Left Copenhagen, May 4, 1865, left Gluckstadt, Germany, May 10, on sailing ship B. S. Kimball. Captain Dearborn, A. [Anders] W. Winberg and John Swensson [Swenson] from Utah, and Hans Hagsted ( an emigrant) were set apart as our leaders. Our company consisted of 557 souls. Three adults and 25 children died and were buried at sea. About mid-ocean a fire started which caused a panic among passengers, but fortunately was soon put out.

Meeting a ship going east from America we were informed of the victory of the Union Army in the Civil War. We were all ordered on deck and gave many cheers for the red, white and blue. Captain Dearborn gave us many privileges in way of amusements, dancing and theater playing.

The best of all, he gave us leave to put on our own cook, and the best we could find to eat was prepared for the sick and divided out by the presiding elder.

The ship was divided into 8 wards, four on each side. The drinking water got so bad we had to mix vinegar with it so it could be used. Many people got sick on that account so the captain told the caretaker of each ward to go to the steerman and get some whiskey and divide among the sick people. In my ward, when I told them what had happened, they all got sick so they could get whiskey. I gave it freely because I could go and get it replenished any time. What I called the most trouble on the ocean was the fact we had no air pipes, all the air had to come through the stairways. The stink coming from below was very hard to withstand and there was vermin so we could not rest.

June 14th arrived in New York, June 15th got into Castle Garden

June 19th arrived at Quincy, Ill, crossed the Mississippi River to Missouri side, stayed two days without tents or shelter and in heavy rainstorm. Arrived at St. Joseph on 23rd, left by steamboat up Missouri River, arrived at Wyoming, Nebraska on 26th. Brought with us 3 corpses that died on the steamer, four others died between New York and St. Joseph. We stayed at Wyoming 5 weeks, got cleaned up and ready to start for our journey crossing the plains.

Prices for wagons were $200.00 in greenbacks and about $100.00 in gold. Each pair of oxen cost $150.00 and 80 % had never had a yoke on them, which was the cause of our slow travel.

Here, on June 29th we buried Lars Petersen. He was 30 years old, he had sold his property in Denmark for $1800, about $1000 in our money. On July 31st we started to cross the plains with 45 wagons and teams in charge of Captain Minor G. Atwood and C. B. Taylor, his assistant. John Stevenson in charge of commissary, John Ginrup, secretary. On September 19th the company arrived at Fort Laramie. Here we called a meeting, where it was given out in three languages from the U. S. officers of the fort that the Indians were on the warpath, and not for us to go farther, and offered us free passage to any part of the U. S. we wished to go. After we were all made familiar with the offer it was called to a vote by A.[Anders] W. Winberg. We all voted to refuse the offer and took a chance to go to Zion [p. 1].

September 22nd about three days going from Laramie at a place named Cottonwood Hollow, we had camped for noon driving the loose stock and our teams up a ravine to a watering place about 3/4 mile or more from camp. The Indians came up on us from their hiding places. Seven of our company was badly wounded. John Stevensen came to camp with two arrows in his left arm. Peter Doctor with an arrow in his cheek and one clear through his neck. A Swedish brother had one arrow in the small of his back. He never was able to walk on the rest of the journey. All we could do to relieve the wounded was let them sit down on the wagon hub, with their backs resting against the spokes.

Our instruments of relief consisting of common blacksmith pinchers or nippers, with these we extracted all the arrows except the one from Peter Doctor's neck. We hunted the camp over and found a pair with extra long handles. We laid the Doctor on the ground with his head resting on an ox yoke, two men sat on him while Albert Davis gave a strong pull and managed to get the arrow from his neck.

Brother Peter Holmgreen (later of Bear River City) was shot by a bullet, he fell, then arose, staggered three or four steps and fell again. We took him for dead but he recovered. Anderson was shot in the face. It took a little of his cheek and nose. Holmgreen was still lying as if dead until we had cared for the other wounded. At this time Mrs. Holmgreen was lying in their wagon with her newborn son, John, in her arms. Brother Frederick Grundtrig came to camp with an arrow fastened in his hip. His wife was taken by the Indians and we never heard of her again.

At Sweetwater a relief train consisting of 44 mule teams met us with provisions, and relieved us of our sick and invalids, so we went on shoveling snow so we could put up our tents.

We reached Green River at noon and decided to cross that day, it took until after dark. One wagon with a man, wife and children was left on a sand bank in the middle of the river all night. The king bolt of the wagon had broken. Captain asked me to go and bring them in at daylight. They were all well only had a restless night. We had to swim our teams and many a teamster had to hold on to oxen or wagons to keep from being drowned.

On Nov. 8 we landed in Salt Lake City, Utah on 8th Ward Square where the City and County Building now stands. Brigham Young, W. W. Riter met us and shook hands. . . . [p. 2]

BIB: Nielson, Peter A. [Autobiographical Sketch] of Peter Anton Nielsen,
Daughters of Utah Pioneers Museum Library, Salt Lake City), pp. 1-2.
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