Niels Christian Johansen (Pioneer of the Month - March 2010)

Niels Christian Johansen

Chris (Blacksmith)

Married:  Gertrude Jensen

Born:  March 17, 1872   ---   Mt. Pleasant, Utah

Died::  November 11, 1947  ---   Mt. Pleasant, Utah

History written by Etta Marie Johansen Larsen (daughter)

In 1872 Mt. Pleasant, Utah, Sanpete County, was a bustling little town boasting a population of 3,000 people.  The people were divided in four groups: those in the southeast part of town were called the "Rocky Heaven" crowd, no doubt named because of the rocks brought down by the creeks in past ages.  In the southwest part of town lived the "Copenhagens" or "Copenslogans" group.  The Danish people congregated in this area.  "Dog Type" was the name tagged on the residents of the northwest part of town.  Northeast residents were answered to the "Buttermilks"; maybe they milked cows or churned butter.

Dad was born March 17, 1872 to Niels and Kirstine (or Christena) Marie Anderson Johansen (Johannes) in the southwest part of Mt. Pleasant in a small adobe house which is still standing and hasn't changed a lot.  H was the eldest of eight children, six boys and two girls.  He also had half brothers and sisters, as Grandfather had been married before.  He was blessed in 1872 and given the name Niels Christian after his father.  His relatives called him "Chris the Blacksmith", but to mother it was "Christian".  He was baptized April 1, 1882, by J.J. Wallis and confirmed April 2, 1882, by Peter Monsen (neighbor) and H. J. Brown.  Dad was made an elder on December 8, 1885 in the Mt. Pleasant South Ward which was shortly before he married mother.  He was made second counselor in the Y.M.M.I.A. of the Mt. Pleasant South Ward, October 2, 1901.

Dad was always an active church worker and served at various times with the Sunday School, the M.I.A., and the Priesthood in Mt. Pleasant North Ward.  He was a Seventy at the time of his death.

I suppose Dad grew up learning to work as there were chores to do, such as hauling wood in for winter, herding cows on the street, helping with the vegetable garden as everyone had a garden those days, helping Grandfather thresh his wheat in the fall, and also helping to haul the hay as Grandfather owned a small piece of ground in the southwest part of town.  He probably helped clean and pick the burrs out of the wool so Grandmther could card the wool for quilts.  Grandfather was a weaver and had his own loom.  I can see Father as a child having many friends, playing with the Copenhagen kids in that part of town.  Some of the games were steal sticks, run-my-sheep-run, stink base, Danish ball, rounders, leap-frog, nip cat, kick the can, mumble peg and marbles in the spring.

He was 24 years old when he courted and fell in love with a shy, timid Danish girl from the north part of town.  He and Gertrude Jensen married January 1, 1896, in the Manti Temple.  They went to Manti with two other couples in a bob sleigh, staying overnight with friends, and came home the next day.  They lived two blocks east of his parents in a small adobe house.  They lived there only a short time and then moved over on Main Street to Grandmother Jensen's home to take care of her until she died October 21, 1899.

Blacksmith shop was located at approximately 350 West Main

To them were born eight children:  Christella, Pearl,  Heber Christian, Francis Simon, Mable Christine, Aldevea Gertrude, Lester Delbert and Etta Marie.  After his marriage he herded sheep for a short time.  Later he went into the blacksmith business with George N. Clemensen.  After working with him for a few years and learning the trade, he went into the blacksmith business for himself.  He build his shop on Main Street on the southwest corner of Grandmother's lot.  Blacksmithing was a good, steady job.  Dad worked hard, being very skilled in blacksmithing, he was a perfectionist in his work.  Early of a morning he would usually sharpen hay knives so as not to waken the neighbors.  H often shod the horses in the afternoon after the sun had gone behind the shop, or he would work under the apricot trees.  When by accident Dand and horseshoing would get on the lawn and near Mother's flower beds, she would get very upset.  Toward fall he would be working mostly on plow lays and wagon wheels as the farmers would be getting ready to haul coal from Fairview Canyon.  The rims, which were always metal, would have to be smaller than the rim base, so it was up th the blacksmith to heat and stretch the metal rim, so it would fit snugly over the wooden edge.  The plow lays would have to be sharpened and often iron would have to be fastened onto the toe of the plow lay.  The farmers would do their fall plowing just as they do today.  Dad saved all the scrap iron he could find and it came in handy, especially during the war years when iron was scarce.  The fire in the forge had to be red hot when he was working so anyone standing around would get a turn pumping the bellows by hand.  One could almost tell what type of iron or steel was being pounded out by the ring of the anvil, as each had its own tone or beat.  It was music to ones ear, as a neighbor said.  I think Dad made the most money on shoeing horses.  Of course, I'm sure it was the hardest and most difficult to do.  Some of the men a few years ago told me he got fifty cents a shoe and he furnished the shoes and nails.  Many happy hours were spent with Dad in the shop, pumping the bellows, dodging the sparks as he pounded out a horseshoe or plow lay on the anvil, using up his chalk to draw pictures on the walls, a handfull of nails  to hammer in the big log that served as the doorstep for the shop.  The kids coming to and from school would stick their heads in the front door.  Dad would give them a few nails to hammer in the log.  Some of the ladies from the South Ward would tell how their kids took the long way home so they could visit with the blacksmith.  The grandkids also liked to be at the shop; sometimes they would run away from home.  Dad would soon send them back home; he didn't want the little ones around unless their mothers were wit to watch them.Blacksmithing was slow in the winter time and that was good as Dad needed a rest, for he worked so very hard.  The folks always had a good supply of food on hand; flour, grain mash, and in the cellar with long rows of smoked hams, shoulders, and sides of pork hung from the log ceilings.  In the big cupboards were shelves lined with bottles of fresh peaches, pears, apricots, plums, big crock jars of jam, pickles, relishes and of course a couple of five gallon cans of honey.  Then there was the milk cupboard with a tight screen on the front for the milk, cream.  Potatoes, carrots and parsnips were kept out in the dirt cellar which was in the corral.  Dad and Mother had two gardens, one a small one which we kids were responsible for planting, watering, and weeding.  Then we could take vegetables from it whenever we wanted as long as we didn't waste any.  We would have play dinners of fried potatoes, carrots, cooking on almost any stove in the neighborhood.  Dad always had a milk cow, chickens and pigs.  He owned five acres of ground west of town.  He would raise grain on one half and hay on the other half.  Every few years he would change the hay and grain ground.  There was a row of fruit trees down the center.  He would exchange work with the farmers to use their horses and implements to do his harvesting, so you can see there wasn't much in the food line that Mother and Dad had to buy at the store.  A little sugar, coffee, a can of salmon or maybe a piece of cheese, but Mother would always have to ask Dad for the money.  I sure had my share of going to the shop and asking Dad for money for groceries.  I didn't mind because he would usually find a couple of pennies in the bottom of the old leather purse fo me to spend for candy.  H was surely free-hearted when he was spending the money himself.  He liked to surprise  us by bringing home treats.  One day he had gone to town to get horse shoe; soon he came back in a truck with a big phonograph and several records, os for days after that he would bring a record home.  At Christmas time Mother would say that he was a big show off because he gave us so many presents.  Each summer he would see that Mother and I would have a train trip to Axtel to visit Mother's brother, Andrew.  Dad would cry when we left and he'd cry when we came home.  He was a very emotional person.  He would shop for all of  Mother's clothes and sometimes he would bring home several pairs of shoes for Mother to try and she would keep the pair that she liked best.  He would take the others back to the store.  He would buy the best grade of calico for her dresses and aprons.

Mother would go with Dad to Sacrament Meeting and the old folks parties.  She liked the picture shows and he took her often.  After I got a little older, he would say, "Take your Mother to the picture show, I'm too tired to go tonight."  Often if he three of us were home alone, Dad would say, "Sis, run up and get us an ice cream cone."  There was Gunderson's Candy Store a block and a half east of our home and it sure got a lot of Dad's money.

Dad was the boss and all we kids knew it.  If there was any arguing or quarreling going on up at the house, Dad was soon up there straightening us all up. Dad handled the money and if we ever wanted money for a show ticket or whatever, we had to ask Dad and he wasn't one to hand it over very freely.  I'm sure this was the way Mother wanted it.

