Kjerstin Jönsdotter

Biography

Kjerstin was born in 1836. She was described as pretty, small, dainty, and gracious. She grew up in Sweden and married Lars Andersson, a tall man with black hair. They had eleven children together and lived in a very nice home. Kjerstin was the first in her village to own a stove, hanging lamp, and sewing machine. They owned 40 acres, an orchard, a barn with lots of farm animals, a bathhouse, and a greenhouse surrounded by lilac bushes. The children would play in a pond nearby and skate during the winter.

Kjerstin and Lars were devout Christians, but happily opened their doors to missionaries of other churches. However, after hearing wild rumors about the Mormon missionaries and then with one of their daughters converting, Lars was entirely against them. He died a few years after their daughter, Ingrid, emigrated. Not until after he passed did Kjerstin and the rest of her family begin to slowly convert to the Mormon faith as well. By the time she herself left Sweden, she gave up all her inheritance and support from the government in order to join the saints and the rest of her children.

Kjerstin traveled with four of her children and arrived in Utah the summer of 1884. It was her wish to offer an apostle a drink of water. That desire was granted when she lived with the prophet Heber J. Grant for a while and looked after his son. That became a comfort to her at times when she missed her family and homeland. Another hope of hers was to live to be at least ninety. Two weeks after her ninetieth birthday she passed away.