smooth and spin it into thread. She shared her skills with other women in the community.

Anders and Christine had 11 children. Peter, Ephraim, Anders, O’Lena, Sarah Ann, Mary, Emma, Tomena, Ammon and Alma.

1870 Census showing Anders & Christine and their children in Parowan.

It says that Christine's occupation is "House Keeper."



When Anders was almost 32, he married a second wife, Wilhelmina Ipson, also from Denmark. The couple had 4 children and the two families lived together happily.

 

1880 Census, showing Anders & Christine in Parowan.

Christine's occupation is "Keeping House."

1880 Census, enlarged and cropped.

 

 

Anders died suddenly in 1884. The next year, the boys sold the family property in Parowan and moved to Colorado to help settle the San Luis Valley. Shortly after, Wilhelmina died and her 4 children went to live with Christine and her son, Anders.

The family lived in the San Luis Valley for 11 years. Due to health problems, O’Lena and her husband William moved back to Parowan and her son Anders moved his family to Mesa, Arizona. Christine went to live with Anders and his family.

 

1910 Census, showing Christine under her son

Anders's household in Mesa, AZ.

1910 Census, enlarged and cropped.

She died in Mesa on 11 June 1910 at the age of 76.

Her son, Anders, wrote: "She was a loving mother full of faith, and hope, and sure of an eternal reward. She was quiet, and unassuming, but had a wonderful character, a living monument of faith filled with a divine testimony of the restored Priesthood, and Gospel which had enlightened the world. Her memory will never die."

Her grand-daughter Cora Morris Rowley wrote, “Grandmother Christina was the sweetest, kindest person one could ever hope to meet. She always worked hard, but never lost her wonderful disposition.”

Click HERE to see Christine's headstone on Find-A-Grave.

Anders Jorgen Mortensen

Anders Jorgen Mortensen was born on 21 September 1833 in Haarbolle, Fanefjord, Denmark. He was the third son of Peder and Helena Sandersen Mortensen.

In Denmark, Anders learned coopering and farming from his father. In 1855, Anders and his family joined the LDS Church. Anders was baptized on 13 June 1855 in Haarbolle.

 On 4 May 1856 the family sailed on the ship Thornton which arrived in New York City on 14 June 1856.  (I found Anders's parents on the Thornton passenger list, but not Anders. When I was able to look through the scanned photos of the actual list (below) I found that Anders and his siblings were listed under the last name Petersen. SO, you can find Anders on the Thornton passengar list under Anders J. Petersen. Then I read that he was born Anders Jorgen Pedersen because his dad's name was Peder and that's how they did it in Denmark, but when they got to America, they changed their last names to Mortensen to then have the same name as their father, as was tradition in the US. *phew*)

At this time Anders was almost 22 years old. In Iowa City (a place chosen by the church to equipped the Saints who were getting ready to cross the plains), Anders met Christine Andersen. (Note: on FamilySearch it says that her name is Christine Christendatter, but it is the same person. Danish names are tricky and I haven't figured it out yet.)  Christine was also from Denmark and was waiting for another handcart company to form so she too could travel to Salt Lake City. Both her parents had passed away in Mormon Grove, Kansas while waiting to cross the plains. Their friendship grew as they pulled handcarts side by side in the Willie Handcart Company. 

Christine

The Mortensen family had enough money for a wagon and an ox team, but was advised to use the handcarts instead. Although Anders’s father Peder was a cripple, they took the advice of their leaders and joined the handcart company. Because handcarts were less expensive, the family “loaned” money to three people to enable them to make the trip.

One day, Anders was searching for lost oxen. (Story from handcart co.) He found himself in the midst of a large gathering of Indians. He bravely made signs to explain why he was there. One of the Indian women gave him two of the buffalo ribs she was roasting. He was so hungry and said that it was the sweetest morsel he had ever tasted.

The Willie Handcart Company arrived in Salt Lake City on 9 November 1856. After a short stay in Salt Lake, Anders and his family made their way to Parowan, Utah. They arrived on 1 December 1856. His father bought property and his sons built a two-room adobe home.

