Michael Christian Christensen

  OK so why do I refer to Michael as Michael when he is known by other names? Well hopefully I will solve this problem in this blog and hopefully answer some other question that you did not know. So here it goes.

Michael Christensen has been know as Mikkel, Michel, Mickle and Michael throughout his life. So which one is right? Well just for the sake of the language barrier Mikkel is the danish equivalent of Michael. I have found his name spelled many different ways. I will give you a brief outline of Michael's life and use documentation to verify that the information in this blog is correct.

                            Mikkel, Mickle, Michel or Michael he is all the same person.

  Let's begin at Michael's birth. I am adding in his birth certificate or what accounted for a birth certificate in 1823. This is from the local Parish of Store Ajstrup in the District of Slet, County of Aalborg Denmark. http://www.dis-danmark.dk/kort/kortaalb.htm
Look at this link to see the places where Michael was born and lived. Most Danish people were Lutheran so most children were baptised Lutherans in those days and their names birth and christening dates were added in the church book.

 Here is how Michael's birth record looks in the church book. Please look at this and let me know if you learn anything new if you can read it?

Michael Christensen's Birth Record

  

     This is what the page looks like on the Microfilm in the LDS Church Archives. If you want to look it up yourself here is the film number. (fhl #0043366) This is on Microfilm and would take a while to search through. If you look this up make sure you go to the Store Ajstrup Parish and then find 1823. Once there go to Number 44 and you will find the same record I have.

  So this shows that Micheal parents are Christen Andersen and Ane Kirstine Bertelsdatter. Notice how Christen spells his name. If you ever had any doubt about the correct spelling of Christensen this should clear it up. As Einer Christensen is a descendant of this man and he spelled his first name Christen. Using the Danish style of patronymics we add the SEN to the end of the name and we have Christensen. This is the name that once all of Micheal's children came to the States they called themselves Christensen's. By the way this is an interesting side note that Mitchael's children born in Denmark had the last name of Michaelsen. However, I am getting ahead of myself.

  The next time we see Michael with his family it is with his mother and her children in Giottrup Bye, Farso Aalborg, Denmark. It is possible that Christen is working at the home of a Parish Priest in Buderup Parish. This census record shows all of their children except for Anders and Grace. As I have pointed out Grace died sometime after she was born. Anders was probably 17 or 18 and was probably working on a near by farm which all Danish children did especially if their parents could not afford all of their children.

aalborg, Gislum, Farsø, Giøttrup Bye, , En stue, 15, FT 1834

Following fields are shown:

Name, Age, Marital status, Position in household, Occupation , Birth place

Anne Bertelsdatter, 40, gift, , Indsider og nærer sig af mandens og egen fortjeneste,
Bertel Christensen, 15, ugift, , Deres søn,
Michal Christensen, 11, ugift, , Deres søn,
Anne Kierstine Christensdatter, 13, ugift, , Deres datter,

  As you can see by this Census Michael's name is spelled differently here. He is 11 years old and living with his mother in what I believe is her home town. She may have been living close to her brother Christen.

Michael shows up on the 1840 census in which he is living with another family. His parents do not live far from him but I will not add this to this blog as this is a blog about Michael.

aalborg, Gislum, Farsø, Fredberg, , Gård, 92, FT 1840

Following fields are shown:

Name, Age, Marital status, Position in household, Occupation , Birth place

Andreas Christensen, 63, gift, , Gårdmand etc.,
Maren Jacobsdatter, 56, gift, , Hans kone,
Marie Andreasdatter, 19, ugift, , Deres datter,
Metthe Catrine Andreasdatter, 18, ugift, , Deres datter,
Ellen Catrine Andreasdatter, 14, ugift, , Deres datter,
Mikkel Christensen, 16, ugift, , Tjenestedreng,

  Once again the name of Mikkel is used which is a Danish spelling for Michael. He is also living in Fredberg which I think is the closes thing to Michael's hometown even though his parents were what we would call today migrant workers.