Dad loved to entertain and play with his children and grandchildren, telling ghost stories, romping on the floor with them.  He would get on his knees under the big dining room table and walk it all around the room.  Mother would hold her ears when the kids would start to scream and yell.  The year 1918 when the whole family had the flu and we were all quarantined, he put up a big swing in the shop and built a whirly-gig out in the garden spot.  When almost everyone had the flu, Dad would go with Dr. Syndergaard to the homes of the sick in Mt. Pleasant and the neighboring towns.  Sometimes the horse and buggy would get stuck in the mud and Dad and the doctor would have to get out and lift the buggy up out of the mud.  Sometimes they would be gone all night.  A few weeks ago, an old neighbor, Ray Seely, told me about Dad coming down to their home in the middle of the night to borrow their old gray mare so he could go to Schofield to ber with Heber who had the flu.  The doctor had called and said Heber had taken a turn for the worse.  Dad rode all night long, but with Dad's faith and doctoring, Heber got well and was able to come home.  Dad was a good nurse and when we were sick, he usually was the one that nursed us.  I remember that he had a bottle of consecrated oil in the bedroom window.  He honored his Priesthood and used it whenever he felt it necessary. 

Dad was with the volunteer fire department most of his married life.  There were  many major fires, like the one in 1898 that destroyed most of the buildings on the north side of Main Street.  Also in 1930, Pat Cammer's barn burned with tow little ones, four and two years old in it.  Dad was the one that found them.  This really upset him for a long time.

Mt. Pleasant weathered three major flood in 1893, 1918,1946.  All went roaring down through the main section of town, distributing mud, rocks and debris on each side of Pleasant Creek, through homes, stores and streets.  The one in 1918 Louis Oldham lost his life.

The year Dad was born, 1872 the first post office was built in a small log building.  The same year the Indians and the white men signed a Peace Treaty ending the Black Hawk War.  The D & R,G Railroad started its run from Salt Lake to Mt.  Pleasant in 1890, as well as the telephone system from Fairview to Mt. Pleasant.  The first telephone and telegraph operator in Mt. Pleasant was Annie Johansen, (Little Annie) who was Dad's half sister.

In 1929 came the depression and the banks had to close their doors.  Some families went hungry, but not the N.C. Johansen family because of the storage that Dand and  Mother had on hand.  They had to help the married kids out with their little families.  Dad did have to drop all we kids life insurance and he borrowed money on his life insurance policy to pay his taxes on the land and home.  There just wasn't any money to be gotten.  He lost around $200.00 in the bank.  He did work for the farmers and they would pay him in produce which was anything from hay or grain to raspberries or honey.

Wednesday, October 22, 1941, was Dad's first trip to Salt Lake City.  He went with Gottfred and me into Granite Furniture Store to buy our furniture.  A few years later, he visited in there with LaRue and Bud.  Bud took him to all the interesting places.  He never stopped talking about what a good vacation he had.

Dad loved celebrations, like the 4th of July when he would put his anvil out in the middle of the road and at the break of dawn, he would blast off dynamite, waking up the whole town.  He was often duptized to help the town marshal at celebrations.  He was often called to serve on the jury, which he said he didn't like.  He was water master for many years, served on the stove committee for the old folks part, was president of the committee in getting the old folks pension into effect before we had social security.

Dad was large in stature, over six feet, weighing from 225 to 250 pounds, a giant of a man.  As long as I can remember, he wore a mustache and he loved to make the ends curl.  He wore a cul on the top of his head, as his hair was quite wavy.  His family broke his heart many times, but he still stood by them supporting them in all things.  He loved them very much.

In later years, Dad didn't have mujch to live on.  I asked him once why he didn't collect some of the money that the farmers owed him.  H had two record books in the shop.  When he did work for someone, he would write their name and what he had done  in one of the books.  Then when they paid him, he would cross their name off.  There were many names that weren't crossed off.  He said, "I guess they have paid me and I've forgotten to cross their names off, if not, it doesn't really matter, they are all honest men."  I remember him burning the one. but I believe he kept the other one.  Maybe he did believe that some of them owed him.

I don't remember of Dad being sick much of the time, only the spring he would get really sick with the hives.  They found out later that it was the fruit which seeds that was causing them. By not eating those fruits he was okay.  In his later years he had arthritis really bad and all I remember he did for it was a copper bracelet on each wrist.

Dad was a frank, plain-spoken person, kind, homest and full of fun.  He was respected and loved by his family and friends.  He retired in 1944 and passed away November 11, 1947.

Marie Johansen Syndergaard, Pioneer of the Month - February 2010

Marie Johansen Syndergaard (wife of Andrew Jensen Syndergaard, Daughter of Niels and Christana Johansen)

Marie Johansen was born on June 2, 1850 in Aalborg, Denmark and died April 6, 1924 in Mt. Pleasant, Sanpete County, Utah.

Her father and family joined the L.D.S. Church in 1860.  The family left Denmark for America in April 1862.  They came across in a sailing ship, on which there were no conveniences and sanitary conditions were bad.  They were nine weeks crossing the ocean.  She often spoke of the seasickness of all the folks on board.  She and another girl about her own age were the  only ones who were not ill during most of the voyage.  She liked the ocean, the trip was a great adventure for her, aside from being presed into service in caring for the sick.

The family came across the plains in the Harriman Company and arrived in Utah on October 5, 1862.  She walked all the way.  The company was met in Immigration Canyon by some of the earlier settlers.  Mother orode into town, the campaing grounds which were located where the Salt Lake City and County Building now stands.  This was her  first ride during the long journey.  Here they visited with her aunt (Grandmother's sister) and family, who journeyed on to California the next day and were never  heard from again.

The family was sent to Lehi to settle, where they stayed for three years.  At that time, there was still much excitement about the Johnston Army that had camped on the shores of Utah Lake-Cedar Fort.

The family moved from Lehi to Mount Pleasant in 1865.  Here they were really pioneers.  It was a barren country, inhabited by Indians who were hostile to the whites.  They lived in a fort to protect themselves from the Indians.  All work done outside the Fort was done in groups, such as going to meadows for hay, farming, hunting, gathering wood and provisions.
As soon as the settlers were able, they built homes and moved away from the fort.

Grandmother Johansen died leaving 6 children.  Mother had to assume the responsibility of taking care of the children.  She spoke of the terror she suffered nights when all the men were called out to fight the Indians.  One night, Indians came to the window, it was a full moon and she saw them and heard them talking.  The beds were on the floor back in the  shadow where they could not be seen.  She said she held her hand over the mouth of the smallest child for fear  it  might make a sound.  The Indians left without molesting them but that period of time had seemed like an eternity to her.

Grandfather Johansen had been a professional weaver in Denmark, so it was  possible for him to weave carpets, rugs, cotton materials such as tablecloths, etc.  From the sheep, they clipped the wool, washed, carded and spun it into yarn which was made into woolen cloth for suits, men's suits, dresses, children's clothes, wool blankets, etc.  The yarn was also made into stockings and mittens.
In the season of harvesting sugar cane, Grandfather and the boys operateda molasses mill.

He also did carpenter work and made tables, chairs, dressers, beds, etc.  Bed springs being an unknown item at that time, thebeds were  made with round  knob pegsall around the side and end rails, back and forth, cross ways and lengthwise, rope  or rawhide was laced to make a foundation for straw mattresses and feather beds.  The furniture was nice enough to be used even in this day.

Grain was harvested by  scythe or cradle scythe.  The women were inlisted to help  bundle the grain.  There was much waste so women and children gleaned the fields after the harvest.  Mother did much of this helping to provide winter flour for the family.

They also gleaned bits of wool from the brush where the sheep had ranged during the summer and early fall.  This would provide an extra of warm knitted stockings or mittens, or wool bats for quilts.  They died the yarn sometimes into fancy tied and dyed designs.

Besides gardening and raising, poultry, the women made their own soap, lye from wood ashes for softening water for laundry, starch, candles.  Also, the women did family sewing and tailoring.  They did the curing of meats from home slaughtering and from meat from the hunt, rendering of lard and storing food for winter, such as dried fruits and vegetables such as corn and peas, etc.

In the community, there was a tanner  who prepared the skins of the deer.  Mother made buckskin gloves from these skins.  This enabled eht men to do much heavy work during the cold winter months, road building, cutting timber.  Many expressed deep appreciation for this.

She also did fine needlework, eyelet embroidery, tatting,  netting or filet lace, crocheting, knitting (stockings for the family), carding wool, spinning and weaving the yarn into homespun from which warm suits and clothing was made, tailoring even men's suits, and homemade blankets.  she was a leader in every phase of industry and my earliest recollection is of folks coming to her for help.

Marie Johansen married Andrew Jensen  Syndergaard on October 18, 1869.  They were married in the Endowment House in  Salt Lake City, Utah.  She took with her, her two youngest sisters to care for.  To this marriage, 13 children were  born.  She cared for many  more children, sometimes taking in whole families when the mother had died.  Thus, it became necessary for her to spend many nights spinning and weaving, sewing and mending after having done a hard days work.

