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We were sent there to locate and even acquire land for about 100 Danish families. However, this trip turned out to be a complete waste of time since we were unable to find arable land, or grass lands, or water or trees for that matter. 

I had sent in my membership application in to the United Workers  for consideration, but I left there before it even came under consideration by the board.

I was a juror for the circuit court in Marquette.

I will come back to this, but I skipped a page in my diary.

February 2nd 1881 - Albert Hemmingsen was born.

May 5th 1881 - Hans Christian started working for Nick Laughling.

October 13th 1881 - Jørgen Andersen and I went to New Denmark. We returned on the 17th.

October 22nd 1881 - Jørgen Andersen got married and the 24th of that month he moved to Iowa.

November 14th 1881 - Lars Andersen joined us. I had sent him $10.00 to cover him traveling from Green Bay to Negaunee and incurred an additional expense of $21.00 for his clothes.

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The 9th of May 1882 Jens Peter Hemmingsen arrived from Denmark. He would stay with us and I had an expenditure of $19.50 for clothes for him. The two last people that I mentioned were very smart and antagonistic. They had a hard time getting along with anyone, and they didn't stay with us for very long. 

December 1st 1883 - We founded the first lodge of the Danish Sisterhood of America in Negaunee Michigan. It was Stine Hemmingsen, my wife, who deserves the honor for the founding of this society and I truly believe that had it not been for her, this organization would never have seen the light of day. I did it in her name and it brought me immense joy to be able to do something that would adequately elevate her to the position of rightful founder of the Danish Sisterhood of America. However, it was a bit strange that she was the first of the members to pass away and I would be the first to receive the insurance that I was to receive following her death.

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June 25th 1877 - Hans Christian began taking music lessons.

March 9th - William Johansen traveled to Colorado.

March 26th - Hans began working in the Jackson Carpentry Shop. 

August 25th - A Sunday school was started and I was a teacher there until I thought that the girls shouldn't be allowed to bring dolls to school. Then it sort of all fell apart.

October 25th - My wife gave born to a stillborn girl.

I was the chairman of the Danish Health Insurance Union in Negaunee and resigned that post on the 6th of January 1877.

In the month of December of 1877 I began attending night classes that were taught by John Jones, who was a lawyer and was hired to teach me English. However, the third night I went he told me that there was no use for me to keep going because I could both read and write anything. I merely needed to work on my pronunciation and he couldn't help me with that, so I stopped going. We had a small group in Negaunee and I was its chairman for quite some time.

  

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We also had a choir group and I was a member of it. 

There was also an exploration company where I held the position of chairman.

On the 16th of February 1882 we founded lodge #6 of the Danish Brotherhood with 19 charter members and I was the lodge's first chaplain. Then, later on I held the office of president and later that of vice-president. I was a delegate at the convention in Racine in 1883 where I was chosen as a member of the national board of directors. 

At this convention where we only were seven members in attendance, we founded the Dannebro Publishing Company, of which John T. Poulsen of Davenport, Iowa became the managing editor. 

In 1884 I went as a member of the national board of directors for the Danish Brotherhood to their convention in Clinton Iowa. I was also a member of the Independent Orders of Odd Fellows Lodge #122 in Negaunee where I held the post of corresponding Secretary. It was a position that I held until I left Negaunee.

We also had a real estate acquisition company which sent me to North Dakota along with Lars Hansen and Rasmus Viberg who was from Racine.  

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A days wages was $2.00, but starting on the 1st of November it was decreased to $1.60. They began driving sleighs on the 19th of November and that winter most of my work was on the stockpile and consisted of putting up drywall along the track to help keep the ore from spilling on to the tracks.

December 21st -  Jens Peter moved in and lived upstairs.

March 9th - Jørgen Andersen moved in with Doctor Syr. He hadn't had work since we arrived here and was boarding with us.

April 7th - Captain Merry promised to pay $2.00 a day for masonry work.

April 11th - Jens Peter left and moved into a house of his own.

