Heritage Trail: Hegsteds/Borglums in Denmark

We were blessed to have the opportunity to visit my husband's paternal Danish ancestral homeland this summer. Heading towards the northern tip of Denmark, you enter a land of midnight sun, endless sky, charming windmills, and unbelievable clouds. In fact, this area is advertised as "the land of light: characterized by the sea, the wind, and the unique light." 

Great-grandfather Victor Hegsted left Denmark as a toddler in the 1860s, so it was the land of Victor's parents Hans Christian Sorensen Hegsted and Maren Borglum that we sought. Maren was born in Aalborg, then attended dressmaking school in Copenhagen, and married Hans in Hjorring. Hans was from Hogsted (thus his adopted American surname of Hegsted). He spent several years walking all through this Danish land preaching as an LDS missionary before emigrating, and his son Victor returned here on a mission in the 1880s. 

Aalborg

Although we didn't have any specific historic addresses to search for, we wanted to get an idea of where this family originated. The local roads are good, and the only toll is one bridge leaving Zealand island, so it was a pleasant drive. Aalborg is a university town with a medieval center about four hours' drive from Copenhagen: west across two islands and then north. Hogsted and Borglum are another half hour or so north of Aalborg. Borglum is a small village with a cloister museum; although we don't know of any specific ancestral connections to the town, the Borglum name and similar area seems to indicate roots there. Hogsted itself is less than ten houses, and if you don't see the street sign, you've missed it. We didn't have time to stop in Hjorring, where the Hegsteds were married by a justice of the peace (having converted to Mormonism, they were no longer attending their local Lutheran church), but we did find the Vrejlev church where Hans was baptized. We also drove past the Vestrebrenderslev area where Hans spent much of his childhood on a farm, and recognized a number of local town names from his missionary journal.

dressmaking shop in Aalborg, thinking of Maren here

scenic Borglum

Borglum cloister (unfortunately closed when we arrived so we couldn't tour)

each Danish town has these helpful signs as you enter and leave the town limits

Vrejlev church

the church's cemetery

the Vrejlev interior

where Hans was baptized

sign for the Vrejlev church

the Vrejlev church

this looked intriguing (but it also was closed)

Hogsted is not more than ten houses and this sign--
easy to miss, as we did the first time around

Hogsted Way

Hard to imagine leaving this beautiful land for the wilderness of Utah and Idaho! So grateful that we could leave Utah ourselves and come experience Denmark.