We of the 21st century should never become so lulled by modern medicine that we think of childbirth as easy or take surviving childhood nonchalantly. We are fortunate to have such advances since the 1840s, 1850s and 1860s. Marie lost children in infancy or childhood. This is true in today's generation, so we will ever keep a place in our hearts for grieving parents and siblings of infant angels.
I will be relating the stories of the sons that did survive and from whom Marie has a great posterity; I do not forget nor do I wish to diminish the loss she experienced in the children she grieved for:
Jorgen Fredrik Nielsen Garff (1844-1845)
Inger Katrine Nielsen Garff (1845-1849)
Jorgen Garff (1847)
Infant Son Garff (1850)
Niels Garff (1854)
Josephine Patrine Garff (1855-1857)
Joseph and Hyrum Garff (1856)
Jacob Gudmundsen (1865-1868)
Son Deacon Westmorland Garff, born as the family crossed the Atlantic Ocean died about age 29.
I desire that whatever I learn of the families that descend from the remaining children- her sons Peter Garff, Christian Garff and Lauritz Garff and Abraham Gudmundsen and Isaac Gudmundsen- I am able to relate it so that this simple woman of strength, resolve and faith, traveling around the world from stability of means to hardships of pioneering a new country can be seen in all we have done, and who we have become.
This will not be an LDS record- and as it can be said that we would not have the record at all if Marie had not accepted and found faith with the Church of Jesus Christ of Later-Day Saints - I have researched primarily the secular, or public records for the story I have learned of our family. A quick reading in any of these lines will show that many do continue today as active and contributing members of that church and faith, whether in Utah or the many places we have moved to as our times and our world changed and shaped our lives. Others have taken alternate paths.
The families of Marie's sons have served their churches, their communities and their country. We have built businesses, raised families, doctored and nursed our neighbors; we have served in active and reserve military positions, served in elected and volunteer positions, taught school, encouraged and protected the young, the disabled, and the homeless. We have moved the world!
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Where Our Families Begin
The accepted record of Gudmund Gudmundsen has his ancestry firm in the Icelandic settlement, that is from about year 900. As those settlers were nordic, they could not have origins so very different that of Niels Jorgensen Garff or Marie Jacobsen. Here are small snapshots of their genealogy.
Marie Jacobsen was born 9 Dec 1820 in Bjergskov, Kobenhaven, Denmark to Jakob Nielsen (b 1793) and Inger Larsen (b 1793) where she was christened in the state church. She married 4 Nov 1842 at Saerslev, Holbaek, Denmark to Niels Jorgensen Garff.
Marie's paternal grandparents were Niels Hansen (1758-1831) and Margarethe Jacobsen (b 1763). Married 9 Mar 1783, they lived at Skibby Fredriksberg, Denmark. Marie's maternal grandparents were Lars Pedersen (b 1750) and Inger Abrahamsen (b abt 1774).
On 7 Feb 1908 Marie passed away on the train returning home from Iona, Idaho, where she had visited family. Cause of death is listed on the Utah death certificate as unknown but natural. Death occurred about twenty minutes south of Ogden. The certificate however was completed in Salt Lake City. She was 87. Marie is buried in the Lehi City Cemetery, not far from one of her sons.
LDS Church archives have records in the fourth, fifth and sixth generations for Marie. I found these at www.familysearch.org and then searched Trees; some records are duplicated, others have multiple parent records. As you search you may be able to extend your own pedigree further.
Niels Jorgensen Garff we know died on the Pioneer trail near Fort Laramie- in the present day Wyoming and Nebraska border region. He was born 20 Jan 1811 at Eskebjerg, Sjelland, Denmark. His parents being Jorgen Nielsen Garff (1777-1858) and Maren Olsen (1784-1857).
Parents of his father were Hartvig Wilhelm Garff and Margrede Nielsen (1747-1816) and of his mother Ole Larsen and Elsie Marie Olsen. I find nothing more of Niels' maternal line than this.
Gudmund Gudmundsen was born 23 Mar 1825 in the Westermanjar region of Iceland. He followed the living of his family until going to Denmark (at the time the center of government of his country) to apprentice in a skill. Here he became familiar with and joined the new church that had recently sent missionaries. He was encouraged to return to his homeland to preach and establish this faith there. He had a companion in this effort at first and they are credited with being the first Mormon missionaries to Iceland. When his companion died Gudmund continued to share his faith, encountering aggressive resistance. At some point it seems he returned to Denmark and with a large body of fellow saints heeded to desire to gather with the church, coming to Utah where he died 21 Sep 1883 in Logan, Cache Valley. He lies interred in Draper Utah, in the older - or Pioneer- cemetery.
Gudmund's parents were Gudmund Benediktsson (b 1779) and Gudrun Vigfusdottir (b 1789) both of the same region on the south coast of Iceland. Paternal grandparents were Benedikt Arnason (b 1750) and Sigrid Gudmundsdottir (b 1752); his maternal grandparents being Vigfus Magnusson (b 1749) and Gudlaug Jonsdottir (b 1754).
