• Letter: from Christiane Bogh to Paul Freeman, 13.10.1904.
Translated from Danish by Eleanor Freeman.

Cathrineberg, 13th October, 1904

Dear Paul,

I received your letter today and thank you for it, and I will write to you at once and tell you about your dear old parents' Golden Wedding, which I think you would like to know a little about. I can say that it was a lovely day for the two old people. The old home was polished up both outside and inside as well as we knew how, and the wedding couple had for the first time wallpaper on in the parlor and small curtains up, which your mother had said would never go up but which she permitted for this occasion.

The loom was moved out and the room put in order and decorated also in there, and a table was set for coffee and chocolate in both rooms for the forty guests who were invited. Dorthea's kitchen was also made pleasant so the guests could sit there if they wanted to. At three o'clock in the afternoon the guests came. Niels Holst with family, old Mads Krestensen, Sandager's, Niels Smed's, J. Bruhn, my brother's, Tulstrup's, Vrang's, your father's family, Berg's, Knudsen's, Fru Juhl, and we from Cathrineberg. The weather was beautiful, and the two old people were in their best finery. Your mother looked fine. On the other hand, your father has declined, although he was fairly well that day.

After we had drunk coffee and chocolate ever so cozily and sat and chatted, we all walked a bit in our garden and were here in Cathrineberg where my husband played and entertained them. Meanwhile the table was set in the old home, and had you been able to peep in, dear Paul, you would not have known it, so festive was it all within, with Father and Mother as honored guests. The meal was prepared at Cathrineberg and included roast beef and roast pork with red wine and kransekage and apple cake with white wine. From the place of honor to the many guests Berg made a speech to the wedding couple and presented to them at that time a gift of money from the Stenderup townspeople of 135 kr., to the great pleasure of the old people. My husband made a speech for Sister Dorthea and regretted that she was the only one attending of the large family of children, which cost Mother and Father tears from the thoughts of the three dear absent ones, to whom we all send many good wishes with the hope that the old people may be permitted to see their Paul again before they close their eyes forever. For Jes and Iver there is small hope for they are building their families, so remember, dear Paul, they are still waiting day and night for your visit. Your mother says, "I would like to see Paul again, but then it would be hard for us to say goodbye to him again, but God's will be done".

After the meal we had a cozy talk with coffee, and it was about 12:30 before we said goodnight to the two old people, whose faces beamed with joy and appreciation for all the honor given them on their great festive day.

Today I was at your parents' and read to them the letter you sent me, which they were glad to hear, as well as your letter to them with the enclosed gift of money, for which they were very grateful, and they asked me to greet you and say thanks for that. They are both well, and they are still very happy about the wedding party.

You asked about Sinnet. She is married in Svendborg and soon will have a child. My husband is, I am sorry to say, plagued with rheumatism and has had to stay in bed a long time, but fortunately he was able to be up for the celebration.

Peter Bogh continues the letter:

Yes, little Paul, a few more words I think. Thanks for being kind enough to write to me.

My wife has already given you an account of your old parents' wedding party. It would have been so charming if you children had been present for the old folks... but the many hundreds of miles which lie between you place an insurmountable obstacle in the way. If you see Jes and Iver, you must give them a greeting from me. Remember to ask Jes whether he can remember the day I drove him to Kolding to leave for America. Jes said then to me that it was so strange for him to think that when we two next saw each other we would be old men. Yes, it strikes me now that I am going on my 45th year, and Jes is 50. God knows whether Jes will ever come home again. Still I have a firm belief that you will come, little Paul. Your father is very feeble and will not be living long, so it can hardly be perhaps that you will see him in this life. However, your mother is very well. They were both very pleased with the wedding party.

Now, little Paul, I will talk no more about it, and I close with kindest greetings from your old parents and sister, and likewise I send you a hearty good greeting from my wife and your devoted, Bogh.

• Letter: from Maren Frimann to Paul Freeman, 21.11.1904.
Extract of the letter (written after the Golden Wedding of Maren and Jacob Frimann):

"We got your welcome letter before that one was sent so I will write a few words and thank you for the letter and many thanks for the gift you sent. You should not have sent it, for the first is all too much. Now we are well helped for a long time. Jesse and Iver sent nearly 80 kr., and you did the same, and we have something left over from the wedding. We received 135 kr. but we paid out altogether a good 70 kr. Fru Bogh helped us with the preparations. It was partly at Bogh's place for we had too little room, but it was all very nice and ceremonious. We had the house a little spruced up outside and inside. They thought it was too simple, that it should have been held in the town, but your father was not able. He could go nowhere.

Fru Bogh was pleased with the letter you wrote to her. She came and read it to me, and I thank God you are well."

• Letter: from Maren Frimann to Paul Freeman, 04.03.1905.
Extract of the letter:

"Fru Bogh is glad that you are coming. You can stay there at night, and in the daytime we can have you. Yes, she is clever and good with your father. She got the last pictures you sent and was glad to have them. Bogh has the books you sent. I don't know whether he can read English, but he would anyway look at them. I don't know whether you could think of some little thing for Fru Bogh... just a little special and something from America."

• FT-1906, 01.02.1906, "Cathrineberg", Stenderup By, Sønder Stenderup Sogn, matr. 2a.

• Letter: from Christiane Bogh to Paul Freeman, 22.02.1906.
Translated from Danish by Eleanor Freeman.