April 13th - Jørgen Rasmussen moved in with us. 

The night between the 19th and the 20th fires broke out in both Negaunee and Ishpeming.

May 17th - Jørgen Rasmussen moved out again.

From the 6th-18th of July I did some carpentry and plastered walls at Carsten Nielsen's place.

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23rd of October 1875 - We lost Jens Petersen back in Mosebølle.

27th of November 1875 - King Christian the 9th went to an exhibition in Paris.

February 27th 1875 (probably '76) - Hans Petersen died in Vallebo.

April 24th 1875 (probably '76) - Jens Peter Hemmingsen was born.

April 11th 1876 - Hans Christian got bitten by Robert's dog.

November 30th - We butchered a cow.

Mother hurt her back lifting something and was out of commission until the 1st of March 1877.

On the 30th of October 1876 - Lightning struck the chimney of James Trembath's house. I was in the house at the time and was knocked out but otherwise okay.

In the year 1876 - Shoes for our family cost us $45.30.

Hans Christian and Maria began seeing the priest in the fall of 1876 and that following spring of 1877 they were confirmed in Ishpeming by Pastor Dahl who had come up from Green Bay Wisconsin.

May 9th 1877 - Hans Christian began working with me.

June 13th 1877 - Niels Johansen left for Colorado.

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On to Negaunee

Now it was time for our little travelling fellowship to break apart since Peter Hansen, his wife, their son Thorwald along with Jens Hansen, who all were from Mosebølle in Roholte County, were all heading towards Suamico. While the rest of us, along with Jens Christensen traveled on to New Denmark.

Tuesday the 26th

At 9:00 AM we left Green Bay and at 3:30 we arrived in New Denmark at Johan Hylsenberg's place, where we stayed for a while and visited with old acquaintances. 

Wednesday the 27th

Thursday the 28th

During those days we visited with Hans Hansen and Maren Sofie - and good old Hans Petersen - Niels Christoffersen - Niels Hansen and Christian from Hyllede.

Friday the 29th

Around 2:00 AM Christian Hansen was nice enough to drive us from New Denmark to Green Bay and at 7:30 AM we were back on a train again. We made it to Negaunee at 5:00 PM in the afternoon and by 6:00 PM we were at Niels Johansen's place where we stopped temporarily.

Saturday the 30th

We visited Jens Johansen, as well as Peter Johansen and his wife.

Sunday the 31st

We rested.

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On Monday the 1st of September I went to work in Negaunee as a mason working on a stone house. I was supposed to receive three dollars a day but I was only there for two days. I was done, and when I got my six dollars the supervisor offered me $3.50 a day to continue working until the onset of winter, but I politely declined.

Wednesday the 3rd

Jørgen Andersen and I went to Michigamme to see about some work, but I didn't like that place either so I just walked away.

September 10th

I got myself a job doing the masonry work in a basement that belonged to Captain Henry Merry and it lasted until the 17th.

September 18th

We began building our house.

September 28th

We moved in.

On the 1st of October I began working for the Jackson Iron Company at the South Jackson Mine. I worked there until the 28th of October when the snow came and all of the work was halted. 

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Saturday the 23rd

2:30, 4:30. Changed trains at 5:00. 5:33, 6:07, 6:15, 6:34, 6:35, 6:37, 6:38, 6:43, 6:53, 6:57, 7:00. At 7:02 the lights were turned off. 7:06, 7:22, 7:25, 7:26, 7:35,. At 8:15 we stopped at the station in Belaire. 8:33, 8:35.

Now we had 130 miles left before arriving in Columbus, 8:45, 9:06. At 12:30, around mid-day we arrived at the Jamesville station. At 1:10 we traveled onward towards Black Hand. At 1:30 PM we met locomotive No. 508. At 1:30 PM we arrived in Columbus and left there again at 5:00 PM. At 6:45 we spotted a man plowing with three horses and a lot of red willows and apple trees. At about 7:30 PM the sun was setting and at 9:45 PM we reached the Urbana station where we switched trains again. 