The famous published Sagas of Iceland give the colorful tale of Gudmund's family heritage; I found on one family group sheet in the Icelandic Family Project a note that one father in the line "could not be" and whether there was an adoption or other arrangement I do not know, it could also have been that person's error or the author of the form. I do not believe it was within these three generations.
In various records of these three honored ancestors one finds many variations in the names. Jacobsen, Garff, and Gudmundsen have been the adopted use in America and I will use only these. If I should refer to a record with an alternate spelling or different name I will note that to better enable your own researching. One name which I find repeated for Marie is the name Sabey, but I can learn no source for that name (it is also attributed to her father on some records). In Iceland Gudmund would naturally be referred to as Gudmundsson, but Gudmundsen has been our use since we came here.
Marie Jacobsen was born 9 Dec 1820 in Bjergskov, Kobenhaven, Denmark to Jakob Nielsen (b 1793) and Inger Larsen (b 1793) where she was christened in the state church. She married 4 Nov 1842 at Saerslev, Holbaek, Denmark to Niels Jorgensen Garff.
Marie's paternal grandparents were Niels Hansen (1758-1831) and Margarethe Jacobsen (b 1763). Married 9 Mar 1783, they lived at Skibby Fredriksberg, Denmark. Marie's maternal grandparents were Lars Pedersen (b 1750) and Inger Abrahamsen (b abt 1774).
On 7 Feb 1908 Marie passed away on the train returning home from Iona, Idaho, where she had visited family. Cause of death is listed on the Utah death certificate as unknown but natural. Death occurred about twenty minutes south of Ogden. The certificate however was completed in Salt Lake City. She was 87. Marie is buried in the Lehi City Cemetery, not far from one of her sons.
LDS Church archives have records in the fourth, fifth and sixth generations for Marie. I found these at www.familysearch.org and then searched Trees; some records are duplicated, others have multiple parent records. As you search you may be able to extend your own pedigree further.
Niels Jorgensen Garff we know died on the Pioneer trail near Fort Laramie- in the present day Wyoming and Nebraska border region. He was born 20 Jan 1811 at Eskebjerg, Sjelland, Denmark. His parents being Jorgen Nielsen Garff (1777-1858) and Maren Olsen (1784-1857).
Parents of his father were Hartvig Wilhelm Garff and Margrede Nielsen (1747-1816) and of his mother Ole Larsen and Elsie Marie Olsen. I find nothing more of Niels' maternal line than this.
Gudmund Gudmundsen was born 23 Mar 1825 in the Westermanjar region of Iceland. He followed the living of his family until going to Denmark (at the time the center of government of his country) to apprentice in a skill. Here he became familiar with and joined the new church that had recently sent missionaries. He was encouraged to return to his homeland to preach and establish this faith there. He had a companion in this effort at first and they are credited with being the first Mormon missionaries to Iceland. When his companion died Gudmund continued to share his faith, encountering aggressive resistance. At some point it seems he returned to Denmark and with a large body of fellow saints heeded to desire to gather with the church, coming to Utah where he died 21 Sep 1883 in Logan, Cache Valley. He lies interred in Draper Utah, in the older - or Pioneer- cemetery.
Gudmund's parents were Gudmund Benediktsson (b 1779) and Gudrun Vigfusdottir (b 1789) both of the same region on the south coast of Iceland. Paternal grandparents were Benedikt Arnason (b 1750) and Sigrid Gudmundsdottir (b 1752); his maternal grandparents being Vigfus Magnusson (b 1749) and Gudlaug Jonsdottir (b 1754).
The famous published Sagas of Iceland give the colorful tale of Gudmund's family heritage; I found on one family group sheet in the Icelandic Family Project a note that one father in the line "could not be" and whether there was an adoption or other arrangement I do not know, it could also have been that person's error or the author of the form. I do not believe it was within these three generations.
In various records of these three honored ancestors one finds many variations in the names. Jacobsen, Garff, and Gudmundsen have been the adopted use in America and I will use only these. If I should refer to a record with an alternate spelling or different name I will note that to better enable your own researching. One name which I find repeated for Marie is the name Sabey, but I can learn no source for that name (it is also attributed to her father on some records). In Iceland Gudmund would naturally be referred to as Gudmundsson, but Gudmundsen has been our use since we came here.
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
Why I Begin Here
My father commented recently that the big twelve room house is more work than he can keep up with. As we try to make it easier for him we thin out a file here, a box there. From one I was given an envelope addressed to him from his father in 1971, with such distinctive penmanship, noting "Printed Matter". Another notation, also in a distinctive hand: "Family Pedigree/ Story of Gudmun Gudmundsen" is that of my dad's.
My paternal grandmother, dad's mother, Sylvia Ucilla Gudmundsen Kirkham was known as Gene after a part from a play. She married into a family that would become known for genealogy research and study. So there is paper stapled to paper to tell me where I come from. However, while I enjoy this I want to know more: what have we done since we got here?
Believe me, we have done much!
This story will reflect my knowledge and understanding of Marie Jacobsen's sons and their families. With her two husbands, she is the pioneer ancestor we have in common and her sons the sources of her posterity. Marie had a daughter, buried now for more than 150 years in a grave, perhaps no longer discernible along the trail the Christensen handcart company used in 1857 coming to the Great Basin, to the valleys of the mountains. Other children, including another daughter died before the family left Denmark.