After the Indians became friendly, they used to camp in our yard when they came into town in the winter to beg.  In cold weather, they made their beds on the kitchen floor and roasted their meat over the fire in the kitchen stove.  They depended on her for most of their provisions.  This was not always a pleasant ordeal but it was better to have their friendship.  Old Santaquin, Nephi Indian Jim and Joe used to bounce the children on their knees and hum weird songs while father and mother finished their evening chores.  It used to take days to get rid of the sage brush smell after these visits.

Because mother was a good cook and always had good things to eat, our home was the meetingplace on Sundays.  The grownups ate and went to church and the children in the neighborhood were all taken care of.  Mother sometimes in a half joking and half pensive way wondered what could be done about saving her, while she washed the pots and pans and cared for the children while the Good Folks Worshipped.

She never attended school in America but she spoke good English, perfect enunciation and read and wrote.  She always said that America was her adopted country and she would learn its language because  it  was her language.  She was a keen mathematician, always figuring a problem mentally before others could write it out and she did this with speed and accuracy.

She had a hard life but with all a remarkable logic and philosophy.  She was a hard and  conscientious worker.  Her motto was "What was worth doing at all, was worth doing well"  and she always managed to do it just a little better than anyone else.  She would never spend time sewing cheap materials.  She had a contempt for shoddy things.

She did her part in caring for immigrants that came.  This was not always a pleasant task because the old sailing vessels that brought the emigrants were infested with all kinds of vermin which made it impossible to make the trip without being contaminated.  This was a hardship to the families who took them in.  The first job being to get them cleaned up.

No one ever left her home hungry.  She fed everyone, a kindness that was too often taken advantage of by many.

Author:  Elizabeth Jensen Syndergaard, originally typed October 22, 1964; 7th child of Jacob John Heidemann Jensen and Elizabeth Hansen; wife of Neil Anthony Syndergaard, 9th child of 13 children of Andrew Jensen Syndergaard and Marie Johansen.

Retyped by:  Carolyn Syndergaard Caddis, Granddaughter of Annie Elizabeth Jensen and Neil Anthony Syndergaard, June 24, 2005.

Andrew Jensen Syndergaard, Pioneer of the Month ---February 2010

Andrew Jensen Syndergaard was born on May 11, 1851 in Sundby, Denmark and died on  May 19, 1912 in Mt. Pleasant, Utah.  Andrew was the son of Jens Christian Syndergaard and Ane Kirstine Larsen, (Annie Catrine Laursen).  His father died when he was seven, and his mother, with two sons (Peter and Andrew) and two daughters, (Ingaborg and Elsie Marie) came to Utah, crossing the plains in an ox-train under Captain Madsen.  They arrived in Mt. Pleasant in October 1962.  Later another sister, Ane Marie, came to Mt. Pleasant.  Here his mother bought a farm, which the boys worked.


At the age of 14, Andrew stood guard at the temple site in Manti.  The Indians were very hostile at that time.  A large Indian that jumped out from a pile of logs was shot to death almost within arms reach of him, an experience that tormented him for years.

During those early years, no one paerson went out of the city limits alone.  They went in companies when they cut hay in the meadows and if a member of the party got very far from the rest, the whole company, the whole company stopped until he could catch up.

In his early life, he did freighting to Pioche, Nevada.  He was one of the men commisssioned by President Brigham Young to haul the oxen for the St. George Temple from Salt Lake to St. George, which was a difficult task over the roads which were then not better than a cow trail.

In 1868, he went east in Bishop William S. Seely's Company.  He was about 17 years old then.  This was to bring immigrants to Utah.

He married Marie Johansen, daughter of Niels and Christiana Johansen on October 18, 1869 at the Endowment House, Salt Lake City, Utah.  At this time he was 18 years old and built a house for his new bride at 389 West Main Street, in Mt. Pleasant.

Andrew was a Black HawkWar Veteren.
He was always active in civic affairs.  He was one of the first town marshals.  He served on the City Council.

Insert from the Mt. Pleasant Book - page 167

"The December 4, 1889 city record shows that Councilman Syndergaard moved that coal oil lamps be placed as follows.  One at Hans Nielsen's corner, one at N.S. Nielsen's corner, one at Peel's corner, one at the Co-op corner, and one at Church Square.  The five coal oil coal oil lamps, which were said to add a dignified appearance to the city."

Andrew also worked on the Sanpete Valley Railroad,  He delivered ties from Pleasant Creek Canyon to near Freedom.  He was also active on all frontier projects, building roads, exploring forest, cutting timber, etc.  He and his brother, Peter, joined John Hasler's Brass Band which was  organized in 1870.

One of his outstanding accomplishments was befriending the Indians.  They always camped in the yard, fed their horses from the hay stacks and ate their meals at the table, made their beds on the floors when the weather was cold.  The Indians often counseled with him about many things.  These were the indians that lived in Thistle Valley.  Their Bishop finally forbid them, imposing in that manner, so they camped at the Tithing Yard but they, the Indians, came to the house to visit and often sneaked their outfits into the yard, inspite of their Bishop's request not to do so.  One old Indian spoke of him as "Heap Big Man - Heap Good Man".  Andrew always said the easiest way to get along with the Indians was to keep their friendship.

Andrew and Marie had 13 children.  Andrew, Gertrude, Kate, Annie M., Hyrum, Anthony, James, Olive, Parley, and  Hortense.  Lars, Anna and Joseph died at early ages.

compiled by Della Fern Barentsen Standlee (Great-great granddaughter of Andrew)
Inserts taken from the"Mt. Pleasant Book" 1859-1939; "History of Sanpete County",
parts of the history written by Annie Elizabeth Jensen, (wife of Neil Anthony Syndergaard, 9th son of Andrew)

Andrew's wife, Marie Johansen Syndergaard Biography will be posted tomorrow.

Peter Monsen (Peder Mogensen) Pioneer of the Month January 1910

PETER MONSEN (PEDER MOGENSEN)
Peter Monsen was born 8 April 1830 in Svendstrup, Langeland, Denmark. It was a little village about two miles from Kerser, a harbor town on the west coast of Denmark. His home was a long, one-story adobe house with a thatched straw roof. His family appears in the 1840 census records for the Taarnborg District of Svendstrup: Lars Mogensen age 35 and his wife Christine Jensdatter (Jensen) were living in Svendstrup City in February 1840 with the following children: Ane Christine Mogensen age 13, Peder Mogensen age 10, Rasmus Mogensen age seven, Caroline Mogensen age four. Lars’ mother is a widow at this time and living with him: Karen Johansdatter (Johansen) age 66. His parents were farmers who did not own their own farms, but rented them. Peter spent his young manhood, as was the custom, on the adjoining farms as a hireling.

Peter and his people belonged to the Lutheran Church and were devoutly religious. On 9 March 1853, Peter was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He, in turn, baptized his father Lars, his mother Christine, his sister Hansine, and Dorthea Marie Christensen (Nielsen), whom Peter was to marry. His family was among the first to embrace the Mormon faith in Denmark. At the end of that year, Peter’s family left their home in Denmark to move to Zion. Listed on page 588 Afgangsliste (Departure List) in 1853, town of Taarnborg, island of Langeland, 1841-58: Lars Mogensen, his wife Kristine Jensen, and their four children: Caroline 19, Jens 10, Hansine 13, and Hanne Catherine left for Copenhagen 24 December 1853. Mogens Enke (Lars’ mother), age 74, went also. After they arrived in St. Louis, Missouri, Lars died of cholera on 6 April 1854. Peter’s mother, Christine, a sister Caroline, and a brother Jens (James Willard Munson), arrived safely in Utah. However, Peter’s grandmother, Karen Johansen (Nielsen), and two sisters, Hansine and Hanna Catherine all died of cholera on the way across the plains.



Peter remained in Denmark to be married. The Taarnborg Church records (page 330), show Ungkarl (young bachelor) Peder Mogensen 23 years old and Pegen (unmarried girl) Dorthe Marie Christensen 18 years old, were married in the Taarnborg Church on 8 January 1854.