Cathrineberg, 22nd February, 1906

Dear Paul,

From your mother I heard today that you did not receive the letter I wrote you at Christmas. I am very sorry about that and cannot understand how it could happen. I had put in it a photograph of the old house that Valborg (Voldborg Marente Lauritsen, b. 1886) had taken, but it was not better than the one that I am sending you today. Today your mother had a letter from the photographer Burcharth in Kolding saying that you had written to him about coming out here to photograph the house, but your mother has written to him that she would rather have it photographed next spring. Now she has decided that Painter Skov shall come one day and photograph it, so you will be sent a picture before long.

Dorthea is sick and staying in bed, but today she is better. I drop by there every day. Your mother is well except for at little rheumatism here and there, but she is otherwise happy and of good heart. She longs a great deal for her dear Paul, and you are in her thoughts first and last. How good it is of you, dear Paul, that you write so frequently to her. The old soul, it is now the only joy she has. I have permission to read all your letters, which are always so welcome. There are unfortunately so few children who, when they go out in the world, remember their old parents, but you can be sure that your dear old mother realizes your love and consideration for her. We talk about it often, your mother and I, that you write so often that we do not always remember that you are so far away. Can you understand how beautiful a thought and how touching that is for your mother?

We are both well here. Of news here you will have seen long ago that our dear old king died the 29th of January. He died without previous illness. There were such goings on in Koebenhavn as never had been seen in our country for any king's funeral service, for he was so honored by and so popular with all from high to low. Sunday he was buried, and on that day Stenderup's church was beautifully decorated as never before with great quantities of candles and evergreens with their scent.

I am happy to see from your letters that you are well and content and do not seem at all homesick for Denmark, which I can hardly understand since you have so many good friends here.

On Sunday we are invited to Binderup for the engagement of the oldest daughter with a stranger whom we do not know.

For the last two weeks we have had mission weeks at the church, which have been well attended.

We have been busy cutting wood in our forest, but there is difficulty in getting it home since the roads are so bad, and we have had no frost for at long time. Your mother gets her wood at our place, and my husband has promised to carry it right to her door, and that has taken a load off her mind. You know when old people have one thing and another they want attended to, it is important to them. The lock on the outer door is now in order so there is no one who can steel your mother or Dorthea.

I would wish for your mother's sake that she might be permitted to keep Dorthea a little yet. She is very weak, and we all hope that she will go before your mother, which is her sincere wish, but still I wish a bit that she might keep her, though Dorthea is certainly sometimes a little odd. I believe, on the other hand, your mother would miss her, and the two belong together for a while.

In Stenderup it looks just like when you were home, with the difference that we now have winter and dark, sad air, while when you were here we had the loveliest summer. It was nice for you, dear Paul, that the weather was so beatiful when you were home. When are you coming again? I always say that if Dorthea should die first, shouldn't your mother go to America? I think she would do that for your sake, the dear old soul. Nej, it is a shame to move her from the old home where she has lived her days in good times and bad, so you let her do as she wishes. So long as you have only yourself, your old mother is the best you have. I know that, dear Paul, and you are a good son to her.

Write to me when you can. Put it in your mother's letter. And I shall write to you again.

Here are the pictures of the house. Can you recognize your mother and Dorthea? Also a picture of Cathrineberg from the courtyard, which Valborg also took. It is better than that of the old house.

Many greetings from my husband and your affectionate, Christiane Bogh.

• Letter: from Maren Frimann to Paul Freeman, 21.03.1906.
Extract of the letter:

"I hope you got Fru Bogh's letter. She also sent some pictures. She has been good to us at this time. Bogh's have promised that I should get wood. They have not been able to drive in their woods all winter. They go over Hans Lausen's field, and they cannot drive there. We have had a lot of rain and storm, and one day frost - then rain. Last night it froze, tonight it is snowing, so perhaps the roads will be better."

• Letter: from Maren Frimann to Paul Freeman, 25.04.1906.
Extract of the letter:

"I send you compliments from Bogh's. Fru Bogh thinks it was so nice that you sent them a card at Easter."

• Letter: from Maren Frimann to Paul Freeman, 05.09.1906.
Extract of the letter:

"I will let you know that I am pretty well again. I was very sick. Thea was sick too. She was down first so we were able to help each other, and Fru Bogh also helped us."

• FT-1911, 01.02.1911, Strib Havneby, Vejlby Sogn, Villa Napoli, matr. 1?.

• Ligbrænding, 05.07.1929, Krematoriet, Hellerup.

• Urnen nedsat: Hellerup Kirkegård, Hellerup Sogn, Sokkelund Herred, Københavns Amt.

Christiane blev gift med Peder Christian BOGH, søn af Hans Johannessen BOGH og Else Marie JUHL, den 26.07.1884 i Sønder Stenderup Kirke, Sønder Stenderup Sogn, Nørre Tyrstrup Herred, Vejle Amt. (Peder Christian BOGH blev født den 22.05.1860 på "Kellerup", Binderup, Sønder Bjert Sogn, Nørre Tyrstrup Herred, Vejle Amt, dåb den 28.05.1860 i Sønder Bjert Kirke, Sønder Bjert Sogn, Nørre Tyrstrup Herred, Vejle Amt og døde den 06.09.1926 på Strandvej 38, 3., Hellerup Sogn, Sokkelund Herred, Københavns Amt.)

  Om Peder og Christiane:

• Sølvbryllup, 26.07.1909, Strib.
Fredericia Dagblad, 24. juli 1909

Sølvbryllup fejres if. "Kolding Avis" førstkommende Mandag af Proprietær P. Bogh og Hustru, "Villa Napoli" paa Strib.

  Parnotater:

Indt. kirkebog. Vielsesbrev af 15. juli 1884.
Fælles aner: Simon Hansen 1652-1723 og Maren Pedersdatter 1655-1731.