Let me start my story there:
"Among his converts in Denmark was a family by the name of Garff, well-to-do people and highly respected," the historian refers to Gudmund Gudmundsen of Iceland, at that point a missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, the Mormons, "but as soon as they joined the church they became objects of special hatred on the part of their nearest relatives and their neighbors generally. The Garffs decided to leave for Utah in 1857 on the same ship as Elder Gudmundsen. Sister Garff went to bid her parents goodbye, but none of her relatives, of whom there were many, would have anything to do with her, except her mother, who came to the wharf and bade her daughter farewell with all the feelings of a loving mother. Sister Garff was at the time in a delicate condition. In embarking the family took with them a nurse and a mid-wife. Sister Garff gave birth to a baby boy in mid-ocean, May 3, 1857, and by request of the Captain of the ship, the infant was given the name Deacon Westmorland Garff, the given names of the Captain and of the ship."
After landing in America the immigrants started across the continent. On the way Brother Garff became ill, and loving his family, called Elder Gudmundsen to his death bed where he asked Gudmund to care for his wife, Marie, and his children, consisting of four boys and a daughter. He was determined that the family go on "to Zion and be with God's people." Brother Garff was buried along the pioneer trail, and just a few days later Sister Garff would bury also her only daughter, Josephine Patrine Garff.
After arriving in Utah, Gudmund Gudmundsen married Marie Jacobsen Garff, and the family was increased with three more sons. The preceding came to me from my grandfather James Arno Kirkham, and has also been attributed to the research and writhing of Ralph Abraham Trane, in the biography Peter Niels Garff published 1983 by the family of George Peter and Tryphena B. Garff. [FHL us/can 921.73 - G18g]
I do not suggest that I am an authority on any aspect of this story I hope to relate. Indeed I have only that knowledge that comes from reading and studying what others have recorded. I may cause you, reader and kin, to develop more questions. Before I put any information before you I hope I have faithful sources for it. Nordic peoples, as we are have the great history of recounting the family story. I shall stay as true to it as I can.
Today I have a deeper affection and honor for this family and feel a great sense of pride in it. Such commodities I hope I can foster in you as well.
My paternal grandmother, dad's mother, Sylvia Ucilla Gudmundsen Kirkham was known as Gene after a part from a play. She married into a family that would become known for genealogy research and study. So there is paper stapled to paper to tell me where I come from. However, while I enjoy this I want to know more: what have we done since we got here?
Believe me, we have done much!
This story will reflect my knowledge and understanding of Marie Jacobsen's sons and their families. With her two husbands, she is the pioneer ancestor we have in common and her sons the sources of her posterity. Marie had a daughter, buried now for more than 150 years in a grave, perhaps no longer discernible along the trail the Christensen handcart company used in 1857 coming to the Great Basin, to the valleys of the mountains. Other children, including another daughter died before the family left Denmark.
Let me start my story there:
"Among his converts in Denmark was a family by the name of Garff, well-to-do people and highly respected," the historian refers to Gudmund Gudmundsen of Iceland, at that point a missionary of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, the Mormons, "but as soon as they joined the church they became objects of special hatred on the part of their nearest relatives and their neighbors generally. The Garffs decided to leave for Utah in 1857 on the same ship as Elder Gudmundsen. Sister Garff went to bid her parents goodbye, but none of her relatives, of whom there were many, would have anything to do with her, except her mother, who came to the wharf and bade her daughter farewell with all the feelings of a loving mother. Sister Garff was at the time in a delicate condition. In embarking the family took with them a nurse and a mid-wife. Sister Garff gave birth to a baby boy in mid-ocean, May 3, 1857, and by request of the Captain of the ship, the infant was given the name Deacon Westmorland Garff, the given names of the Captain and of the ship."
After landing in America the immigrants started across the continent. On the way Brother Garff became ill, and loving his family, called Elder Gudmundsen to his death bed where he asked Gudmund to care for his wife, Marie, and his children, consisting of four boys and a daughter. He was determined that the family go on "to Zion and be with God's people." Brother Garff was buried along the pioneer trail, and just a few days later Sister Garff would bury also her only daughter, Josephine Patrine Garff.
After arriving in Utah, Gudmund Gudmundsen married Marie Jacobsen Garff, and the family was increased with three more sons. The preceding came to me from my grandfather James Arno Kirkham, and has also been attributed to the research and writhing of Ralph Abraham Trane, in the biography Peter Niels Garff published 1983 by the family of George Peter and Tryphena B. Garff. [FHL us/can 921.73 - G18g]
I do not suggest that I am an authority on any aspect of this story I hope to relate. Indeed I have only that knowledge that comes from reading and studying what others have recorded. I may cause you, reader and kin, to develop more questions. Before I put any information before you I hope I have faithful sources for it. Nordic peoples, as we are have the great history of recounting the family story. I shall stay as true to it as I can.
Today I have a deeper affection and honor for this family and feel a great sense of pride in it. Such commodities I hope I can foster in you as well.
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