Those present were Christian Nielsen (Dorthe’s father) og (and) Lars Mogensen (Peder’s father). “Begge er Mormoner.” (Both are Mormons) Dorthea’s family is listed in the 1840 census records for the Taarnborg District of Svendstrup City as family #108: Christen Nielsen age 43 and wife Ane Andersdatter (Andersen) age 41, their daughter Dorthe Marie Christensen age five. At this time they had four servants or friends living with them. Dorthea’s parents were wealthy and they offered her all of the riches they possessed if she would not join the church. She was their only daughter, and they didn’t want her to leave them to come to Zion. But no material offer could dissuade Dorthea and Peter from doing what God intended them to do. They left Svendstrup for Copenhagen, bound for Utah, and with them was their one-year-old son, Christian Nielsen Mogensen. They left Svendstrup on 24 November 1855 as recorded in Landsarkivet, Jagtveg 10-1-20-39 (Archives in Copenhagen).

On 29 November 1855 they left Copenhagen and set sail for Liverpool on 6 December 1855 in a wooden sailing ship named “The John J. Boyd,” bound for America. There were 508 people on the boat and 437 of them were Scandinavian saints. The vessel was not equipped for so many people, and crowded conditions prevailed. Tiers of bunks were all around the vessel, and they ate upon the same boxes that were used to sit upon. The captain of the ship was very domineering, and when severe storms arose he forbade the saints to sing or pray or hold services. President Canute Petersen was appointed to take charge of this group of saints and he instructed them to carry on secretly, which they did. Never did they lose their faith. In addition to the terrible storms, fire broke out in the captain’s cabin. No great excitement prevailed as the saints had faith that God would preserve their lives. As they proceeded on their journey, they ran across a disabled ship and picked up 50 sailors. They proved to be a great help to the ship, as the regular sailors were near exhaustion because the journey proved to be much longer than had been contemplated. The water supply ran very low and was vile. Sickness broke out and around 50 adults and children died, among them Peter’s 16-month-old son, Christian. They were heartbroken to see the sailors lower their darling baby into the great ocean. These trials helped to prepare them for the rigors of pioneer life that they would meet in the future. After a voyage of 11 weeks and three days, the saints landed in America on 1 March 1856. They arrived in St. Louis, where they remained for several months finding work to do.


This group of saints began their journey across the plains on 26 June 1856. There were 60 wagons in this company with two yolk of oxen to each wagon and from six to eight persons in each wagon. President Petersen was again called to be their captain with sub-captains under him for each 10 wagons. The oxen were very unruly and would get overheated, so that many of them died. They stampeded one day and killed a man. No one traveled on Sunday, and they held services in the day and evening. Other evenings they would sing the songs of Zion, and occasionally they would dance. They arrived in Salt Lake City on 16 September 1856. On the entire trip they saw very few people outside their own company; no houses were along the way except one government station at Fort Laramie. After arriving here, Peter planned on locating in Weber or Cache County. At this time word came of Johnson’s Army who were said to be on their way to wipe out the Mormons. Peter Monsen was enrolled with the saints who enlisted as soldiers. They went up Echo Canyon, where they prepared to defend the saints against the army. Among other things, large boulders were quarried on pivots in preparation to roll down the canyon as the army came through. The army came, but not in war. In many ways they proved beneficial to the saints. After the army came to the valley, Peter worked at Camp Floyd. There he made adobes with which to build houses for the soldiers camped there.

In 1858 he was called to Sanpete County, and they moved to Ephriam and then to Mt. Pleasant the following year. They lived in the fort there, as did all the other people. This was the year the first school settlement was built. It was a one-room house (about 16' x 25'), which served as a school house, a social center, and a building for religious services. It was called the second ward school house. The desks were a double arrangement (about 2' wide on either side) sloping to the center, with split log benches on both sides. The students faced each other. Four such desks constituted the furniture. A blackboard made from planned lumber hung on the wall. Roaring wood fires provided the heat, from the large fireplaces at each end of the room. There were few textbooks. The meager educational opportunities came from dedicated men and women within the community who had been fortunate to have had some education in the countries where they had previously lived. Peter was one of the first to serve on the school board of trustees. He helped in the building of the school house which was built with donated public labor and materials. He knew well the struggles for education with little or no money to pay the costs. It took about 20 years for new church buildings to be built, and a new and commodious school with modern benches and desks, and with comfortable heading systems as well as with books and supplies.

In 1863, Peter Monsen entered into polygamy and married his second wife, Annie Christena Christensen. She had been born in Copenhagen 8 October 1848. Soon after her family had been converted to Mormonism, they made arrangements to come to America. They set sail on Christmas eve, 24 December 1853, on a ship called the “Benjamin-Adams.” The ship carried mainly Scandinavians. Curiously, this was the same date that the Lars Mogensen family sailed-possibly on the same ship. On their journey to Salt Lake, there was much sickness in the camps of the saints. Annie Christena’s father became ill and passed away on 5 April 1854. Exactly six months later, the surviving family entered the Salt Lake Valley. Within a few months, her mother had remarried. Annie Christena was only seven at the time. In March 1859, they moved to Mt. Pleasant. When Annie Christena was 16, she left her home and went to work for Peter and Dorthea. This was to escape the attentions of her stepfather. She later became Peter’s plural wife, even though she was 18 years younger than he. She became the mother of 13 children.

Annie was strong and well, while Dorthea was ill much of her life. Thus, Annie Christena went into the fields to help with the crops, while Dorthea remained at home to watch the children and to do the work in the home. Those who knew the two families say that a great love existed between the two women. It was said that Peter was a fair and just man, who ruled with gentleness and love, with harmony always prevailing.

In March 1864, Peter was called to go to Circleville with Annie, along with Mads Madsen and his second wife, and colonize the area. They left home with each a yoke of oxen and a wagon, arriving in Circleville about April 1. They proceeded at once to build log homes in which to live. They built houses from timber that was not far away, but since no shingles or lumber were available, they were necessarily satisfied with a dirt roof as well as a dirt floor. The soil there was very fertile, and they proceeded to break up the land and to plant enough grain to raise 1,000 bushels of wheat. There were no threshing
machines then, so the grain was threshed by trampling their oxen over it. When the grain from the first layer was thoroughly tramped out of the straw, chaff and fine material still remained, which had to be separated from the grain. They cleared the ground, and when the wind was favorable, they used a small hand scoop to cast the grain out against the wind, thereby separating it from the chaff. When this was done, they took what they could haul in their wagons, leaving the remainder for those who stayed behind. They returned home to Mt. Pleasant in November of the same year. The immigrant who later occupied their cabin was killed by the Indians.

After returning to Mt. Pleasant and when it was considered safe, Peter was among the first to build a home outside the fort. It was a two-room structure 28' long with two large beams along the top, placed in a half-roof shape to carry the weight of the dirt which answered the purpose of shingles. There was also a dirt floor. Aside from building this house and the log cabin in Circleville, he later built each of his wives a house of adobe. Dorthea’s home, the larger, consisted of a living room, a kitchen, a dining room, and a bedroom. The upstairs remained unfinished, but was used for bedrooms. Annie Christena’s home had a large kitchen, which served as a living room and a dining room as well, and a large bedroom with a clothes closet in it. The upper floor had all bedrooms. The walls were at least 1½" thick, and served to insulate the homes. Peter drew his lot in the southwest of the city, and remained there.

Peter was always ready and willing to answer calls made upon him from the church or the state. He was called to be a minute man during the Black Hawk Indian War in 1865. He was a public-spirited man, devoting much of his time to civic duties as well as to his religious duties. This was all done without pay, but knowing it was for the betterment and uplifting of mankind. His heart and soul was always in the gospel, he was a counselor to Bishop Seely for many years. He was a ward teacher all of his life, and served as head teacher for many years. He was always a member of the ward choir, and the happiest time of his life was when he gathered his many children around him and the sang together the songs of Zion. He had an organ in his parlor, and upon it were two statuettes of Brigham Young and Joseph Smith. He loved singing, and taught his children the love of music. The Monsen daughters were singers and were often in demand at the pioneer socials. Annie and Olevia sang alto, Nora and Esther sang soprano in double duets. All of the girls participated with their father in the ward choir. Life in the Peter Monsen home was a happy one and a busy one. Peter also served in the city counsel for two terms, and was a member of the school and irrigation boards. As previously mentioned, he took part in the building of the fort to protect the early settlers of the valley. He also assisted in the laying out of the towns and farms.

The first steam sawmill brought to Mt. Pleasant was by Peter Y. Jensen and was placed in Cedar Creek Canyon. Before it could be placed, a road had to be constructed. Peter was the supervisor of the road construction. He also assisted in the leveling of the hill where the Manti Temple now stands. After this, a sawmill called the Temple Sawmill was placed in the Twin Creek Canyon, where lumber was sawed to be used in the construction of the temple. The work was carried on in winter and summer (men donated their work with few exceptions). Peter supervised the work in the wintertime. The depth of the snow was at times seven feet, and prevented the use of oxen or horses to drag the timber from the mountainside. The trees were felled and cut into certain lengths. With hand spikes and such appliances as were necessary, they slid the logs from the hillside to the bottom of the canyon. From there they were hauled to the mill upon bobsleds—all home made. The lumber from the mill was hauled to Manti by team, all done with donated work in which Peter participated. When the Snow Academy was built, he furnished teams (at no pay) to haul brick from Mt. Pleasant to Ephriam.

