Jørgen Peder Ferdinand Christensen who served in Danish West Indies/St. Thomas

[Gene Miller]

Looking to discover more information about J.P.F. Christensen who served in St. Thomas from roughly 1865-1870. Currently know nothing more than his name on baptismal registry for two children in St. Thomas.

Thanks,

Gene

[bente lindhardt]

Perhaps it is this person:

Jørgen Peder Ferdinand Christensen 15-05-1836 Sankt Olai in Helsingør

Regards
Bente Lindhardt

[Gene Miller]

Perhaps it is this person:

Jørgen Peder Ferdinand Christensen 15-05-1836 Sankt Olai in Helsingør

Regards
Bente Lindhardt

Many thanks! It's an intriguing clue indeed, but where do we go to establish if he is the one who went to St. Thomas? I presume that there is a government archive containing the details of Danish citizens/soldiers on overseas assignments, but where is it and how does one access it?

Gene

[Gitte Johansen]

Alle oplysninger vedr. den valgte person


Kilde:   FT-1880   Kildehenvisning:   59   
Adresse:   Nr. 21 Sidehuset til Venstre. Stuen   
Husstands-/familienr:   83   
Navn:   Jørgen Peter Ferdinand Christensen      Køn:   M   
Fødselsdato:   44      Civilstand:   Gift   
trossamfund:   Lutheran      Fødested:   Helsingør   
Flyttet til kommunen:   1869    Coming to Copenhagen
Stilling i husstanden:   Husfader      Erhverv:   Snedkersvend   
Gift hvornår:   1877   
Husleje:   80
Sogn:   Larsbjørnstræde   Herred:   København (Staden)
Amt:   København   Stednavn:   Nørre Kvarter
Kommentarer:   1 Værelse 2 Vinduer# Nr. Ægteskab 1#   
Indtastningsnr:   D4382   Løbenr.:   466


København, København (Staden), Larsbjørnstræde, Nørre Kvarter, Bispegaardens Rode Matr. Nr.182, 83, FT-1880, D4382
Navn:    Alder:    Civilstand:    Stilling i husstanden:    Erhverv:    Fødested:
Jørgen Peter Ferdinand Christensen   44   Gift   Husfader   Snedkersvend   Helsingør
Karen Marie Christensen født Andresen   29   Gift   hans Kone      Alsønderup Sogn, Frederiksborg Amt

http://cheesygritsandshooflypie.blogspot.dk/2015/05/cheesy-grits-what-we-know-of-adelines.html

The family says, that he maybe went to Denmark in 1869. And he was not married to the mother of his children.

[Gene Miller]

Alle oplysninger vedr. den valgte person


Kilde:   FT-1880   Kildehenvisning:   59   
Adresse:   Nr. 21 Sidehuset til Venstre. Stuen   
Husstands-/familienr:   83   
Navn:   Jørgen Peter Ferdinand Christensen      Køn:   M   
Fødselsdato:   44      Civilstand:   Gift   
trossamfund:   Lutheran      Fødested:   Helsingør   



København, København (Staden), Larsbjørnstræde, Nørre Kvarter, Bispegaardens Rode Matr. Nr.182, 83, FT-1880, D4382
Navn:    Alder:    Civilstand:    Stilling i husstanden:    Erhverv:    Fødested:
Jørgen Peter Ferdinand Christensen   44   Gift   Husfader   Snedkersvend   Helsingør
Karen Marie Christensen født Andresen   29   Gift   hans Kone      Alsønderup Sogn, Frederiksborg Amt

http://cheesygritsandshooflypie.blogspot.dk/2015/05/cheesy-grits-what-we-know-of-adelines.html

The family says, that he maybe went to Denmark in 1869. And he was not married to the mother of his children.

Grateful thanks, Gitte, for taking the time to look for and then post this information. I presume that it is from the 1880 Danish census? The J.P.F. Christensen here seems to be the same one identified earlier: the year of the birth--1836--and the place of birth--Helsingør--are obviously the same. The trade, however, is listed as carpenter; our J.P.F. Christensen seems to have been a policeman in St. Thomas--but then, in the military, one does what one is ordered to do, so the difference of occupations may carry little meaning.