Sunday the 24th

Reached the station in Indianapolis at 4 AM and had to switch trains once again and departed again at 5:45. At 6:00 AM the sun started rising. At 6:45 we reached (????) and had 91 miles left before reaching Chicago. 7:10 we reached the America station. 7:35 the Amartian station and at 10:45 we reached Chicago and stayed at a Scandinavian hotel where we spent the night.

Monday the 25th 

At 9:40 we left Chicago on the North-West track. At 10:40 we went to Dunton. 11:03, 11:15 we were at Cary and then at 11:24 onward to Kanska.

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11:35 Ridgsfile, 11:45 Woodstock, 1:25 Shopire, 1:40 some town, 2:40 Koshonony, 3:00 Fort Atsiqon, 3:15 Jefferson, 4:10 Watteloin, 4:30 Glyman and Juneau, 4:45 Minnesota, 5:25 Brunette. Went through Milwaukee via the Saint Paul track. 5:45 Chester, 6:03 Oakfield, 6:05Nenah, 6:45 Vendyne, 7:10 Oshkosh and at (:00 we made it to Green Bay.

We had reached the final destination of our initial journey. The tickets that we had bought at the beginning of our journey wouldn't take us any further. When our train had come to a halt in Green Bay a man entered our train car and inquired in a loud voice whether or not Niels Hemmingsen from Orup was a passenger on this train. I was quick to respond that I indeed was there. The man was Lars Nielsen who was an acquaintance of mine. He had been a millers assistant at the mill back in Orup. When we had arrived in Chicago I wrote a letter to Jørgen Andersen who worked in Caskade in Michigan. He had gotten the letter in good time and made it to Green Bay only a few hours before we arrived. He had then asked Lars Nielsen to come and meet us and just then and there Jørgen entered the train car from the other end and we were of course all delighted to see each other. That night we stayed at Lars Nielsen's place. 

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Wednesday the 20th

We raised anchor at 4:00 AM and sailed into the harbor. At 11:30 AM we docked at the pier and disembarked from the ship at 2:00 PM. Then at 4:00 PM we made our way into Castle Garden. We left there at 5:00 PM and went to a hotel where we spent the night.

Thursday the 21st

At 5:00 PM in the afternoon we were ferried across Riverton to America, and at 6:00 PM we made it to the railway station. We started moving at 7:30 PM and we saw numerous things that I've made note of in my diary. I won't make any further mention of it here because it would take up too much space. However, to show that I wasn't just sleeping the entire time I'll make notations of the times as they appear in my diary. 7:35, 7:45, 7:55, 7:56, at 8:40 we stopped and got some water, and as we continued on our journey I could have sworn that I heard someone yelling my name outside the train car. 9:05, 9:20, 9:30, 9:45, 9:50, 9:55. This was the first time we saw open fields in America, but we were going so fast that we couldn't see if they were growing grains or root vegetables. 10:00, 10:30, 10:40. We got hooked to a new locomotive at 10:50 and at 11:05 PM we arrived at a station called

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Philadelphia. I must have been sleeping because all of a sudden it was 

Friday the 22nd

Morning, 5:00 AM, we saw horses and cattle grassing. 5:15, 5:30, 5:55, 6:05, 6:11. At 6:15 we arrived in Baltimore where our train cars were unhooked from the rest of the train. Six mules, walking in a straight line, pulled our car to a house which we then entered at 8:15 and stayed there until 3:20 in the afternoon. In Baltimore I'd say that there are probably as many black and brown people as there are whites. The majority of horses are mules. We left Baltimore at 4:00 PM and headed West. 4:45, 4:50. At 4:55 we arrived at a station called Harper's Ferry. At 7:05 we drove directly into the setting sun. 7:45, 8:00, 8:05, 8:10. There must have been coal mins nearby because we noticed a number of long lines of train cars filled with coal. 8:28, 8:30, 8:35, 8:40, 8:45, we met three different trains. 8:47, 8:49, stopped by a town. 9:11, 9:25, we met another five trains in a spot with two sets of tracks. 9:35, 9:37, 9:39, 9:40, 9:43, 9:55. At 10:00 we stopped at a station and took on water. 10:10, 10:12, 10:15, 10:19, 10:21, 10:30, 10:32, 10:36, 10:42, 10:50. At 10:58 we drove through some mountains and the train cars swayed from right to left every minute or so. 11:06, 11:07, 11:15, 11:20, 11:30, 