Peter’s occupation was always that of a good farmer. He had studied agriculture and had been a farmer in the old country, so he took great pride in his farm and in his methods of farming. He taught his children these skills. The girls learned from both father and mother that when the food was harvested, it must be carefully preserved and cared for. They entered into the tromping of hay, picking of potatoes, keeping of the garden, and the milking of cows. They also learned to cook and sew from their two mothers (both of whom entered into the training of the children). They learned to spin, to card wool, and to weave. Their hands were also busy with beautiful hand work and crocheted pieces. True pioneer life meant hard work, thrift, industry, and also sharing in the dangers of the pioneer life.

Nothing was easy in those days. The children remember Dorthea’s homemade sausages. They learned the art of cleaning the animal’s intestines and soaking them in brine, scraping them on the breadboard, and then again soaking them in brine. The cleaned intestines were then placed over a cow horn, and the sausage was carefully worked down until the sack was packed tightly. Sometimes, they ground the pork sausage and placed the skin around the spout of the grinder. The skin would fill up as the meat ground through. If any air bubbles appeared, a darning needle was used to poke them out and force the meat in tightly. The sausages were then smoked or put into a weak brine to cure, as were the hams, shoulders, etc. of pork. There was a lot of work involved when a pig was killed. All of the fat was cut off and sliced into small pieces, or ground up and fried just long enough to process it. The whitest part was then stored in jars and placed in the pantry for use in pies and cakes. Other grease was saved for frying food. It was a hard day’s work to “render” lard, and all of the children learned the process. You couldn’t just go to the store to purchase a can of shortening then. The meat from the head of the pig was ground and seasoned and put into a pan. It was pressed flat by putting heavy flat irons (which were used to iron clothes) on top, weighing the meat down and pressing it hard. It was considered a real delicacy, sliced and eaten cold. The pastries and cinnamon buns were also a thing to remember, for on baking day every youngster in the neighborhood went home with a big, hot bun filled with sugar, cinnamon, and raisins. The big drippers filled with homemade bread, each holding 6 to 8 loaves, were familiar sights in their homes. The Danish recipe for dumplings and chicken soup, has now been passed down to the great granddaughters.The children went barefoot as long as the ground was free of snow. But when shoes were needed, Peter furnished his children with wooden shoes that he made. He had learned the craft in his native land, and brought with him some of the tools needed for making them. He would go to Cedar Hills after loads of wood. After loading it he would find a pitch pine tree, just to suit his fancy, for the stick best suited for wooden shoes. After he finished the wooden shoes, his wife shined them nicely with soot she gathered from the fireplace. The children of Peter were the only ones with wooden shoes, and they were nice shoes. The only objection the children had to them was that they couldn’t run as fast with them on as they could when they were barefoot.

During the United Order, Peter was captain of the men who worked in what was called the Old and South Field. He was, however, one of the first to withdraw from the Order. His family was deeply concerned about it, and some of the neighbors went so far as to say that he was on the way to apostasy. Peter felt that he had given it a fair trial. One day on his rounds in the fields where men were engaged in irrigating, he arrived at a piece of his own land where a man was supposed to be irrigating it. Peter found the water all going down a dead furrow of summer fallowed land, with no man in sight. After searching around, he found the man sound asleep in the shade of the willows. When he asked the man how the water was going, he answered, “I suppose it’s running to the west,” which was the slope of the land. That, in addition to many other similar conditions, drew disgust from Peter to the extent that he left the Order.

When the polygamy crusade was on, the U.S. Marshalls had a warrant of arrest for all polygamists. It was just at harvest time, and Peter came to the lumber camp with a proposition to his son to go down to do the harvesting so that he could do the work there at the camp. The harvesting was done under very difficult conditions. Occasionally, Peter would come like a thief in the night to see how they were getting along. The grain was too ripe, dry and brittle, and some had to be soaked in water to use for bands to bind the grain. They had to handle it carefully to avoid waste. They did what was necessary to be done during the balance of the summer and the fall. Peter was in hiding most of this time. The marshalls would come to the house under cover of the night and search through the house for him.

On 9 April 1888, just two weeks after the birth of her 13th child, Esther, the young and beautiful mother, Annie Christena, was struck with puerperal sepsis (childhood fever). The dreaded infection took her life at the age of 40. The burden of a big family must have weighed heavily upon the young shoulders of the children, as they had to share the responsibilities even more so now. Dutifully and lovingly, Dorthea, the other mother, gathered these little motherless children around her, comforting them, teaching them, and being a true mother to them. She was affectionately known to them as “Tante”. Esther has said of her “If ever there was an angel mother, it was Mother Dorthea.” The family then adjusted to a new way of life.

Life in Mt. Pleasant was beginning to take on the airs of a thriving community. Beside the new school and churches, the Wasatch Academy became part of the community buildings. A brick kiln was producing lovely pink brick, and some of the up-and-coming members of the community were building elegant two-story homes. Little groups, who especially enjoyed associating together because of likeness in their nationality, would meet in each other’s homes for parties and dinners. Celebrations were always great days for the people of Mt. Pleasant. Not only was the 4th of July an event, but the 24th of July was also celebrated as the day the pioneers entered the Salt Lake Valley. Usually, there was a parade led by a brass band. The parade was usually followed by a program recalling the early pioneer struggles. In the afternoon, there was a dance for the children. In the evening, there was a dance for the adults.

During those days, the only source of supplies was through the wagon trains that came from Salt Lake City bringing their necessities. The men of the community would exchange grain for a supply of flour for their winter’s use. The supply wagons always brought back yard goods for the pioneer mother to make up into clothing for her children. Esther well remembers her father bringing her a piece of blue material, while he always brought some pink material for Olevia when they were small girls.

In the winter of 1897, on the 8th of January, Peter was called to go on a mission to Denmark, his native land. He was the oldest missionary in the field—67 years of age. He enjoyed excellent health, and was able to keep in shape and do all that was required of a missionary. He was gladly received by the people, and made many friends. The people were surprised that a man of his age could sing so beautifully. He visited the birthplace of his first wife while he was in Denmark, and was received very kindly by her people. They called all of the neighbors in to see this stranger who had returned to the old homestead after 42 years of absence in America. He served 1½ years in the mission field.

After Peter’s return from his mission, he proceeded to care for his small farm. As in the past he had a few livestock to care for. He continued to do so until he was physically unable. His wife Dorthea died on 10 November 1912. The children all helped care for him. In March 1915, Olevia or “Levie” (one of his favorite children, it had been said) moved in with him and brought her three children. Her husband, Joseph Johansen, had been called on a mission. She worked hard caring for her family and for her father’s needs. It was a good arrangement for all of them. During this time, Olevia’s oldest child, Etta, passed her important 8th birthday. They all drove to Manti in Peter’s shiny, black, horse-drawn buggy with bright red wheels. Etta was baptized in the Manti Temple. After Joseph’s two year mission was over, they all continued to live with Peter for yet another year while they were building a new home. They continued their close association, as did the complete family, until his death.

Birthdays has always been treated as something special for the Peter Monsen family. There was a spot on the pantry shelf where the members of the family put their savings in anticipation of the next birthday. The child having a birthday party could always expect one fine gift from the family. As the girls grew up, sometimes the gift was sheets, linen, dishes or some coveted item. There was always a special birthday dinner, and Father Peter was the central figure at these gatherings. The whole town was invited to his 90th birthday party. He had such a large family, and so many friends, it had to be held in a rented hall. His daughter, Nora, made one of her famous sponge cakes. The cake had to be beaten in a certain way, for a certain length of time, and it turned out as a work of art with the 90 candles ablazing on the top. The tables were set the full length of the hall to accommodate the number of well-wishers who came. His last birthday party was his 94th. He stood in the doorway at Annie’s home and said, “I may not be here too many other birthdays, but I’m going to sing you a song.” He counseled, “I hope and pray that you will continue with your birthday parties when I am gone, for it will keep you close together.”


