Nicolai Sorensen's Home at Haverup Denmark—
This sketch of a four sided home, is of typical Danish style for the period of our Nicolai Sorensen family. A home such as this belonged to the Sorensen family prior to removing to Utah. There is no picture of this home, that was later completly destroyed by fire. There are pictures of Nicolai Sorensen's father (Soren Abrahamsen) home in near by Fjenneslev, which are located in this section. The style and construction of both these homes was much the same. Haverup, is the current name spelling of the small town that the Nicolai Sorensen resided in. Haugerup, is the older spelling and was in use at the time the family lived there. The name changed soon after the family sold the home and farm and journed to America. I try to use the current spelling, but you should be aware of both.
Isaac Sorensen starts his personal history, with this remembrance of his danish homeland —
My father was a farmer as well as a mechanic, he had a shop where he kept men at work, his trade was carpenter and wagon maker, but he was away from home much of his time on business for the insurance company, thus he kept hired men on the farm as well as in the shop. I was raised to farming having no particular desire for the shop. When seven years old I commenced going to school, there being no school in our little town, I had to go to the town of Pedersborg about a mile and a half distant. It was customary in that county to go every other day, there being two classes one to meet each day. This was in the common country school, but in schools of more advanced studies they attended every day. My parents, like all or most of the inhabitants of that country belonged to the Lutheran Church, (or Protestant Church) being named after its great reformer, Luther who done so much and succeeded in them northern countries in throwing off the Roman Catholic yoke and bringing a new and better light to that portion of the world in regard to God and his Holy Scriptures.(1)
Jacob Sorensen, speaking of his father, Nicolai and their home in Denmark relates —
Their home was in Haverup, [Sorø Amt.], Denmark. It was built to form a square, about 150 feet on each side. One wing was used for the family living quarters. A large recreation room was in the east end. Then the living rooms, bedrooms and a large kitchen with bake ovens.
In the bedrooms there were two tiers of beds; the lower beds were used by the smaller children and the upper ones for the older ones. The other three wings were used for farm machinery, hay, grain, cattle, etc. The inside of the buildings formed a court or yard. Outside of the buildings the people had their gardens, farms, pastures, etc. The kind of buildings a family built depended on the social standing of the family.
The children started to school when they were seven years of age. They were taught reading, writing, and arithmetic. The Danish language was thoroughly learned. Nearly everyone in Denmark can read and write, even the peasants or poor class. The children were taught to help with the chores and the farm work.(2)
- Isaac Sorensen, The History of Isaac Sorensen, Unpublished journal manuscript. Transcribed to typescript by Rodney J. Sorensen, 3-4 July 1987.
- Jacob F. Sorensen, History of Jacob Sorensen, Typed manuscript.