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A bottle of wine was 2 Mark and 12 Schilling and it tasted like sour applesauce. There were more ships anchored in Le Havre than one was able to count. At 2:00 PM in the afternoon the sun stood directly above us and it was almost to hot. 9:00 PM - and everything was quiet as could be. We were anchored in Le Havre's harbor but we might as well have been in the center of town. A man with a barrel on his back was selling chocolate. A glass and a hand towel hanging from his chest. On one side he bore a bell and on the other he had a spout for the barrel.

Wednesday the 6th of August

1:00 PM - Cabbage for lunch. 3:00 PM - The deck was swabbed. 4:00 PM - French passengers come on board. 5:00 PM - Everyone was ordered to disembark, and while on shore, roll call was conducted after which we boarded the ship again. At 8:45 PM we pulled away from the pier. 9:30 PM - we passed by the tollbooth and headed out towards the Atlantic Ocean. 

Thursday the 7th of August

6:00 AM - Foggy weather. 8:00 AM - The sun was visible and we were sailing due West. We ate breakfast at 9:00 AM and the weather was clear. 1:00 PM - We had soup for lunch. Coffee at 4:00 PM.

Friday the 8th

Clear skies with headwind. 

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Sunday the 10th - Nothing to report.

Monday the 11th - We saw only the sky and the water.

Tuesday the 12th - Nothing to see.

Wednesday the 13th - Met a sailboat and saw a bunch of jumping fish. We also met a steamship and enjoyed some nice weather in spite of some headwind. Today we sailed 275 miles and we still have 1646 miles left.

Thursday the 14th - Today we sailed 262 miles and we have 1384 miles left. Beautiful weather, headwind, soup and meat for lunch.

Friday the 15th - Saw a barrel and a beam floating by the ship. At 11:00 we hit some fog and still experienced headwind. We saw a sailing vessel in the West.

Saturday the 16th - Strong South winds and all sails were raised. Today we traveled 282 miles and we still have 965 miles to go.

Sunday the 17th - West winds hitting us straight on and we still managed to cover 257 miles leaving 708 miles left to go. 

Monday the 18th - Easterly winds, full sails. We met a three masted steamer. Sailed 301 miles and we now have 407 miles left to go. Noticed a group of jumping fish.

Tuesday the 19th - We have 94 miles left to go. At 2:00 we took on more cargo. At 2:30 we spotted land. Around 9:00 we dropped anchor in the waters just outside of New York.

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The journey to America

On the 1st of August, 1873 at 11:00 AM we left Copenhagen and were ferried out to Rheden where we proceeded to board the steamship Washington which after 20 days at sea brought us to New York. We had lunch at 1:00 PM, raised anchor at 2:30 PM and passed by Helsingør at about 4:45 PM. On the second I became seasick and continued to be sick until we reached New York. The 3rd was a Sunday and we were served soup and meat for lunch. We had bad weather that day.

At 4:00 AM on the 4th I got up and got a little bit of food and a Danish schnapps. At 11:19 AM we saw England's coast to our right. 11:45 PM we saw the coast of France to our left. At 12:30 we saw a seagull on the coast of England. Lunch was at 1:00 PM and consisted of peas with pork. Passed by a tall tower, a gangway, tall chalk cliffs, railroad tracks going over a tall bridge. 1:00 PM - we passed by a large town. 1:26 PM - we passed by another town and were almost half a mile from shore. We could see forests, mountains, valleys, fields, bushes, roads, hedges and ditches. We then sailed towards the South-West. At 2:00 PM we saw a windmill. At 2:15 PM we spotted a fishing camp with ten boats.  