Peter Monsen died just two months before his 95th birthday, on 9 February 1924. On his death bed he sang “I Know That My Redeemer Lives.” He was buried 12 February 1924, in the Mt. Pleasant City Cemetery by his two good wives. He was among the noblest of all creation. He was careful in the use of language, as well as saying ought against his neighbors. He never spoke profanity, nor spoke untruthfully. He and his wives were outstanding citizens, and devout Latter-day Saints. We can justly and proudly refer to them and their accomplishments with pride and admiration, and be thankful that we are of the lineage of such people. They unselfishly moved about in duty’s call, complying with one of God’s first commandments: multiply and replenish the earth. Under humble circumstances, they reared a large family which would seem impossible today. Peter at no time owned more than 40 acres of land, upon which 16 children were reared to maturity with five others dying in childhood. Despite the privations as would we considered today, or perhaps because of the manner in which they lived, the children grew to man and womanhood with clean, strong bodies, and pure minds instilled with honesty, truth and honor. Peace, harmony, and love were characteristic in the family. That same feeling prevails among their posterity.



POSTERITY

Children of Peter Monsen & Dorthea Nielsen:



Stena &  J.C. Madsen 7 children



Sena &  Peter Peterson 2 children



Joseph &  Anneta Neilsen 3 children



Dorthea & George Christensen 3 children



James & Mary Ann Poulsen 10 children



Lena & Andrew Jensen 11 children



36 children



Died in childhood: Christian, Peter






Children of Peter Monsen & Annie Christensen:



Amelia & ; Thomas Kirby 10 children



Sophia &  Hans Poulsen 4 children



Annie &  Erick Ericksen 8 children



Josie &  Peter Anderson 6 children



John & ; Annie Blake 5 children



Christie & Marinus Beck 11 children



Nora &  Gilbert Beckstrom 7 children



Peter and; Kate Gillman 11 children



Olevia and; Joseph Johansen 7 children



Esther & Albin Merlin Anderson 6 children



74 children



Died in childhood: Peter, Tina, Mary



Peter Monsen’s children and grandchildren totaled 110. His descendants on the 100th anniversary of his leaving Denmark totaled 679.



PETER MONSEN’S WIVES

DORTHE MARIE CHRISTENSEN       ANNA CHRISTINE CHRISTENSEN

Biography sent in by Guy Pearce, a descendant


Peter Monsen (Mogensen) as Remembered by His Son, James

Peter Monsen (Mogensen)

He was always ready and willing to answer to calls made upon him from church or state.

The first steam sawmill brought to Mt. Pleasant was by Peter Y. Jensen, and placed in Cedar Creek Canyon. But before it could be placed, a road had to be constructed.  Father was the supervisor.

Father assisted in the leveling of the hill where the Manti Temple now stands, after which a sawmill, called the Temple  Sawmill, was placed in Twin Creek Canyon, where lumber was sawed to be used in the construction of the Temple.  The work was carried on winter and summer.  Men donating their work, with few exceptions, who were paid temple-scrip, with which they could buy such commodities as were donated by the people.

Under my observation, father supervised the work in winter time.

The use of oxen or horses to drag the timber from the mountainside was prevented by the depth of the snow, which was at times seven feet.  The trees were felled and cut into certain lengths.  With hand spikes and such appliances as were necessary, they  slid the logs from the hillside to the bottom of the canyon; from whence they were hauled to the mill upon bobsleds, all home made.  The lumber from the mill was hauled to Manti by team, all donation work in which father participated,

When the Snow Academy was built, he furnished teams, with no pay, to haul brick from Mt. Pleasant to Ephraim.

On or about 1863, he and Mads Madsen were called by the church to go to Circleville as colonizers.  I heard father say they left home with each a yoke of oxen and a wagon, arriving in Circleville about April 1st.  They proceeded at once to build log houses in which to live.  They had with them their second wives, my mother and Mads' first wife being left at home to care as best they could for what little they had.

The timber from which they built their homes was not far away; since there were no shingles or lumber available, they were necessarily satisfied with a dirt roof as well as a dirt floor.

The soil there was very fertile.  They broke up and planted enough ground to raise 1000 bushels of wheat.  there being no threshing machines then, the grain was threshed by tramping their oxen over it.  When the grain from the first layer spread out was thoroughly tramped out of the straw, there still remained chaf and fine material which had to be separated from the grain.  So they cleared the ground and when the wind was favorable, with a small hand scoop they cast the grain out against the wind , thereby separating it from the chaff.  When this was done, they took what they could haul in their wagons, leaving the rest to be distributed among those remaining, returning home to Mt. Pleasant in November of the same year.

Father was among the first to build a home outside the Fort. It was a two-room structure twenty-eight feet long, with large beams along the top placed in half roof shape, to carry the dirt which answered the purpose of shingles.  There was also a dirt floor.  Aside from that, he built three other homes.

He was in the city council two terms and councilor to Bishop Seely several years.  He was ready and on hand to serve in any capacity where unto he was called.

During the United Order, he was captain of the men who worked in what is called the Old and South Field.  However, he was one of the first to withdraw from the Order.  I  well remember how deeply concerned mother was about it.  Some of the neighbors went so far as to say that he was on the way to apostasy.

One day in his hounds in the field where men were engaged in irrigating, he arrived at a piece of his own land where a man was supposed to be irrigating, he found the water all going down a dead furrow of summer fallowed land, and no  man in sight.  After searching around, he found the man sound asleep in the shade of the willows, and when he asked how the water was going, he answered, "I suppose it's running to the west.", which was the slope of the land.  That, associated with many similar conditions, drew disgust from my father, to the extent that he withdrew from the order, but not until it had been given a fair trial.

At the age of sixty-six, he went on a mission in Denmark;being gone about twenty months.

After his return he proceeded to care for his small farm as in the past, and continued to do so until physically unable.  He had a few livestock to care for until he died at the age of ninety three past.

MOSES MARTIN SANDERS and AMANDA ARMSTRONG FAUSETT SANDERS Pioneers of the Month - December 2009

Moses Martin Sanders was born on the 17th of August 1803, the son of David Sanders and Mary Allred in Georgia.  He had two brothers and two sisters; William Hamilton,  David James, Sarah and Nancy sanders.  Two of the children were born in Tennessee, where his parents moved sometime after they married in about 1802.  Moses Martin married Amanda Armstrong Faucett on the 12th of January 1826.  They were the parents of twelve children: 

     William Carl ------------4 Dec 1826 ------------Died 18 Aug 1827

     Richard Twiggs--------31 May 1828

     John Franklin----------- 5 Mar 1830

     Rebecca Ann ---------- 5 Mar 1832

     Martha Brown-------- 25 May 1834

     David Walker--------     1 Sep 1835

     Joseph Moroni -------  25 Dec 1836

     Sidney Rigdon--------- 10 Mar 1839

     Emma------------------  23 Jan 1841

     Eliza Jane--------------     4 Jun 1843 -------------Died in 1847

     Hyrum Smith----------    10 Jun 1845-------------Died in 1845

     Moses Martin Jr.------   21 Feb 1853

Moses Martin and Amanda were members of the L.D.S. Church in its early infancy and suffered inhuman treatment at the hands of mobs in Missouri along with the rest of the early Latter Day Saints.  During the Nauvoo Period, the Sanders family lived neighbors to the Prophet Joseph Smith and his family.  Moses received his patriarchal blessing in Nauvoo, given to him by Isaac Morley.

When the Prophet Joseph Smith called for members of the Church t5o bring in their deeds to their property in Missouri, Moses Martin was among the first to come.  The  Propghet said to him, "Brother Sanders, you have done this day that which will entitle you and your posterity to an everlasting inheritance in Jackson Co. Missouri."

Moses Martin received his endowments in the Nauvoo Temple on January 1, 1846.  while in Nauvoo, Moses Martin married a second wife before they were driven from there.  Her name was Mary Jane Sanderson.

In 1859, Moses Martin and some of his married children were called to Sanpete County.  They helped to build the fort in Mt. Pleasant, and then moved north to Fairview.  While the men were busy building a fort and church in Fairview, the women resided in Mt. Pleasant.

In 1865, Moses Martin and his married sons were called to the Dixie Cotton Mission in Southern Utah.  Here again they shared the trials, hardships and toil that went into the conquering of a new frontier, as well as a new industry ----cotton.  They also worked on the building of the temple in St. George.  Moses Martin had quite a lot of land and cattle there.  Moses Martin Sanders died at St. George on November 8, 1878. 

the above is taken from the "Sanders Saga"  family newsletter

Lieutenant General, Joseph Smith on his horse "Joe Duncan"

given to him by Moses Martin Sanders.

While living in Nauvoo, Moses Martin sanders and his wife Amanda Armstrong Faucett Sanders lived as neighbors to the Prophet, Joseph Smit, and they cherished their association with the Smith Family.  Moses owned a very beautiful, but unruly horse.  as Moses was often away from home, performing church duties, it fell to the lot of Amanda to lead this horse to water and she was really afraid of him.  He was very high spirited.