Michael is working as a Servant. That is what Tjenestedreng means in Danish. Many teenagers went to work for neighbors or people with special skills so you can learn a new trade. However, Michael probably learned how to herd cattle like his father which is what he did when he moved to Utah.

aalborg, Aars, Hyllebjerg, Boltrup, , et Huus, 27, FT-1845

Following fields are shown:

Name, Age, Marital status, Position in household, Occupation , Birth place

Thomas Pedersen, 40, Ugift, , Gaardmand, her i Sognet
Niels Pedersen, 36, Ugift, , Tjenestefolk, her i Sognet
Søren Chr. Christensen, 27, Ugift, , Tjenestefolk, her i Sognet
Michel Christensen, 22, Ugift, , Tjenestefolk, Store Astrup Aalborg Amt
Anne Kirstine Johansdatter, 31, Ugift, , Tjenestefolk, Jelstrup Haubroe Sogn Aalborg Amt
Johane Christoffersdatter, 21, Ugift, , Tjenestefolk, her i Sognet
Christen Nielsen, 59, Ugift, , Almisselem, her i Sognet

  (Michael) Notice the variation of the name is now working as a servant for Thomas Pedersen. This 1845 census list where people were born and this is how we find out that Michael was born in Store Ajstrup in Aalborg county.This is also a very important census as it shows Michael in the same home as his future wife Johane Christoffersdatter who is also working there as a servant. This is her home Parish as this says her i Sognet means her Parish Hyllebjerg. Michael and Johane are married in Vindblase Parish in Aalborg you can find it on the map above. It was unusual for a couple to be married in a different Parish than where the bride was from.

Marriage : May 18, 1850  Vindblaes, Aalborg, Denmark  FHL Archives #0043582.

The children from this marriage are the following:

1.      Ane Marie November 4, 1850                 Hyllebjerg

2.      Christiane March 2, 1853                        Nyrup Gislum

3.      Christine  April 12, 1855                         Nyrup Gislum

4.      Ane Kirstine June 16, 1858,                    Nyrup Gislum

5.      Jensine Catherine January 26, 1859,       Nyrup Gislum

6.      Jensine August 14, 1859                 Nyrup, Gislum, Died August 16, 1859

7.      August Christensen December 3, 1861,  Stenild  Died (Same Day)

8.      Sarah December 3, 1861,                         Stenild  Died (Same Day)

9.    Mettie  October 7, 1863                          Spanish Fork

10.  Michael Hyrum November 10, 1866       Spanish Fork

In 1858 Michael and his wife joined The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and in May or June of 1863 left for America and eventually Utah. They went by sea and then by a Covered Wagon and Oxen to the Salt Lake Valley. They later settled in Spanish Fork where they started a farm. Two of Michael's Children were born in Spanish Fork, Utah but the rest were all born in Denmark.
   According to Michael's daughter Christina Christensen the Family sailed on the SS Kimball and came across the plains with the Peter Nebeker Party. She is my only source that Michael and his family traveled to America this way as I have no other source for this family coming to America. This subject could make a good blog sometime.

Johane Died on July 29, 1870 in Spanish Fork. Hyrum as he was known growing up was only four years old when his mother died. Michael married Ann Marie Olsen shortly after Johane died. Ann died on July 24, 1877.

  In the Fall of 1881 Michael met a 25 year old Icelandic woman who had just arrived from Iceland. He and Kristin Einarsdottir were married on November 11, 1881 in the Endowment House in Salt Lake City, Utah. Michael and Kristin had the following children:

  Einer Christensen October 5, 1882
  Hannah Christensen October 8, 1885
  Mickle Ephriam Christensen January 8, 1888
  Grace Christensen June 4, 1890  Died same day
  Christina Christensen October 19, 1891

   
  Kristin never recovered from Christina's birth and died on October 26, 1891. Michael passed away at the age of 70 on September 23, 1893 in Spanish Fork, Utah. Einer was the oldest at 11 years old at this time and all of the children were farmed out to other people.

   Michael had many adventure's in his life and I will add these stories in later blogs. I think you will especially enjoy the story about his near death experience with a group of Indians who were on the war path at the time during the Utah war.