Visit to Gunnison

On September 1, 2001, we (Gordon A. Christenson and my wife Fabienne) located the gravesite of John Christenson, with his two wives on either side, in the Gunnison Cemetery at Gunnison, Utah. The grave markers were upright stones, with wives' markers slightly smaller. John's is three and a half feet tall.

Gordon A. Christenson with the tombstones of his great
grandparents Johanna and John Christenson, Gunnison Utah, 2001

The three headstones of Gordon Christenson's great grandparents, John Christenson and his two wives Johanna and Christena.

Enhanced image of the headstone of Johanna Christenson. The inscription reads:
Johanna H. Wife of John Christenson 1840-1925

Enhanced image of Christena Christenson's tombstone. The inscription reads: Chrestena O. Wife of John Christesen 1836-1929

Above are two views of the tombstone of John Christenson, with the following inscription:

John Christenson
Born Aug 16, 1828
Died June 8, 1903

Amiable and beloved father farewell!
Not on this perishing stone but in the Book
of Life and in the hearts of thy afflicted
friends is thy worth recorded.

Notes:

• John Christenson was known in Sweden by the name of Johannes Christiansson. The American spelling of John's name differs on the grave marker of his first wife, Christena O., which used the Danish "sen" instead of the Swedish "son" at the end of the surname.


• The spelling of Christena's name on the tombstone is "Chrestena" and is followed by the middle initial "O". She is usually referred to as "Christena" and neither her middle or maiden names started with the letter "O".


• The story of John Christenson and his two wives is told in a novel by my cousin, William K. Ickes, "Two's Company, Three's a Crowd" (1998).


• There is a discrepancy in the year of John's death recorded in the ancestry report of Joseph Christenson's researcher (June 3, 1900) and in the grave marker (June 8, 1903). The correct date is that of the grave marker.


• The front of John Christenson's stone is carved with a shining anchor suspended between opening gates. The anchor is a symbol of hope and the gates are the heavenly gates through which the soul hopes to pass. The top of the headstone is carved with a life-sized book which is the "Book of Life" referred to by the inscription, it is partially covered by a carved shawl with tassels on the ends.