Hans and Olive's Life History

"Graves along the Trail" 
Written by Talula Nelson
4 Oct 1972

This family , father, Hans Nelson born 10 Feb, 1817, Billabergo, Malmo, Sweden, wife, Olive Poulson Dahlin born 14 Apr 1823, Billabergo, Malmo, Sweden joined the LDS Church and started for Utah USA. While crossing the ocean measles broke out among the saints, three of the Nelson children died. Mary then four years old lived but was nearly blind the rest of her life.


A tragedy like this is hard to realize, a son almost fifteen years old then a lovely daughter thirteen and the precious baby three years old all tied to boards weighted and slid in the raging waters of the dark sea. Then the days that followed, with Mary depending on her mother and others to guide her in her darkness. This brave family came on to Utah and found their way to Mt. Pleasant where the father was an excellent farmer but the memory of the ocean and the hard work took it's toll on him, he died ten years later, 25 Mar, 1873. His wife, stronger by nature more able to see the pleasant things in life lived until she was seventy five years old, she died 28 Oct 1898.


My husbands father Augustus Nelson was ten when he saw his brothers and sister carefully  let down into the water. The memory was so tragic he never mentioned it, being a kind natured man it was too much for him. He married Ann Porter and raised a family of eleven children.


Mary's eye sight improved some, she was able to care for herself. She married Obed Taylor and had a daughter. These two were soon taken from her. Later she married Christian Madsen, he was a widower with three children. These she raised and had five children by Christian. When diphtheria came her three oldest were taken and she was left childless again. Two more boys were born to her, one died as a baby of whopping cough and the other lived to be fifteen. He was delicate and his weak heart gave out at fifteen.


Mary who was left with a weak heart died at the age of seventy. She was just four years old while crossing the sea, maybe too young to remember the tragedy. After the loss of her own children she took in her brothers baby daughter to raise when death took his wife. This beautiful little girl Theo Nelson was almost smothered with love. She always was a great joy to Aunt Mary.