The next spring, Anders bought a home and lot right next to his father’s property. The following fall, Anders and Christine married. The ceremony took place in Parowan on 22 August 1857 and was performed by the Stake President, William H. Dane.  They were sealed at the Endowment House in Salt Lake City, UT on 2 October 1861.

Anders and two of his brothers worked together, purchasing 40 acres of land to farm and using the coopering skills they learned in Denmark to make a living. The family also kept a few sheep for wool.

Anders became a US citizen on 11 March 1861.

Anders and Christine had 11 children. One of which was O’LenaChristina Mortensen.

1870 Census showing Anders and his family in Parowan, UT. 

It's hard to read but it says that Anders's occupation is "cooper."

When Anders was almost 32, he married a second wife, Wilhelmina Ipson, also from Denmark. The couple had 4 children and the two families lived together happily.

1880 Census. Anders and family still in Parowan, UT.

Now Anders's occupation is "farmer."

Anders was a member of the territorial militia, took his turn standing guard when there was trouble with Indians, and one of his callings was serving on the high council of the Parowan Stake.

Anders died suddenly on 13 October 1884 at the age of 51. His son, Anders, quarried a sandstone slab from the Parowan hills and paid to have it shaped and smoothed into a headstone for his father’s grave.

Anders had light red-brown hair and blue eyes.

Click HERE to see his headstone on Find-A-Grave.
Click HERE to read a history of the Mortensen family written by another descendent of Anders.

O'lena Christina Mortensen

O’Lena Christina Mortensen was born 25 February 1864 in Parowan, Utah. She was the fourth child born to Anders Jorgen and Christine Andersen Mortensen who had traveled to Utah from Denmark in the Willie Handcart Company. The family had 11 children, 10 of who lived to adulthood.

(O’Lena’s middle name, Christina, is after her mother, but spelled with an “a” at the end. In Danish, Christine sounds like Christina, so her parents wanted to spell her middle name the way it sounded in English.)



O’Lena was baptized on 22 June 1873.

Lena grew up in Parowan. She attended school which was taught by Mary Ann Barker. One day, a group of children were playing “Ring Around the Rosy” and she was invited to play by a schoolmate who broke the circle to take her hand. It was the first time that Willie Morris had noticed her. They were good friends from then on.

O’Lena grew to be a sober, caring girl. At the age of 16, she went through the temple for her endowments. As a young woman, she enrolled in a class taught by a French tailor and she became an expert seamstress. She did not finish the class because, as her daughter Cora put it, “he became too friendly toward her.” O’Lena had purchased the Norman Chart from the class and was able to make patterns to fit any shape or size.

Her friendship with William developed and they were married in the St. George Temple on 24 March 1882. William was 20 and she was 18 years old.

1887

The couple had their first 2 children, bother boys, while living in Parowan. Their names were William T. Jr. (1883) and Anders Marion (1885).

In April 1884, Lena’s married brothers and their families were called by the Prophet to help establish the pioneer settlements in the San Luis Valley in Colorado. Near New Mexico’s border, the valley is a windswept high mountain plain with sunny, hot summers and frigid winters. That October, Lena’s father Anders suddenly died living two widows and 10 young children. The families sold their property and went to live with the older boys in Colorado.

After almost 2 years, Will and Lena decided to join the others in Colorado, so they too sold their property and moved.

When they arrived at the LaJara railroad station, Will said that Lena was not impressed with the country and would have returned to Utah if they had enough money. They didn’t, so they stayed and tried to make the best of it.

One of the first things Lena did was hang lace curtains. She loved beautiful things and tried to surround herself with beautiful things. In fact, at first the neighbors labeled them “aristocratic” and were nervous to make friends, but soon found that the Morris family to be genuine and sincere. A great circle of friends began to form.
Lena used her skills as a seamstress by making the valley’s first American flag. She also made ice cream and shared it with her friends, many of which had not ever tasted the new delicacy.

Morris home in Sanford, CO. Housed nine.
Sanford Church built by the members in the San Luis Valley.

Another thing that the family introduced to the area was the May Day celebration, Maypole and all. Although the country was uninviting, the associations were priceless.

