Person:Peder Mortensen (2)

Peder emigrated to the United States (with all of his family - except his oldest son, who came later) in 1856.

Crippled with Rheumatism. Came across the plains in a handcart company.

Moved to Parowan 01 Dec 1856.

Notes from the book History of Iron County Mission and Parowan.

THE FRIST CHRISTMAS IN UTAH SPENT IN THE LOG COUNCIL HOUSE

Peter and Lene Sandersen Mortenson joined the church in Denmark and were anxious to come to Utah. It was a tremendous undertaking with a large family and a cripple father. Peter was so crippled with rheumatism that he couldn't walk and had to be pushed in a wheel chair. Their oldest son was called to do missionary work in Denmark and one child had died.

Peter and Lena started out from Denmark with their eight children. The trip across the plains, in Willies Hand Cart Company, started just two weeks before the ill fated Martin Hand Cart Company, and suffered many hardships. Peter Mortenson, not being able to walk was pulled across the plains to Salt Lake in an old hand-cart by his family and on to Parowan in the winter of 1856. They arrived in Salt Lake City about November 9, 1856. They wee immediately sent to Parowan, arriving here sometime in December, 1856. They were wonderfully blessed and made the trip without any serious trouble, being on the road a whole year.

Upon arriving at Parowan there was no place to house them so the Bishop very graciously opened the doors of the Log Council House to the weary travlers. The spacious fireplace afforded warmth and cheer as well as a place to cook their food. The good people weren't long in bringing in the straw ticks to sleep on and soon they were comfortably lodged in the meeting house. How thankful they were to be at their journey's end. Here they lived until a log cabin was ready for them but the nights were so cold that it froze the sack of potatoes that had been given to them.

Peter Mortenson was a cooper and shoemaker by trade and although he was unable to walk he could still work with his hands. He helped to make many wooden tubs and buckets and was one of the main ones to help start and operat the wooden and bucket factory.

He managed to keep the little feet of his love one covered, making little slippers out of the tops of worn out boots. He'd tack them onto wooden soles made from scraps of lumber that he'd dress down with grease from bacon rinds to make them hard and irresistible to water and wear; then he'd paint them. The children were Martin, Hans, Anders, Lars - who married Cornelia Decker, Stena - who married Yorgen Hanson, Mettie - who married Christian Rasmussen, Mary - who married Peter M. Jenson, and Caroline - who married Thomas Durham.

So the Log Council House was not only a church and recreation center, but a haven of the rest to those weray feet that had trudged across a continent. As long as Peter Mortenson lived he was pushed and pulled to Church in the old handcart every Sabbath Day.

1.   Viva Cluff Whetten and Lillian Jones Richins, Compliers and Editors Whetten and Richins. The Morten P. Mortensen Family. (Provo, Utah: Brighan Young University Print Services, 1995)
   Page 1.
2.   Iron, Utah, United States. 1860 U.S. Census Population Schedule. (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration Publication M693)
   183.

   Parowan, Iron, Utah HH 1648, Age 54, Farmer