Sophie Marie Sivertsen

Biography

Sophie Marie Sivertsen was born on August 25, 1824 in Copenhagen, Denmark. She was the fifth of eight children. Sophie's mother was a cook in the King's palace in Copenhagen, and the family lived in the servant's quarters there. When she was older, she waited on the King's soldiers in their quarters. This is where she met Peder Christian Hannibal, a soldier in the King's army. On February 7, 1845, she married him. They had three children in Copenhagen, one daughter, Emilie, and two sons. The younger of her sons died only a few months after his birth.

In 1853, Peder and Sophie joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They made the decision to emigrate to Utah to join other members of the Church. After a long journey, they arrived in Utah in September of 1853. They settled in Spring City first before moving to Centerville and then to Salt Lake City. Sophie was said to be a very strong, hearty woman. She had a very beautiful garden, and her grandson claimed that once when a neighbor's calf got into it, she picked up the calf and threw it over the fence. Sophie and Peder did a lot of temple work, and when he died, eight years before she did, Sophie moved in with her daughter Emilie. She died on June 30, 1915 when she was almost ninety-one.