Five more children were born to Will and Lena while they lived in Colorado: Lena Isabella, known as Isa (1888), Cora May (1890), Earl Raymond (1893), Una Millicent (1896) and Alfred Serenus (1899).

Anders was not well since the family left Utah and in 1895, he became ill with pneumonia. Just a few weeks after he turned 10, Anders died and was buried in Sanford, CO.

Early in 1900, the family experienced another shock when Will suffered a severe heart attack. He was told that he needed to live in a better climate. The family was grateful that he was alive. He and teenage Isa took a train back to Utah and Lena stayed behind to sell their home and belongings in order to get enough money for the rest of the family to travel to Utah. The family was reunited in October 1900.

Their last child, Angus was born in Parowan in 1903.

Morris family in 1903.
Rear: Will, Jr., Cora, Earl, Isabelle.
Front: Father Will, Una, Alfred, Angus, and O'Lena.
(Anders had passed away 8 years earlier.)

In 1904, the family bought over 100 acres of land which Will and the boys farmed. They named it “Blue Bell Farm.” It was the first farm to be registered in the state of Utah (after it became a state). Lena and the girls kept the house and helped with chores on the farm. One of the first things Lena did was plant a flower garden in front of the house. They also kept dairy cows and soon Lena became famous for her “Blue Bell Butter” which was wrapped in crisp blue and white butter paper. She had more customers than she could supply.

Lena, 1904, with milk cow. Cora's bonnet shows and Will is holding Angus behind the cow.

Lena loved to garden and took pride and comfort in her flower garden.

Will and Lena in 1907. Ages 46 and 43.

Lena served in many different callings in the church. She was particularly good with children and spent much of her church service with the Sunday School (what we would now call Primary).

In August of 1912, Will and Lena’s son Earl was working at the sawmill in the mountains above Parowan. When he was felling a tree, it unexpectedly turned and struck a dead tree next to it. The dead tree fell and crushed Earl beneath it. Workers rushed to tell his parents, but Earl died at the mill. He was only 19 years old. Will and Lena met the wagon bringing his body down the canyon. Lena was told that Earl had been calling for her as he died. This was something that she never got over.

Lena's hair was almost completely white 3 years after Earl's death.

Christmas was always special to the Morris family. Lena grew with Danish traditions and Will with English traditions. The family got the best of both worlds. It was a time for family and Blue Bell Farm was the gathering place and many families would stay overnight for several days.


One Christmas was particularly cold. Will brought several baby lambs inside to keep them from freezing. Grandma Lena was going from room to room making sure everyone was comfortable and ready for bed. One room was filled with excited, giggling girls and one little lamb. Grandma Lena spoke gently to each child in the room and was about to leave with the lamb bleated. As she walked out the door she murmured, “Good night, dear. Go to sleep now.” The room was not quiet again for some time.

The winter of 1919 was very cold. In fact, two feet of snow had fallen early in the year and did not completely melt until late spring. That was the year of the flu epidemic. Lena caught the disease and became very ill. One morning, after Will have been out all night caring for the animals, Lena voiced her concerns about Will wearing himself out. She had never wanted to sell the farm until then. They sold the farm for $24,800.

They used some of the money to visit friends and relatives in the San Luis Valley and then stayed with relatives in Mesa from November 1920 to May 1921. Angus was the only child at home and this point and he went to high school in Mesa that year. In the warm climate, Lena’s health improved. Illness and sorrow, however, robbed Lena of her singing voice.



Back in Parowan, the couple was looking forward retirement. On August 24, 1921, Bishop Hugh L. Adams asked them to serve a mission in the St. George Temple. They accepted and began work there five days later.



In the Autumn, Lena caught a cold which turned into pneumonia. By the first of 1922, she was responding to the doctor’s treatments and the pneumonia was almost gone. But in the end, her heart failed and she passed away on 4 February 1922, three week before her 58th birthday.

Will wrote, “She had been everything that a good and faithful devoted wife could be to a man…very patient and charitable towards my many faults and generous in her praise for my good deeds and efforts, full of hope and encouragement when things looked dark…God bless her memory."

Click HERE to see Lena's gravestone on Find A Grave.