It is so exciting to tell you about today's transcription project. I had searched for many years to find roots for my paternal grandfather William Johnson, a Dane. I knew very little about his early history and I knew nothing about him prior to his arrival in the U.S.A. Where was he born? Who were his people?... I had no idea.
I had my DNA tested and after some months of my family tree and test results being posted, I received an email from a family researcher from Denmark. We couldn't make a connection with each other with our current trees, and now think our common person will be found when I eventually get my family tree to reach back to the early 1800s; I am not quite there...YET!
Importantly, my new acquaintance suggested that I check out the family tree "Familierne omkring Sørninge Slægten" by Poul Henriksen at link http://www.poul-herdis.dk/poulhenriksen/4364.htm. My new friend suggested too that I check through the church records from the parish in Udby, Denmark, looking in particular for records I might be able to find for a William Jorgensen. I have a death certificate that claimed William Johnson's father was called Christian Jorgensen.
At first I was unable to find any of the church records, but did find a family that had a son named Christian Wilhelm Jørgensen on Henriksen's tree. I still could not be sure that this person was the same as my William Johnson. I eventually put the question aside for a while.
Every once in awhile I would go back to this family tree and would try to find records on anyone within this family. The parents were Hans Jørgensen and Lovise Wilhelmine nee' Petersen. I learned too that this family had several children, the youngest being a Søren Frederik Jørgensen. Poul Henriksen's online family tree has been so helpful in providing a Jorgensen family list, I appreciate his work.
Then the lucky day came when I found a ship passenger list that contained a widow by the name of Louise V. Jørgensen, traveling with her 16 year old son, Søren F. Jørgensen. Yippee! I did the "genealogy" happy dance, made my husband take me out for a celebratory dinner and remained on "cloud nine" for a number of days. I had found a key document that confirmed great-Grandpa William's roots. Here is more about that document.
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| IMAGE: S.S. Oscar II, passenger steam ship, a vessel in the Scandinavian America Line, built in 1901 at the shipyard in Glasgow, Scotland by Alexander Stephen and Sons on the River Clyde. From the Passenger Ships and Images photograph collection at Ancestry.com. [1] |
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| IMAGE: Passenger List from the 8 October 1902 sailing of the Oscar II, mastered by W. Skjödt. Highlighting Lines 6 & 7. From New York, Passenger Lists database at Ancestry.com. [2] |
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| IMAGES: Snippets showing close-up of entry for #6 Louise and #7 Soren Jorgensen |
-------- transcription begins --------
LIST OR MANIFEST OF ALIEN IMMIGRANTS FOR THE COMMISSIONER OF IMMIGRATION
[page] 145
List No. 1
Required by the regulations of the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States, under Act of Congress approved March 3, 1893, to be delivered to the Commissioner of Immigration by the Commanding officer of any vessel having such passengers on board upon arrival at a port on the Unites States.
S.S. Oscar II sailing from Copenhagen, 8 October 1902. Arriving at Port of NY Oct. 21, 19__.
1 No. on List.
6.
7.
2 NAME IN FULL
Jorgensen, Lovise V.
Jorgensen, Søren F.
3 Age | Yrs./Mos.
60/4
16/10
4 Sex.
f [female]
m [male]
5 Married or Single.
widow
sing [single]
6 Calling or Occupation.
widow
farmer
7 Able to Read./Write.
yes/yes
yes/yes
8 Nationality.
Danish
Danish
9 Last Residence.
Denmark
Denmark
10 Seaport for landing in the United States.
N.Y.
N.Y.
11 Final Destination in the United States (State, City, or Town).
Flandreau, S.Dak
Flandreau, S.Dak.
12 Whether having ticket to such destination.
yes
yes
13 By whom was passage paid.
herself
himself
14 Whether in possession of money, if so whether more than $ 30 and how much if $ 30 or less
yes
yes
15 Whether ever before in the United States, and if so, when and where.
no
no
16 Whether going to join a relative, and if so, what relative, their name and address.
to Son, Wm Johnson, Box 23, Flandreau, S.Dak.
to brother, Wm Johnson, Box 23, Flandreau, S.Dak.
17 Ever in Prison or Almshouse or supported by charity. If yes, state which.
no
no
18 Whether a Polygamist.
no
no
19 Whether under Contract, express or Implied, to Labor in the United States.
no
no
20 Condition of Health, Mental and Physical.
good
good
21 Deformed or Crippled, Nature and Cause.
no
no
-------- transcription ends --------
So there it is, under Column No. 16, ... joining a relative... she was planning to join her son, William Johnson, whose address is Box 23, Flandreau, South Dakota. This location is also significant evidence of the mother-son relationship because the 1900 U.S. Federal Census enumerates William Johnson and his family living in Flandreau, SD. Yippee! And Søren Jorgensen is joining his brother with the same name and location. I have found concrete documentation that puts my great-grandfather William Johnson together with his family and I now know that he was born in Udby, Tuse, Holbæk, Denmark.
This is a case where the document wanted to be found and what a lucky find for me. Yippee!
Sources:
1.) "Passenger Ships and Images Collection," Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com ": accessed 27 November 2016) O; Oscar II, 1901-1934, image 3 of 4.
2.) "New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957, " Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : 9
May 2015), Citing "Passenger and Crews Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, 1897-1957", NARA, Microfilm Publication T715, Roll 0304, Line 6 & 7, Page Number 145.
From here I have been able to identify more of the family members. Louise and Søren may have spent some time in Flandreau near William, but they didn't stay long. Next records find both in Fresno, California where many more of her children had immigrated to. Those are stories for another day.
Amanuensis Monday is a weekly blog theme that was started by John Newmark, the author of TransylvanianDutch blog. John defines Amanuensis as "A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another." I also appreciate the good work and format examples of San Diego genealogist Randy Seaver of the blog Genea-musings. Thanks guys.
Transcribing helps me to learn what a document contains. I have learned over time that I have a tendency to "skim" over an item; a bad trait for a researcher who needs to learn even the smallest details documented records contain. Transcribing helps me to slow down and "smell the roses," and to capture all aspects of the paper in hand.
Wishing you a good day and a great week. It's a pleasure to have you stop by.
Please comment regarding this post on the website by clicking the URL above and then use the "Comments" link at the bottom of each post. Or contact me by email at dsteff4246[at]gmail[dot]com. Thank you. I am glad you stopped by today.
Copyright (c) 2016, Darlene M. Steffens
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