Ship: James Nesmith
Date of Departure: 7 Jan 1855 Port of Departure: Liverpool, England
LDS Immigrants: 441 Church Leader: Peter O. Hansen
Date of Arrival: 23 Feb 1855 Port of Arrival: New Orleans, Louisiana
Source(s): ¹BMR, Book #1040, pp. 190-207 (FHL #025,690); Customs #55 (FHL #200,181); ²SMR, 1855 (FHL #025,696)
As listed by the Captain, Harvey Mills in New Orleans:
343 Ingeborg C. Sandersen 42 f Norway
344 Caroline Sandersen 17 f Norway
345 Berthe J. Sandersen 68 f Norway
As listed grouped in families:
343 Ingeborg Kirstine Rasmussen with Caroline Rasmussen and Berthe Jacobsdatter Sandersen, all from Norway ¹BMR Norway ²SMR
A Compilation of General Voyage Notes
Notes: "EIGHTIETH COMPANY. -- James Nesmith, 440 souls. On the twenty-third, twenty-fourth, and twenty-seventh of November, 1854, about five hundred Scandinavian Saints sailed from Copenhagen, Denmark, on board the steamships Slesvig, Cimbria and Geiser, under direction of Elders Peter O. Hansen and Eric G. M. Hogan. The two smaller companies, which embarked in the Slesvig and Geiser, traveled by way of Kiel, Hamburg and Hull to Liverpool, England, where, after successful trips, they arrived on the twenty-seventh of November, and the seventh of December, respectively. The larger company, of nearly three hundred souls, under the presidency of Peter O. Hansen, left Copenhagen, in the Cimbria, on the twenty-fourth of November, all the emigrants being in good health and excellent spirits. They had an exceedingly rough passage over the German Ocean. At ten o'clock on the morning of the twenty-fifth, the Cimbria arrived at Frederickshavn, on the east coast of Jutland (Jylland), where one hundred and forty-nine more emigrants from the Aalborg and Vendsyssel conferences came on board. With these additional passengers the voyage was continued on the morning of the twenty-sixth. The prospects were fair till about two o'clock in the morning of the twenty-seventh, when the wind turned southwest, and began to blow so heavily that the captain, who appeared to be an experienced sailor and very cautious, deemed it necessary to turn back and seek the nearest harbor in Norway. Consequently the course was changed, and about four o'clock in the afternoon, the Cimbria put into the port of Mandal, which is an excellent natural harbor, surrounded by very high and steep granite cliffs. This romantic place and its surroundings were as much of a curiosity to the Danish emigrants as a ship load of 'Mormons' were to the people of Mandal. In this harbor the emigrants tarried for several days, while the wind outside spent its fury on the troubled sea. Some of the Saints went ashore to lodge; they found the inhabitants of Mandal very hospitable, and by request some of the brethren preached several times to the people on shore. The result of this was that some of the inhabitants subsequently embraced the gospel. On the morning of December 7th, when the weather seemed to be more favorable, the Cimbria again put to sea, and steamed off towards England once more; but the captain and all on board soon learned that the change in the weather was only a lull preceding a more violent outburst of a long winter storm. Toward midnight of the seventh, the wind changed to a most terrific storm, which increased in violence till it shattered the ship's bullwarks, and broke a number of boxes. About two o'clock on the morning of the eighth, the captain decided to turn back to Mandal, but as the wind, waves, and strong current rendered it very dangerous to turn the vessel in the direction of Norway, it was deemed necessary to go clear back to Frederikshavn, where the ship arrived on the ninth, about four p.m. By this time the emigrants were suffering severely, but with the exception of two or three individuals who decided to remain behind, the Saints bore their hardships with great fortitude and patience. While laying weather bound in Frederickshavn, most of the emigrants went on shore to refresh and rest themselves after their rough experience; and while waiting for the weather and wind to change in their favor a number of meetings were held which made a good impression upon the people of that seaport town, who hitherto had been unwilling to listen to the preaching of 'Mormonism.' On the twentieth of December the weather moderated, and the captain made a third attempt to reach England. By this time the emigrants were rested and in good spirits, but in the night, between the twenty-first and twenty-second, a storm worse than any of the preceding ones arose, threatening the ship and all on board with utter destruction. For many hours the noble Cimbria fought her way against the raging elements, but was at length compelled to change her course, and for the third time the company was turned back. The captain and crew now began to feel discouraged, but most of the Saints continued cheerful and thanked the Lord for their preservation. About two o'clock in the afternoon of the twenty-second, the wind suddenly changed to the north, and the captain immediately steered for Hull again, amid the rejoicings of the Saints, and on the twenty-fourth, about noon, the ship anchored safely in the Humber. On the following day the emigrants continued the journey by rail from Hull to Liverpool, where they joined the two smaller companies which had left Copenhagen about the same time as the Cimbria, and had waited for the arrival of the latter several weeks. The presidency in Liverpool, as previously stated, chartered the ship Helios to take the Scandinavian emigration to New Orleans, but the company being detained so long on account of the storms, the Helios had been filled with other passengers, and the James Nesmith, Captain Mills, was secured for the transportation of the Scandinavians. Consequently, on January 7th, 1855, four hundred and forty (or four hundred and forty-one Saints), all from Scandinavia, except one, sailed from Liverpool, England, on board the last named ship, bound for New Orleans. On the eighteenth of February the ship arrived at the mouth of the Mississippi River, after a prosperous voyage, during which, however, thirteen deaths occurred. At New Orleans, where the company landed on the twenty-third, most of the emigrants went on board the large steamboat, Oceanan, and sailed from New Orleans on the twenty-fourth. On the journey up the Mississippi River, seven of the Saints died, and on the seventh of March the company arrived at St. Louis. From that city, about one hundred and fifty of the Scandinavian Saints continued the journey on the tenth of March for Weston, Missouri, with the intention of remaining somewhere in that section of the country, until they could obtain means to go through to the Valley; and one hundred and seventy-five, under the leadership of P. O. Hansen, left St. Louis on the twelfth, by the steamboat Clara, for Atchison, Kansas, but owing to low water in the river, they were compelled to land in Leavenworth, where they tarried until the company led by Elder Hogan arrived. During the stay in Leavenworth, about twenty of the emigrants died, and after selecting a new camping place, cholera broke out in the company and caused nine more deaths. In the latter part of May the emigrants removed to Mormon Grove, situated about five miles west of Atchison, which place had been selected as the outfitting point for the emigrants who crossed the plains in 1855. They arrived at this point May 22nd. Millennial Star, Vol. XVII, pp. 72, 221, 270, 290: Desert News of July 18th, 1855; and Morgenstjernen, Vol. II, page 270.
