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Show Volume VIII Issue VII THE OGDEN VALLEY NEWS Page 9 July 15, 2003 Pioneer Life in Ogden Valley Note: Information for this article was taken from the book “Wangsgaard /Wangsard, Roots and Branches 1866-1989, and is being used by permission of Stanley Wangsgaard of Huntsville. For the most part, people in this day and age cannot imagine in their wildest dreams the conditions endured by our pioneer ancestors, because on TV and in the movies we see wagon trains with healthy horses pulling brand new well built wagons with perfect rounded hoops supporting clean canvas covers. Women in lovely dresses as though they were on a picnic with handsome well dressed men frequently making love. It appears that each man has a horse at his disposal. We never see the basic preparation of a meal or the necessity of finding wood and starting a fire—only a lovely lady with a pretty little frilly apron to protect her beautiful bright colored dress, stirring a carefully hung pot over a small fire—nothing to it—pioneering must have been a blast! To the young and hearty, life on the plains was quite natural and pleasant [at times], but the older members of the company and those who had large families, as our pioneers, the trek across the plains was an episode that left a memory of suffering beyond compare. Camping was a busy time. The tents were pitched beside the wagon, fuel and water were gathered. Wood was usually scarce and cooking meals in the open air was found to be an arduous experience and their energies were taxed to the utmost. Often they cooked their meals with the rain pouring down, drenching them and putting out the fires. Other times, the wind blew so hard that their tents fell and the food being prepared became spiced with sand. Frequently they had to walk long distances to get water and in some instances had to made dry camp (no water around). Their food rations during the first part of the journey were plentiful, but when they reached the mountain country, where they encountered snow, heavy winds and severe cold, their appetites increased and yet their daily rations cut until they suffered considerably. The Deseret News carried the following item on Saturday, September 29, 1866: “Captain Peter Nebeker’s train of 62 wagons and nearly 400 passengers got in this afternoon at 5 o’clock. They made the trip in 53 days, and lost only two head of cattle. The passengers by this train were nearly all Scandinavians.” Listed among the passengers were: “Christian, Christina, Peter C., Carn J., Dosta C., Chistian C., Jens C., Peter S.C., Kisten C., and Dosena Bonsgaard.” The Deseret News report of the weather for Great Salt Lake City in September 1866 showed: “Highest 82 degrees, Lowest 40 degrees, Mean 63 degrees. “Sept 22nd the A.M. was clear; P.M. was hazy; rained at night. “Sept 23rd, it was snowing on the mountains all day. “Sept 24th to 30th, the weather was clear.” These pioneers must have shouted for joy with the realization of their fondest hopes, for which they had dreamed and prayed. Finally, the land of Zion, the beautiful city of the Great Salt Lake, lay before them, and it appeared grand and beautiful, nestled in the blaze of the afternoon sun. The Christensen (Wangsgaard) family did not remain in Great Salt Lake City, but moved on north another fifty miles, to a little valley east of Ogden, called Huntsville, which was the home of Brother Peter C. Geertsen, the missionary who had helped in their conversion to the LDS Church. Brother Geertsen had been born in Gjettrup parish. The same parish where Christen’s grandfather, Jens Nicholaj Skibsted owned a large farm called Gjettrup Gaard. Brother Geertsen had been baptized in the Church in 1854, and remained in Denmark doing missionary work until 1864 when he emigrated to Huntsville, Utah Territory. Ogden, the central point and county seat of Weber County, wasn’t much of a metropolis in 1866. It had a very small number of shingle covered buildings, three of which were the Tabernacle, the home of James Brown, and the home of Walter Thompson. All other homes were log and adobe, with thatched and dirt roofs. The area that later became the railroad yards was the Indian campgrounds then, and the Indians remained friends as long as they were fed. It had been nearly six months since their journey to the “Promised Land” was begun, and they were filled with eager anticipation, as they were at last swallowed up in the valleys of the mountains, among the Saints, where they would make their home. In “Zion” it was different from their native Denmark. There was a feeling of animation among the people arriving daily from the four corners of the earth—coming to help build the “Kingdom of God.” Huntsville, and infant settlement of less than six years, was growing, and there was activity