Bodil Malene Nielsen

Bodil Malene Nielsen (Mortenson) was the fifth of six children born to Niels Otto Mortensen and Maren Kristine Olsen Hansen, both of Denmark. Bodil Nielsen was not baptized with her last name of Mortensen and was not called that before she came to America, because the law was you should have the same last name as your father.

As members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the family desired to join others in the Salt Lake Valley. However, with limited finances, family members immigrated to America as their budget could afford. Therefore, Bodil traveled from Denmark with friends of the family and joined the Willie Handcart Company. She had a sister waiting for her in Salt Lake.

Exhaustive travel conditions, disease, injury, lack of food and medicine, premature birth, and extreme weather were some of the greatest threats to pioneers. Cholera, a bacterial disease caused from contaminated water, infected many of the travelers. Furthermore, the Company left late in the season placing the Saints in the path of starvation, severe snowstorms and frigid temperatures. Of the 500 Saints in the Willie Handcart Company, 67-70 pioneers died before reaching the Salt Lake Valley.

Exhausted, weak, cold, and starving, 10-year-old Bodil went out to gather wood for a fire. She was found the next morning, frozen, sitting against the wheel of a handcart with twigs in her hands. She is buried by Rock Creek Hollow, Wyoming, with others who had died at that time.

From the history of Bodil Nielsen (Mortenson): “Winter storms began early that year and slowed the travel of the company. The snow was already more than a foot deep, a blizzard was raging, and the temperatures were freezing. A howling October snowstorm blinded ten-year-old Bodil Mortensen as she climbed with several other younger children, shivering and hungry, up the snow-covered slope of Rocky Ridge. Bodil was exhausted and weak, the young girl struggled on her way, hoping to reach Salt Lake City to be with her sister. Bodil was apparently assigned to care for some small children as they crossed Rocky Ridge. When they arrived at camp, in the wee hours of October 24, she must have been sent to gather firewood. All she could find was twigs of sagebrush. The next morning she was found leaning up against the wheel of a handcart, twigs clutched in her hands, frozen to death.”

Christina Madsen, daughter of Ole Madsen who also died at the Rock Creek camp says: “Bodil sat down by the side of the road ... she was so hungry, she also died that same night. They who died that night were laid in a small ditch with their boots or shoes on and covered."