[Skive Conf. Spring 1859, Emig.S.M.- film 025696]

Excerpt from Voyage Description from "History of the Scandinavian Mission" p. 139-142:

"On Friday, April 1, 1859, a company of Scandinavian Saints, consisting of 355 souls, namely 224 Danes, 113 Swedes and 18 Norwegians, sailed from Copenhagen, Denmark, on the steamer "L.N. Hvidt," in charge of Elders Carl Widerborg and Niels Wilhelmensen.  After a rather stormy voyage over the North Sea the company reached Grimsby, England on the 6th.  From Grimsby the emigrants continued the journey by rail the same day to Liverpool, where they, on the 7th, went board the ship "William Tapscott" Captain Bell, and were joined by British and Swiss emigrants.  Elder Robert F. Neslen was appointed president of the company, with Henry H.l Harris and George Rowly as counselors.  Undert them Elder Soren P. Guhl, Johan E. Klingbeck, Peter A. Fjeldsted, Anders Petersen, Lars Petersen and Morten Petersen presided over the Scandinavians.  Brothers Christian Jeppesen and Niels Jacobsen acted as interpreters and Hans O. Maglemy and Anton Petersen as cooks.  On Monday, April 11, 1859 the ship lifted anchor and was tugged out of the Mersey in the open sea with its precious cargo of 726 souls.  Songs of joy resounded from all parts of the ship as it was pulled out to sea, but these were subsequently succeeded by a chorus of those who, during the first days of the voyage, yielded to the ususal attack of sea sickness, in which most of the passengers participated to a greater or less extent.  After going through the process of government inspection, clearing, etc., Pres. Neslen, in connection with his counselors, proceeded to organize the company into ten wards, namely, five English and five Scandinavian, appointing a president over each to see to the faithful observance of cleanliness, good order, etc.  The Scandinavian Saints occupied one side of the vessel and the British and Swiss the other.  The company was blessed with a most pleasant and agreeable voyage, which lasted only 31 days.  The health of the passengers was exceptionally good, which was demon strafed by the fact that only one death occurred on board, and that was an old Swedish sister by the name of Inger Olson Hagg, 61 years old, who had been afflicte upwards of four years previous to her embarkation.  This single loss by death was counter balanced by two births.  In the matrimonial department the company did exceeding well, as no less than nineteen marriages were solomnized on board; of these five couples were English, one Swiss and thirteen Scandinavian.  Every day during the voyage the people were called together for prayers morning and evening aat 8 o'clock.  On Sundays, three meetings were usally held on deck, and fellowship meetings in each ward two nights a week.  The monotony of the voyage was also relieved with singing, instrumental music, dancing games, etc., in which, as a matter of course, the young people took a prominent part, while the more sedate enjoyed themselves in witnessing and hearing the happifying recreations.  Elder Neslen writes that he felt it quite a task, when he was appointed to take charge of the company composed of people from so many countries, speaking nine different languages, and having different manners, customs, and peculiar ties, and thrown together under such close circumstances; but through the faithfulness and diligence of the Saints, which was universally manifested, he soon found the loss far easier than he had anticipated, and upon the arrival of the company in New York, it was pronounced by doctors and government officers to be the best disciplined and most agreeable company that ever arrived at that port.  Arriving safely in New York harbor, the emigrants were landed in Castle Garden on Saturday, May 14th.

On the same day, in the evening, most of them continued the journey by steamboat up the Hudson River to Albany; whence they traveled by rail via Niagara, Windsor in Canada, Detroit in Michigan, and Quincy, Ill,. St Joseph, Missouri, where they arrived on the 21st.  In the afternoon of that day they boarded the steamboat "St. Mary," which brought them up the Missouri River to Florence, Nebraska, where they arrived on the 25th in the morning."

Christen and Else Jensen are recorded as Christin Janson and Elsa Janson on the ship William Tapscott that departed Liverpool on 11 April 1859.  Here is a photo of the ship.