everywhere. Log homes were being built and people were swapping work and sharing their trades, such as blacksmith, tinner, carpenter, mason, etc. What a wonderful spirit must have prevailed. Christen expected that there would be timber available to build a house, but things weren’t that convenient. The timber was high in the mountains and they had no means of transportation to go after it. Winter was already upon them, it being early October, and since no houses were available to new-comers, they had no other choice than to move into a one room dugout. It is not known if they were squatters or if they purchased the property located three blocks west of the Town Square [in Huntsville] at 200 South and 7100 East. The dugout was set back from the street on the northwest corner. The hole may have been about 10 feet by 15 feet or less. “Beneath Ben Lomond’s Peak” provides information as to how a dugout may have been constructed: “Two logs were placed on each side, then logs and willows were laid across, covered with straw and then with dirt. There had to be a fireplace, because stoves were not readily available, and the stovepipe chimney stuck up through the dirt, just above the surface. Poles were driven into the earth walls, and willows laid across for the parent’s bed. 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Just Listed! the spring, the water form the melting snow ran into the dugout or leaked through the dirt roof, and they had to dip it out with pans.” How degrading to live under such deplorable conditions, particularly after the missionaries had pictured Zion as a land flowing with milk and honey. But they faced up to the task before them, and made the best of it. This was the first home for Christen, Kirstine, and six of their children, Dorthe, Christen, Jens, Skaarup, Kirsten, and Dusine. Peter and wife Karen made their home elsewhere in a dugout. One year after their arrival, another son was added to the family circle, 23 Oct 1867, completing their family of fourteen children. He was given the name of Christian Christensen, according to Kirstine’s handwriting on the family genealogical record. It is said that he was so small that they could put him in a cup. They obtained their own sheep, from which they sheared the wool, and dyed it with the juice from berries they picked in the hills. The wool was spun into yarn and then woven into cloth for clothing, bedding, and other needed items. Each day it was required that a certain amount of spinning be accomplished and everyone had to take their turn at the task, even the small ones. The stocking knitted from the yarn and dyed in this fashion would leave them with purple or blue feet when they got wet. Instead of coats, they made three-cornered shawls that were put around the shoulders, crossed in front, under the arms and tied in back. They dried fruit to eat during the winter. When a sheep was killed, the meat was cut into strips that were dried in the sun, and rubbed with salt periodically to preserve it, and was called “Jerky.” The Historical Photo This picture, taken in 1866 at Beaver Dam near Echo Canyon, shows the cumbersome oxen, the shabby covered wagons, and the rutted trail pioneers had to follow Photo courtesy of from the book "Wangsgaard/Wangsard, Roots and Branches 1866-1989, and is being used by permission of Stanley Wangsgaard of Huntsville. Mountain Green Beautiful Trapper’s Point home. 4 bedroom, 3.5 bath, main floor Master on .31 acre lot. Views from every room. Offered at $295,000! Mountain Green 3 bedroom, 3 bath, den, 2 family rooms Offered at $204,900! Main floor master. Views galore! $289,900! Lots / Acreage Beautiful 5.35 acre building lot east of Huntsville town. Panoramic views! Just $100,000! .32 acre Patio Springs building lot Wolf Lodge condo, Price Reduced! Only $109,900 1 BD, hardwood floors, slate tile,new paint, wood stove. 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When they were seen coming, the jerky and fruit that were out drying was gathered in so the Indians wouldn’t take it. The door was braced with a big pole to keep them from walking right into their home. They didn’t accumulate money from the sale of produce, but accumulated the produce: Wheat, barley, rye, oats, hay, apples, potatoes, eggs, milk, butter, cheese, etc. These items were exchanged for goods or services that were needed. Shoes from the shoemaker; pots, pans, knives and forks from the tinner; dishes from the potter; salt from the store, and their grain was ground into flour by the miller. They made their own starch out of potatoes. Yeast was always working and ready for the next batch of bread. They didn’t have the knowledge, nor the means to preserve fruits and berries, but most were eaten in their season, save those that were dried to be eaten later. 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