"Sun. 7. [Jan. 1855] -- The ship James Nesmith sailed from Liverpool, with 440 Scandinavian and 1 British Saints, under the direction of Peter O. Hansen. It arrived at New Orleans, Feb. 23rd, and the company continued up the rivers to Fort Leavenworth; afterwards to Mormon Grove."
" . . . On Friday , Nov. 24, 1854 about 300 Scandinavian Saints sailed from Copenhagen, Denmark on board the 'Cimbria' bound for Utah, under the direction of Elder Peter O. Hansen. All the emigrants were in good health and excellent spirits, but had an exceedingly rough passage over the North Sea. At 10 o'clock on the morning of the 25th, the 'Cimbria' arrived at Frederikshavn, on the east coast of Jutland, where 149 other emigrants from the Aalborg and Vendsyssel Conferences came on board. With these additional passengers the voyage was continued on the morning of the 26th. The prospects were fair until about 2 o'clock in the morning of the 27th, when the wind turned southwest, and began to blow so heavily that the captain, an experienced sailor, deemed it necessary to turn back and seek the nearest harbor in Norway. Consequently, the course was changed, and about 4 o'clock in the afternoon the 'Cimbria' put into the port of Mandal, which is an excellent natural harbor, surrounded by very high and steep granite cliffs. This romantic place and its surroundings were as much of a curiosity to the Danish emigrants as a shipload of 'Mormons' were to the people of Mandal. In this harbor the emigrants tarried for several days, while the winds outside spent their fury on the troubled sea. Some of the Saints went ashore to lodge; they found the inhabitants of Mandal very hospitable, and, by request, some of the brethren preached several times to the people on shore. The result of this was that some of the inhabitants became interested in the gospel. On the morning of Dec. 7th, when the weather seemed to be more favorable, the 'Cimbria' again put to sea, and steamed off towards England once more; but the captain and all on board soon learned that the change in the weather was only a lull preceding a more violent outburst of a long winter storm. Towards midnight of the 7th, the wind became a terrific gale, which increased in violence till it shattered the ship's bulwarks and broke a number of boxes. About 2 o'clock in the morning of Dec. 8th, the captain decided to turn back to Mandal, but as the wind, waves and strong current rendered it very dangerous to turn the vessel in the direction of Norway, it was deemed necessary to go clear back to Frederikshavn, where the ship arrived on the 9th about 4 p.m. By this time the emigrants were suffering severely, but with the exception of two or three individuals, who decided to remain behind, the Saints bore their hardships with great fortitude and patience. While laying weatherbound in Frederikshavn, most of the emigrants went on shore to refresh and rest themselves after their rough experience at sea, and while waiting for the weather and wind to change in their favor, a number of meetings were held which made a good impression upon the people of that seaport town, who hitherto had been unwilling to listen to the preaching of 'Mormonism.' On the 20th of December the weather moderated, and the captain made a third attempt to reach England. By this time the emigrants were rested and in good spirits, but in the night between the 21st and 22nd, a worse storm than any of the preceding ones arose, threatening the ship and all on board with utter destruction. For many hours the noble 'Cimbria' fought her way against the raging elements, but was at length compelled to change her course, and for the third time the company was turned back. But while the captain and crew began to feel discouraged, most of the Saints continued cheerful and thanked the Lord for their preservation. About 2 o'clock in the afternoon of the 22nd, the wind suddenly changed to the north and the captain immediately steered for Hull once more, amid the rejoicings of the Saints, and on the 24th, about noon, the ship anchored safely in the Humber. On the following day (Dec. 25th) the emigrants continued their journey by rail from Hull to Liverpool, where they joined two smaller companies which had left Copenhagen about the same time as the 'Cimbria,' and had waited for the arrival of the latter for several weeks. The Presidency in Liverpool chartered the ship 'Helios' to take the Scandinavian emigration to New Orleans, but the company being detained so long on account of the storms, the 'Helios' had been filled with other passengers, and the 'James Nesmith,' Captain Mills, was secured for the transportation of the Scandinavians. Consequently, 440 (or 441) emigrating Saints, all from Scandinavia except one, sailed from Liverpool, England, Jan. 7, 1855, bound for New Orleans. . . ."