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At 2:25 PM we passed a lighthouse sitting about a quarter of a mile from the coast. 3:09 PM we spot a mountain. Around 4:30 PM we could see the English coast again. At 4:45 PM all children under fourteen were vaccinated for pox. 6:40 PM we saw the coast of France again. At 7:45 PM we saw a large cliff of chalk, or perhaps it was limestone. At 8:45 PM we saw a lighthouse followed by a small inland lake. 9:30 PM - a large forest. 10:00 PM - a lighthouse. 11:00 PM, evening, dropped anchor just outside a small harbor. We raised anchor at 5:00 AM on Tuesday the 5th. We spotted the coast of England again. At 7:00 AM we sailed into Le Havre in France where there was a large store of limestone sitting on the quay. Some pigeons were the first birds we saw in France. While we were there, our ship was loaded with chisseled pieces of limestone. Le Havre is a wild town for strangers. We passed some streets, a harbor, an alley, barracks, another harbor - a forest and yet another harbor. There was a pile of cattle horns that covered two bushels of land. There was probably a factory near by that made delousing combs or the likes.

An orange cost four Schilling, half a bottle of beer cost fourteen Schilling. A bottle of moonshine that wasn't worth drinking went for seven Mark.

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Amusements

Once a year, on the 24th of June to be precise they would hold a market that was referred to as the Spring Market. It was held in a field that had been earmarked for that very purpose. There was a freshwater spring on the property that had been bricked up and fenced in to look like a fountain and served as the center for the market. The market lasted for two days and everyone, both young and old were in attendance, even if they weren't looking to buy anything.

There was also a market that was held in Præstø in the days leading up to Christmas. It was called the Christmas market and people came from miles around in order to attend. 

Count Molke on Bregentved owned 11 estates and was well liked by his peasants. Said peasants pooled their money and ordered a life size copper statue for him as a gift. It cost 4000 crowns and as a thank you the count declared that he would throw a party for 5000 crowns on the day when the statue was supposed to be unveiled. How many thousands of people were in attendance I couldn't say but the gathering was held in the gardens around the Count's castle. The count himself arrived in a cart pulled by four horses. The peasants then unhooked the horses and pulled the wagon the rest of the way up to the castle themselves. 

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The young Baron Ritz Fott from Gavnø owned a multitude of estates and he got married to an English woman. Several years passed before they were able to have a child, but they finally got a son. All of the Baron's peasants and other tenants from all of his properties were invited to the child's christening. Several thousands gathered for this occassion. We ate in the gardens where there had been placed four dance floors and that night we enjoyed fireworks. All of this took place shortly before harvest time and on a nearby field they had dumped several loads of hay so the area acted as a place where people could tie up their horses. However, once the fireworks went off, two to three hundred of the horses tore themselves loose and ran back home. 

During the christening a British officer was holding the child and we were informed that he was in fact the father of the baroness. We all brought gifts and I have never again seen such a large pile of silver coins, there had to have been more than a bushel. The Baron took the money and created a foundation that was meant to help less fortunate children. One year later he asked all of the poor children on his lands to join him at the castle for his son's birthday.

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Alderman

The peasants had to take turns acting as alderman, fire ranger and snow ranger. He would have a large steers horn that they would blow in at a predetermined location in their respective towns. They would blow in it for announcements relating to villeinage, snow removal or fire. When the sound of the horn was heard it was each home's duty to send someone to receive orders. 

Bull and boar 

(breeding animals)

Families took turns caring for these animals for one year at a time.

Stallion

If the mare ended up having a foal, a barrel of oats would be given as payment. If not then only a half of a barrel was exchanged.   

