James Hansen

James Hansen (Hanson) was born May 3rd 1856, on a island in Copenhagen Bay, Denmark.

He came the America at 17 (1873), and settled in Wisconsin, where he was naturalized. James was a carpenter by trade, and his work took him to Iowa. There he met and married Ruth Anne Willis on Oct 8, 1883. That same year they moved to South Dakota and homesteaded on the Rosebud Indian Reservation.

They had eight children, three of which (sons) died in infancy. Three daughters were born on the reservation; Laura, Alice and Hazel.

They moved to Belvedere, Nebraska, where two more daughters, Ruth and Ella were born.

James died in Denver, Colorado on Oct 30th, 1940 at an Old Folk's home. His body was cremated and his ashes buried in the same plot as Ruth (she died May 8th, 1925) at Red Cloud, Nebraska.