Christopher Jensen Kempe was born in Denmark on 26 June 1837 to Jens Rasmussen and Ane Kirstine Neilsdatter Kempe. He was raised by his maternal grandparents: Neils Larsen Kempe and Marie Christensen. There are no records to indicate what happened to Christoper's mother after he was born, she may have died in childbirth. Christopher did not know his father and never met him. He didn't follow the tradition of taking his father's last name, Kempe is his mother's name and the name he wanted for himself - it means "champion or fighter" and that's just what he was. He was sent to school when he was 7 and then apprenticed in his uncles' wagon shop. He loved to read in his spare time. Desiring to travel, he left his small Danish town for Copenhagen to be a wagon maker. He rented a room from Mrs. Espelund and here is where he learned of the LDS church. After asking the landlady for books to read, she lent him the STERJNE. Christopher said of this book: "Of this volume I found an article written by Apostle Erastus Snow on the importance of living a virtuous life. I read this to all my associates, stating that if ever I could find a people like this, I would go to the ends of the earth to join them." A few nights later, he was shown a vision of the street, house and room where a meeting of the LDS missionaries would be held and a few days later this vision was fulfilled. The road, and place looking so natural to him as if he had been there a hundred times. On February 16, 1859 he was baptized into the LDS church. The teachings resonated with his desire to live a pure life. This may have resonated with him because of his experience of being raised without a father as a result of their actions. His family opposed his baptism and an uncle tore up his will that was made in Christopher's favor of $60,000. He never lost any sleep over this. A month after his baptism, he was called to serve a mission in Sweden and Denmark and 5 months later was called as president of Helsingborg Branch. He served 7 years as a missionary after requesting 3 times to be released so he could go to Utah, it was time and left on the ship B.S. KIMBALL on May 10, 1865. Arriving safe. He traveled in the Miner G. Atwood Company across the plains. Arriving in SLC 8 NOV 1865. He married two wives, Oline Olsen and Anna Dorthea Johnson and had 16 children. Lived in Provo, Richfield, UT and then called to settle northeastern Arizona along the Little Colorado River, St. Johns, Bush Valley (Alpine) and Concho, AZ. He served 2 years in Detroit penitentiary for polygamy release 9 OCT 1886 received pardon from Pres. Grover Cleveland. After returning home, he was called as bishop in Concho and served as such for 9 years. It was a very hard life, but he worked hard and owned a general store and had fine large orchards. He was called to serve a 2nd mission at the age of 62 in Scandinavia. Arriving back home 27 APR 1901. Once home he started again to replant his crops when he had a fatal accident and was called and set apart as a Patriarch. he lost his balance and fell off the wagon. Two wheels passed over the middle of his body, crushing vital organs and even cutting off the tip of his ear. he was 64 and in good health the time of the accident. After 12 days of agony, he passed away 3:52pm on 30 SEPT 1901. Christopher Jensen Kempe. Native of Denmark, A pioneer settler of Utah and Arizona. He was a missionary, father, farmer, horticulturist, philosopher, merchant, carpenter and preacher. He loved to read and write and was an excellent speaker.

Bio courtesy of Jocelyn Jones

Christopher's first wife was Anna Ongerd. She died on the passage to America. His second wife was Olena Olsen Halvorsen (though she is recorded differently in different letters). I have a statement from her daughter, Charlotte Kempe Mangum, that her family had decided to keep the same surname and they had settled on Halvorsen. When she went to the temple, the temple worker insisted because she was Scandinavian and her father was Ole Halvorsen, she needed go by the name of Olena Olsen. (Don't know why Christopher was allowed to change his name to Kempe so that he could get his mail and that request was honored, when she was not allowed to keep her correct maiden name. In family records it's recorded that he couldn't get his mail in Utah because there were too many people with the last name of Jensen, so he added the last name of Kempe). Olena and Christopher's children were Joseph, Hyrum, Helena, Nephi, Ovidia, Otto, Eugene, Clara, Charlotte and Jeneva. The other children were those with Anna Dorthea Johnson. I was always told that the wives were very close and the children didn't distinguish between which child came from which wife, because they loved each other so much.

Sent by Susan Hamblin Hawkins