The Old Country

The patronymic surname Hansen is purely Scandanavian, meaning literally "son of Hans." As such, it would change with every generation, though after 1850 the custom of maintaining a permanent surname became more popular, reaching the mainstream by 1880.

For the Hansen family, it can be traced back to a Poül Andersen, born to an Anders [Unknown Last Name] in 1749. On 23 July 1784, he married Kirsten Hansdatter in Helligsø Revs Parish in the Thisted Province (this area was dissolved into Viborg in 1970), along the coast on north-eastern Denmark. Like most in the community, Poül was a farmer, likely cultivating barley, rye, and potatoes. He and Kirsten would have 5 children: Else Kirstine Poülsdatter (1785), Anders Poülsen (1789), Hans Poülsen (1796), and Peder Poülsen (1798), all in Helligsø. Poül would pass on 17 January 1829, buried on 29 January 1829 in Helligsø.

Hans, in turn, married Ane Jensdatter in 13 February 1821 in Hurrup, just to the northeast of Helligsø. Hans continued the farming tradition, and the two would have 10 children: Kjersten Hansdatter (26 April 1821), Peder Hansen (1822), Maren Hansdatter (1824), Ernst Hansen (1827), Kjersten Hansdatter (26 July 1831), Ane Marie Hansdatter (1832), Bodild Marie Hansdatter (28 August 1834), Poül Christian Hansen (1837), Laust Hansen (10 June 1838, baptised 12 June 1838, confirmed 3 April 1853), and Bodild Marie Hansdatter (1839), all on the family farm in Helligsø.

Both father and mother would pass relatively early in Laust's life. His mother Ane dying on 11 January 1859 and his father on 5 February 1864. Both would be buried at the Helligsø Church, which the family had gone to for generations.

1964 would hold more than just the loss of his remaining parent. Laust would travel and stay for a time in Vestervig, Denmark, meeting his future wife Maren Jensen. The two would have their first child out of wedlock, Karen "Carrie" Marie Hansen, on 3 November 1863, but they wouldn't marry for just over a year later on 9 December 1864 in Vestervig before settling in Horsfeldt (farm marked in red - This is the farmland west along Gamle Bedstedvej and Morup Møllevej [in Gammel Bedsted] today, marked here in red) to the north-east, in Bedsted Parish.

Also during 1864, Laust entered a deal of some kind with Salomon Thomsen of Ulniz[?]. Whatever the trade was of, it lapsed and Laust was taken to court for it on 25 February 1869, with the verdict being he owed Salomon back the full 50 rigsdaler and an annual interest rate of 5% from 1869 until fully paid. This would amount to several thousands of USD today. Laust would appeal in 1870, to which the verdict was overturned, and the debt wiped clean in full.

Laust and Maren would go on to have 7 more children: Anne Maren Hansen (12 September 1865), Hans Kristian Hansen (27 July 1867), an unnamed son (29 September 1869 - 21 November 1869), Jens Peder Hansen (13 September 1870), Martin Andreas Hansen (4 July 1872), Christopher Michael Hansen (11 November 1875), and Inger Marie Hansen (19 December 1878). The family seems to have been done well, even hosting hunts on their land (with permission).

Everything would drastically change in 1880 would be a hard year for the family. On 11 September 1880, a fire broke out, resulting in a fire insurance payout of 830 krone. It's hard to know the full extent of the fire, but considering that 830 krone is equivelant to 2 full years' income, it must have been quite large. Very soon after, on 29 November, Laust would pass away. Only four months later on 6 March 1881, eldest son Hans Kristian would pass. Both would be buried in Bedsted Cemetery, unlike the prior generations' burials in their home parish of Helligsø.

In 1 July 1882, the entire family would begin the long trip to America with a Jesper J. Hansen (presumably a nephew). Destination? Kearney County, Nebraska.

Tragedies in the New World

Kearney County, Nebraska (like several other place names in the state) was (mis)named after Bvt. Maj. Gen. Stephen Watts Kearny, who served in the War of 1812 and the Mexican War. In 1856, an 'e' was erroneously added into the last part of his surname, and thus where the county derived its name.

In the 1870s, there was a growing influx of German and Danish immigration to the area, and Kearney County (more specifically the communities of Minden and Fredericksburg) began to develop a sizable immigrant population, thanks to it's capacity for agriculture and USA homestead policies. This was well-known enough to make it back to Europe, inciting more people to make the long arduous journey across an ocean and half of a continent.

Life was not easy for a widow and 6 children, though the burden was shared as the two eldest daughters married. On 27 June 1883, Carrie Marie married Soren Larsen in Fredericksburg; on 25 May 1885, Anne Maren married Robert Hansen in Minden.