One day the Prophet Joseph said to his neighbor, Moses, "Brother Sanders, give the horse to me and I'll promise that you will never lose by it."  Moses Martin replied, "I would, but I am afraid that he may hurt you."  Then the Prophet said, "No, he would never hurt me."  So Moses tossed him the rope and said, "He is yours."  The horse was called "JOE DUNCAN", a very beautiful, intelligent animal.

The picture above shows the Prophet Joseph Smith dressed in his Lieutenant General uniform.  The Prophet rode this horse in maneuvers of the Nauvoo Legion and many other occasions.

AMANDA ARMSTRONG FAUSETT SANDERS

Amanda Armstrong Faucett was born May 6th 1810, the fifth child of Richard Faucett and Mary McKee.  Before she was sixteen years old, she married Moses Martin Sanders who was then twenty three.

She and Moses lived neighbors to  the Prophet Joseph Smith and family in Nauvoo.

Her life was one move after another and always to new frontiers where it was very difficult and often dangerous.  she was a helpmate and companion to her husband.  She gave birth to 12 children.

She was given a patriarchal blessing by the Patriarch, John Smith.  Her blessing told her that she not only shared in the priesthood of her husband but in the absence of Elders, she should have power to heal her children by the laying on of hands.

Amanda  helped pioneer Mt. Pleasant and also Fairview in 1859, then in 1865 they were called to the Dixie Mission near St. George.  There they built a sawmill and furnished lumber for the St. George Temple.  While living in St. George, she lost her husband and moved back to Fairview.

In 1881, she and some of her sons answered the call to help colonize Arizona.  They moved to Tonto Basin.  this move was about the twelfth move for Amanda.  She passed away on April 24, 1885.

Jacob Hafen - Pioneer of the Month - November 2009

Jacob Hafen was born February 16, 1836 in Canter Thurgau, Northeast Switzerland.  Because of old and absolute laws the people in this fertile and productive country suffered much.  The poor people were so limited in their opportunity to make a living, and their schooling was limeted accordingly.  However their working hours were not limited as they are today.  Jacob learned the trade of shoemaking but he had no money to pay for his learning.  After his apprenticeship, he was required to work at the shoemaking bench a year or more without compensation.  From 6 a.m. until 8 p.m., summer and winter Jacob sat at his bench tapping and trimming.  Thrilled with the thought he could soon be master of a trade and then could assist his good parents in the maintaining their humble home.

 Thurgau, his birthplace was known for its fine fruits, therefore the place was nicknamed Ciderindia.  The plentiful production and use of cider gave rise to this name.  The custom was to serve the workmen in the fields a piece of bread and a cup of cider.  The work would then continue til dusk.  Then the evening bell "Angelus" would call the tired workers home to evening chores and supper.   At mid-day the town clock located in the belfry of the village church would announce with twelve strokes the hour of dinner.  Recreations were few indeed for these humble farm folk.  A dance usually started in the afternoon and a recess was called for chores and supper; then back to the dance until midnight, this procedure was really a rare occasion.



Their main recreation was singing.  There were many small singing organizations who would hold joint festivals much like the Welch Eistefodds.  God had given Jacob a wonderful singing voice.  When he sang we heard not only his voice but his heart sang as well.  Jacob was a jocular, good natured fellow.  He made friends easily and held them all through life.  Thus the Mormon Missionaries found our twenty-four year old Jacob in Thurgau.  He and his two sisters accepted the gospel.  The rest of the family couldn't understand the "Spirit of Gathering" that was calling these three away from their family and friends.



Western America was an almost unknown country to these humble swiss farm folk.  In 1861 they embarked on a sailing boat with other immigrants and Mormon converts.  They were tossed to and fro on the ocean for many weeks.  For Jacob, this long journey was an eventful one.  On the boat was a very attractive young woman named Annie Catherine Naef.  She, too had a wonderful singing voice.  So through the gift of song they soon became sweethearts.  The weeks on the ocean were almost too short for these two young adventurers, whose hearts were bursting with songs of love.



How happy they were to put their feet on this, our American soil.  But America was just in the beginning of the Civil War;; hence, new dangers threatened these lovers.  But Jacob had been schooled in hardships and he had fiath that God who led them safely across the ocean would lead them across the mountains and plains to their destination in the valley of the Great Salt Lake.  They arrived in Salt Lake City in the Captain Jones Company in the year 1861.  From there they went to Payson where they were married and lived for three years.  Their next move was to Fort Hambleton which was then a new settlement in Sanpete.  They there took up a homestead and started anew.  Their stay at Hambleton was short. They were called to Richfield.  All went well for two years, then the Black Hawk War forced them to return to Hambleton, now called Mt. Pleasant.  It was here where Jacob and Annie Catherine established the Hafen home.



The boots and shoes Jacob made were of the best workmanship.  Many of the old  people of our community today (early 1900s) remember the happiness that came to them as children when they received a pair of brass tipped shoes made by Hafen, the shoemaker.



He never became wealthy in earthly goods, but every day brought a wealth of joy to the humble shoemaker.  His sense of humor, his charitable nature, his honesty, his faith in God and his righteous living was an inspiration to all who knew him.  Many nights when this tired tradesman would take an inventory of his days work the charity work he did far out balanced the paid jobs.



Because of the Indian trouble there was a militia battalion organized under the leadership of Major James Jorgensen who had served in the Danish Army. Jacob Hafen took part in this and at one time when Jacob was on duty when the drums were calling the men to be ready to fight, he was obliged to lock his wife, Annie Catherine and the baby, Hermina, in their dugout home, lest the prowling redskins would molest them.  She would hide in the corner where she could watch every shadow that came within the range of the one small window that lighted that cellar room.  Suddenly, the window was darkened and as she stared, she saw the face of an Indian pressed close to the window pane.  She didn't know how long he stayed there.  Minutes seemed like hours and an hour seemed an eternity before Jacob returned and found his wife on her knees praying, asking God to keep baby Hermina from awakening and crying.



John Hasler organized a brass band and Jacob played the bass horn.  The village wanted permancy of this organization so ten acres was given to each member.  Jacob received his ten acres along with others and it was known ever after as the Brass Band Field.



There is, however, another episode in Jacob Hafen's life that must be recorded.  With the consent of Annie Catherine, he married and brought across the threshold another wife, Lizetta Ott.  Six children were born to this union.  Three girls and three boys.  She had recently arrived from her native land, in company with her widowed mother, Elizabeth Winkler Ott.  This marriage like the previous one was happy, though troubled by the persecutions of the so called Edmunds Tucker Act.  Consequently, this good man whose family life was exemplary, who was innocent of breaking any criminal law.  Because at this time there was no law in Utah against plural marriage. 



Jacob returned to his native land on a mission in 1883-1885.  On the eve of his departure he sold their best cow to help pay his fare, and he left the wives and children in the hands of God and the community.  These wives and children were equal to the occasion.  The mothers had been schooled in the art of homemaking.  One wife was a fine baker of bread and cakes and the other was a good organizer as well as a good seamstress.  They were educated in the fine arts of lacemaking and embroidery.  They gathered the fruit from the straw stacks and braided it in five and seven strands and sewed the strands to make hats for the next summer trade.  Then all went gleaning over the wheat fields that they might have flour for bread.



The home of the Hafens hummed with activity.  Everything in and out of the house was cleaned and scoured.  The white pine floors and benches were scrubbed with sand and water.  The hand-made lace fillet curtains were taken down from the windows and laundered.  Every cup, plate, pot, and pan was scoured with ashes to give them an extra polish.  Why? Because Father Jacob was coming home! How happy this family of two wives and many children were.  Each doing the different tasks assigned them by their mothers.  There was work for the tiniest hands.  Tiny hands could scour the knives, forks and spoons with ashes.  Tiny hands could polish the shoes of the entire family by applying soot mixed with mutton tallow and brushed with a home made brush.  The brass kettle was made to look like gold scoured with salt and vinegar.  When the house was in order the wives decided to make an arch over the white picket gate for the joyous occasion.  The children were sent out to gather wild flowers to bind it with.  Each child was to bring an armful of flowers and their mothers deft fingers soon arranged them around the green willow arch that was later placed over the gate. "Put my sego lillies on top so Father will be sure to see them." said one little girl.  "No put my blue bells where he will see them." said another.  "He will like them best." said a third child.  Then the wise mothers said, "No, there are no favorite flowers with father and no favorite children or wives."  So the sego lillies, bluebells, indian paint brush, violets and daisies were all twined around the arch that Jacob walked under that never to be forgotten afternoon.  Over the door he entered he read "Welcome Home Father" printed with charcoal on a piece of white muslin tacked above the door.