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Superstition

Sankt Hans Day/St. John's Day/Summer solstice is on the 24th of June and the night prior to this day was referred to as Sankt Hans night. This was thought to be the night where witches and trolls would ride their brooms to Blocksbjerg/Brocken mountain where they would gather and feast. When these beings were flying over ditches, gates, forests and lakes they might also be likely to fly through people's crops and perhaps damage them. To prevent that from happening small amounts of rice and bundles of twigs were placed here and there throughout the countryside. It was thought that when these beings flew near these things that they would avoid them and stay away.

Steel in the door

 (I think he meant to say iron)

It was important to place a bit of steel in the doorways when a new animal had been bought, when a cow had been with a bull, when a cow had been to the watertrough for the first time since giving birth to a calf. Some steel was also placed in the seed piles in the loft as well as in the haystacks, in the barns, practically everywhere to ensure that witches and trolls wouldn't mess with them or damage them.

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St. Martin's Day

This holiday always fell on the 10th of November and featured roasted goos, duck or some other sort of poultry. It was a very festive evening for everyone that resided in the house.

Christmas Eve

On this evening we took our dinner by candlelight in the middle of the afternoon. We'd be lighting two candles at the table even though we could see perfectly by just using one. Once the meal had finished, Mother would hand out 3-4 æbleskiver and a small piece of cake. Everyone also got a bit of cheese and meat so after a while it turned into a bit of a platefull. The dog was then brought in and each of us proceeded to give it a little something from each of our plates. He ended up receiving a sizable meal and was then tied up outside again. We then sang one or two Christmas songs and then cleared the table leaving only the lit candles. The Christmas tree was then lit in the sitting room and once that was done it was time to get the cards out and see if you had enough nuts left over from Nutday. If people were out then Mother would have to get her bag of Pebbernødder/ginger cookies and we'd each recieve a handful.   

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Christmas Bonus

Each farmhand, both boy and girl, as well as the blacksmith received a Christmas Bonus consisting of a loaf of rye bread and a wheat cake. They in return took these and brought them home to give to their mothers, if they had one or to the women who did their laundry and mended their clothes. For their services these women would generally receive a wage of 4-6 crowns. 

New Years Eve (New Years Eve)

This day was held in the same esteem as Christmas and celebrated in much the same manner. However, there was a greater focus on good food good drink and a bit of fun.

Twelfth Night

Held in equal esteem with good traditions. However, we needed to light three candles and place them on the table for the entire night. 

Driving maneur

There were always two or three peasants that would help each other when driving maneur which usually happened between sowing season and harvest time. the man as well as the boys would drive the cart while the farmhands loaded and the girls would spread it out. 

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from the wagon, carried to the grave and lowered into the ground. Meanwhile, someone had been to see the priest and had informed him that the body had arrived. The priest then headed over to the grave, threw a bit of dirt on the coffin and gave his speech. The quality and length of said speech greatly depended on the size of the payment he had received the other day. 

The grave was filled in again and all of the women came forward with their  green wreaths and placed them on the grave site. Then the bells ring and everyone returns home. The person ho had driven the hearse picks up the funeral party and brings them back home. There, the tables where decked out with rice pudding, fish and many other things. After the meal we socialized playing card for the rest iof the day and long into the night. The immediate family was invited to return the next day. 

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Nut Day

When the harvest had been brought in it was traditional for everyone to get a day off which was commonly referred to as "Nut Day."On this day, everyone went out to gather nuts in the countryside. There was nothing but Hazel nuts available and while some only ended up getting a pocket full others often times managed to get an entire bushel. We also had access to walnuts, but they were kept in the gardens and available to everyone.

Feast of St. Michael

It was a feast dedicated to the workers who had helped bring in the harvest. The feast was held around St. Michael's Day which was the 29th of September and traditionally featured the butchering of a lamb. In attendance were the workers and their immediate families, as well as several farmhands and young girls, especially if they were good dancers. The feast would begin with the serving of lamb stew followed by dancing, card playing and the likes. 

Mix-n-match cake

(Mikkemose kage)

Every farmhand and even the blacksmith received a wheatcake which was referred to as a Mikkemose Cake which they each brought home and gave to their respective mothers.