25th Anniversary of the Jensen's

While perusing through old newspapers the other day I came upon this notice of my great grandparents anniversary party.  It was in the Warren Sheaf., December 02, 1914, page 6.

"Last Sunday afternoon, Mr. and Mrs. Martin Jensen were made the victims of a pleasant surprise by a best of their neighbors and friends.  The occasion for this event, was the 25th, or silver wedding anniversary of Mr. and Mrs. Jensen. From about two o'clock in the afternoon until almost dark people were arriving at the Jensen home, each bringing vessel well filled with the very choicest of viands the land affords, which were placed on a long table stretching the full length of the spacious dining room, presenting a sight calculated to tempt the appetite of the most fastidious. And it would be but mildly stated, to say that all present did ample justice toward relieving that table of its great burden, and at the same time filling an empty void.

"After all had partaken to their hearts as well as stomach's delight, many basketsful of fragments remained. Supper being over, and everything cleared away the young folks engaged in music and various games and thus spent the time in a pleasant manner, while the men discussed all the topics pertaining to farming from the raising of alfalfa, clover, hogs and corn, and wound up on the outcome of the great European war, while the topics discussed by better halves, as overheard in part, was mostly concerning hats, frocks and pretty babies, and the price of poultry.  Well, maybe they did converse about other matters that we failed to catch.

"The bride and groom of a quarter of a-century, were the recipients of many beautiful presents appropriate to the occasion. At a late hour of the evening, after the self-invited guests had expressed their wishes for many years more of connevial bliss, they took their departure, realizing that it was good to have been there. Following is a list of the families represented at this gathering: S. J. Grandstrand and family; J. W. Swanson and family; C. E. Johnson and family; C. Poison and family; L. C. Jorgenson and family; J. W. Field and family; A. Lundin and family; S, Lundin and family; S. P. Jensen and family; Nels Jensen and family: Jens Jensen and family; Hans and Mrs. Christofferson, Mrs. Christofferson and daughters, of Stephen; Joseph Thorkildson and sister; Miss Magda, John Jensen and Jens Hanson."

Marriage Certificate - Martin Jensen 1889

Earlier this week, I posted the wording of the certificate of the marriage between my great-grandfather Alexander Brossoit to his sweetheart, Sophie Trepanier.  Today I am posting the marriage certificate of my Great-grandfather Martin Jensen to his bride, Laura Toomb(s).

Certificate of Marriage

State of Minnesota

County of Marshall ss.

I hereby certify, that on the 27th day of November in the year of our Lord and eight hundred and eighty nine at Holland Farm in said County, I, the undersigned, a Minister of the Gospel, did join in the holy bonds of Matrimony, according to the laws of this State, Martin Jensen of the County of Marshall, State of Minnesota, and Laura Toomb of the County of Marshall, State of Minnesota in presence of William Michall, Gussie Toomb, Witnesses.

Alonzo George Washington
Pastor Congregational Church, Stephen (Minnesota)


Gussie, was Laura's younger sister, Augusta.  I do not know who William Michall was.  This will go on my to-do list.  I also don't know what/where Holland Farm was located.  Did it belong to Martin Jensen or the Toomb family?  Another to-do item.   As an aside, Laura's father's name was George Washington Toombs and she had a brother Alonzo.  Must have been a popular name a century ago. 

Wordless Wednesday - Laura Toombs Jensen

Wordless Wednesday – a great way to share your old family photos! Create a post with the main focus being a photograph or image. Some posters also include attribute information as to the source of the image (date, location, owner, etc.). Wordless Wednesday is one of the longest running “memes” in the blogosphere and is an ongoing series at GeneaBloggers.

Census Reports and more

Today, while rechecking information on Martinus Jensen, I found out a few more items I did not know prior.  To make sure you have the right person in the right town at the right time you look at federal or state census reports and see if you can follow along a timeline.  While looking at information, first I discovered that Martins folks, Neils (or Nels) did not speak English by choice (I assume) because he could read and write in English, and that Maren could neither read, nor write or speak English.  

Martin and Laura were married in 1889.  The 1900 census and well as the 1895 state census called their oldest daughter by her middle name "Celia".  Also, a newly found fact, in 1895, Laura's sister Augusta Toombs, had moved in with them and her two young children, Edward, 4, and Frank, age one.  This information was all new to me and the existance of Edward and Frank have given me another trail to follow.