The blog "Cheesy Grits and Shoofly Pie" is my blog about our family history, so the information in it comes from me. What we know is that my wife's great-grandmother, Mathilde Dagmar Christensen, was born on St. Thomas in 1869, and J.P.F. Christensen is listed on the baptism registry as her father. The 1870 DWI census, however, finds Mathilde Dagmar, her brother, their mother (JPFC's common-law wife/concubine), and several half siblings all living on St. Croix in Frederiksted in the West End.

So the indication in the census record that JPFC arrived in Copenhagen in 1869 is intriguing. But we don't yet know where he was coming from when he arrived in Copenhagen. It may indeed have been the Danish West Indies, but the absence of confirming documentation leaves the question open.

Is there a military or foreign service archive where one might look for his service record?

[Mikkel Eide Eriksen]

Hi Gene

The Danish National Archives have recently digitzed a number of records from the West Indies administration. Some of them can be seen here.

Of note, the Soldaterbøger containing "List of from Denmark deployed, and in the West Indies enlisted, recruits to the West Indian army." Litra C 1799–1872 contains a Jørgen Peter Ferdinand Christensen:
https://www.sa.dk/ao-soegesider/billedviser?bsid=215984#215984,40821827

He was deployed April 8, 1860 for a period of 6 years. He was from the "Tøietatens Laboratieetat Helsingør. St. Kjbh. Landrulle J 2283". Tøietaten was the supply troops, I'm unsure whether Laboratorie-etat refers to labor or laboratories. In the notes on the right page, it says he was dismissed on January 27, 1864 and went on to serve the police on St. Thomas!

The latter number reference is to the lægdsruller (military draft rolls), in which he is indeed found in Staden København litra J 1859, no. 2283:
https://www.sa.dk/ao-soegesider/billedviser?bsid=18507#18507,1114983

The lægdsrulle confirms the Helsingør birth place and father's name as Niels Christensen, though it says he was born in 1835. Also, he was a snedkersvend (journeyman carpenter).

The draft rolls were updated yearly, and it should be possible to trace him backwards. However the reference ("Fra Fredsborg 65_26L") is unclear to me. There are only 62 lægder in the litra L 1836 roll for Frederiksborg county... Perhaps someone else can explain that?

Regards,
Mikkel

[Gene Miller]

Hi Gene

The Danish National Archives have recently digitzed a number of records from the West Indies administration. Some of them can be seen here.

[Materials deleted for economies.....]

Regards,
Mikkel

Dear Mikkel,

My deepest gratitude to you for taking the time to dig this information out of the Archive. I've been looking for this link between St. Thomas and Denmark for many years and to see it now fairly takes my breath away.

Of course the inevitable questions arise about the course of Jørgen Peder Ferdinand's life once he returned to Denmark. We've already answered one by discovering him and his wife in the 1880 census, but I think I shall wait until at least tomorrow before beginning to pore over the census and vital statistics reports to see what other traces of his life remain.

I shall always be grateful the hospitality you've shown and hope that I am able to do likewise.

Best wishes to you and yours through the holiday season and beyond!

Gene

[Mikkel Eide Eriksen]

You're welcome, Gene! It was my pleasure

Happy holidays to you & yours as well

Mikkel

[Mikkel Eide Eriksen]

The baptism record confirms the birth year from the lægdsrulle:
https://www.sa.dk/ao-soegesider/billedviser?bsid=151208#151208,25111040

Born November 16, 1835; baptised May 15, 1836. Parents were Opsynsmand ved Badeanstalten (attendant/supervisor at the public baths) Niels Christensen and wife Karen Jørgensdatter.

[Johannes Bønsøe]

Hi Gene,
Arkivalier online, København/Copenhagen, Vor Frue sogn/parish, døde/dead 1879-1891, opslag/ref.no. 55:
1884  6. of May (death),  11.th. of May (burial)  Christensen, Jørgen Peter Ferdinand, gift/married.
Værtshusholder/barkeeper,   Larsbjørnstr.(-de) 11,  alder/age  49.

and same as a.m. Hovedministerialbog 1878 D - 1891, opslag/ref.no. 48 further more mention cause of death  as  pneumonia. Here age is mentioned as 59 - should be 49..

Kindly Johannes Bønsøe