Jacob had been in hiding for several months which was a hardship on the wives and children as well as himself.  Picture, if you can, two deputies riding up to the house, one went to the front door and one to the back door.  Forcing the door open and demanding to know where their father was.  These children who had been taught to always tell the truth knew that if they told the deputy the truth, their father would be caught so the only answer they could wring from them children was "He isn't here."  Jacob tired in a few months of evading the law and gave himself up.  He was tried with a group of "cohabs" as the prison officers called them and served three months in the Utah Penitentiary.  This was in 1889.  On June 21, Jacob returned to his family in Mt. Pleasant.,



Jacob was a member of John Hasler's Swiss Choir.  They practiced one night each week at different homes.  The object of the choir was to sing at the Swiss meetings, held in the Hague home on South State Street, and they all loved to sing.  This was a great advantage to the children of the Swiss families.  The children would stand around and drink in every note during the practice, and many times had memorized the songs before the older folks did.  Jacob could sing either bass or tenor.  Refreshments of crackers and cakes with cider or beer were served at these practices.



Jacob and his two wives would go serenading at night whenever the spirit of singing would move them.  Especially at Christmas time.  They would share their gift of song with all their neighbors and friends.  No medicine was ever used in the Hafen home except herbs and Hyrum Winters Pills.



Not only the family, but the entire community was happy when Jacob returned.  Many little feet needed shoes Jacob could make.  The Swiss Choir needed the encouragement he could give them.  Young and old needed the jovial salute he would give wherever you would meet him.  His sense of humor made him popular with all people.



One day a man who had "strayed from the straight and narrow" path many times knocked at the Hafen door.  "Brother Hafen", he said, "I know I am not a good man, but I am the father of a baby girl." "Would you come down and give her a name and a blessing?" "I know if any man's prayers reach heaven, yours will."  Needless to say, Jacob complied with the request.



The Hafen children were baptized on their eighth birthday regardless of the time of the year.  Many times the ice on Pleasant Creek had to be broken so baptism could be performed.  The Hafens were an ideal plural family.  In the morning and at the close of day the whole family would kneel in a circle for prayer.  Each child taking his or her turn to thank God for their many blessings.  Jacob was a man of great faith.  He was called out many times at night to administer to the sick. 



Jacob and Annie Catherine Hafen celebrated their golden wedding anniversary on September 21, 1911.



Jacob Hafen was called to the Great Beyond on March 22, 1919.  His wife, Annie Catherine following on the 4th of May 1923.  His wife, Lizetta on the 9th of March 1932.  They left behind a numerous posterity of faithful Latter Day Saints and the God-given gift of singing voices has been handed down to the succeeding generations.  Through the death of Jacob Hafen Jr. in France October 6, 1918, the honor of  Gold Star Mother was bestowed upon Lizetta.

Paul Paulsen Dehlin and Elna Waldemar Dehlin - Pioneers of the Month - October 2009

PAUL PAULSEN DEHLIN
Biographical Sketch by Blenda Dehlin Hampshire

Paul Paulsen Dehlin, born May 4, 1830, in Skana, Sweden, baptized
by Niels Adler, 1855, was married the same year to Elna Waldemar.
When a young man, he learned the cabinetmaker's and mason's trade and
was a journeyman in both. He was a contractor and builder in Malmo,
Sweden, for some time and while at this work heard the Gospel of
Mormonism preached and joined the Church. He was the first one in his
family who did, and was the means of converting three of his own sisters,
his wife and her father and mother, two brothers and one sister. Was a
missionary in Sweden and was arested and jailed once for preaching the
Gospel.

He left Sweden in the spring of 1859 for America. It was a tedious and
long sea voyage in the early days on the slow sailing vessels. Seven weeks
is a long time on the ocean and when that was over, there was the long
journey by land which Paul Dehlin and those depending on him had to think
about. He was intending to come by way of handcart but when he saw how
 hard it was going to be for them all he gave up the idea of going that way
being a little short of cash to provide for them all, but in cases with him
he mastered the situation. He gathered up his own and his wife's jewelry
and sold it to buy a wagon and ox team, which was slow enough traveling,
but way ahead of the handcart and so much more convenient and easier for the
women andchildren as well as his wife's mother and father who were getting
along in years.

He came with Robert F. Neslen's Company and walked all the way
and drove the ox team. A good part of the way carried his little daughter less
than two years old. Managed the trip for his wife and child, her parents, two
brothers, one sister and her little girl and his own sister who were all
depending on him, arriving in Salt Lake City, September 15, 1859. They
went to Mt. Pleasant which was the first year's settlement of that town;
lived there a short time, then moved to Salt Lake City; lived there a short
time, then moved to Tooele but did not stay there very long either. He again
went back to Mt. Pleasant where he settled for good. He was looking for a
suitable place to start a furniture business, and there is where he made and
sold all kinds of fumiture and sold all over the country as his was the
largest furniture business outside of Salt Lake City.
On October 17,1869, his wife died leaving five children, the oldest
12 years old, and a baby boy l8 months old. Elna Dehlin was a very devoted
wife and mother; lived only for her little family; it seemed hard for her to
master the American language, yet when the Relief Society was first
organized in Mt. Pleasant she was chosen second counselor to Mrs. M.F.C.
Morrison, President, and she held that position when she died.
The year following his wife's death, he married a young woman, Julia
Hansen, but she did not make a very happy home for his daughters. His
sister took the little baby boy when the mother died and she raised him to
manhood.

In the spring of 1871 he was called to fill a second mission to
Scandanavia and sailed in company with Anthon Lund and Canute
Peterson, arriving in Copenhagen, May 6, L871. He was appointed to
preside over the Skane Conference, Sweden. He filled a very successful 2
year mission, said he never felt better in his life, but there was a time during
those two years that was very serious. He contracted small pox in the very
worst form; said he was a solid mass from head to foot, and when the mass
peeled off, all the hair on his head came off with it, leaving him entirely
bald. When first taken sick President Peterson forbade the Saints to come
and see him. He set two people apart, blessed them and promised them that
they would not catch the disease, and the promise was made good; but one
young missionary was determined to see him, said he was not afraid of any
disease, but he contracted the disease and died, but the two whom President
Peterson blessed and set apart, the disease had no effect on them, although
they were with him night and day and cared for him until he was well again.
He sailed for Copenhagen, June 27,1873 on the ship 'Pacific". He arrived
in Hull, England on June 30th, sailed to Liverpool on the "Wisconsin" on
July 2nd. He arrived in New York on July 15th and then in Mt. Pleasant on
July 24, t873.

He lived less than two years and was stricken with a severe case of
typhoid fever of which he died June 6, 1875. He left the young wife with
two small children, besides the five children by his first wife, four daughters
and one son. While on his mission he arranged to have his oldest daughter
attend the University in Salt Lake City to study to be a teacher, and on his
deathbed he exacted a promise from her to keep the four sisters together so
they would not be separated. This she did and for six years these sisters
lived together. Hilda, the oldest taught school, Blenda the second oldest
kept house, Augusta and Eda attended school and in time they also became
teachers. Blenda was offered a position as a clerk in the Mt. Pleasant Co-op.
She was the first lady clerk who ever clerked in a store in Mt. Pleasant.
While on his last mission, besides keeping Hilda in school, he placed
Blenda with his sister who already had the little boy. Augusta and Eda with
another sister, for them to take care of his motherless children during his
absence, while his wife lived in a home of her own.

It was a wonder to a great many of the people of Mt. Pleasant to see
these four sisters live along together and support themselves. It so happened
that when John grew to manhood, was called on a mission to Sweden, he
labored in the same district his father had been a missionary twice.
Paul Dehlin was a real businessman and a good financier. He was a
member of the City Council and on the directors of the Mt. Pleasant Co-op.
Charlie Hampshire, clerk in that institution said that Paul Dehlin gave him
more insight to the business than all the rest of the directors put together.

He was a member of the first brass band in Mt. Pleasant and was a
minuteman in the Black Hawk Indian War. He was loved by all who knew
him or whomever he came in contact with. Many a person in need who
asked for help never went away empty handed.
George Q. Cannon once told one of his daughters when talking to her
as she had one of her baby boys in her arms, said, if any of your boys is
mechanically inclined whatever, you do let him follow his grandfather's
trade, for more thorough or better workman I have never known. I have
always admired him and loved him as though he were my own brother.

written by Blenda Dehlin Hampshire