By 1900, Augusta and kids were out and Martin, Laura and their 4 kids were in.  By 1905, the state census show that Martin's father has passed on and his mother, Maren, lived with them.  I cannot find the Jensen family in the 1910 census, but will continue to search for them.....somewhere.

By 1920, they are back where I left them in Tamarac Village, Marshall County, with 6 kids at home and Marion (Celia) and Nellie married.  Anna is a teacher and the sons are all working as farm laborers and Hazel is attending school.  By 1930, only Martin, Hazel and Marvin (Hazel's son) are listed.

Martin Jensen 1868 - 1943

Martin or Martinus Jensen was born on 26 Apr 1868 in Vrensted, Borglum, Hjorring, Denmark.  This puts it on the upper most tip of Denmark on the western side near the North Sea.  He was the youngest of seven children born to Niels Jensen and Maren Sorensdatter.  His siblings were Jens (James) b. 1854, Soren b. 1856,  Jens Christian b. 1860, Christian b. 1862, Kjersten b. 1862 Nielsine Marie b. 1865 and Martinus b. 1868.  I have not been able to locate all of the dates for their deaths but we do know that Christian, Kjersten and Nielsine all died the first week of November 1867, just five months before Martin was born.  Most likely cause was the cholera epidemic that was sweeping the world with over 500,000 deaths, with over  30,000 in Denmark alone!  When Martin was 4 years old he, his older brother, Soren (I believe the only other surviving child), and their parents emigrated to the United States.

Martin & Laura Jensen

In 1906, Martin became one of three mail carriers for the new rural areas around Stephen, MN and remained in that job for 25 years until his poor eyesight caused him to retire. It was written in the Marshall County Leader/Stephen Messenger newspaper on 4 Nov 1910, "Guess we will be compelled to get up before breakfast these mornings in order to mail our letters, as our mail carrier, Martin Jensen, has a new motor cycle."

 Martin married Laura Francis Toombs 27 Nov 1889 and they produced eight children. Laura and Martin were parents to Marion, George, Nellie, Anne, Lawrence, Nels, Charles and Hazel.  Hazel, the youngest was born in 1908.  When she was 13 years old, her mother died and Martin remarried two years later to Minnie Mott.  Minnie, too, died an early death, passing away one year later in 1924.  Martin again remarried Mrs. Mary Anderson in 1931 and when she passed away in 1940, he moved in with Hazel and her husband, Omer Brossoit with their three children, Marvin, Bette and Joan down in South St Paul, MN.

Hazel Isabel Jensen 1908-1994

My grandmother, Hazel Jensen was born July 25, 1908, the youngest of eight children born to Martin Jensen and Laura Frances Toombs.  She was born in Sinnott township, Marshall County, Minnesota.  This is in the upper northwest corner of Minnesota.  Her father homestead here and she was raised here.  She attended school in Stephen and went onto Teacher's College in Bemidji.  There are not a lot of pictues of Hazel when she was young, as there was a fire in her home and most of the pictures were lost.  What we do have is all the more precious because of it.  I'm not sure if the car pictured is a Model T or a Model A Ford.  The Model T was last produced in 1927 and the Model A started production in 1928.  I'm thinking it's a Model T because of the front grill.  This is the same car with her father Martin Jensen.

Martin Jensen was one of seven children born to Neils Jensen and Maren Sorensdatter in Vrensted, Denmark on 26 Apr 1868.  All but Martin and his older brother Soren died before they emigrated to the United States in 1874, when Martin was 6 years old.  The Danish, and probably other Scandinavian familes had the tradition of no last names, as we know them.  Rather they took on the title of their father's son or daughter.  So Martin's father, Neils, was Jen's sen(son) and his mother Maren, was Soren's datter (daughter).  Going back another generation Neils father's name was Jens Neilsen and his mother was Kjersten Thomsdatter.  Once I became aware of this, it was easier to follow the family lines back in Denmark.  Again because Jens Neilsen (Martin's grandfather) had a sister (or  great aunt to Martin) named Bodil Marie Jensdatter.  Easy when its written down on paper!

Our bookmobile lady

Fifty years ago on July 18, the South St Paul Public Library put their first bookmobile into service.  Behind the desk, at the back of the bus, sat my grandmother, Hazel Brossoit.  She held that post for many years with many different drivers.  All over town she was known as the "bookmobile lady".  Our closest stop was in the Concordia Lutheran Church parking lot off 5th Ave and Douglas Street.  We would go there after Girls Scouts, during the school year or ride our bikes there in the summertime.  With our aunts working the main library and our grandmother holding court in the bookmobile, it was no surprise that we were all avid readers!

