Mons Andersen: Norwegian Convert and Missionary to His Own Family (1829–?)

Mons Andersen was born February 8, 1829, at Ringsaker, Hedmarken, Norway. He emigrated to America in 1848, locating in Wisconsin, and started for California in 1852. Along the way he accepted the restored gospel and became a Latter-day Saint. He married Christine on July 3, 1854, and lived in Salt Lake City until April 1858, when they moved to Lehi, Utah Territory, where he helped build the young settlement. In 1870, Mons Andersen returned to his homeland as a Mormon missionary: he came to his nephew's home, brought the local elders, and held meetings, through which his relatives heard the gospel he had embraced. His life is a witness of the early Scandinavian converts who left their native land for the gospel's sake and then carried the message back to those they loved.