History of

Carolina Neilson CHRISTENSEN

YEAR, 1855

Submitted by Daughter

Emily Christensen McKenna

I was born in Lillauppachra, Sweden, February 13, 1839. My mother had died in the year 1853. My brother, sister, brother-in-law and myself joined the Church of Latter-day Saints. My father said very little about it, all his children could see the beauty of the Gospel. Our parents had instilled in our minds the principles of truth and righteousness to the best of their ability. I thank God that I was brought up by honest parents.

I, with my brother, sister and brother-in-law started from Torregera to Malmo. Father hitched up his team and took us; we bid him and our fatherland adieu never expecting to see each other again. It was on the 19th of November 1854 that we took a small steamer bound for Copenhagen, as we desired to be ready to sail with the company of Saints leaving there on the 24th of November. We reached Copenhagen in safety and left there on the Steamer Cimbria on the 24th of November, being over three hundred in number, arrived in Frederickshaven, a seaport on the east coast of Gothland where we embarked one hundred-forty-three more passengers in the morning November 26, setting out for Liverpool . Our prospects were fair till about two o'clock next morning, when the wind turned southwest, and blew so heavy that our Captain deemed it necessary to turn back and seek the nearest harbor in Norway, a port called Mandal. Here we lay till December Seventh witnessing storms and tempests every day and night. The Captain thought he would venture out, but the wind commenced blowing from the southwest, the waves looked like mountains swept over the vessel like it was a mere plaything.

Instead of reaching Mandal we had to go back to Frederickshaven, where we landed on December Ninth. We stayed there til the twentieth. After leaving port thinking our prospects were good, but, during the night of Twenty-first and Twenty-second it became more rough than ever, so we had to turn about again. The ship was partially stripped of the rigging and it shivered like it was breaking asunder, and about to sink. Soon the wind changed and we were able to steer for Hull, which place we reached on the Twenty-fourth about noon. We arrived in Liverpool in the afternoon about Four o'clock.

There was considerable sickness among the passengers and some had very little to eat and drink, although the cook was kind and distributed water among us.

We rested in Liverpool several days, and on January Eleventh, 1855 went on board a sailing ship bound for New Orleans, North America. Everything went well until February Eleventh, when a tremendous storm arose and stripped the ship of all its sails. The next day it was fine and we could see some of the West India Islands. We passed them and arrived at the mouth of the Mississippi River where we cast anchor, until a river steamer came and towed us up to New Orleans where we landed on the Twenty third of February 1855. The next morning February Twenty-fourth we boarded a River Steamer bound for Saint Louis, where we arrived on the Seventh of March.

Having spent all my money, and some I had borrowed I had to seek employment. I was advised by our President not to stay in the south as it was so hot. We left Saint Louis the Sixth of July on a river steamer for Fort Leavenworth, then Indian Territory, now Kansas. From there to Fort Riley by wagon, arrived there July 18th 1855. From there to Omaha. Then my brother had a chance to go to Utah. He had promised me he would take me along. In the meantime I had become acquainted with a Swedish girl by the name of Ellen Johnson, and was very anxious to have her go along for company. So my brother talked it over with Brother Frank Woolley, and it was agreed that we could go. We did the cooking and my brother paid a little extra for me. My brother fell in love with El1en and she became his wife.

We left Omaha about August Fifth, arrived in Atchison the Seventh and on the Ninth started out again, arrived at Fort Kearney September 1. Then at Fort Laramie the Twenty-seventh, we continued our journey up the Platt arrived at Fort Bridger October Twenty-seventh. We rested there a few days the teams being worn out. We left Fort Bridger the Thirty-first of October, and it soon started to snow. It was not long before we traveled in three feet of snow and were compelled to camp right on top of the Rocky Mountains. They had no feed for the teams and it was very cold, but there was plenty of timber. They made fires to keep us warm and the next day there were teams sent from Salt Lake City with feed for the animals.

We arrived in Salt Lake November 8, 1855. I soon found work although it was hard not being able to speak the language good. Not long after that I met a man by the name of Niels L. Christensen, and married him as his second wife, June 8, 1857. We lived in Salt Lake City for a couple of years, then they called my husband to help settle Moroni, San Pete County. We moved there and I was the fifth woman in that place. My first baby, a girl, was born there March 18th, 1860. The second, a boy, born April 26, 1862 and two years later another girl on March 31st, 1864.

I have taken the three little children out in the field and gleaned all day to get my bread. Would wash all day to earn a pound of butter. Have carded wool, spun it, gathered brush and bark of different kinds to color it and then had it made into cloth. I was lucky to have one dress. Would wash it Saturday night, iron it in the morning and wear it to church. I went through many hardships while there.

I think it was in the year 1865 they called my husband to Richfield, Sevier County, to settle that place. He had been there for a while when he sent a young boy with a yoke of oxen to move me down there. That was when the Indians were on the warpath. We camped at what is called Christenburg. In the morning when we got up the cattle had strayed away; while the boy was hunting them, there came a band of Indians. I was sure they would kill us all. I prayed that we might all be saved. They passed by and never bothered us.

We arrived in Richfield and all I had to live in was a dugout, and cook on a campfire. The women were alone most of the time, for the men had to go out and fight. There not being a flour mill in that place, we had to grind the wheat on a small mill, and only one for us all to use. We could only run it through once; it was so coarse it would not hold together when made into bread. All I had to eat was molasses made from table beets.

I lost my baby July 12, 1865, and another girl was born April 30, 1866. A short time after that we moved to Ephraim, San Pete County. There were five more children born to me, two of them dying while small, then my husband's first wife died and left four children that I raised. In the year 1879 he moved me to Redmond and I spent the rest of my life there, did a great deal of work looking after the sick.

I was the President of the Primary for a number of years, a teacher in the Sunday School, a counselor in the Relief Society, also a teacher.

Two more of my children passed away after they were married, at an early age. There are many more things that happened in my life that I have not mentioned, but have lived faithful to my belief as a Latter-day Saint.

Caroline Neilson Christensen died October 18, 1919