The first branch and leaf

When I started this, I wanted to share with my family and friends (read that as the younger set), stories about their relatives and the tidbits I find out as I research the family lines.  So the first few posts were to set the stage.  But now it is time to really look into that first branch.  My grandmother, Hazel Jensen Brossoit and what stories we can share.  With July being her birthday month, it is a good place to start.

Hazel Isabel Jensen was born 25 July 1908 in Sinnott Township, near the now city of Stephen, Marshall County, Minnesota.  This puts her in the upper north-west corner of Minnesota along the Tamarac River. She was the youngest of eight children, born to Martin Jensen and Laura Francis Toombs.  I remember her telling me to never name my daughters "Hazel" because she was always called "Hazelnut" and she did not like the name Isabel. 

What memories do we all have of her?  She always was welcoming and I can't recall her ever saying a bad word about someone else.  She was a lady through and through, but never put on airs.  She taught us how to bake apple dumplings, stuff sausages, play cribbage and the game where you hide the button.  We were allowed to play with her jewelry box and put curlers in her hair.  She was always game for a picnic or an estate sale or even just out to lunch.  We toured all the old historic homes together, watched "Peter Pan" every year at her house, had Brownie scouts in the basement and "Rocky and Bullwinkle" (in color!) in the living room.  We went to her house for lunch during our elementary school years, suppers on Fridays for smelt and had many a Thanksgiving dinner. 

When we went to the lake, she didn't swim, so we would gather the inner tubes and float along the shoreline and visit.  She taught some of us how to drive and others how to smoke and drink, but still remain that lady.  Gardens were her pride of her yard and she taught me how to arrange flowers and not be apprehensive to make centerpieces.  Raspberries were always in great supply and she would can those we did not eat at first picking as well as canned tomatoes.  She made lutefisk, pickled herring, head cheese, and blond brownies.  As children we wrote on the blackboard inside the back hall area, played on the organ or the "piano-harp" in the basement or listened as Grandma and Grandpa played thier favorite dance tunes on the piano and violin.

She loved to read, work crossword puzzles and knit.  Knitted mittens which as we grew older became wool throws which gave way to buying socks for all the grandkids as the numbers grew and the presents became too numerous to gather.

Today is Family History Day

What better way to start a blog then with a picture.  These are my great grandparents, Martinus Jensen (1868-1943) and Laura Francis Toombs (1870-1921).  Martin was born on April 26, 1868 in Vrensted, Børglum, Hjørring, Denmark.  He immigrated to the USA in 1874 when he was six years old with his older brother Soren, and parents Niels (Nils) and Maren.  Martin was one of seven children, three who died within days of each other five months before he was born.  Neils homesteaded in northern Minesota in 1890.  The certificate reads:

 

 THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

To all to whom these presents shall come, Greeting:

Homestead Certificate 5752      

Application 8196              Whereas There has been deposited in the General Land Office of the United States a Certificate of the Register of the Land Office at Crookston Minnesota, whereby it appears that, pursuant to the Act of Congress approved 20th May, 1862, "To secure Homesteads to actual Settlers on the Public Domain," and the acts supplemental thereto, the claim of Nils Jensen has been established and duly consummated, in conformity to law, for the West half of the North West quarter of Section twenty six in Township  one hundred and fifty eight North of Range forty eight West of  the Fifth Principal Meridian on Minnesota containing eighty acres according to the Official Plat of the survey of the said Land, returned to the General Land Office by the Surveyor General:

       Now know ye, That there is, therefore granted by the United States unto the said Nils Jensen the tract of Land above described: TO HAVE AND TO HOLD the said tract of Land, with the appurtenances thereof, unto the said Nils Jensen and to his heirs and assigns forever.

      In testimony whereof, I Benjamin Harrison, President of the United States of America, have caused these letters to be made Patent, the Seal of the General Land Office to be hereunto affixed.

Given under my hand, at the City of Washington, the sixteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and ninety, and of the Independence of the United States the one hundred and fourteenth.

BY THE PRESIDENT: Benjamin Harrison

Recorded, Vol. 11, Page 435

Where Martin, who had immigrated from Denmark met Laura Toombs, who was born in New York, I do not yet know, but I will continue to chip away at the story in the years to come.  They were married in 1889 and settled in Stephen, MN, where they had 8 children, the youngest being Hazel, my grandmother.  After Laura died, Martin remarried two more times, eventually ending up a widower living with Hazel and Omer Brossoit in South St. Paul, MN.