Maren, Christopher Michael, and Inger Marie would move in with Anne Maren and Robert in Minden. The couple would have one child: Carrie Hansen (1892). Carrie Marie and Soren would live in nearby Cosmo, having two sons: Louis M. Larsen (26 November 1885) and Chris Marinus Larsen (20 May 1888). I've been unable as of yet to find what family(s) Jens Peter and Martin Andrew stayed with. Either way, the next few years would not be easy for the family.

Martin Andrew would be the next to marry on 12 August 1889 to Hetty Livingston in Minden, though the family (by all accounts, mostly Maren) did not accept the marriage. They would have one child: David Hansen (4 August 1890), but separated before 1896. He would also separate himself from the rest of the family for the following decade.

Inger Marie passed on 13 November 1890 in Minden at age 11, and was buried in the Fredericksburg Cemetery. On her headstone, it reads:

Se Herren gav, se Herren tog, Ham være evig ære, Han tog smertens barn med hjem til sig selv, Til [grave rubbing cuts off]
(The Lord giveth, the Lord taketh away, He is eternal glory, He took this child from pain to home with Him, To...)

Anne Maren would follow on 20 May 1895, buried in the same cemetery.

Carrie Marie would find reason to leave Soren for unknown reasons around 1888, taking both kids.

With the hardships in Nebraska mounting, most of the remaining family (Maren, Carrie Marie and her two sons, Jens Peter, and Christopher Michael) made the move southward to Texas. Anne Maren's widowed husband and daughter remained in Nebraska, though both would pass away within the decade (Robert on 28 November 1912; Carrie in 1918).

Most of the family would first settle in Brazoria County, Texas, south of Houston, Texas. It's here that Maren would pass away, sometime around 1903 [note: family documents give her a death year of 1916 with a sighting of her headstone in Muldoon...]. Her death would bring Andrew Martin back, as he rejoined the others in Texas. They would then pack up and move northwest to Muldoon in Fayette County by 1908, though there still awaited further tragedy.

In Muldoon, Andrew Martin found employment with the International & Great Northern Railroad as a bridge foreman. After the company's reorganized under the International & Great Northern Railway Company, Jens Pete and Christopher Michael also joined as a painter/carpenter and blacksmith, respectively. This would frequently take the men to various placed within the state as the railway expanded its tracks. Farming took what time remained.

Carrie Marie's son Louis M. would die after a prolonged case of tuberculosis in 1913. In late 1917, Carrie Marie's other son Chris Marinus was drafted into the army as a private in Battery C of the 133d field artillery, moving up the Camp Bowie in Tarrant County. At the time, Jens Peter was also in the county, working on construction for the railway as a bridge carpenter. Both would die in January 1918.

On 5 January, Jens Peter had his head crushed during the demolition of a water tower. While on the ground beside the already-removed lumber-and-steel supports, a tower brace fell on top of him from 50 feet up, trapping him against the removed support beams. One of the surviving brothers (unknown which) made the trip up to travel with the body back to Muldoon, where the funeral was held on 9 January. Jens Peter was buried in Pitman Cemetery.

It was during the funeral that word came of Chris Marinus. After a long bout of what was officially listed as broncho-pneumonia that had recently appeared in the camp, he had passed the day prior on 8 January. In all liklihood, it was an early case of the 1918–1920 flu pandemic (often called by the misnomer Spanish Flu). He was buried in a shared grave with his older brother Louis M. in Pitman Cemetery.

Of the many Hansen family members, only Carrie Marie, Martin Andrew, and Christopher Michael were left.

On 31 December 1919, the family expanded to a total of 4 with Christopher Michael's marriage to Mary Dale Barree in Fayette County. Not soon after, the Hansens would relocate together to Bear Creek, Arkansas in 1920.

Of my own personal memories about Granpa Jim starts with his visits to us in Louisiana in the early 1990's, which I recall him always bringing down a big container of golden delicious apples. I don't know if it's childhood memories distorting reality, but I remember it being a big box! Either way, it cemented my love for golden delicious apples; I don't think I've ever had such a wonderful apple in my life. At some point after, he moved down to Lousiana in a silver bullet trailer. I remember visiting often and having catfish fries; walking down onto the floating dock below the trailer and playing there, since the trailer was much too small to contain a child's energy. At some point, walking down there with Grandpa Jim, we found a whole big set of plastic test tubes and racks sitting on the dock and half-buried in the mud, etc. Being a child, that was the most interesting thing we could have found, and after begging, we filched a couple (2 racks, fully filled with test tubes, so about 8 or 10 per rack), though given they'd clearly be left there for a time, perhaps they'd been abandoned? Either way, they remained in my possession for a good long while.